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The bag was part one. Part two had only recently been added and she couldn’t believe that it had to be enacted so quickly. If she hadn’t had that conversation with Mari the other day, she would have nowhere to take Opal to keep her safe. She texted the code word to Mari and ran out the door.
She dashed to Opal’s room and left the door open wide so the hallway light would fill the space. She shook her shoulder.
“Opal, wake up, baby. Come on, we have to go.”
“What?” Opal rubbed her eyes and sat up.
She was about to tell her the truth. That Daddy had found them and was coming for them. But when she saw the look in her daughter’s eyes, the fearful expression, she changed her tactic. She broke into a smile, difficult as it was.
“I have a super special surprise for you!”
Her little eyes went wide again, but this time with wonder. “What it is?”
“You get to have an overnight field trip with your teacher!”
“Okay.” Opal climbed out of bed. “Are you coming, too?”
“I’ll take you over there, but I can’t stay this time. Maybe next time we can all have a slumber party.”
“Can I bring my bear?”
“Of course you can.”
“This will be so fun!” Opal was wide awake and running around her room, shoving stuffed animals and toys into her book bag.
“Okay, baby, we need to go. You have enough.”
She took Opal’s hand and grabbed her bag with the other, pulling her from the room.
“Oh wait! I just need—”
“Opal, no. We’re going NOW.”
Vanessa failed to restrain the panic in her voice. Jeremy could be coming at any moment, and they didn’t have time to get another stupid stuffed animal. She didn’t mean to yell like that, but in her urgency, it had come out harsh.
Opal’s lower lip shook and her eyes filled with tears.
“I’m sorry, we’re going to be late if we don’t go right now, and you don’t want Miss Snyder to be waiting for us, do you?”
She shook her head and sniffed. A tear dripped down her cheek, and Vanessa bent to give her a quick hug. “I’m sorry I yelled. We’re really late.” She slung the book bag over her shoulder and picked Opal up with her other arm. “Hold on, baby.”
Opal held on tight and snuggled her nose into Vanessa’s neck. Her throat tightened. If anything happened to her daughter, she’d kill the bastard. Her mind went to Hunter. If she called him, would he come? Would he protect them?
By the time they got to the car, Opal had recovered. “Maybe we can play Candy Land again. Last time, I won!”
“That sounds great.” Vanessa threw the bags in beside Opal and jumped into the front seat, then jammed her key in and took off.
They weren’t off their street yet when she saw the black van pull out behind her. She watched her mirrors, trying desperately to pay attention to what Opal was saying so that she wouldn’t upset her.
“I’m sure you can play lots of games,” she said. Was there a way she could lose this van? How in the world did someone pull that off? In the movies, it involved lots of fast turns and crazy antics. Far too dangerous with a child in the backseat. Especially when that child didn’t know they were on the run.
She glanced down as her phone buzzed. It was Mari responding to the text she had sent immediately after hanging up with Jeremy. She’d simply responded with, “I have some,” which was the plan. That response to Vanessa’s initial text of “Orange juice?” would make sense if someone read it, but no one would know what it meant.
Now that she knew Mari was ready, she could focus on the more immediate problem, if there was one more pressing than another in this horrible situation. She looked in her rearview mirror and saw the van right behind her.
She tried to think and make a plan. She stopped at the next stoplight and watched. She had her left turn signal on and watched the traffic coming the opposite direction. She waited for the right setup, then, when there was a car close enough, she stomped on the gas and turned right, pulling out in front of an oncoming vehicle. The car honked at her, but she smiled.
The van couldn’t possibly get out behind her. She made a fast turn at the next road available, then turned several more times until even she didn’t know where she was. She popped in Mari’s address on her phone and took the directions to get there, checking constantly for the van to reappear.
