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“Are you okay?” he whispers to me as if Alana and Warren aren’t still in this room.
Gulping, I shrug. “I’m better than I was. Spooked, though. And scared. I don’t know what we’re going to do.”
A second passes and Evan smooths a thumb across my jaw. “You said we.”
Holy crap, I did. I just said we, not I. That’s the first time I’ve done that in … well, maybe ever.
I shrug again. “I need help.”
“Oh, thank God.” Warren sighs with relief behind my back.
“The first thing we’re going to do is go over to the police station. The new chief is very receptive, and you’re going to give him a full rundown of everything you two know thus far. Then I’m going to pull the security tapes from Lily and send them over. With any luck, they’ll know who this guy is.” Alana claps her hands together like that is going to set the plan in motion.
“And you,” Warren points at me, “are going to let me pay for anything and everything I want to. Any debt you have? That’s my problem now, you got it? You are my family, we’re of the same cloth, and I’m tired of not stepping up to force you to let me help.”
Gulping again because I’m swallowing a lot of hard truths tonight, I nod. “Okay.”
In a way, it feels good to let someone else take over. To put my trust in the hands of people who I’m ninety-nine percent sure are not going to break it. I’ve never leaned on anyone like this, and there is a scary hopefulness that fills me as I do so.
Leona comes back into the office. “All of the customers have left. No one seemed upset, and they all wished us well and hoped everything was okay.”
“Evan, why don’t you drive August to the police station? Follow us in your car and then we can all go in together,” Warren suggests, and I know it took a lot for him not to drive me himself. Perhaps it’s even a blessing on what Evan and I have, not that I’ve discussed it with anyone in his family yet.
“I’m scared.” My voice is quiet as I cling to Evan.
“I’ve got you. I’m not going anywhere,” he promises.
His words and actions fill me with enough courage to rise from his lap and make my way to the station, where we’ll hopefully get some more help I haven’t been asking for.
27
EVAN
Leading August into the house by the hand, I keep the lights off, wanting to keep her as calm as possible.
She’s been through the wringer today.
After talking it out, shutting down the restaurant, and communicating it all to the rest of the family, I brought her to the police station to give an official statement. They now have the security footage from the store cameras at Lily and will be searching to bring the guy in for questioning. Unfortunately, or I guess not, because I wouldn’t want her to get hurt, but he didn’t display any violent behavior on camera, so if they can’t get clear audio, they only have August’s story to go on.
I hope they can pin this guy with some of his clearly shady dealings, but it could take time. Time that I don’t want August to sit and stew over. He’s out there right now, a threat to her, and I wish I could grab him with my own two hands and put him down. The murder in my veins is nothing to what I’ve ever felt before, and it’s because this is August we’re talking about.
The minute I walked around the corner into that office, I knew I’d move hell and high water to never have her look at me like that again. She was scared out of her fucking mind, shaking, tear-stained, and looked like she’d seen a ghost. I’d been so freaked out that I threw my whole restaurant out, and I’d do it all over again.
“Can I make you some tea?” I ask, knowing it’s the one thing that might help, even if she just holds the warm cup in her hands.
August looks dazed. Beautiful as ever, but so lost and confused that I wish I could carry all that pain and doubt for her.
Leading her into the living room, I sit her on the couch and move in beside her, holding her without bothering to kick off either of our shoes. She leans into me, and I know she’s probably going over the whole night and the last few months in her head.
“I don’t know what to do anymore.” She buries her head in her hands.
I rub her back as she breathes deeply into her lap. Tonight was a turning point, but August still needs to come to grips with it.
“Yes, you do. You just don’t want to admit it.” I give her the tough love she needs right now.
“Do you ever plan to go back into that house?” I ask softly.
She shakes her head. “There is nothing there I want to revisit. Some may look at that as me not healing my trauma, but it’s the opposite. I can move on and not get the closure. Going in there won’t do me any good. I want everything thrown out and the house sold, that’s what would bring me the most peace.”
