Page 50 of Letting Go

"He's repatriated others. Gone and kidnapped them from their homes and returned them to the compound. Then it’s a long protracted legal battle for families to try and extricate their loved ones. I've helped with several cases, financially, but we've lost all of them. I met with two of his first lieutenants or whatever he calls them, yesterday. Matt and Mike." He waves a hand. "No last names. They're here, but they say they don't know where he is."

"You didn't answer the question," I remind him.

Raymond looks uncomfortable. "He's capable of a lot of things. I would say that puts her in danger."

Chapter Thirteen

Chloe

It's nine-thirty at night and time for chefs to go to bed. But sleep isn't coming. The sheet is dry against my skin, but my pillow is hot and I can’t get comfortable. Five am isn’t all that early, but I have to get up to make the muffins.

Three hours later, the stairs are creaking. That can only mean that Bryce is back from Portland. I hear him sit on his bed. Then he's up again. Pacing. With him next door, I didn’t even bolt my newly fixed door tonight. Besides, I don’t want another night like last night with all the drama. Jesus. What is happening to me? One minute I'm fine and the next, I'm like a trapped animal.

Because, once, I was a trapped animal.

The click of his door closing initiates another round of him pacing his room like a tiger. He seems to be going around and around, opening and closing the window. Opening drawers, more pacing. Finally, there's a gentle tap on our door, the door between our rooms, and I'm excited to see him. More excited than I want to be.

"Just a sec," I say wrapping the sheet around me and turning on the small bedside lamp.

"Hey." He steps into my room and then closes the door. "We need to talk." There's pain in his eyes. He looks terrible, anguished, and when our eyes meet, I immediately know it's about me.

"What happened?" I say, swinging my legs down to the floor and patting the bed next to me. But he doesn’t sit.

"We need to talk about Everlast."

My heart, breath, stomach, all catch in my throat, and I swallow. I can practically hear defenses going up, with walls crashing down, and though I don’t want to be, I feel myself pulling away so fast it's like I'm not even in the room anymore. This conversation will be transactional. My voice sounds robotic.

I look at him.

"Everlast, Chloe."

Like I need reminding.

"I need to know how you were—are—involved, and why this Reed Clifton asshole is after you."

Where to begin? I can't.

After a moment he tries again. "Chloe, I just spoke to Reed Clifton's brother. He's looking for him too. He hired Colton Security because your Claire's sister and he thought he could find him through her. Through you."

This explained Claire's comment that set Finn off, I thought someone was following me too…

"Reed Clifton from Louisiana? Ring a Bell? A guy with blond hair blue eyes and talks with a Cajun burn? Took you away to a compound called Everlast? Chloe!"

All I can say is something not helpful. "He's British. Isn’t the same guy."

"What do you mean?'

"I mean," I draw the sheet up tighter around my chest, "His name's Reed Wilton and he's from Castleton, near Sheffield in England, a place with a big cave where he said he would go and sit and pray and God would speak to him."

"He's lying. He's faking his background. Did you believe that last part?"

"What part?"

"That he was speaking to God?"

"No. But I wasn't part of the group the way other people were. I didn't help found the group. I was just part of Everlast and dragged along for the ride."

Bryce fills the room. He commands it. Meanwhile, I'm shrinking inside the sheets. His voice is so low I strain to hear him.