Page 21 of No More Secrets

“What?” Her face pales. She doesn’t move.

Lucas rolls his head, loosening his shoulders. “You can’t sleep out there. I’m taking you to a shelter.” There has to be one around here somewhere.

Her face screws up. “I’m not getting in that truck with you.”

He doesn’t want her there either, but he’s not leaving her here.

A police cruiser turns into the parking lot, catching him unawares. Panic explodes in his chest. Every time he sees the police, he’s instantly thrown back to the night he was arrested for holding up a minimart. The red-and-blue lights, the cops in his face, the cold metal of the handcuffs. The fear consuming him. And now that he killed his father, he’s terrified that he’s fated to repeat the experience. He’d been so focused on Sunshine Girl that he hadn’t taken care to watch his surroundings.

The cruiser stops in front of them, blocking Lucas’s truck. A window drops down, revealing the stern cop inside. His gaze sizes up Lucas, then Sunshine Girl. Lucas watches his mouth move when he speaks, but he can’t make out what he’s saying over the roar in his head. Why hadn’t he been paying attention?

Sunshine’s immobile, but she recovers first. “Nothing much, Officer,” she says evenly. “Just having a late dinner with my dad.”

“That right?” The officer’s eyes narrow on him. Lucas coaxes his hands to relax so he doesn’t appear threatening.

“Yes, sir.” His voice is a forced calm, belying the terror brewing inside him. He sends up a prayer of gratitude for the dark or the cop would see how filthy Sunshine is. He’d know right away something wasn’t right between them.

Lucas holds his gaze, silently willing him to move along. But the cop unlatches his seat belt. “I’m going to need to see some ID.”

His stomach crashes into his feet like a dropped bag of rocks. Bile churns, and he has to physically force himself to keep the sickness down. In his mind, he’s already back in his cell, reliving the horror his bunkmate Morris put him through.

Sunshine’s feet shuffle. She meets his eyes, and Lucas slowly shakes his head. If she runs, they’re screwed.

He probably already is. The cop will run his ID and find the warrant for his father’s murder. He’ll be cuffed and behind bars within the hour.

Thoughts bounce around chaotically in his mind. His gaze wildly searches for an exit.

He steps back, primed to run.

The cop opens the door, and a dispatcher’s voice crackles over the speaker about a domestic dispute less than a mile from them. The cop doesn’t even glance at them. He shuts the door and guns the cruiser toward the scene.

Air whooshes from Lucas’s lungs. He clasps his hands behind his head and swears under his breath. That was too close for comfort. He turns to Sunshine to tell her to get into his truck so they can get out of here, but she’s gone.

11

Arms folded, Lucas stares out the Dusty Pantry’s front window at the empty parking lot, fighting off a yawn. After last night’s close call with the authorities, he slept fitfully, tossing until his alarm went off. He woke with a throbbing headache, fire behind his eyes, and a gut full of worry. That cop almost ID’d him. He might not be so lucky next time.

If he had any sense, he’d leave town, ditch his truck, and change his name. But that’s more work than his life is worth. And last he checked, he wasn’t interested in living. But he’s tired of hurting, exhausted from a past that torments him and he can’t change. Factor in what he did to his father, and he can’t see what he has left to give.

So why can’t he stop thinking about Sunshine Girl?

He worried all night she didn’t find a place to sleep. Still worries. So much concern for a girl he doesn’t know when he couldn’t spare an ounce for his own sister.

No thanks to him, though, Lily survived. Aside from a speech impediment, his nephew, Josh, seemed to get on well. A wise and talented kid. His sister raised him well. She’s done well for herself.Isdoing well. Somewhere along the way, someone must have helped her, given her a chance to survive and thrive. Opened her world to opportunities she didn’t hesitate to take. She overcame odds he’s never hurdled.

There are days he wishes he knew what happened to her. Other days he regrets tossing his phone. Yes, he could reach out to his sister Olivia to get Lily’s number. But he doesn’t want any connection to the past, including his family. As dysfunctional as they are, he’ll only holdhis sisters back. If they know where he is and don’t turn him in, they could be charged with aiding and abetting a criminal.

So yeah, maybe he does care about something: his sisters.

His thoughts circle back to Sunshine Girl.

What should he do with her?

Ignore her. She’s not your problem.

He drags his thumb and forefinger across his eyelids and sighs wearily. Why does he even care? He didn’t the night Lily ran. He didn’t the night he killed his father.

Lucas looks at his hands. They shake as another memory surfaces and he no longer sees his hands as they are now. They’re bloody with shredded knuckles. Fists that pulverized his dad’s face. Then Olivia is in front of him getting into his face. She’s asking what happened to their father. She wants to know what Lucas did.

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