Page 92 of Follow Me Down

“Titus, the guy I left with.” I pause as she connects the dots. “My father set him up.”

“What do you mean he set him up?”

“Exactly as it sounds. He framed him with drugs to get me to agree to come home. And now he’s holding this over my head, threatening to pull the trigger and have Titus arrested again.”

“Wait, he had him arrested?” She gapes at me. “Man, and I thought my father was bad.”

“It’s such a mess.” I shake my head. “Anyway, Titus doesn’t know he was set up. He also doesn’t know that I left to protect him. But my phone is still at his house. If by chance it’s on or has any battery, there’s a possibility that I could reach him...to explain. But I need your help.”

“Here.” She reaches into her purse and drops her phone into my hand. “I’m going to go see if they have any leather tops in your size.” She winks, exiting the dressing room moments later.

With shaky hands I pull up the keypad and type in my number. It doesn’t go straight to voicemail, which is a good sign, but no one answers it either.

I hang up and immediately call again.

Nothing.

Pulling up the message box, I type a quick message, thinking that if by some miracle of a chance he sees it he’ll know I’m trying to reach him.

Drugs were a set up. Had to leave to keep you safe.

I don’t bother telling him who it is or where I’m texting from. I think he’ll know the message is for him as soon as he reads it...Ifhe reads it.

“Any luck?” Christy pushes her way back into the dressing room, a couple different tops draped over her arm.

“No. But I did text too. Just in case he checks it. If you hear anything back...”

“You’ll be the first to know.”

“Thank you.” I force a smile, thinking maybe I’ve been judging Christy a little too harshly.

When push comes to shove, she really has tried to help. Hell, when I left with Titus she never breathed a word of it. Well, at least not until she was back home and being grilled by her father and mine as to where I was and why I didn’t return with her. And even then she really didn’t tell them anything. Mainly because she didn’t know anything.

“Of course.” She nods, taking her phone back before dropping it into her purse. “If there’s anything else you need, don’t hesitate to ask. As I said before, we politician’s daughters have to stick together.”

“I appreciate that.”

“Now what do you say we get out of here? I think it’s safe to say neither of us is going to wear these?” She giggles when she holds up the shirts she grabbed, both of which look more like leather bras than actual tops.

“Um, I think you’re right.”

——

“Anything?” I nab Christyseconds after she walks into the front door, wearing the light pink lace dress she purchased earlier this afternoon.

Funny, she looks more like a preacher’s daughter than the party girl I’ve come to know her as. She really is getting better with the act. Probably because she knows if she wants daddy to pay her way through college she’s going to have to be on her best behavior, at least until she’s behind closed doors.

“Nothing.” She shakes her head, knowing exactly what I’m asking.

I tried calling my phone several more times while we were out. Every time we stepped into a dressing room I tried, praying by some miracle someone would hear it and answer.

Disappointment settles deep in the pit of my stomach. I knew it was a long shot, but I was really hoping for a different result.

“I’m sorry, Fallon.”

“It’s okay.” I try to not show the emotion I feel welling in my chest. “It was a Hail Mary.”

“I’ve gotta ask though, have you thought about just calling your dad on his bluff?”

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