to breathe.
She exhaled slowly. Emma wouldn’t be there. She had made sure of that. When they’d spoken on the
phone, she had convinced her sister not to come up to the hospital. Maybe it hadn’t been so difficult
because she hadn’t wanted to come. Had readily agreed to stay with Jessica until Ava got home.
Whatever the reason, she had been thankful her sister wouldn’t be here. She didn’t want Emma to
witness her first steps back into the house. Didn’t want her to see the fear.
Because she was chock full of it.
Hopefully by the time her sister arrived, she would have dealt with her demons and Emma would only
see her clumsy older sister, be relieved she was okay, and go about her day-to-day life as though none of
this had ever happened.
Ava wouldn’t be able to move on as easily as her sister, though. He—possibly they —was still out there.
Even after he was caught, Ava worried she’d never feel truly safe again.
The officer parked the car in front of her house. “Ready?” he asked, looking over at her.
No. Not even close .
The house looked the same. Innocent enough. From the outside, no one would know that two days ago
a horrific event had taken place inside. That lives had been changed forever because of it.
Nerves compressed her chest until she felt as if she were suffocating. She forced an inhale between her
lips, and slowly exhaled.
It’s just a house. Your home .
Still she could not move.
Maybe she should’ve called a friend to bring her home. But she hadn’t. On top of the fact that she
didn’t want anyone to see how afraid she was, she also didn’t want anyone to see her bruised and swollen
face. The fewer questions she aroused, the less lying she’d have to do. What if one of her regular customers
from the cafe asked a question she wasn’t prepared to answer? What if she told one person one thing and
got it wrong with the next? She was a crap liar.
Though she longed to get back to her coffee shop, she couldn’t chance it. She wasn’t sure about the
backlash from SPAC if she screwed up her story.
So she’d made the difficult decision to take a week off from work to heal. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust
her employees to handle things while she was gone, she did, but that coffee shop was her baby, and with
her best friend Jimmy out of the country, it was a lot harder to place her baby in someone else’s hands.
Thankfully Jimmy was out of the country, though.
If the cops hadn’t bought her story, he sure as hell wouldn’t, and he’d get all protective on her ass. With
everything she was dealing with, she didn’t need that right now. He wasn’t scheduled back from his
vacation until tomorrow afternoon, so it gave her some time to figure out how to handle him.
“Miss Michaels?” the officer said. “Are you ready?”
She blinked and shot a glance at him. “Uh…yeah. Sorry.”
Taking another deep breath, she opened the cruiser door, climbed out, and withdrew the crutches from
the backseat. Slowly she made her way up the path to the front door.
After she unlocked the door and let it swing open, the officer made to step inside. She shook her head.
She had to face this alone. “I’m fine.”
“Let me make a quick sweep of the house, okay? Then I’ll let you get adjusted.”
The words were said softly, kindly, as though he understood what she needed. She was thankful for
that. Nodding, she shuffled backward to allow him inside. A few minutes later, he returned. “All’s clear. No
chemical scents or shifter residue. I’ll be out in the cruiser until the unmarked car gets here to cover you. If
you need anything, let me know.”
Ava waited for him to reach the car before she stepped inside and closed the door. Everything looked
the same. Nothing out of place. As homey as ever. But there was a sinister feeling in the air now. No
amount of leaving the lights on would make her feel safe now. Even with the sunlight pouring in through
the
She exhaled slowly. Emma wouldn’t be there. She had made sure of that. When they’d spoken on the
phone, she had convinced her sister not to come up to the hospital. Maybe it hadn’t been so difficult
because she hadn’t wanted to come. Had readily agreed to stay with Jessica until Ava got home.
Whatever the reason, she had been thankful her sister wouldn’t be here. She didn’t want Emma to
witness her first steps back into the house. Didn’t want her to see the fear.
Because she was chock full of it.
Hopefully by the time her sister arrived, she would have dealt with her demons and Emma would only
see her clumsy older sister, be relieved she was okay, and go about her day-to-day life as though none of
this had ever happened.
Ava wouldn’t be able to move on as easily as her sister, though. He—possibly they —was still out there.
Even after he was caught, Ava worried she’d never feel truly safe again.
The officer parked the car in front of her house. “Ready?” he asked, looking over at her.
No. Not even close .
The house looked the same. Innocent enough. From the outside, no one would know that two days ago
a horrific event had taken place inside. That lives had been changed forever because of it.
Nerves compressed her chest until she felt as if she were suffocating. She forced an inhale between her
lips, and slowly exhaled.
It’s just a house. Your home .
Still she could not move.
Maybe she should’ve called a friend to bring her home. But she hadn’t. On top of the fact that she
didn’t want anyone to see how afraid she was, she also didn’t want anyone to see her bruised and swollen
face. The fewer questions she aroused, the less lying she’d have to do. What if one of her regular customers
from the cafe asked a question she wasn’t prepared to answer? What if she told one person one thing and
got it wrong with the next? She was a crap liar.
Though she longed to get back to her coffee shop, she couldn’t chance it. She wasn’t sure about the
backlash from SPAC if she screwed up her story.
So she’d made the difficult decision to take a week off from work to heal. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust
her employees to handle things while she was gone, she did, but that coffee shop was her baby, and with
her best friend Jimmy out of the country, it was a lot harder to place her baby in someone else’s hands.
Thankfully Jimmy was out of the country, though.
If the cops hadn’t bought her story, he sure as hell wouldn’t, and he’d get all protective on her ass. With
everything she was dealing with, she didn’t need that right now. He wasn’t scheduled back from his
vacation until tomorrow afternoon, so it gave her some time to figure out how to handle him.
“Miss Michaels?” the officer said. “Are you ready?”
She blinked and shot a glance at him. “Uh…yeah. Sorry.”
Taking another deep breath, she opened the cruiser door, climbed out, and withdrew the crutches from
the backseat. Slowly she made her way up the path to the front door.
After she unlocked the door and let it swing open, the officer made to step inside. She shook her head.
She had to face this alone. “I’m fine.”
“Let me make a quick sweep of the house, okay? Then I’ll let you get adjusted.”
The words were said softly, kindly, as though he understood what she needed. She was thankful for
that. Nodding, she shuffled backward to allow him inside. A few minutes later, he returned. “All’s clear. No
chemical scents or shifter residue. I’ll be out in the cruiser until the unmarked car gets here to cover you. If
you need anything, let me know.”
Ava waited for him to reach the car before she stepped inside and closed the door. Everything looked
the same. Nothing out of place. As homey as ever. But there was a sinister feeling in the air now. No
amount of leaving the lights on would make her feel safe now. Even with the sunlight pouring in through
the
Similar Books
