Page 56 of A Captive Situation

Beck and Jake. Both were on my shit list.

I yelped before frantically replying, not reading the rest of her email.

Do Not Tell Beck Anything!

Her reply was just as quick.

I didn’t, but Maude did. The three of us stonewalled him so he went to her. He’s been calling me ever since.

I growled, typing back,Just block him.

It was as easy as that. What was my mom doing? Yes, she was stonewalling him, but why hadn’t she already blocked him? We lived in a small town. I also got that. Beck was there. He ran a business there, and my mom was into the local town’s high society, which Beck was also into. But still. Fucking block him. Everyone would understand.

Ding!

I heard the notification and checked the other tab.

GrahamM.ArchitectGalligFirm: Sawyer! Is this really you? Your mother told me to check my messages here. Yes. I’m here. Where are you? You need a phone?

Nerves fluttered in my belly because how I maneuvered with him, knowing my aunts were on their way to him, would need to be handled with care. What should I say? I couldn’t believe I was involving him, but also, I couldn’t stay with Jake. He might’ve been lying about the whole thing. Maybe? I didn’t know anymore.

I just knew I couldn’t handle being locked in a room again.

My arms were like lead as I lifted them back to the desk, looking out the windows and spotting a cute little café across the road.

SawyerMatsenNottotallyoriginal1: I’m in a little town north of the city. Could you come and get me? I’ll be at Hen Café in Porter, but Graham, you can’t come in your car. You can’t tell our aunts anything. And you need to have your phone turned off. Trust me on all of this. Also, do you have a gun? If you do and if you’re comfortable with it, you might want to bring it with you.

My stomach was a whole twister inside as I clicked send. I closed my eyes, now waiting for whatever fireworks that was going to set off.

GrahamM.ArchitectGalligFirm:What The Fuck Is Going On????

GrahamM.ArchitectGalligFirm: a gun? Why the fuck would I need a gun? I barely know you. Are you insane? I’m honestly asking. Have you had a recent trip to a mental health hospital? I won’t judge you, but I need to know what to prepare myself for. My mother told me why you really came to New York. I’m so sorry about your ex-fiancé, but is this about him? Are you planning on doing something? Hurting yourself?

Indignant anger boiled up, but I fought against letting it out as I replied. I was exhaling deep breaths to keep from losing my shit, cousin or no cousin. A few people in the library kept giving me looks. I ignored them.

SawyerMatsenNottotallyoriginal1: No. It’s nothing like that. I’m just—look, I was outside your place and then ... something happened. I’ll explain everything to you when you get here, but please just come. Don’t tell our aunts or your mother. This is serious. Just come and get me and I mean it, keep your phone turned off. Don’t come in your own vehicle. I hope I’m being too cautious, but I’m just not sure right now myself.

GrahamM.ArchitectGalligFirm: That’s an hour outside of the city. I’ll have Oliver take care of the aunts whenthey arrive. Give me a little bit to figure out some things on my end. If the café closes before I get there, there’s a statue in every town. Hang out by whatever statue Porter has.

Ooh. He was smart.

SawyerMatsenNottotallyoriginal1: I can do that.Thank You! I owe you.

Chapter Twenty

Jake

I couldn’t believe what I was watching.

By the time I got to my cabin, I checked the tracker on my truck. It was parked outside of the library a few towns away, but I didn’t know how long Sawyer would stay put. Hurrying through the place, I grabbed any essentials we might need, which were mostly weapons for me. When I got to the town where Sawyer had left the truck, it was easy to find her waiting in the local café.

I considered going in there, throwing her over my shoulder and taking off again, except it was obvious she was waiting for someone. That meant she’d already violated my rule of no contact. My guess was she’d reached out to her cousin, so at this point, he had already been exposed. Even if he returned to his place without Sawyer, someone could still be waiting for him.

The best bet now was to sit back, wait, and follow them. Then, infiltrate and wait for the bad guys to come calling.

I parked in an alley on the other side of the café, able to see where Sawyer was sitting.

She was nervous. The hands wringing together was nonstop, along with gnawing her bottom lip off.

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