9

Laney

I woke up before sunrise and headed into the kitchen. Gideon had one of those single-serve coffee makers, so I brewed myself a cup and went to the garage to grab a fishing pole. Fishing was always better in the cool of the morning before the day warmed up.

After washing my coffee cup, I stepped out back. The ocean was stunning, the early light glinting off the waves. Ready for the day, I chose my bait and walked to the water’s edge. I cast the line as far as I could, feeling a familiar rush of excitement.

Almost immediately, I sensed something nibbling at the bait. I waited patiently, letting it take hold, then jerked the pole and reeled it in. This fish was different—stronger. It was putting up one heck of a fight.

I was so focused that I didn’t need to look when Gideon came to stand beside me; his scent gave him away.

“How long have you been wrestling this one?” he asked.

“About fifteen minutes,” I replied without taking my eyes off the water. “I haven’t seen him yet, but I bet he’s big. I’m close to reeling him in.”

“Need a hand?”

“Not a chance. This one’s all mine. I want to look him in the eye and say, ‘I got you.’”

Gideon chuckled and sat down, watching as I fought the fish for another five minutes. Finally, I hauled it in. To my surprise, it was the ugliest fish I’d ever seen.

“What kind of fish is this?” I asked, wrinkling my nose.

“That’s a rockfish. Ugly as sin, but delicious,” Gideon said. “I’ll clean it for you.”

I turned to see Haley standing nearby. She grinned. “Just in time! How about I make pancakes?”

“Yes! I love pancakes,” she squealed, bouncing with excitement.

Laughing, I took her hand while holding the fishing pole in the other. We followed Gideon into the garage, where he had a large sink.

“I’ll take a shower and then start breakfast,” I said, handing over the fish. “Thanks for cleaning it. Maybe I’ll catch another one later today—enough for a fish fry.”

“You caught it; the least I can do is clean it. And for the record, I love pancakes, too.”

“Perfect. Pancakes are one of the few things I’m good at making. My mom taught me when I was little. Funny, isn’t it? I don’t remember much about her, but I remember making pancakes together.”

Gideon hesitated before asking, “Was your mom into drugs or alcohol?”

“No, nothing like that. She was just my mom—always home with me—until she met Wayne. They weren’t dating long, but she started acting differently when he was with her. And then she died. I’ve always believed he killed her. I was only eight, but I know he gave her a pill with fentanyl.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Yeah, me too. Losing her made me worry about Haley. I have to be extra careful. I can’t let anything happen to me.” I paused. “Is Raven’s father still alive?” I wasn’t sure why I asked that.

“Yes,” Gideon said, glancing at me curiously.

“Sean’s coming tomorrow to talk about working for you,” I said, changing the subject. “Don’t let his appearance throw you off when you meet him. He looks like a hippie, but he’s a good guy.”

“When did you even have time to call him?” Gideon asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Kat brought me her phone when I was fishing. I used it to call Joanie, and she gave me Sean’s number.”

“Who’s Joanie?”

“His sister. They were both in foster care. Sean refused to go to any of the homes unless Joanie could come with him.”

“I’m glad they were able to stay together.”

“Well, I better get my shower so I can make breakfast,” I said, heading toward the bathroom.

After a quick shower, I made my way to the kitchen and started on pancakes. I’d found some bacon in the fridge, and the aroma soon filled the air. Gideon walked in, grinning as he took a deep breath.

“I love bacon and pancakes,” he said, rubbing his hands together. I already knew that—he ordered them every time we ate out on our road trip. “I put the fish in the fridge in the garage. Are we having it tonight?”

“Is it big enough to feed everyone?”

“Yes.”

“Then we’ll have it tonight.” I flipped a pancake, then added, “I’ve been thinking about changing my and Haley’s last name to Dean. That was my name before I got married. It has nothing to do with Gavin but everything to do with Jonah. I want no connection to him.”

I don’t blame you. You can sort it out once all this is over.”

“Do you think it will ever be over? I can’t even have a driver’s license because he could easily track Haley and me. Wait, I can’t even drive a car because he could find me,” I said, frowning.

“We’ll take a day at a time. The FBI is after him right now. Hopefully, they’ll have a shoot out and he’ll end up dead.”

I laughed I couldn’t help it. “That would be the best news I’ve ever heard,” Still chuckling, I went hunting for Haley. I found her in the living room watching cartoons with Raven.

“I didn’t know you were here?” I said, smiling.

“I brought my laptop so you could use it to send me your DNA information. You did say you had it on your computer—is it at the bottom of the river?”

“Because in my frantic, scared mind, as Haley and I were running away from that killer, I left it behind. It’s not with my phone at the bottom of the river. The moment I remembered it, I was mad that I had forgotten it. I’ll have Sean fix me up with another one when he gets here.”

“When will that be?”

“Tomorrow.”

“Good. I had a few things I wanted to ask him. Did Jonah Reeves know you did a DNA?”

“Not that I know of, but he seemed to know everything I did.”

“Why did you take a DNA?” Raven asked.

“In case I didn’t make it. I wanted Haley to have someone who loved her—someone who could keep her out of foster care. I thought maybe I had a father or other family out there. But nothing came up. It showed I have no relatives at all. I wish you were related to me. At least then, Haley wouldn’t be alone.”

“You don’t have to worry about that anymore. Nothing is going to happen to you. Do you mind if I take another DNA sample to double-check?”

“No, I don’t mind. But don’t be surprised when it comes back negative,” I said as he stood and pulled a DNA test kit from a briefcase on the counter.

“What’s that?” Gideon asked, walking in as Raven swabbed my cheek.

“It’s a DNA test kit. Raven wants to double-check minein case mine was messed up.” I looked at Gideon, who was smiling.

“Smile all you want, and when I have proof that Laney is another sibling, I’ll be saying, ‘I told you so.”

I hope I’m related to you and your other siblings,” I said. Where is your mom now?

“She died when I was fifteen. She had breast cancer. She didn’t tell anyone and refused to have chemo.

“That’s awful.”

“My father’s parents were ashamed of him for having children with so many different women. They lectured him every time he would visit, so he doesn’t visit as much as he used to.”

“Are your grandparents and your father still alive?”

“Yes, they are. If you and Haley turn out to be related to us, my grandparents will definitely want to meet you. My father claims all his children—he doesn’t deny any of us. Most of us have his eyes, though some don’t. Either way, he accepts us as his.”

Raven finished up and stood. “There, we’re done. I’m going to run this to the hospital myself. When I get any information, I’ll let you know.”

Listen,” I said, leaning closer. “I don’t want anyone to know about this. If Jonah finds out these people might be my relatives, he’ll kidnap and torture them. I can’t risk that.”

“I won’t say anything to anyone,” Raven assured me.

“Don’t tell your grandparents, your father, or any of your siblings if we are related. It’s too dangerous for them.”

“We’ll keep it to ourselves,” Raven agreed.

Gideon chimed in. “I don’t think you should even do this right now. Why don’t you wait until Jonah is locked up—or dead?”

Raven looked at me and nodded. “Gideon’s right. We’ll do this after Jonah is dead.”

“Okay,” I said reluctantly. “We’ll wait. I don’t want anyone getting hurt because of me.”