Page 45 of Baby Me

“You’re supposed to be injail.”

“Wrong answer. I’m supposed to be on an exotic island, counting the fifty million dollars your motherstole.”

“Come on, Mike. She never did anything to you. She lovedyou.”

“She gave me up and hid what was rightfully mine. She left that money to rot in the crypt with our ancestors’corpses.”

I was actually quite proud of my mother. When she’d told me the story of how she’d met my father, Xavier, and fled an oppressive little town to give me a fair chance in life, I knew it was exactly the kind of strength I wanted tohave.

“So what? You’re going to kill us? You realize that’s not going to bring that money back, don’tyou?”

“You’re right. It’s not. But nothing would give my uncle more pleasure than to have your mother watch you die before she does. It’s kind of poetic, don’t you think? She claims she watched me die in her arms and now gets to actually watch her daughter stop breathing. Do you know what that means forme?”

If I were to bet, it meant money. I could already see the dollar signs flip in my brother’s eyes. He had been raised by his uncle, AaronCortez.

Even though he was my step-brother, he didn’t know me at all. There was no way I would ever take him to my mother. I no longer even thought of him as my brother. We might have shared some similar DNA, but that wasall.

“Turn around,” he ordered, pointing his gun to theside.

Shit.

He grabbed the piece I had behind my jeans, and I frowned. Maybe he did know me a little better than I had hoped. After all, we did work together for twoyears.

“You’re going to calmly walk out the front door and get in the back of my car, where you’ll find a pair ofhandcuffs.”

A loud grumble sounded from Jax’sbedroom.

“What was that noise? Who else ishere?”

“There’s a bear and a lynx in the bedroom. That’sall.”

“You think I’m going to fall for that?” he asked, slowly backing toward the bedroom door, keeping the gun pointed in our direction. I squeezed Evie’s hand in signal to pay attention. The lynx must have scratched the door next, and as soon as Mike’s head turned toward the noise, I flipped the light switch off and ducked behind the couch, pulling Evie down with me. He shot his gun, once, then again. On the third time he must have hit the back door because the glass shattered, and I decided to take the opportunity before he found the light switch. I grabbed Evie’s hand and on all fours guided her with me until we made it outside. Mike fired shot after shot, but we were fortunate that he missed us. I didn’t even hear a peep out of Evie, but I heard Mike swear just as we crossed the line of our backyard and into theforest.

The night was cold, but I had enough adrenaline running through my body to keep me going for days. I wouldn’t stop until we were safe; and then I wouldn’t stop until I knew that Mike Donaldson was behind bars. The first snowflakes started falling from the sky. Their light coating would soon cover the ground and make Mike’s search for us much easier. We didn’t have much time. I didn’t stop until Evie was clearly out of breath. Listening for his steps, I let her rest against astump.

“What just happened? What the hell just happened?” sheasked.

“Evie, calm down. You need to stay quiet. Everything’s okay. I’m gonna get us out of this,okay?”

“Okay?Okay?Your fucked-up brother is chasing us with a gun. I wouldn’t say that’s okay. And to top it off, he hasSophie.”

I’d never heard so much fear in a woman’s voice before, but she couldn’t beright.

“Evie, that’simpossible.”

“No, it’s true because when I called Jack and Mary, they said that Sophie and Anna were missing, and when I went to the police station, your brother was sitting in the parking lot and told me that he had Sophie. That’s why I had to bring him here, Kate. He has my baby girl, and he’s going to kill her. We have to goback.”

“No, Evie. Listen! Sophie is okay, and so is my mother. I don’t know how or why, but I saw them earlier this morning. Brook and Lola took Sophie back to New York, and my mother went with myfather.”

“What?”

“I know. I was surprised as well, but it’s true. They’re safe! But we’renot.”

“Really?Really?”

I heard her sniffles and grabbed her hand so that we’d stay connected and not lose eachother.

“Yeah, really. Sophie is okay – I promise. Now I need you to listen to me carefully, okay? We’re going to get out of this mess, you hearme?”

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