“Colt and Taylor. It wasn’t either of them. Maybe your eyes were playing tricks on you?” he suggested.
“Maybe, it wouldn’t be the first time today,” I mumbled.
“What do you mean?” His eyebrows raised in question, and I looked at him, biting down on my lip. “Quinn…” he warned. “What aren’t you telling me?” Sitting down on the bed, I fiddled with the edge of the t-shirt I was wearing.
“When we were in Marble Falls this afternoon, I thought I saw someone…” I trailed off. “When I looked back, they were gone. It probably wasn’t who I thought it was. Just my mind playing tricks on me,” I rambled.
“Who was it you thought you saw?” He pulled my fingers from the hem of his t-shirt and held my hand in his.
“Evan,” I said quietly. I watched as his face filled with anger and just from holding his hand I could feel his whole body go rigid.
“Where? When?”
“When we were outside the gift shop, waiting for your mom and dad. I thought I saw him go into the grocery store up the street. Like I said, when I looked again, he’d gone.” I lifted my eyes to his and saw his jaw tic. “It couldn’t be him though, he has no idea where I am.” I was trying to convince Brody as well as myself. Brody remained silent and after a minute or so of him saying nothing, I squeezed his hand.
“Do you think it could have been him?” I asked, panic beginning to set in as he hadn’t immediately tried to reassure me that it couldn’t have been Evan. “Brody?” I whispered. Sighing, he moved closer toward me.
“After what we’ve just shared I wanted to wait until tomorrow to talk to you about this, but now that you’ve told me you think you saw Evan…” He trailed off.
“Talk to me about what?” My stomach churned with nerves as I waited for him to say something.
“When you first told me what Evan had done, I had Ethan, a friend in the police department in town, run Evan’s name through their database. I wanted to see if he’d ever been in trouble before.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I didn’t want to worry you.”
“Did your friend find anything?” He nodded.
“Yeah, baby, he did.” He raked his hand through his hair. “He called me earlier. Evan’s wanted for a triple homicide, Quinn.”
“What?” I whispered, fear gripping my stomach. “Are you sure?”
“I wish I was wrong, sweetheart.” His face was etched with worry and I’m sure mine mirrored his.
“Who did he kill? Was it the guys he owed money to?”
“Ethan said it was some local drug dealers. Could that be who he borrowed the money from?” He wrapped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me into his chest.
I nodded, inhaling his familiar scent, a scent up until a few minutes ago I’d associated with feeling safe. Now I didn’t know if I’d ever feel safe again. “Where is he now?” I was terrified to hear his answer, but I needed to know.
“They don’t know, baby. Ethan wants to come and talk to you tomorrow. They knew you lived at the address where the bodies were found. They thought something had happened to you too.” He held me tightly and I knew he was thinking how lucky I had been to get out alive.
“He killed them in the house?” A sob escaped my throat as tears ran down my cheeks, and I found myself crying against his chest.
“Shhhh,” he muttered into my hair. “Please don’t cry. I can’t stand it.” Leaning against his chest I realized how stupid I’d been. I’d allowed myself to get swept up in my relationship with Brody, fooling myself into believing I could make a new life for myself here with him. I should have known Evan would catch up with me. He blamed me for everything that had happened. There was no way he was going to leave me to get on with my life.
I’d brushed off thinking I’d seen Evan earlier in Marble Falls, but now Brody had told me what he’d found out, I was sure it had been him. Just like I was sure it had been Evan I’d seen through the bedroom window earlier. If that was the case, then he’d found me, and everyone I knew was in danger.
Brody
Iheld her as she sobbed against my chest. I’d seen no sign of anyone outside when I’d been to check. That didn’t mean no one had been there though. I’d spoken to both Colt and Taylor; neither of them were on the ranch. I couldn’t get hold of Mason, but I was sure it wouldn’t have been him.
Sniffing, she lifted her head, her puffy red eyes meeting mine. “It was him in Marble Falls, wasn’t it? And outside a minute ago? He’s found me.” Her voice was thick with tears and her body was shaking. She was terrified.
“We don’t know that, sweetheart. He’s got no idea where you went when you boarded that bus.”
“It was him,” she insisted. “I know it was.” She pushed out of my embrace and climbed off the bed, standing on shaking legs. Looking at the floor, she whispered, “I have to go, Brody.”