Page 27 of The Loves We Lost

“No. But could you call Anthony at the sheriff’s office and get him to swing by if he can? I’m going to hide.”

“Not in the house in case they break in. Somewhere less obvious.”

“I’ll hide in the shed. Call Anthony. I gotta go.”

Anthony and I went out for drinks a couple of times. He would have taken it further, I know. He’s hinted as much. I thought he was perfect. The antithesis of Miles, the safety I craved in a package. Turned out no one could fill Miles’s boots.

I run into the kitchen, snatch my keys off the hook, and take the catch off the kitchen door so it locks. Then I grab my laptop, phone, and Avery’s towel before running down to the garden. “Baby,” I say quickly. “We gotta go into the shed. Emily is gonna swing by, and I want to hide from her and surprise her, but we have to be really quiet.”

My grandfather kept his tools in the shed, but because he was also convinced every person on the planet was a crook out to get him, he’d blacked out the windows so no one could see inside. The tools are now mostly gone. I sold the majority of them. But I’ve never been more relieved that his paranoia also meant I had a camera on the doorbell.

“Why are we hiding?” Avery asks, her voice wavering as I pull her along.

“I’ll tell you when we surprise her, okay?”

I open the door to the shed. It’s dark. Musty. There are probably spiders. “I don’t want to go in here,” Avery whines.

“I know, pumpkin, but trust me, we need to.”

Quickly, I search through the few tools that are left. A hammer and a chisel are my best options, and I grab them and put them by my feet.

Next, I wrap the towel around Avery and rub her dry briskly. When my phone notifies me there’s someone at the front door, I quietly close the shed door the rest of the way so there’s no light.

“We have to be quiet,” I whisper to Avery.

“I don’t like it, Momma,” she says, squeezing up so tightly next to me, there is no air between us.

“I know, but be good.” I open the app that shows me the camera feed. Emily was right. Two men. I place it to my ear so I can hear what they’re saying.

“You sure this is the right place?” the guy with the bald head says.

“That’s what the dog walker said.”

I screw up my face in frustration. Living with a bunch of old busybodies, and none of them thought to keep my freaking address to themselves. What the hell happened to stranger danger?

He rings the doorbell again, then hammers on the door. “Cupcake delivery.”

My fear escalates. I know he just bought those cupcakes at Emily’s bakery. And I know for sure he isn’t here on a delivery.

“Cupcakes?” Avery whispers.

“It’s part of the game. If they don’t find us, we win.” It’s a lie I can fix later.

“Don’t see that Outlaw’s bike,” the goon says, and the bald one puts a finger to his lips. “Let’s go look around back.”

My heart rate accelerates. They’re looking for Miles. They must be. The obvious answer is usually the right one. But how do they know about me? How do they know anything of my connection to him?

“Be really quiet,” I say and press a kiss to the top of my daughter’s head.

“There’s nobody back here.” The words are faint, and I have to strain to hear.

“Let’s go eat and come back later.”

Footsteps fade into the distance ... as do the voices talking about returning at night, when it’s dark.

“Did we win the cupcakes?” Avery whispers.

“Yes. I think we did.”