Page 72 of Trapped
He stood. “Can I talk to you for a minute?” He tilted his head to indicate he wanted to do it away from Gran.
“It’s okay; you don’t have to hide from me,” Gran said.
I agreed. “She knows Finn’s been,” I paused to find the right word, “bothersome.” I’d filled her in on Red Flag Finn’s persistence while they opened the box.
Not bothering with kid-gloves, he nodded and said, “There was a single black rose in the box. We’re looking into Finn, but we’re keeping our minds open to other possibilities.” I could tell he was choosing his words carefully.
“What does that mean?” Gran asked.
I didn’t need to ask. Not after what happened with Emily.
“Ashley, do the black roses mean anything to you? Can you think of anyone else who might want to scare you?”
They didn’t. I couldn’t. I wasn’t perfect, but I was a decent person, and I tried not to hurt people. And other than Finn, no one had ever given me a reason to think they’d want to hurt me.
“Not that I can think of.” No one from my past was unhinged enough to harass me.That you know of.
“If you remember anything, let us know.” He looked down at his phone.
“I know you won’t want to hear this, but we’re not comfortable leaving either of you unattended, so SSI will be providing around the clock coverage—”
“Oh, hell no,” I said. When I stood, the movement sent my pine chair crashing behind me. Prince tore from the room in a black streak.
“Let him finish,” Gran said, as Nathan stood and righted my chair.
“Thank you, Violet.” Nathan held my chair out for me.
“I’ll stand.” If only my eyes could shoot laser beams of death.
“Jamie said SSI won’t charge you.” He put one fear to rest. “I’ll be with you twenty-four-seven.” He confirmed my second fear.
This was way worse than I expected. Nathan would camp out in front of Gran’s house all day, every day. When would he sleep? Eat?
“What about Gran? You can’t leave her alone to follow me.”
“Someone from SSI will be outside anytime we leave.”
“So you’re just going to sit in your truck twenty-four hours a day? What happens if you fall asleep?” I challenged.
“I won’t be outside.” His voice was flat, hard. Like he had the final say in the matter.
I’d swear my eyes opened so wide they almost popped out of my head.
Gran, the traitor, smiled.
Ignoring her, I said, “We don’t have a bed for you.” I crossed my arms and smirked.Let’s see him solve that problem.
“I can sleep on the couch, or on the floor if necessary.”
I dropped my arms. Why hadn’t I thought of that?
“I’ll get you sheets and blankets for the couch. Though it’ll be a bit short for you.”
Ignoring my protests, Nathan said, “Thank you, Violet.”
At the same time, I said, “That won’t be necessary.”
“Ashley, if the guys from SSI think you need protection, you should graciously accept it,” Gran said before asking Nathan. “How concerned should we be?”
