Page 55 of The Finder

“It’s me, baby. You’re safe. You’re in my house. Nothing and no one can hurt you here,” he said as he pushed her hair away from her sweaty face. He moved and Emma grabbed at his shirt.

“Please don’t leave me,” she whimpered, hating her weakness but terrified of being alone in the dark.

“Never,” he said softly. “I’m just going around to the other side of the bed.” He climbed into bed on the other side and very carefully put his arms around her and held her. “Go back to sleep, Emma. I’ll be right here when you wake up.”

It was the safest Emma had ever felt in her entire life. She relaxed against him and drifted off to sleep once again.

Emma woke up the next morning alone. She looked over to where Garrett had been or at least she thought he had been. She wasn’t really sure. Maybe it had been a dream. She sat up slowly and took stock of herself. She felt much better than she had. She looked for her phone but couldn’t find it anywhere. She figured she had left it downstairs.

She slid out of bed and made her way towards the closet. She found a sweatshirt and threw that on over her pajama shirt. She assumed she was going home today. She couldn’t decide how she felt about that. When she stepped out of the room, she heard voices in the kitchen area. She walked down the hall and towards the open area. Liam was sitting at the table with Paul. Max was leaning against the wall, looking out the window, and Garrett was walking towards her.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there when you woke up,” he said softly when he stood in front of her. “I had to deal with some stuff.”

“It’s okay,” Emma said softly.

“No, it’s not. I said I would be there when you woke up, and I wasn’t. I’m sorry,” he said again.

Emma put her hand on his arm. “It’s okay, Garrett. I’m fine. What’s going on?” she asked nodding towards the guys.

“Nothing that can’t wait. Let’s get you some breakfast,” Garrett said.

Emma walked over towards the table. “Good morning,” she said to Liam, Max, and Paul. Liam stood up and gave her a gentle hug.

“How are you doing?” he asked.

“Much better,” Emma responded and sat down carefully.

Was it Emma’s imagination or was everybody on edge? Liam, especially. He wasn’t rocking the easy-going vibe he usually had. A nervous feeling settled in Emma’s stomach. She wondered what was coming.

Chapter 31

Garrett put a plate in front of her with an egg and toast and handed her a glass of orange juice. He didn’t sit down but moved back to the kitchen. She turned her head to look at him. “Did I leave my phone down here yesterday? I can’t find it. And I can’t believe I didn’t ask this before now but did you let Helen know everything that was going on—why I haven’t been at work?” she asked.

“I called her,” Garrett said. When he didn’t say anything more, Emma turned back around to her food. She would just look for her phone after breakfast.

"How are you feeling, Emma?” Paul asked.

“Much better. Still sore and stiff but nothing like before,” she said.

“Good,” Paul said. “I want to check your ribs before I leave.” Emma nodded and focused on eating. A few minutes later, she was done.

Paul stood up and came towards her. “May I?” he asked.

“In the living room,” Garrett said as he stepped behind her and put a hand on her back, leading her to the living room. She held up her shirt while Paul unbound her ribs and checked them. Garrett stayed right where he was, so her back was against his chest. She wasn’t immune to what he was doing; he was blocking her from the view of the other guys at the table.

“Everything looks good; it’s going to take a few more days for your ribs and the bruising on your stomach to heal. Take it easy for a few more days,” he said as he rewrapped her ribs. Emma agreed. “All right, well I’m out of here,” he said to Emma and Garrett.

Garrett guided her back to the table. “Emma, can you do something for us? I want to see what happens when you touch one of the guy’s hands,” Garrett said.

“She can do me,” Liam said, standing.

“Not you. Max,” Garrett said, obviously irritated.

Max turned his head towards them and didn’t move for a moment. Finally, he took a few steps towards Emma and put his hand out. Emma glanced at Garrett. He nodded towards Max. Reluctantly, Emma put her hand out towards Max, hoping he wouldn’t break hers or something in the process. The moment Max’s rough hand touched hers, a bright light shone. She didn’t yank her hand away but let it play out. She saw flashes of a table, a backpack, books. Then she saw a girl. The girl turned towards Emma, and Emma gasped and let go of Max’s hand, losing the connection.

“What did you see?” Max growled at her. Emma was still trying to compose herself. That had felt so real, like the girl was looking right at her. “What was it?” Max said again, taking a step closer.

“Back off,” Garrett warned.

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