Page 20 of Darkwater Lane (Stillhouse Lake #7)

“Mom, what’s going on?” Lanny’s voice is steady. I pull back and see that her tears have dried, leaving her eyes red and puffy. I’m so damn proud of how strong she’s been through this and how well she’s held it all together.

“I don’t know,” I tell her. It’s a feeling I despise. If I don’t know what the danger is, how can I protect my kids from it? “Have you heard from Sam?”

Her eyes go wide with worry, and she shakes her head. Connor does as well. “I thought he was with you?” His voice trembles.

Before I can think of what to tell him, my phone vibrates with a call.

My knees go weak with relief when I see that it’s Sam.

I press a hand against the hood of the SUV to steady myself as I answer.

He’s already talking before I can even say hello.

“I know I’m running late; I’m almost to the hotel and?—”

“Sam.” I cut him off. He goes silent instantly, the tone of my voice making it clear that something has happened. I can practically feel the shift in his energy through the phone—the fear taking hold.

“I’m okay,” I immediately tell him. “The kids are too. They’re with me right now. We’re at the gas station on Central.”

At the mention of our bug-out rendezvous spot, I hear a squeal of tires followed by a blaring horn. “I’m on my way. Ten minutes out.”

For so many years, I faced the threats against my family by myself. It was just me in charge of keeping Lanny and Connor safe and I lived in terror of something happening to me, thus leaving them alone with no one to act as their shield and protector.

Now, I have Sam. We have Sam. It’s hard to even describe the relief I feel knowing I’m not alone in this anymore.

However, as much as I want him by my side, I’m not sure that’s what’s best right now. I glance over my shoulder at Madison. She’s got the driver-side door open and she’s standing, watching me over the roof of the car.

“Do you mind giving us some privacy?” I ask pointedly.

Her cheeks flush with embarrassment at having been called out for so blatantly eavesdropping. “Of course. Sorry.” She drops back into the car and closes the door. Even so, I turn so she can’t see my face and lower my voice.

“Something happened at the house,” I tell him. “When Lanny and Connor got home from the barn, Lanny opened the door and—” The words get stuck in my throat. I can’t believe I’m about to say this out loud. “There was blood and a dead body. ”

There’s a beat of silence where the only sound I can hear is the engine on his truck. “What?”

“I don’t know,” I tell him. “She said there was blood everywhere and a man was on the couch, clearly dead. She came straight here to the gas station and texted me.”

“What the fuck is going on here, Gwen?”

“I don’t know,” I say again. It’s such a useless phrase, but it’s all I have. I pinch the bridge of my nose between my fingers, trying to think through the chaos in my brain.

“You should go to the house. Figure out what’s happening.” I check behind me to make sure Madison is still tucked in her car and can’t overhear before I add, “I’m going to call Kez and see if she’s okay with Connor and Lanny driving up there.”

“You’re going to let them drive out to Stillhouse Lake on their own?”

An hour ago, my answer would have been an unequivocal no. I wouldn’t have even entertained the thought of letting my daughter and son go that far on their own.

I look toward my daughter. She’s standing a few feet behind me, her arm protectively around Connor. She’s scared; I can see it in her eyes. I can also see from the set of her jaw and the shift in her stance that she’s determined.

Another rush of pride swells in me. I’ve spent so many years alternating between a desire to shield her from the worst of the world and the understanding that shielding her won’t protect her. Only preparing her will. Hence the drills, the training, the emergency planning.

Tonight, she showed me that she’s been paying attention. She’s been taking it seriously. As much as I want to be the one to bundle my kids into the car and whisk them off into the night, Lanny has proven that she’s capable of taking this task on.

As much as I’m not ready for it, sometimes we don’t get to choose the moments we have to learn to let go .

I meet my daughter’s eyes, making sure she hears me when I tell Sam, “I trust Lanny. She can handle it.”

I note the flash of satisfaction in her expression.

“Get to the house,” I add to Sam. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

Then, I call Kez. My conversation with her is brief and to the point. The minute I explain what happened and that I need somewhere safe for the kids to go, she tells me to send them her way. I let out a sigh of relief. Kez and Javi love my kids and will protect them with their lives.

Once that’s taken care of I turn back to Lanny and Connor. “Kez and Javi are expecting you. Javi’s been fixing up the barn—turning it into a guesthouse. It’s not finished yet, but there’s space for you.”

Connor’s eyes go wide. “You’re sending us away?”

I nod. “It’s the best place for you right now.”

“What about our stuff?” he asks. “I don’t even have a change of clothes, and I smell like horses.”

“Javi will have something you can borrow for tonight. We’ll sort the rest out tomorrow.”

Uncertainty and fear war in his expression.

I want to pull him against me again and rock him like I did when he was a child waking up scared from a nightmare.

How many times back then did I tell him monsters weren’t real?

How little I knew. The monster wasn’t in his closet, but rather down the hallway sleeping peacefully in our bed.

The truth is, the world is full of monsters.

“It’s going to be okay,” I tell him, pressing a kiss to his forehead. That he doesn’t pull a face at the gesture tells me more than anything else how worried he is. “I’ll touch base in the morning. Until then, keep your phones on and charged.”

He gives me a hug, holding on a little longer than usual, and then moves back around the car to climb into the passenger seat.

Once his door is closed, I turn to Lanny, keeping my voice low.

“My Glock is in the lockbox in the back. The code is 1452. It already has a full magazine loaded, and there are two more in there.”

She’s always known I carry a gun in the car, though I’ve never given her the code to the lockbox before. She’s never needed it. And even though she’s been taught and trained to respect firearms and use them appropriately, I haven’t been ready to give her one of her own.

Her face drains of color. “Are we in that kind of danger?”

“I don’t know,” I tell her honestly. I wish I could tell her no, but that wouldn’t be doing her any favors. “It’s just better to be prepared beforehand than be sorry after.”

She recognizes the responsibility and trust I’m placing in her with this information. “Remember to keep your eyes open and pay attention to your surroundings,” I add. “Don’t stop unless it’s somewhere crowded, and don’t hesitate to call for help if you need it.”

It’s a speech I’ve given her a thousand times. She usually rolls her eyes. This time, she doesn’t. Instead, she nods.

I think about Madison sitting in the car behind me.

I don’t like the timing of all of this—that when I was meeting her for drinks, someone was potentially being murdered in my house.

It may seem far-fetched and paranoid to think it was all some elaborate scheme to separate me from my kids, but I’ve learned not to discard a concern just because it seems improbable.

For a moment, I reconsider sending Lanny on her own.

I could leave Sam to handle whatever happened at the house and drive the kids to Stillhouse Lake myself.

But then I think about the box full of hidden college acceptance letters under her bed.

She’ll be eighteen in a few months, a legal adult.

Not long after that, she wants to move away to go to school.

A panicky kind of flutter takes up residence in my chest at the thought. Next fall, I’ll be forced to let go, whether I like it or not.

The only way to make sure she’s ready is to give her the chance to prove it .

So far, she has.

I swallow down the choking anxiety. “Keep an eye on your rearview mirror. If you see anything suspicious, find the nearest police station and go directly to it.”

“You think someone could try following us?”

“Always assume the worst,” I tell her. I hate that this is the advice I have to give her, but it’s the only way to stay safe.

She nods, and I pull her into a tight hug. “Take care of yourself and your brother,” I tell her.

“I will.”

I know she means it with her entire being, but it’s still hard to let go of her.

It’s even harder to watch her get behind the wheel and give a brief wave before pulling out of the parking lot.

I stand, tracking the car until her taillights disappear around the corner.

I wait awhile longer, checking to see if any other cars pull out to follow her.

None do, but that doesn’t ease my anxiety.

Behind me, a car door opens, and I turn to find Madison standing and watching me. “You okay?”

It’s such a ridiculous question that I don’t bother answering. “Thank you for your help.” As suspicious as I am of her, I say this sincerely.

“Do you need me to take you anywhere else?”

She’s a journalist. The last thing I need is to involve her any deeper in my business. “No, thank you. I’ll call a taxi.”

She purses her lips, then blows out a breath.

“Look, Gwen, cards on the table? I know something’s going on at your house.

While you were talking to your kids, I was checking local police scanners online and there’s been a whole lot of activity at your address.

I’m going to go there to find out what it is.

I can either drive you or not. It’s up to you. ”