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“Promise me, Chase,” Kirk said. “Promise you’ll take care of this.”
Without saying a word, Chase got in his car and drove off.
* * *
Why had Della tried to explain this? She couldn’t.
“Yup, I think I got it,” Kylie said and looked back at Della. “Steve doesn’t scare you, but Chase does, right?”
Della took a deep breath. She didn’t want to admit that, not because it wasn’t true, but because admitting it seemed awful close to admitting something else. But she couldn’t lie to her friends.
“Right.” Della dropped her head back down.
“I thought so,” Kylie said.
“Thought what?” Miranda asked.
“Della’s afraid of falling in love. And Steve doesn’t scare her because she’s not falling. She’s falling—or has fallen—for Chase. So she’s in love with—”
“Don’t say it,” Della said. “Please. Just don’t say it.”
Right then Della’s phone rang. She nearly jumped out of her skin. She snatched it up.
“Is it Chase?” Miranda asked. “Just tell him you love him.”
Della looked at the number. “No.” Della stood up. She wouldn’t. Couldn’t tell Chase she loved him. Because she still didn’t trust love. “It’s not Chase. It’s Steve. I need to talk to him … in private.” She started to her bedroom, but remembering her door wouldn’t close all the way, she took off outside.
“I don’t get it,” Della heard Miranda say. “She thinks she’s in love with Chase, but Steve calls, and she bolts out because she needs privacy. That girl is missing a few of her marbles, if you ask me.”
* * *
Worried Miranda might eavesdrop, Della took off for a long stroll in the woods. She’d just hung up with Steve. He had spoken with his mom. She was going to be at the office in St. Mary’s tomorrow. Steve was going to skip his morning class and was going to visit his mom. Before he left, he planned on transforming himself into something small so he could sneak around and find where the old files were kept. If he found them, he’d leave a window open so Della could get in and read the files for herself.
At first Della considered going to Burnett, but what if Burnett refused to let her do it? She couldn’t let him stop her.
But she trusted Chase to understand. The realization hit, and hit hard. She trusted him. He would help her.
He would if he were still alive. Why the hell hadn’t he texted her or called her?
She texted him again. Where are you?
Then she tucked her phone into her pocket and started walking back to her cabin. She cleared the woods, and had just gotten on the trail when she heard someone walking down the path. She turned. Listened to the footfalls. Raised her nose in the air. And then took off.
“Where have you been?” she asked him.
“I was just texting you,” Chase said.
“But I texted you like five times.”
“I’m sorry,” he said, but he didn’t sound all that apologetic. “Crazy day.”
She looked at him, noting something different. “What happened?”
“What do you mean?” Chase asked.
“I mean what happened? Burnett said you were going to confront Kirk. Did you?”
“Yeah,” he said.
“And?” she asked impatiently.
He ran a hand through his hair. “And Douglas Stone is Powell’s son.”
“Shit,” Della said. “Did my uncle know this? Was he protecting—”
