Page 3 of Journey To Sunrise (Protectors of Jasper Creek #6)

“Damn right she did. But it was because of how she treated you girls. Brad wanted to help, but you stubborn Avery girls wouldn’t have allowed anybody to do anything outright. Dad and Brad had to be sneaky.” I shook my head. “You’re a bunch of hard-headed broads.”

Zoe barked out a laugh, just as I’d hoped. I relaxed.

“Broads?”

“The terms fits.”

“Hard-headed doesn’t fit for Chloe right now. She doesn’t answer her door anymore,” Chloe whispered. “She just answers the phone. Even when Trenda brings Bella over, she won’t answer the door.”

“How old is Bella?”

“For God’s sake, you send birthday and Christmas gifts, and you don’t know that she’s three?” Zoe gave him an incredulous look.

“I’m a guy. Sue me.” Trenda had sent him pictures of her daughter. She was a doll. She was going to look just like Chloe.

I looked at Zoe intently. “How bad was it? Really?”

“She only needed to stay in the hospital for four days.” Zoe put down the biscuit with precise movements.

“Only?” I said aghast.

“It could have been a lot worse. She ended up with a concussion and two broken ribs. To begin with, they were afraid one of her kidneys might have been ruptured, but it was just badly bruised from where he kicked her.”

I thought I would throw up.

“What happened when she left the hospital?”

This time it was Zoe’s turn to lift an eyebrow. “What do you think? Trenda demanded she stay at her house. But it was awful. Chloe was like a zombie. Not even Bella could make her smile. She stayed for a month. Then she left. It was a fight, but she won.”

“How long was she held hostage?”

“Four hours. The beating lasted for thirteen minutes, before she passed out.”

“Evie timed it?” I seriously thought the orange juice I’d drunk might end up on the table.

“Maddie did. Evie was planning the rescue, so Maddie had to hear it over the phone, but Evie had to watch it.”

“But she timed it?”

“What do you think?” Zoe leaned in across the table.

“Every moment will always be etched into both of my sisters’ brains.

They couldn’t do a goddamn thing to stop them, not while guns were trained on those other girls.

Evie had to wait for a diversion. As soon as everything was in place, Evie killed that motherfucker for what he did to Chloe.

So yeah, those thirteen minutes when Chloe was tortured, they remember it like it happened to them.

” Tears plopped down onto the plate of biscuits.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Pearl carrying food to the table.

I gave her an imperceptible shake of my head and then she turned and walked away.

“I didn’t know,” I said helplessly.

“Well now you do.” Zoe took a deep breath. “But that’s not the worst of it. What’s the absolute worst, is that it should have been me. I should have been the one to take that beating.”

“What are you talking about?” I thought I’d fallen down a rabbit hole. Zoe was talking crazy.

“They wanted to torture any Avery sister. I should have been in that cabin. If I had been, they would have tortured me. I’m tougher, I could have taken it. Hell, I’d been the one to talk Chloe into going to the party in the first place. It should have been me, not her.”

“Where were you?”

“I was off with a friend.”

I didn’t need to hear anything else. Zoe had left with some guy. It was her MO. I looked at my childhood friend, who was almost a mirror image of Chloe, and my gut clenched.

“I’m glad it wasn’t you,” I said softly.

“I’m not. If I hadn’t been such a self-centered bitch, going off with some guy with a cool truck, it would have been me. Chloe’s too good a person to have this happen to her.”

She was starting to cry in earnest. I got up out of my side of the table and slipped in beside Zoe. I wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close.

“It shouldn’t have been anyone,” I whispered softly.

“You know she’s a better person than I am.”

“You’re both wonderful. Neither of you is better than the other, you’re both special in your own ways.”

Zoe gave a watery snort and reached for a paper napkin on the table. She blew her nose.

“God, it couldn’t be any more obvious that you think Chloe’s the bomb and I’m not.” She tried to pull away, but I wouldn’t let her go. When I saw Pearl make another pass with the plates, I shook my head again. She tipped her chin and made a motion indicating she would box the food. I nodded.

“Zarek, I don’t know what to do about Chloe.

She’s holed up in her house, and she’s getting worse day by day, I just know it.

She’s having things like groceries delivered.

Trenda and I would have called our brother Drake in from California, but his fiancée, Karen is on bedrest with her pregnancy.

We decided to leave him as a last resort. ”

I had never met their older brother who was a Navy SEAL. He had already left to join the Navy by the time I’d met Chloe.

“Do you think he would hurt or help the situation?” I asked.

“Normally he’d help, but it would be a shit thing to do to him when he’s so worried about Karen and the baby.”

I could see that. “Zoe, I’ve done some thinking and planning. I want Chloe to come home with me.”

This time, Zoe succeeded in pushing out of my arms.

“ What ?” Heads turned at Zoe’s loud exclamation.

“From everything you said, she’s suffering from PTSD. She needs care. She’s not making it here. It’s time for a change of environment.”

“You’re out of your mind,” Zoe hissed.

“What’s the definition of insanity?” I asked in a calm voice.

“Huh?”

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result. Obviously, what’s been going on here hasn’t been working. I’m taking her home with me,” I said decisively.

“You have no idea what you’re walking into,” she protested.

“Actually, I do. I’ve watched my best friend at the station house suffer from PTSD.”

Luke Larkin worked as an EMT back in Dallas with me.

He’d served two tours in Afghanistan as a marine medic, and when he and his unit had been attacked, Luke had been shot and two of his friends had been killed.

Ever since he’d been sent stateside, he’d struggled with PTSD.

When I’d talked to Luke about the little I knew about Chloe’s situation, my friend had warned me that it was going to be an uphill battle.

I’d explained she was worth it. As soon as I said those words, Luke started putting together lists of local support groups and a short list of psychologists and psychiatrists who could help Chloe in Dallas.

He was taking care of my dog, Slayer while I was gone, and he’d also said that he would spruce up my house and have it ready for Chloe’s arrival. Whatever that meant.

God help me.

“She won’t want to go with you willingly. You need a plan,” she said thoughtfully.

“You called me. I’m here. We get to your apartment and deal. That’s the plan.”

“We don’t live together anymore. She rents her own house. So, it’s not going to be as easy as you think.”

“Then we make her come out of her house and deal. Zoe, I didn’t think it would be a cakewalk.”

Pearl came up with two bags of food. I pulled out my wallet.

“How much?”

“It’s on the house,” the redhead told us.

I pulled out a couple of twenties. “Then you’re getting a really good tip.”

Pearl grinned.

“Y’all take care. I put extra biscuits inside.” She hustled up to the hostess station.

“I don’t want this, do you?” I asked Zoe.

“I’ll take it to Trenda’s house,” she said as she picked up the bags of food.