Page 30 of Conquer

Eleven

Sam

Someone was watching me.

Adrianwas watching me.

The instant I had the thought, I knew it to be true. I was almost dizzy with the rush of emotion that came over me. Sick with it.

He was watching me, knew all there was to know about me. He had met my mother.

And then another truth hit me with that same clarity.

I had been right.

I had been right, and I’d trusted that truth to the one person I never, ever should have.

I was frozen for a moment, stunned, unsure of what to do.

I was also ill with my own stupidity, nearly frozen with it.

Some small part of me wanted to lie there and die.

I deserved it. I certainly didn’t deserve anything better for being so foolish. So blind and so arrogant.

I couldn’t do that though.

I didn’t know what he planned to do, so I had to do something.

I sent out a quick prayer of thanks that my mother was gone, and then thought of my next move.

I stood and made my way to my bedroom and quickly changed into sneakers and jeans and a T-shirt, but not before making sure they didn’t have any of those little black rectangles.

I froze for moment, my mind reeling as I thought about the unreality of what was happening.

I was legitimately searching my shoes for bugs. It wasn’t because I was paranoid or running away with my overactive imagination.

It was because it was true.

I dumped out my purse and was tempted to search through it but decided I wouldn’t take the time.

Instead, I grabbed the seventeen dollars I had in it and retrieved the hundred-dollar bill I always kept for emergencies, and then I left.

I couldn’t take my phone, and didn’t dare take my car, which meant I was on foot. No transportation, no communication. Nowhere to go. I’d also left my gun, but I wouldn’t risk going back for it.

Yet another realization that almost demoralized me.

I didn’t let myself give in to that though, and instead I focused on my next move.

Maybe I would head to work and tell anyone who would listen that I’d uncovered a great conspiracy?

They’d laugh in my face, probably prosecute me for snooping around the files.

I had to be smart about this, smarter than I had been about anything up until now.

And most of all, I had to stay out of sight.

Which left me with one option.

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