Forever and the Night (The Black Rose Chronicles) by Linda Lael Miller

lot stronger than you give her credit for,” she said.
    “She’s had to endure enough suffering as it is,” Hargrove said. “Once it’s all over, and she’s—she’s at peace, then I’ll go to the authorities with the truth.” The rental car bumped onto the highway and fishtailed slightly on the ice-coated asphalt. The senator’s attention was fixed on Neely. “I’ll do anything to protect Elaine,” he told her. “Anything.”
    Neely understood. “You’ve done your duty by warning me,” she replied, “and now I’m on my own. Does that about cover it?”
    Hargrove nodded. They rounded a bend, and the café sign came into view, a symbol of everything ordinary. Just then Neely would have paid practically any price to have a mundane life again, uncomplicated by desperate politicians, vengeful drug dealers, and her unremitting fascination with Aidan Tremayne.
    They came to a stop in front of Neely’s trailer, and Hargrove looked around nervously. Then he reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and took out an envelope. “Here—take this cash and get as far away as you can, as quickly as possible.”
    Neely didn’t want to accept the money, knowing only too well where it had come from, but her choices were limited. She’d put aside a little over the past few years, but it was mostly in long-term CDs, and she wouldn’t be able to get to it without drawing unwanted attention to herself.
    “Thanks,” she said without checking the contents of the envelope or looking directly at the senator. She opened the car door and got out, and even before the sound of the engine had died away, Neely was packing a suitcase.
    When that was done, she borrowed Ben’s truck and went to town to pick Danny up in front of the school. He beamed when he saw her and broke away from his friends, who were boarding a bus.
    “Hi,” he said, flinging himself onto the springy leather seat beside her. “What’s the deal?” Danny paused and frowned. “I don’t have to go to the dentist again, do I?”
    Neely shook her head and smiled, but at the same time she fought back tears. “No, you’re done with dentistry for a while, kid. I do have news, though, and frankly I’m a little worried about how you’re going to take it.”
    Danny’s freckles stood out against his pale skin. “Those bad dudes are after you, aren’t they?”
    Neely drove down Main Street, past the drugstore, the Sweetie-Freeze drive-in, the library, and the bank. She was going to miss this town, but not as much as she’d miss Danny and Ben. She frowned. “What do you know about anybody being after me?”
    “I heard you and Dad talking once.”
    Neely eyed the sheriff’s office as they passed and wished she could solve the problem by stopping in and reporting the situation, but she knew that wouldn’t work. If the FBI hadn’t come through for her, she could hardly expect protection from an aging, overweight sheriff with one part-time deputy. No, her only real hope was to get her copies of the evidence against Dallas Hargrove and the others and turn it over to the media. The trick would be in staying alive long enough to pull it off.
    She reached across the seat and ruffled Danny’s soft brown hair. “I should have known I couldn’t keep something like this from a super-detective like you.”
    There were tears in Danny’s eyes. “You’ll come back sometime, won’t you?”
    Neely was possessed of a sudden and rather ill-advised fit of optimism. Incredible as the prospect seemed, she had to make herself believe she was going to survive this mess— if she didn’t, the terror of it all would immobilize her. “You bet,” she sniffled. “Once the good guys get their licks in, everything will be okay again. In the meantime, I want you to promise me two things—that you’ll say a prayer for me every single night, and that you’ll look after your dad.” Danny offered a high five, and Neely completed the gesture. Now all she had to do was tell