Page 5 of Once Broken
“Leo Dillard?”she asked.
“Yeah, that’s right.Do you know him?
That name hit Riley like a physical blow.She watched April’s innocent expression through the screen, her daughter utterly unaware of the bomb she’d just detonated.
On screen, Bill’s expression changed instantly—his features hardening in the space of a heartbeat.
April quickly picked up on their reactions.“Mom?What’s the matter?Do you know him or something?”
Gabriela, sensing the shift in atmosphere, moved closer to Riley, placing a steadying hand on her shoulder.Jilly looked from Riley to the screen and back, her young face registering that something was very wrong.
“April,” Riley said, her voice steadier than she felt, “I need you to tell me exactly what Leo Dillard said to you.”
The name alone conjured images of her classroom at Quantico, of a tall student with unnervingly intense eyes who had lingered after lectures, his questions growing increasingly personal until he had crossed a line physically.Riley filed a report at Quantico and had thought that was the end of it.She hadn’t seen him since.But now, somehow, he had found her daughter.
Riley forced herself to meet April’s eyes on the screen.“Leo Dillard was a student in my criminal profiling class at Quantico last semester,” she said, measuring each word carefully.“He became...problematic.”
“Problematic how?”
Bill leaned forward on his screen.“April, this guy developed an unhealthy fixation on your mother.”
“He was obsessed,” Riley continued, watching her daughter’s expression shift from confusion to dawning comprehension.She quickly decided not to describe his attempt to kiss her in her office.“After security confronted him, he disappeared.Dropped out of the academy program entirely.”
April’s face drained of color, mirroring Riley’s own pallor.“Oh my God,” she whispered.“He—he never mentioned knowing you.He just asked about my last name, and when I said ‘Paige,’ he seemed really interested, but I thought...”Her voice trailed off.
“This wasn’t a coincidence,” Bill said grimly.“He sought you out specifically.”
Riley felt Gabriela’s hand tighten on her shoulder.Beside her, Jilly had gone completely still.
“April, I need you to think carefully,” Riley said.“What happened between the two of you?”
April closed her eyes momentarily, visibly trying to organize her thoughts.“There’s not much to tell.I noticed him in class, and I guess he noticed me.We ran into each other in the cafeteria, and he said he’d actually been looking a chance to talk to me.I was flattered, I guess.He said it was good to make a friend.He felt kind of isolated, not being an enrolled student yet.”
“Did he say anything else about Quantico?About his instructors there?”Riley pressed.
“No, he didn’t even mention going there.”
“What did he tell you about himself?”
“Not much.He transferred from somewhere else.Said he was staying off-campus but didn’t specify where.”April’s voice gained strength as she recalled details.
Jilly moved closer to the screen, her face tight with worry.“Is April in danger?”she asked bluntly.
The question gave voice to the fear now in the room.Riley glanced at her younger daughter, torn between honesty and the desire to protect both her children from unnecessary terror.
“We don’t know that,” she said carefully.“But we need to take precautions.”
“I’ll contact campus security,” Bill interjected.“Get them a description and Dillard’s file from Quantico.”
Riley nodded.“April, I want you to stay with friends as much as possible.No going anywhere alone, especially after dark.And if you see him again—”
“Call 911 immediately,” April finished, her voice small but resolute.“I know the drill, Mom.”
Riley began mentally calculating next steps—calling Jefferson Bell’s security office herself, arranging for protection, possibly driving up to campus first thing in the morning.She could pull some strings, get a local FBI field agent to check in on April until they determined the level of threat.
Her cellphone, lying on the table beside the laptop, vibrated against the wooden table with a harsh buzz.The distinctive ringtone—a no-nonsense triple beep she’d assigned specifically to Brent Meredith—punctuated the tense silence.
Riley stared at the phone, momentarily frozen by indecision.Meredith would never call on a Saturday unless it was urgent.As the phone continued its insistent rhythm, Bill’s expression told her what she already knew—some calls couldn’t be ignored, no matter the timing.
