Page 23 of Malice

“Of course. I couldn’t keep him from knowing they’ve been removed though, so you’ll need to keep an eye out for him for a while.”

“We’re all going to keep an eye out for him for a while,” Lurch spoke up, looking around the table at each of the men. “I don’t have a photo of him yet and there’s always a chance he could send someone out to do his dirty work, so let’s all keep an eye out for anyone who shouldn’t be here.” He met each gaze again, then continued. “You see someone, you run them off and let me know immediately, do you understand?”

A chorus of yes and yes, sirs, echoed from around the table.

“Okay. Now that that’s settled, let’s eat.”

18

“Iseverymeallikethat?” Bonnie asked as they walked together back to Corey’s cabin.

“What do you mean?”

“Quiet, polite, almost subdued. I would expect with that many people, mealtimes get loud and boisterous. They always did at home, and there weren’t quite as many people.”

“They are usually louder and usually the only time everyone is there is breakfast. Typical dinner doesn’t always have Ghost and Robyn. And there’s usually one or two men who choose to do something else for dinner. Tonight, everyone was there because Lurch put the word out. He wanted you to meet everyone. I think they were trying to behave so they don’t scare you off.” They walked a few more steps, then Corey spoke up again. “Breakfast is quieter. Everyone’s still waking up, drinking coffee, and trying to get as much food in as they can because they know there’s a long day ahead of them. Give them a day or two, you’ll see how things go.”

“So we go up there for every meal?”

“Breakfast and dinner. Lunch is usually sandwiches, stew or something that can be made in bulk and we can wander in and out as we have time, and it’s left in the bunkhouse. I’ll make sure you get something tomorrow since there’s no food at my place.”

“No need. I’ll be at work.” It was sweet that he planned to make sure she had food, but she wouldn’t be there, so it wasn’t necessary.

“I’ve been thinking about that,” Corey said.

“What about it?” She glanced over at him then back down at the path, making sure she didn’t trip over a root or step on a rock and twist her ankle.

“I’m not sure if you should go to work tomorrow. I’m not sure it’s safe. We know he was tracking you, so even if you never told him, he likely knows where you work. I’m afraid he’ll show up there and try to abduct you again.”

They reached the cabin. Bonnie climbed the steps as she tried to put together her argument. She’d thought about that too, but she couldn’t put her life on hold for fear of what Phillip would do. She waited until they were inside, then tugged Corey over to the worn sofa to sit before speaking. She turned so she could face him.

“I thought about that. I did. But I can’t let fear of him rule my life. Today there was something I had to deal with and that made it reasonable for me to call in. Tomorrow if I don’t go to work, I’ll sit here worrying about how to pay the bills, about losing my job, about Phillip.” She shook her head. “I can’t do that. Not to mention it will be letting him win.”

“This isn’t about winning, it’s about you being safe. It’s about you surviving this sawed-off little dickwad.”

She took a deep breath and held it for a moment before releasing it. “You’re right. Win isn’t the right word. I can’t let my fear of him control me. Because that’s no different than letting him control me, and I can’t do that. Not only would it be giving him what he wants, but I’m just not built that way.”

Corey started to protest, but she held up one hand to stop him.

“I’m not saying I’ll be careless. I won’t. but I also don’t think he’ll confront me where there are cameras to catch his behavior.”

“He did with your car.”

“We still don’t know if it actually was him. Maybe he hired someone to do it. I do think he’s responsible, but I’m not convinced he’d get his own hands dirty doing it.”

“I wish I could say I had a connection to the police department so we could know what they were doing, but I haven’t been in town long enough.” Corey shook his head. “I still think you should at least think about taking another day, maybe two, until we have a better handle on what’s going on with that fuckwad. But that’s all I’ll do. Tell you what I think. I’m not going to force you to do what I think you should.”

Amusement at Corey’s refusal to call Phillip by his name and instead using a variety or insulting names made her want to laugh, or at least smile, but this wasn’t the time. He’d likely think she wasn’t taking him seriously. And she was, but she also knew she needed her job. If she was going to continue living on her own, without having to ask her family for help, then she needed to go to work.

Bonnie took a deep breath and let it out slowly as she tried to figure out how to say what she needed to.

“I’m not dismissing your concerns. I’m not even disagreeing with them. But I have to work.” He started to protest but she held up one hand, stopping him as she continued to speak. “I’ll think about taking tomorrow too. I’m not saying I’ll call in again, but I’ll think about it. But if nothing else happens, then I’ll have to go in the next day. I can’t afford to lose my job.”

“Thank you.” Her promise to consider it seemed to take the wind out of his sails. “I don’t want to see you hurt and I hate the idea of you going back without someone to make sure he doesn’t pull that shit he pulled outside the diner again. I hate thinking he might succeed.”

“I get it. I hate thinking about what might have happened if you hadn’t been there to stop him. But I also can’t let fear rule my life. He surprised me. He won’t have that advantage again. I’ll be careful from now on, and you know I have three brothers. I’m not entirely helpless. They made sure of that.” She looked up at the ceiling, noticing for the first time the large beam crossing through the middle of the room, and wondering what kind of insulation the place had. Would it be warm in the winter?

She shook her head, pushing her thoughts back where they were supposed to be. “I can’t say there will be no danger. I won’t lie to you or me like that, but I’ll do my best. I’ll be alert and aware. I won’t ignore my instincts and if I have any thought that there might be something to worry about, I’ll either ask for an escort out to the parking lot or call you for help. Does that make you feel better?”

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