Page 28 of Edge of Danger

There was no fighting it. She had no reason to say no unless she felt like confessing the entire truth. That wasn’t going to happen.

“Okay.” She shrugged with a sinking heart. “Sounds great.”

Chapter Eleven

“You sure I can’t get you something to eat?”

Tessa felt sorry for the waitress. The poor woman was only trying to earn a decent tip, or at least to turn over the table in hopes that the next customer to sit there would order a meal and leave a few bucks.

She offered an apologetic smile. “Just coffee for me. Thank you.” The waitress frowned before walking away.

Tessa wanted to spill her guts, to put it all out there. How hungry she was. How the aroma of fried food and juicy burgers made her mouth water and her empty stomach clench up tight.

How almost every cent she had in the world was going to this endless cup of coffee, which at least she could get free refills on. It helped curb her appetite, though not by much.

And being inside the diner gave her someplace warm, dry and safe to while away the hours.

What a fun Friday night she was having.

Looking around, she was reminded of the world still turning. There were people whose lives made sense. People who went out on a Friday night, had fun and went to the diner for a plate of fries or a stack of pancakes to soak up the alcohol they’d just drank. People who got together with friends and talked about their week before comparing weekend plans.

Life went on for these people. They didn’t know what it meant to live one lie after another. What it was like to feel her desperation. Forced to spend endless hours alone with nowhere to go, all so she could be with her baby. So his guardian wouldn’t know about the lies Robert had concocted.

She wasn’t the first person to deal with this, and she knew it. Being homeless, having no money.

Which was probably the only thing that kept her going. Knowing other people also dealt with challenges.

She chuckled at the sight of the purse sitting next to her in the booth. Brax had been so happy when he’d gotten the call that morning from her cell—somebody had turned it in at the police station after finding it in the mall parking lot. It hadn’t gotten far after all.

Even her phone and wallet were still inside. Her driver’s license, all of it.

Except for the money.

Just another cruel joke. Having to pretend to be happy her purse had been found. Brax didn’t know she’d carried all of her money inside. And there was no way of telling him without revealing a whole lot more.

So even though she’d been terrified at the thought of losing Walker for the weekend and distraught at knowing she had no money, she’d marveled over how smart it had been for the officer to call the most recent contact in her cell and ask if they knew her. How lucky she was to have her wallet and phone back.

Right. Lucky.

It was easy to fall into despair, especially when she had the prospect of spending the night in the back seat of Brax’s car to look forward to. Though all things considered, it was better than an alley.

A flash of light reflecting off metal caught her eye, made her look out the window. Pure reflex, nothing more than that.

Reflex fast enough that she was able to catch sight of a pockmarked face staring out from inside a car passing slowly outside.

She knew that face. She’d never forget it. Just like she’d never forget the sound of his voice as he’d warned her to find Robert.

What was she supposed to do? She was trapped, cornered, her heart thudding. The car rounded the block but would be back. She knew it in her bones.

Her hands shook as she dug around for the loose change she’d collected—she wouldn’t stiff her waitress, even now.

The sight of her phone sitting there in the bag froze her in place.

Her phone. This confirmed that was how they kept finding her. Whenever she left it on, somebody came sniffing around. It was how they’d tracked her to the office building, how her attacker had found her at the mall.

Now, how he’d found her at the diner.

She dropped a handful of quarters on the table before ducking into the ladies’ room, careful to keep her head down, her face turned away from the window in case the car came around again. She fought the impulse to run, struggled to remain calm, to act as if nothing out of the ordinary was going on.

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