Page 5

CHAPTER FIVE

Worry filled Hop as the bus emptied, but he didn’t see anyone who fit Vera’s description. He was about to give up when a woman with very short hair stepped from the bus, her gaze flashing from one side to the other. She looked very nervous.

He moved to her, trying to seem friendly but not overly friendly. “Vera?” he asked when he was close.

She nodded and tried to tuck her hair behind her ear, but it was too short. “Um, yes. I’m Vera. You’re Ben—uh, Hop.”

He couldn’t help the smile. “That’s me.”

“Thank you for doing this. I really appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome. Besides, my sister asked, so of course. She vouched for you, too.”

Vera chuckled and rolled her eyes. “She’s very trusting. I once had to stop her from bringing home a homeless dude when we were in college.”

He stopped walking as worry for Frizz increased. “You don’t think your ex will go after her?”

Vera shook her head. “No, Frizz lives within the city limits of Austin. The police there don’t like Logan. I thought about moving there, but it’s expensive, and he would still be able to keep track of me. Moving here will make it impossible for him to find me. At least, I hope so.”

“It should be very difficult as long as you don’t post on social media.”

She shook her head as she deposited her bag in the back seat of his car. She slid into the front seat, looking a little nervous. He needed to find out more about her social media habits. Just being on social media would open her up to being found.

“Social media makes it very easy for people to locate you.”

She sighed. “My phone is gone, and my computer, too. I’ll have to buy a new one and download everything from the cloud. I don’t plan on going back to social media, at least not for a long while. Not that I posted much on there in the first place. I kept everything private, but I know he could have been spying using someone else’s profile.”

“Before you connect your device to the cloud, I want one of my friends to set you up so you can’t be tracked.”

She turned to him, her eyes narrowed. “What does that include?”

“I don’t know the specifics, but Thario is good. He can make sure you aren’t tracked.”

“Okay. I’ll do whatever you think is best. Logan has done a lot to try to destroy me. I wouldn’t put it past him to try to track me with my computer or phone.”

“Have you changed all your passwords?”

“I need to. It’s exhausting thinking about everything he has done and what I have to do to counter his actions.”

“Hopefully, this will be a new start for you.”

She nodded but didn’t say anything. With the Navy, he’d moved multiple times and was used to it. Being a SEAL meant he would probably stay in Coronado, but he could be sent to Hawaii or Virginia. It was something military people learned to deal with. Your local restaurants and bars would change, along with the people you hung out with, but you’d find people. It was one reason military people learned to stick to friendships with other military members. Sometimes those friends came back around after another move and it was like old times again. Since he was a SEAL, it was all different now.

He hoped Vera could adapt once the fear subsided. Adapting to the changes wasn’t easy for some people. He always found people he could hang with wherever he went because military people moved around, and there were always new people in the location. With her not being military, it might be more difficult for her to adapt.

Awkwardness twisted through him when they arrived at his place. Frizz had promised that Vera was good, that she had been a great roommate. Now was the proving time, and he hoped it went well. The last thing he wanted to do was live with a person who was difficult. He couldn’t do that. She would have to adjust or leave.