Page 37 of I.O.U.

I’m finally starting to get the lay of the land around here, so I manage to find the room on the first try—and I could almost faint with relief when I notice the absence of any guards in this area of the house.

That doesn’t mean I can take my time, though. Somebody could stroll past at any point. I make a beeline for the phone, dialing her number while watching over my shoulder.

“Hello?” The dread in her voice makes my stomach drop, even if the sound of her coming through the phone makes my heart lift. What a strange mix of emotions.

“It’s me,” I whisper. “I’m fine. I’m safe.”

“Lila!” She bursts out sobbing—loud, gusty.

“I’m okay, really,” I try to tell her, but I’m afraid to raise my voice much more and she’s drowning me out.

“Where are you?” she blubbers. “I thought you were dead! Just like mom!”

“Honey, I’m sorry.” Now tears fill my eyes, tears which I fight to hold back. “Trust me, this is for the best.”

“What does that mean? Where are you? Who are you with?”

“It’s a long story. I swear, I’ll tell you all about it, just not right now. I don’t have much time.”

Her voice gets even more shrill. “Is somebody hurting you? Is somebody watching you right now?”

“Sweetie, listen to me. I need to know if you’re okay. Are you safe?”

“I’m fine. Everything’s been fine. I’ve been hanging out here, watching TV and all that.”

“No visitors?”

“No. I’m bored out of my freaking mind, actually.”

“Believe me. There’s much worse things you could be than bored.” Now, because I have to ask, “You haven’t been talking to him, have you?”

Here’s the thing. I know he wouldn’t bother reaching out to her, since as far as he’s concerned, she’s locked away in a brothel thanks to him. It never occurred to me before now to tell her not to reach out to him, though. I was pretty vague about that part when I first got here. I told her not to talk to anybody at all.

“That asshole?” Though she pauses, then makes a thoughtful sound. “He hasn’t tried to reach out to me, either. Starting to wonder if he’s even alive.”

“Somebody like him? If an atomic bomb dropped on the city, there’d be nothing left but him and the cockroaches.”

That gets her laughing. “That’s true. God, I can’t tell you how good it is to hear your voice. I’ve been so scared. Why can’t you tell me where you are?”

“Because it’ll take too long, and I never have much time. I’m sorry. I swear, I’ll explain it all when I can. Just keep hanging in there, okay? Do you have enough money?”

“Yeah, I’m fine with that. Though I might have to go back to my place and grab a few things to pawn.”

The thought of it sets my teeth on edge, but I see why she’d need to do it. “Just be careful. Go out at night, if you can. Try to stay away from people.”

“Why am I pretending to be you?” she whispers. “Why can’t I be me? What’s really happening?”

Damn it. I know my sister well enough to know she’s going to keep thinking about this until it’s too much and she has to do something to satisfy her curiosity. I have a choice to make, and I don’t have much time to make it. I haven’t heard footsteps, but it’s bound to happen soon.

“Promise you’re not going to freak out,” I whisper, crossing my fingers.

“Oh, no…”

Here goes nothing. “It’s Greg. He thought he could use you to pay off his gambling debt. I’m sorry, sweetheart. When the guy he promised you to found me on the street, he figured I was you. But I’m fine, I really am,” I’m quick to tell her. “Things didn’t go the way they planned. I’m very comfortable here. Nobody is hurting me.”

Silence. Deep, resounding silence. I shouldn’t have told her. “I’m sorry. But I had to make sure you know you absolutely cannot, under any circumstances, contact him. He thinks they have you, not me. Do you understand?”

Still, nothing. Either she’s in shock or she fainted from the surprise. “Dee? Talk to me.” I look over my shoulder again. Still in the clear. But for how much longer? It’s not like I can hang up on her now.

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