Page 31 of Protect Me
A shockwave.
I still trembled in my very center, afraid of what Timothy’s release could mean. Likely, nothing. Who wanted to go back to prison, anyway? Timothy might go into his life and live away from me forever.
Or he might bereallyangry that I spoke out, pressed charges, testified against him, and stared right into his livid eyes when they took him away after the trial. For days, I’d shaken on and off as I thought about it. Even now, the memory sent a chill through me. This level of paranoia would kill me by the end of the week.
After that?
Homelessness.
Once the shop cleared again, I returned to my phone. Dahlia had two potential contacts at the RV park that might have trailers to rent. A long shot, of course, but even a temporary bandaid was welcome.
The vague thought that I tried a littletoohard to avoid Vikram filtered through my mind, but I sent it back out again.
Two replies had already come in from the exploratory text messages I sent out.
RVPark World:We have one slot for the next week. A pull through.
I frowned.
Katelyn:Any trailers to rent?
RVPark World:Trailers? No, you have to supply those.
I chewed on my bottom lip and set the phone aside. Of course. That had been an idiotic hope. The small savings that I’d built up over the last couple of years burned in my bank account. With it as a supplement, I could afford an apartment in Jackson City for three months, and the cost of gas would eat up most of my paycheck.
Vikram floated back through my mind.
He’d given me plenty of distance since his offer, which had been a relief. I needed space to think without his beautiful head interrupting it. My phone buzzed on the counter. The flash of Vinita’s name sent a dual feeling of terror and relief through me at the same time. For several moments, I debated whether to answer it.
At the last second, I picked it up with my happy-to-see-your-name voice on point.
“Hey!”
“So I’ve got this figured out,” Vinita said. “There are some apartment places on the southern edge of Jackson—“
“Already looked yesterday. They’re garbage. Super scary. Not sure how old those pictures are on the listing online, but they don’t look like that anymore.”
Vinita sword under her breath.
“No HomeBnb’s available in the area.” I ticked my fingers off one by one as I spoke, even though she couldn’t see me. “No locals that have an extra room, no RV’s to rent. I think I may end up camping.”
She hissed.
I managed a laugh.
“Just kidding.”
A pause swelled between us. “Why don’t you just take Vikram’s offer?” she asked quietly. “I know he meant it. You know Vik. He would never have offered if he didn’t mean it. And, youknowyou’d be safe with him.”
My belly burned with the truth of it. I would be safe with Vikram. Arguably, he was the only person I had felt safe with, despite not interacting with him for years. If Timothy’s release didn’t loom over me, this wouldn’t have been nearly as stressful.
“I . . .”
I hesitated.
Did Vinita know how I felt about her brother? Highly doubtful. All my life, I’d kept the crush under wraps, leaving him to simmer in my dreams. To admit it now felt juvenile, but so did hiding it.
“I don’t think it would be wise for me to stay with Vikram.”
