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Brett pulled up in front of the cabin and parked the truck. “I’d like to come in and get the fire going.”

Thea smiled, and the dim moonlight lit up her joy. “I’d really appreciate that. It’s been a long time since I built a fire, and I’d do a lot of fumbling around with this thing.” She pointed to her bulky brace.

He turned off the truck and jogged around to her side. He pulled her crutches out of the back and held them out to her. “Any chance I could carry you inside?”

She hesitated before that sweet smile lifted her cheeks. “I guess that would be okay.”

Brett wanted to fist pump the air but contained his excitement. Leaving the crutches by the truck, he cradled Thea in his arms. He held her as close as possible, not knowing when he’d get the chance to be this close again.

Inside, he gently sat her on the couch, propping her foot up on the coffee table. “I’ll be right back with your crutches.”

He darted to the truck and picked them up just as his phone rang. It was Asa. It was a good bet that whatever was on the other end of the line wasn’t good news. Brett answered just as he stepped back inside the cabin.

“Hey, boss.”

“Hey. Are you with Thea?”

Brett walked around the couch and sat next to her. “I am. Want to talk to her?”

“If I can.”

Brett handed the phone to Thea. “It’s Asa.”

She stared at the phone for half a second as if it might explode before taking it and pressing it to her ear. “Hello.”

Thea listened for a few seconds before she said, “Can you hold on a second? I’d like to put this call on the speaker so Brett can hear too.” She held the phone between them and pressed the button. “Okay.”

“We heard from Tommy Howard today,” Asa said. “He filed a missing person report for you.”

Chapter13

Thea

“Awhat?” Thea said. “Why? He shouldn’t even know I’m here.” Panic rose in her throat like claws scraping down the walls. Tommy knew she was here and wanted to find her.

“His statement says his niece, Emerson, claimed you came into town on Saturday and that she hasn’t seen you since Tuesday,” Asa said.

“Well, that’s true that I came to town on Saturday, but she knew where I was.”

“Until today when you checked out of the hospital,” Brett added.

Staring at Brett, she scraped for words. They’d decided to tell Emerson Thea was going back to Alabama, but she hadn’t come back to the hospital, and they didn’t want to call her and stir up more trouble.

“She knows I don’t have a phone. She returned the car I rented, and she brought my bag to the hospital.”

“This is ridiculous,” Brett said as he stood and started pacing the room. He pushed his fingers into his hair and huffed.

The same nervous energy hummed in her limbs. Too many people knew she’d come back to town. They knew it was only a matter of time before Tommy found out and did whatever he wanted to mess with her. She’d stupidly thought she could get out of here without being noticed.

“They just want to finish what they started,” Brett said. “You can’t tell him where she is.”

“We won’t. Thea is an adult, and if she doesn’t want to be found, we don’t have to disclose her information,” Asa said.

“Good. Then we don’t have to worry about it,” Brett said as he sat beside her.

Thea shrugged. “I guess not.”

“He might try to cause a scene,” Asa said. “I don’t know what his plans are. Just keep your eyes open, and let us know if anything happens.”