Page 19 of Bridles and Bribery

“Eloise Phillips is going to church?” Gil’s voice rose in disbelief.

“Not because she wants to.” She’d made that clear enough. “She said something about Dave having her hide if she let me go anywhere alone. I’m not really sure what she meant by that, since I’m more than capable of driving myself.”

“It means you’re very important to him, and he’s not taking any chances with your safety.” Gil’s voice was earnest. “Until he figures out if this Prophet fellow poses a genuine threat to you and the baby, he’s gonna treat it like a real threat.” He paused a beat. “And so am I.”

“In that case…” Jillian jogged barefoot into the hallway. “I’ll wake up Eloise and take her to the safe room with me.”

“Perfect.” Gil described how to lock the steel door behind them once they were inside the safe room. “Don’t worry. I have a key to your home. I’ll let the security team in and have them sweep the premises. Don’t leave the safe room until I tell you it’s clear. Got it?”

“Got it.” Jillian pressed a hand to her heart as she disconnected the call. “Eloise?” She called her mother-in-law’s name as she made her way across the great room. “Eloise, can you hear me?” She made plenty of noise in the hallway, not wanting to sneak up on the woman and catch her by surprise.

“What in the world is going on out here?” The door to the guest room flew open, and Eloise popped her head around the doorframe. She had on a pink face mask with cucumber slices balanced against her eyelids.

“I’ll explain everything in a minute. Right now, I need you to come with me.” Jillian moved forward to clasp her hands beneath her mother-in-law’s elbows, guiding her further into the hallway.

“Oh, goody! A surprise. I love surprises.” Eloise clappedher hands energetically. “Especially in the middle of the night.”

Despite her sarcasm, she didn’t put up any resistance while Jillian led her to the massive master bedroom closet.

“This is taking a while,” she muttered while Jillian felt around the mirror to locate the hidden button.

“Almost there.” Jillian watched in amazement as the door to the safe room swung open. Beyond the thick wall of steel was a square room roughly ten feet wide by ten feet long. Flipping on the light switch to her right, she discovered it was a surprisingly clean and well-furnished space.

A gun cabinet stood against the far wall. The room also contained a desk, a pair of leather recliners, and a tiny closet that turned out to be a bathroom.

“You can open your eyes now.” Jillian shut the door behind them and carefully locked it like Gil had instructed her to.

Eloise peeled off one of the cucumber slices and cracked open an eyelid. “Where are we?”

“In the safe room.”

“Why?” Her mother-in-law peeled off the other cucumber slice.

“Because I received a second threat, and I couldn’t reach Dave, so I called Gil…” Jillian paused to fill her lungs, which felt like they were caving in on her again.

Eloise tossed the cucumber slices on the desk. “Stop talking and breathe,” she commanded, stepping in front of Jillian. “In. And out. In. And out. Like this.” She demonstrated what she meant. “Slower,” she coaxed when Jillian joined in. “We’re safe in here. No races to run. No deadlines to meet. Just breathe, honey.”

Jillian nodded, gasping her way throughher first few attempts. With her mother-in-law’s steady instructions, however, it was easier to regain control this time around. “I don’t know what’s going on,” she moaned. “That’s the second time today I’ve lost my breath like that.”

“It’s called a panic attack,” Eloise informed her dryly.

“Are you serious?” Jillian had heard of them, but she’d never experienced one before.

“Here.” Her mother-in-law nudged her backward into the nearest recliner. “Take a load off. It’s been a long day.”

“Like one big, never-ending roller coaster.” Jillian sank into the chair, rubbing a hand across the side of her belly to ease a cramp. “I’ve never been happier in my life, or more scared.” She wasn’t a big fan of roller coasters. “Apparently, Dave’s flight ran into some bad weather.” She shared everything she knew about it.

Alarm flickered in her mother-in-law’s gaze, but she lifted her chin. “Dave will call you as soon as he can. I think this is one of those situations where no news is good news.”

She was clearly trying to make Jillian feel better, but it wasn’t working.

Gil called back a few minutes later. She put him on speakerphone, so her mother-in-law could hear what he had to say. “I have some good news and some bad news. What do you want to hear first?”

“The good news.” Jillian stifled a yawn. Though she was dying to hear from Dave, she could barely keep her eyes open.

“The house is clear. No intruders. Lonestar Security is gonna patrol the outside perimeter for the rest of the night.”

“How much will that cost?” Jillian failed to stifle her nextyawn.

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