Page 82 of A Pen Pal for Christmas

I grumbled under my breath but draped the blanket over my shoulders.

A flash of headlights momentarily blinded me as another police car pulled up. Officer Carter—the same one who’d responded to the break-in at the inn—stepped out of his cruiser, notebook in hand.

He nodded at us as he rounded the ambulance and approached Sofia. Her legs dangled a few inches above the pavement, making her look even smaller than she was.

Carter crouched slightly so he was more at eye level with her. “Miss Sullivan, I know this is a lot to process, but we need your account of what happened. Just take your time, and we’ll work through it together.”

Sofia nodded, her grip on the blanket tightening. “Okay.”

“Whenever you’re ready,” he said gently, “just start at the beginning.”

“Chris spilled a drink on my dress,” she started, her voice barely audible. “I went to the bathroom to get cleaned up, and I passed a woman in the hallway…”

My jaw tightened at the mention of the hallway. I’d let her walk off alone. And then listening as she went on with the events that unfolded after she’d practically been taken from under my nose… It was a special kind of torture.

My fists clenched as she continued speaking, shaking with the effort it took to stay in control. Beside me, Tommy’s hand landed on my shoulder, grounding me enough to keep me from losing it entirely.

When she got to the part about trying to figure out where she was and then spotted the screened-in porch, I knew where she was going with that.

“It was how I knew I was in the house,” she said. “Hudson’s house.”

“Our house,” I whispered, but then I had to pace away for a beat to collect myself.

The words hit harder than I wanted to admit. The fixer-upper I’d been so proud of and so excited to work on. The one I couldn’t wait to show her. That monster had turned it into something straight out of a nightmare.

Sofia kept talking, recounting Rex’s fixation on her, his plans to use her as bait. But when she got to the part about escaping—running barefoot through broken glass—I actually thought I was going to be sick. Picturing her bleeding feet as she sprinted for her life was too much.

Sure, I’d seen the cuts. The bandages. I’d known it was bad. But hearing her describe it in her own words…

“You’re okay,” Tommy murmured under his breath, barely audible. I wasn’t sure if it was meant for me or her.

Sofia’s voice dropped as she described the moment Rex caught up to her. “He grabbed me and said I couldn’t get away. He had the gun, and I thought…”

She paused, swallowing hard, her eyes shining with unshed tears. “I thought it was over.”

Carter’s voice was calm, almost soothing. “But it wasn’t. You’re here now. You’re safe.”

She nodded, her jaw tightening, but then she looked up at him, her expression twisting into something almost hesitant. “There’s… something else.”

Tommy and I both straightened at the same time, the air between us snapping taut.

Carter tilted his head, his pen hovering over his notebook. “Go on.”

Sofia glanced at me, and for the first time, I saw a flicker of guilt in her eyes. “When he grabbed me in the hallway, he put a rag over my nose and mouth. It smelled like chemicals, and I couldn’t fight it. I passed out.”

The weight of her words slammed into me, knocking the breath from my chest. I didn’t even realize I’d swayed on my feet until Tommy’s hand landed on my arm, steadying me.

“What kind of chemicals?” Carter asked.

“I don’t know,” Sofia admitted, her voice small. “It was sweet… and sharp. I think he put something on it to knock me out.”

Tommy’s grip on my arm tightened as if he knew I was seconds away from snapping.

Drugged. He’ddruggedher.

I exchanged a sharp glance with Tommy, who looked like he was fighting the same battle I was: The urge to go back in time and make Rex pay—fully and completely.

Carter nodded, scribbling in his notebook. “That’s important, Sofia. Good job. We’ll make sure it’s added to the charges.”

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