Page 97 of Break Me Not

“Mom, I know you're capable. But I don't think you can⁠—”

“No,” I said in a strong tone and grabbed her arms, giving them what I hoped was a reassuring squeeze. She was just as affected by this as I was. I needed to be the adult now. “I can do this. I had a moment. The moment is gone. I appreciate you being here for me, but now I need you to go. Yes, it was him. And because this has been escalating, I need to know you’re safe.”

Her face deflated just as she let out a small sob that I could tell she had been holding in for too long.

“He knows where I live. He sent me a birthday card. I should've told you. You don’t think he would hurt me, right?”

Once, I would have been able to tell her her father would never. But now…

Breaking windows and breaking into my gallery was enough to cause fear and annoyance, but at least then I knew he was only targeting me.

Jen had been in the gallery today. Claire had been with me. And if he had been following us, as I suspected, he would know about our lunch dates. In my mind, he had set that fire knowing all of us could be in there.

That included his daughter.

I cursed under my breath. There was no way I could send her home. I was left with only one option.

Taking out my phone, I dialed a number. Sloan answered on the second ring.

“I'm watching the news. It doesn't look good. Is⁠—”

“I need help. A ride. A place to lay low. And someone really good with computers.”

I expected her to laugh, but her voice sounded cool and collected as she replied, “Already on my way.”

Relief ran through me. I didn't have a long list of people I could trust, but thankfully Sloan was one of them. Even if she had held information from me.

When I looked at Claire again, small tears had started falling from her eyes, and her hands were shaking. She's scared. I held her hands in mine.

“A lot of things are going to happen very quickly, so I need you to listen and listen well.”

She nodded, and I saw the determination in her eyes, but also the fear.

“Now, what do you know about Club Pétale?”

“If I hear that you told Claire⁠—”

Sloan held up her hands. “Listen, if she asks, I won’t lie to her face. She's a grown⁠—”

“My daughter,” I corrected, glaring at her. “Keep it simple. Keep it vague. I already told her the gist of it, but obviously not everything.”

I turned to look at Claire, who was in the living room, where she and Lillian were trying different sweets they’d brought over for her. She still looked spooked, but Lillian's presence seemed to be helping her relax a bit.

“Don't worry, we won’t corrupt your daughter,” Sloan said, placing a hand on my shoulder. “But are you sure you want to do this?”

I nodded. “Have you heard anything from your contacts?”

“She's in holding. It's as good as it can be. They're not torturing her or anything—they can only get away with so much. My lawyer is already on the way to meet her, and she will have their fucking heads if they even touch a hair on hers.”

I nodded, but I still couldn’t help the sickly feeling in my stomach.

“What's the chance that she actually goes to jail?”

Sloan rocked back on her heels. “My lawyer is really good, but from what I know, they've been trying to get her in custody for a long time. They're likely using this as a stepping stone to charge her for other things. I definitely wouldn't put it past them to try some shady shit.”

“So… likely?”

“Look, I've been to jail. It's not that bad when you have the right connections—” I gave her a glare that stopped her in her tracks. “I know. I'm sorry, that's not what you want to hear.”