Page 79 of See You There

“Yeah, it was this little orange thing…” Dahlia trailed off. The tattoo. Shehadseen it before. But where?

Hannah’s voice was cautious when she asked. “You and Scott used to hang with some pretty rough people, do you still…”

“No! I was only at the stupid casino because I had to be there! And those were Scott’s connections, not mine.”

“Do you have to stay in hiding forever? Like on TV?”

“No, I have to be back next week. I can’t miss the premiere. I’ve worked too hard.”

After ending the call, Dahlia gently rocked back and forth in the chair, but it wasn’t the spectacular view in front of her she saw. It was the tattoo. It was the only thing that made sense. She knew she’d seen it before. It wasn’t a character she recognized, more a blob with fur, which might have been cute but for the bulging vein in the middle…

Oh my god!

“Luke!” she cried, running back into the house, but there was no sign of him. As she passed the front windows, she glimpsed him on the phone, pacing by the truck.

Flinging the door open, she bounded up to him, skidding to a stop.

He held up a finger. “I appreciate it, Brady.”

Dahlia bounced from one foot to the other. Get off the phone, she willed him. He turned and walked a few steps away.

“Luke.” He looked back and frowned. She widened her eyes at him, but he only mouthed ‘wait’ and turned to walk away. “Luke!”

He spun back angrily, pulling his phone away from his head. “I’m on the—”

“I know who the shooter is.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

One hourand several phone calls to the police and James later, Dahlia felt the best she had in days. The police were going to bring Hank in for questioning. This would all be over soon.

Luke warned her not to get her hopes up, but she refused to let him darken her mood. The only questions that still bothered her were why had Chandler’s trainer robbed a casino, and had Chandler known? She shook her head. No way! Hank had shot Chandler. If Chandler realized who it was, he would want justice.Right?

“Our best bet is going to be to head down the mountain. Ellijay isn’t far, and they have a Walmart.” Luke’s words brought her back to their conversation.

Dahlia grabbed a pad from her duffel bag. “We should make a list. What do you like to cook?”

“I… um… I don’t cook a lot. Usually just a protein shake at some point and then order something later for dinner.”

Dahlia wrinkled her nose. “Not an option. I didn’t see a blender in the cabinets but Dog…” she said, her lips twitching at the appellation, “doeshave a couple of pans. I can cook basic stuff. Nothing exciting. You don’t know how to cook at all?”

“Of course, I can cook! I had a single mom. She was a big believer that James and I should be self-sufficient.”

“Then why the protein shakes and takeout?”

He shrugged. “It’s hard to cook for one person, and I don’t like leftovers.”

Dahlia’s mouth dropped open. “How can you not like leftovers? It’s the best kind of food! A meal already made without the work.”

“I work a lot of long hours,” Luke said defensively. “Are you telling meyoucook all the time?”

She grimaced. “Touché. No, after a long day on set, it’s usually a bagged salad.” But I plan on changing that, she added to herself, thinking of the list she made last night.

Item #4 enjoy food again.

The night before, as she had huddled terrified in Luke’s conference room, Dahlia had an epiphany.

She should have died that day. If she hadn’t dropped the fries, those first bullets would have hit her. While Luke and James made plans, so did she. Dahlia was determined to reclaim her life. Her first step was to make a list of all the things she wanted. Eating like a rabbit for the rest of her life to fit into designer samples wasn’t on it.