Page 41 of Bad For A Weekend

“Yes, but it’ll be hard to locate him without a known address.”

“And none of this can be tracked to Veronica, right?”

His ex released another exposé yesterday, painting Corey in a less-than-positive light. She portrayed him as detached and cold, something I haven’t witnessed. He’s a devoted dad and a smart businessman, leading me to believe her only reason for the interview was to hurt him.

Apparently, she succeeded if Corey is considering her as the person behind the attacks.

“No. That doesn’t mean she isn’t involved, just that we haven’t found anything.”

“Okay. This is good though, right? At least we know who we’re dealing with.”

“Depends on why they’re after you,” I say, hating to pop his positive bubble, but we’re still on square one without a motive.

“Fuck, I hate this.”

“There’s one more thing. I know you have this trip planned for Baylor, but in light of everything, you might consider canceling.” It’s something I’ve been thinking about and felt I should at least try to get him to rethink.

“Really? I feel like now, more than ever, is a great time to send her away. If she didn’t have school, I’d send her there for the rest of the year. Why do you think it’s a bad idea?”

I was not expecting that, and now I’m worried I’ve overstepped.

“We have more resources and more control here. In Mexico, I’ll have Baylor’s friends and Brandy to be responsible for and not as much security.”

“What are we talking about?” Baylor asks, sitting on the arm of the sofa next to Corey.

She looks better than she did this morning. She’s showered, and the bandage around her head is gone. She’s in a sports bra and shorts, so the bruises marring her arms, legs, and ribs are visible. The anger I feel at seeing them is nearly uncontrollable. When we figure out who’s behind this, they better hope the cops get to them before I do.

“Owen was saying we might want to cancel Mexico.”

Baylor’s face falls. “What? No! That’s the only thing keeping me sane right now.”

“Our only goal right now is to keep you alive, and if Owen doesn’t think it’s a good idea, then I think we should listen to him.”

I’m surprised by his vote of confidence.

“Didn’t you say the property is secure?” she asks, and I can already tell sassy Baylor is making a comeback. Ever since prom, she’s been withdrawn and sad. Although I’m about to get my ass handed to me, I’m grateful to see her old self reemerge.

“It’s as secure as a house can be that has open access to the beach,” I say.

“And no one will know we’re there?” Her dark brow quirks.

“No. Your dad owns the airplane, and the pilot is under a confidentiality contract, so no. No one will know.” I admit, the facts don’t help my case.

“Then I don’t see the problem.”

“It worries me to be so far away from you,” Corey says.

“Then come with us.”

“I can’t. I need to be here, working with the detectives and Hudson to figure out who’s behind all this. Plus, I’m hoping by keeping you away, it’ll detract attention from you.”

“Dad, I need to go. Too much bad has happened lately, and I could really use some time to decompress.” She slides down the arm of the sofa to sit next to him, her arms draping around his neck. She knows what she’s doing, and I know what she’s doing, but Corey has no idea he’s being played.

I stand and clear my throat. “I’ll leave you two to talk.”

She tosses me a wink her dad can’t see, and I shake my head as I walk away.

Baylor

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