Chapter 8: No Place To Run
Ray’s driver pulled up exactly thirty minutes later—a sleek black SUV, clean and comfortable, nothing like my old car that rattled every time I hit a bump. The man at the wheel smiled warmly at Lily and opened the back door for her like she was the most important person in the world.
We checked into a boutique hotel downtown, the kind with fluffy white beds, fresh cookies at the front desk, and a view of the city lights. Lily stared at the room like it was a castle, running her hand over the soft blanket and touching the fluffy pillows.
“Mom?” she whispered as we got ready for bed, her voice small in the quiet room. “Are we safe now? They won’t find us here?”
I hugged her tight, breathing in the sweet scent of her shampoo, and kissed the top of her head. “Yeah, baby. We’re safe. No one’s going to hurt us ever again, I promise.”
But back at the house, my parents were pacing around the kitchen, angry and confused.
“Where’d she go?” Dad snapped, staring out the window at the empty driveway. “Her car’s still here. She couldn’t have gone far.”
Mom scowled, wiping at the juice stain on the tablecloth with a rag, even though it was already set. “She’ll be back. She’s got nowhere else to go. No money, no job, no friends who can take her in. She’s just throwing a tantrum to get what she wants. She’ll be on her knees begging by morning.”
Then her phone buzzed on the counter. It was an email from a lawyer she’d never heard of, with a subject line that made her blood run cold: NOTICE OF TRUST VIOLATION AND ASSET FREEZE.
She opened it, her hands shaking so bad she could barely hold the phone. She read the first few lines, then let out a small gasp.
“Tom,” she said, her voice cracking. “It’s… it’s about the trust. They know.”
Dad grabbed the phone out of her hand, his eyes scanning down the screen fast. His face went pale gray, like all the blood had drained right out of it. He sank into a chair, staring at nothing, and didn’t say another word.
And somewhere down the hall, the old grandfather clock struck midnight—marking the end of the life they’d stolen, and the start of the fight to take back what was mine.
