Page 54 of Rescuing Tobias

“Sorry if it’s not okay to ask, but I was just wondering. Is it possible that you overdo things and that’s why you're always in pain?”

“It’s important to keep my back moving so it doesn’t stiffen up and become worse. Physical therapy is also my best chance at healing the injury.”

“I don’t want to be a downer, or pretend that I know what you're going through or what it’s like to live in constant pain, but how many hours a day do you work out?”

“Four to six. I do at least two hours in the morning and two in the evening.”

“And is that what your doctor told you to do?”

“No,” he admitted. “My doctor thinks it’s overkill.”

“And overkill is bad, right? It means you could actually be doing more damage. Maybe the pain would be a little better if you gave your body more time to rest. I'm not saying to stop working out, if physical therapy is your best chance at healing, you should still do it, but wouldn't like just an hour or two a day be enough? That would be at least half of what you're doing now, sometimes just a third. Don’t you think it would be worth trying to cut back and see if it helps with your pain levels?”

“Don’t want to wind up in a wheelchair.”Don’t want to wind up a burden.

“I'm not saying that wouldn't take major adjustments if you did, but, Tobias, it also wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, because you would adjust. You’d still be able to do your job, you'd still be able to be mostly independent, you'd still have our baby, and you'd still have me. What exactly would disappear out of your life if the worst happened?”

Nothing.

She was right. There would be major adjustments, and a lot of things wouldn't be as easy as they were right now, but he’d still have everything that mattered the most.

Pausing, he tugged her into his arms, intending to tell her that she was a genius on top of being a firecracker, and that he appreciated her honest take on his life and his future more than he could express, but something stopped him.

The sight of a van further down the street, back the way they’d come.

Was it following them?

White vans had been used in Ava’s abduction, as well as many of the others who had been taken by the organ trafficking ring.

Was he being paranoid, wondering if the van was a threat?

He got his answer a split second later when the van suddenly sped up, tires screeching as it headed straight for them.

April 25th

7:20 A.M.

Tobias’body suddenly stiffened, his gaze shifting to something behind her.

Then she heard it.

The screech of tires.

A horrible sense of déjà vu washed over her as Isabella immediately flashed back to the other day when she was out with her friends and that car tried to run her down as she was crossing the street.

Of course, she knew that it looked like it could have been a deliberate attempt to hit her, but still, she had so much else going on that she’d almost been able to pretend it was all just one great big coincidence. That she wasn't in any real danger and it was just her mind and fears playing tricks with her.

It was harder to keep her head buried in the sand when tires were once again screeching as a vehicle came barreling toward her.

Only this time, there was nowhere to go.

Behind them was a six-foot-tall brick fence, and it wasn't like they could just scale up it and jump down to the other side. Even if they could, the van aiming right for them was big, it could possibly take down the fence.

Had the vehicle been sitting outside Becca and Connor’s house?

Had it been waiting for her to leave?

Had it followed her?

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