Darby went through the sequence of events with Detective Pride, ending with the moment she brought the lamp down on Reyes’s head.
“You took a risk going for his gun like that.” Pride frowned. “You’re lucky you weren’t shot.”
“Better me than Leo.” She regarded the detective steadily. “Under the exact same circumstances, I’d do it all again.”
He sighed. “And the next time, you could easily be seriously injured or worse.”
She thought about how Gage had insisted that God was watching over them and couldn’t deny she’d prayed more in the past two days than she had in her entire life. Scarred by the Preacher, she realized now that Gage was right to stay focused on the positive side of things.
God may have helped all the foster kids escape the fire that fateful night. And God may have been guiding her when she went through rehab, gave birth to Leo, and met Edith.
“Darby?”
Pride’s voice broke into her thoughts. “Uh, sorry, I missed your question.”
“Can you remember exactly what Reyes said to you?”
She thought back. “He honestly didn’t say much. He told us he was waiting for us and to get inside the room. He told Gage to get his hands up where he could see them.” She slowly shook her head. “I was so focused on inching closer to him so I could try to get the gun away from Leo that I can’t remember anything else.”
“You have no idea how he found you here at the hotel?”
She shrugged. “I assume he must have managed to follow us. Although how he managed that with the precautions we took is difficult to comprehend.” Then she remembered Gage’s suspicions about Officer Crow. “Reyes could have gotten inside information from someone.”
“Someone?”
She flushed under his flash of anger. “You have to admit it’s possible.”
“There are plenty of ways Reyes could have found you,” Pride said tersely.
“You need to do your part in keeping us safe,” she shot back. “A five-year-old shouldn’t be held at gunpoint.”
A pained expression crossed his features. “I know. And I am working on that.” Pride glanced down at his notebook. “Do you have anything else to add?”
“No.” She rose. “I would appreciate it if you’d refrain from questioning Leo. I think he’s been frightened enough as it is.”
“I won’t. But I’d like to speak with Edith, to understand how Reyes got inside the room.”
She wanted to reiterate what Edith had told her, but she knew the detective would prefer to hear the information firsthand. Upon returning to the living area, she crossed over to Edith. “You’re next.”
The woman who’d been like a mother to her stood. “When he’s finished questioning us, we can leave?”
“Yes.” She gave Edith a quick hug. “I’m sorry you had to go through this.”
“I’m just glad it’s over.” Edith hugged her back, then crossed over to the bedroom to speak with the detective.
Darby’s gaze landed on Leo and Gage. They were playing with a couple of cars, and just seeing them together made her smile.
Gage would be a part of Leo’s life from now on. Gage was already acting like a father, and Leo certainly deserved to have Gage nearby.
They’d have to figure out a way to make it work. She was relieved Reyes had been arrested, but the fact that they’d been found here in Asbury still worried her.
Gage glanced at her, and she could see the same concern darkening his gaze. “When Edith is finished, we’ll need to pack our things.”
“I know.” She honestly didn’t want to stay here anyway. The memory of Reyes holding a gun pointed at her son was too fresh in her mind. “Do you have a plan?”
Gage nodded. “Sort of. But I’ll fill you in later.”
One of the local cops still stood in the doorway, and she realized Gage didn’t feel comfortable speaking freely in front of him. By the scowl on the officer’s face, he wasn’t too happy about that either.
In the past, she and Gage had spent a lot of time hiding from the police, working hard not to get caught with the goods. Gage had been far better at eluding the authorities. Her drug use had skewed her ability to think clearly, which is how she’d gotten caught. In her defense, she’d just learned she was pregnant and had left their apartment in a rush because she’d been too afraid to tell Gage. When the cop had confronted her, she’d been too stunned to react quickly enough to escape.
And then she’d gone a step further, betraying Gage in order to go into rehab rather than jail. A decision that she’d agonized over at the time. It hadn’t seemed fair to turn Gage in to the police as he’d always been nice to her.
Unlike Aaron Dukes. In hindsight, she should have added Aaron to the list she’d given the police that night. At the time, she hadn’t seen Aaron in several months, but she still could have told them what little she knew about him.
Nothing she could do to fix that now, though. It was still surprising to her that Gage wasn’t holding a grudge against her for that.
Because he’d found God.
She looked again at how easily Leo played cars with Gage. Maybe it was time for her to open her heart and her mind to faith and God.
Not just for herself, but for her son.
A few minutes later, Edith and Detective Pride emerged from the room. Darby stepped forward. “Are we free to go?”
Pride nodded. “Where are you headed?”
“Not sure yet.” Gage left Leo on the sofa to join her. “All you need to know is that we’re going off-grid. I’m not saying anything more. I refuse to take a chance on someone finding us again.”
Pride looked as if he wanted to argue, but he didn’t. Instead, he reluctantly nodded. “Understood.”
“You need to find the skinny guy who stole the black Ford truck,” Gage added. “He’s still out there, somewhere.”
Darby suppressed a slight shiver. Skinny guy was the only threat that remained, unless of course Reyes had someone within the police department on his payroll.
“I’ll check in with the crime scene techs on whether or not they found anything on the truck,” Pride agreed.
Darby figured if there were prints in the truck, they’d have found them already. She helped Edith pack their things. It didn’t take long, except for gathering Leo’s toys, which happened to be strewn all over the suite.
“Okay, Leo, time to go,” Darby said.
“Noooo, don’t wanna.” Leo whined and held a small plastic car firmly in each hand. “Wanna stay.”
“We can’t stay,” Darby said. “We’ll find someplace new.”
“With a water slide?” Leo asked.
She glanced helplessly at Gage. “I don’t think so.”
“I wanna swim.” Leo’s green eyes filled with tears. Darby knew he was overtired and likely still suffering from anxiety after Reyes had threatened him with a gun.
“Not today,” Gage said firmly. “Listen to your mother.”
Leo eyed him warily, as if unsure whether or not he should comply. But when Leo turned toward her, she stepped up beside Gage, providing a united front. “You heard us, Leo. We’re leaving now.”
Edith came over and held out her hand. Leo reluctantly took it. Gage shouldered their bags, and they walked through the hotel lobby, past several police cars still parked outside the building.
“Police cars,” Leo said with enthusiasm.
“Yes,” Darby agreed, glancing at Gage, who swept his gaze over the vehicles as they passed by.
“This way,” Edith said. “My car is over in the small parking structure across the street.”
“Your car?” Gage glanced at her in surprise.
“How did you think we got here from Knoxville?” Edith asked. “We certainly didn’t fly.”
“I—guess it never occurred to me.” Gage’s expression turned thoughtful. “I’m not sure if we should take your car, could be that Reyes stumbled across it, which is how he knew you were here.”
“No way could he have known which room we were in,” Darby insisted. “Not without inside information.”
Gage nodded thoughtfully. “I guess taking the rideshare from the country club didn’t help much.”
“It should have.” Darby paused at the bottom of the hill, feeling the keen gaze from several of the officers standing near their squads. “We could take another rideshare out of here, but we’d need Leo’s booster seat from the car.”
Gage considered that for a moment before turning to Edith. “How long has the car been in the structure?”
“Since we arrived.” Edith waved a hand. “Everything has been within walking distance, so I haven’t used the car once.”
“Besides, if Reyes had followed Edith’s car, he would have showed up well before now,” Darby pointed out. “Edith and Leo been here for the past three days.”
“Not necessarily. Remember, you and I were his main targets,” Gage countered. “We know he orchestrated several attempts against us.”
And likely had arranged for Archer’s murder.
She glanced at Leo, hoping the little boy wasn’t following their conversation too closely. “I still think Reyes would have shown up here sooner if he knew their location. It was the quickest and easiest way to get to us.” As he ultimately had. Darby would have easily given her life for her son’s.
“We shouldn’t stand around talking about it,” Edith said briskly. “I say we get to the car and drive for a while. We can always come up with an alternative plan once we’re out of Asbury.”
“Sounds good,” Gage agreed.
“Yes, but where are we going?” Darby asked.
Gage grimaced. “Not back to Knoxville, that’s for sure. I was thinking Seymour. They have a few hotels there.”
Darby tried not to wince at the idea of staying at yet another hotel. She understood the need to remain hidden, but for how much longer?
She and Gage didn’t have enough money to do this indefinitely.
Not to mention they both had jobs they couldn’t afford to lose. She also didn’t want Gage to violate his parole. His ending up in prison again wasn’t part of the plan.
“This way,” Edith said, gesturing for them to follow. From here, Darby could see the modest two-story concrete parking structure. She took Leo’s hand as they crossed the street and headed down the road to the right where the entrance of the structure was located. There were many cars parked there, the hotel was obviously experiencing a great surge in summer tourism. Edith led them toward the far left back corner of the first floor of the structure.
Edith’s vehicle was a gold Chevy Lumina with less miles than what Darby had on her Accord. Well, her former Accord. It was toast now.
The nice thing about covered parking is that it prevented the sun from heating the interior of the vehicle to unbearable heat levels.
Still, even with being parked under cover, a wave of stale hot air greeted Darby when she opened the passenger side door. “Ugh.”
“Open all the doors to air it out,” Gage suggested as he placed their bags in the trunk. When he finished, he approached Edith with his palm up. “Would you mind letting me drive?”
“Of course not.” She dropped the keys into his palm.
“Do you know where Seymour is?” Darby asked as she buckled Leo into his booster seat. “If not, I can drive.”
She’d no sooner finished with Leo when a man emerged from behind one of the large concrete pillars holding up the second story. The blood drained from her face when she saw the gun in his hand and recognized him as Aaron Dukes.
“Well, well. Looky what I found.” Aaron’s smile didn’t hold any humor. In fact, there was an evil darkness in his eyes that reminded her of the Preacher. She shivered as sweat slipped down her spine.
“Aaron.” Darby tried not to show the extent of her fear and revulsion. “Reyes has already been arrested, and I know he won’t hesitate to rat you out. If you were smart, you’d get far away from here, especially considering there are several cops hanging around the hotel. Whatever revenge you’re seeking isn’t worth getting arrested, is it?”
“I don’t care about Reyes or the cops. I got friends in high places.” Aaron’s gaze pierced her. “I want you, Darby. If you want the others to live, you’ll come with me.”
Her heart thudded painfully against her chest. The last thing she wanted was to go anywhere near Aaron.
But she didn’t want him near her son either.
With a sick sense of certainty, Darby knew she had little choice but to comply with Aaron’s demand.
Gage finally understood that Darby’s former boyfriend, Aaron Dukes, was the skinny guy they’d glimpsed driving the black Ford. He eased his hand into his pocket to use his phone. Calling Pride had worked before, he hoped and prayed it would work again now.
Aaron wasn’t wearing gloves, which meant his fingerprints would be all over the gun. If they found a way out of this mess.
“Now, Darby,” Aaron barked. He lifted the gun up and aimed the muzzle directly at Gage. “Or I start shooting.”
“Why?” Gage asked, trying to divert the guy’s attention. “What’s the point of shooting us all, bringing the cops rushing over to arrest you?”
“The point is, I want Darby,” Aaron repeated between clenched teeth. “Get moving or we’ll all die here. Including the brat.”
Gage winced at the way Darby reacted to his reference to Leo. “Okay, I’ll come with you.” Darby took a step toward Aaron. “But you need to put the gun away.”
No! Gage curled his fingers into fists. He was not going to let Darby go anywhere near that creep. He didn’t trust him not to shoot them all anyway.
“Yeah, right,” Aaron sneered. “Not happening. Get over here, Darby.” Aaron turned so the gun was now pointing at Edith. “Or the old lady goes first.”
“I said I’m coming,” Darby snapped. “Excuse me for finding it difficult to walk toward a maniac holding a gun.”
Gage swallowed hard as the muzzle of the gun swung toward Darby. At that short of a distance, even an idiot like Aaron wouldn’t miss.
“Maniac?” Aaron repeated, his voice dangerously soft.
Darby instantly realized her mistake. “I’m sorry. But can’t you see you’re scaring me?”
“You should be scared,” Aaron taunted. “You never should have left me for him.” Now he jabbed the gun toward Gage.
From the inexpert prison tattoos decorating Aaron’s hands and forearms, Gage knew Aaron had been locked up for a significant period of time. If not, he would have come after Darby a long time ago.
And prison was likely how Aaron Dukes had teamed up with Reyes. Both guys must have stayed at a high security prison, whereas he’d been sent to a lower security facility.
A blessing, truly, or these guys would have made his life miserable over those four years. Gage needed God’s grace and wisdom to get out of this now.
Come on, Pride, he silently urged. Hurry up and find us.
His position behind the car didn’t help the situation. Darby was the closest to Aaron. Edith too. They’d both been along the passenger side of the car.
He had the driver’s side door open about an inch. He eased it open a little more, needing enough room to hit the horn. The sound would summon others to the area.
But it could also push Aaron over the edge, causing him to start shooting.
Gage hesitated, torn with indecision.
“Where are you taking me?” Darby asked, taking another step closer to Aaron. Gage noticed she purposefully stayed to the side, as if ready to jump into the path of a bullet should he begin to shoot.
From the corner of his eye, Gage thought he saw movement behind a couple of the parked cars. Cops?
Please, Lord, help us!
“Mommy!” Leo’s abrupt cry startled Aaron.
Gage instantly hit the horn. “Get down!”
Darby dropped to the ground as several cops rushed forward with their guns raised. “Put the gun down!” a cop shouted at Aaron.
Aaron’s weapon turned toward Darby.
“No!” Edith screamed and jumped forward as Aaron pulled the trigger. The cop fired at Aaron, hitting him in the abdomen.
Aaron screamed as he stumbled backward beneath the impact of the bullet. Darby crawled to Edith as the cops surrounded Aaron.
Gage quickly joined Darby and Edith, raking his gaze over them, searching for blood. “Are you hurt?”
“H-he missed,” Edith wheezed. She put a hand to her chest. “I-I don’t know how, but he missed.”
“God was watching over us,” Darby whispered. She looked up at him. “Right?”
“Right.” He wanted to gather Darby into his arms, but Leo’s crying tore at him. He spun toward the car and reached inside for his son.
Gage carried Leo over to Darby and Edith. As they held each other, Gage closed his eyes and thanked God for watching over them.
This time, their nightmare was really over.