“And everyone thinks you’re a travel writer.”
“That’s what they’re supposed to think.”
He rubbed his eyes then looked at her. “So what makes you think your handler is involved?”
“Because as I was leaving, I heard Sam’s father, who’d just killed Sam’s mother, yell my name.”
Realization hit him. “Your real name, not your covert name.”
“Yes. He called me Amber.”
“And now you have no one to trust and nowhere to turn.”
“Exactly.”
“Well now you’ve got me. And you need to read in Clay.”
She twisted her fingers together then released them to rub her eyes. “I would rather not involve him.”
“He can help us.”
She turned a fierce gaze on him. “There is no us. You’re going to leave and go back to your normal life and forget that you ever saw Sam or me.”
Lance stared at her for a brief moment before letting out a humorless laugh. “Well, I can tell you right now, that’s not happening. You’re stuck with me for the duration.”
“I don’t think you understand. The last two people who’ve gotten involved with me have died. I can’t let that happen to you or anyone else.”
“And yet you came home,” he said softly.
She paused. “What?”
“You ran home.”
“Yes, but it’s just a pop in, pop out kind of thing. I left something here that I needed.”
“But you left it here. At home.”
“Yes.” She gave a short humorless laugh. “Is there supposed to be some deep psychological meaning to that?”
“I don’t know. What do you think?”
She stood frozen for a millisecond then her jaw trembled. “Maybe there is,” she whispered. She glanced toward the back of the house. “I’ve been in a lot of tight spots over the last five years, but this time, it’s very possible I’m in over my head.”
“Then let us help.”
She paused. Paced from window to window then turned and met his gaze. “If you help me, you could be putting yourself in the kind of danger that a lot people don’t live to talk about.”
He didn’t flinch. “It wouldn’t be the first time.”
Once Amber had helped Sam get a quick sponge bath and into some clean sweats and a long-sleeved T-shirt, she waited for him to climb beneath the covers. But then he pushed the blankets away and sat up. “Book. Number One Mom read a book. Please.”
“Number One Mom isn’t here, Sam, I’m sorry.”
He blinked. “Number One Mom is gone.”
“Yes, she is, Sam. She...died.” She didn’t know how much he understood, but he seemed to grasp the concept that his mother wasn’t coming back. Maybe. In some ways he was brilliant and yet, he was definitely still a six-year-old child.
“Number Two Mom read a book. Please.”
Amber opened the app on his phone and brought up his favorite book. A book about dogs and numbers. She read it to him three times before she saw his eyes getting heavy. She closed the app and plugged the phone in next to him. She wasn’t a huge fan of allowing children his age unlimited use of technology, but right now, in their situation, she had to use whatever she could to keep him happy. Once she knew they were safe and his father was either in prison or dead, then they would reevaluate the device usage.
Amber walked back into the den to find Lance standing at the window, his weapon held by his side. She tensed. “What is it?”
“Thought I heard something, but then I caught sight of a doe so maybe I’m just twitchy.”
“Being twitchy might just keep us alive.”
“Right.” After twenty minutes and nothing else happening, she was finally able to relax a fraction. “I’m going to look in on Sam.”
He nodded. Amber walked down the hall to peer in on the child. He lay sprawled on his back, his chest rising and falling with each even breath. Keep him safe, God, no matter how You feel about me, keep that child safe, please. He’s so smart, brilliant really. I know You have some kind of special plan for him. Let him live to fulfill that. She felt tears prick at the back of her eyes and swallowed. Crying accomplished nothing. She wouldn’t start now. Amber returned to the den and found Lance at the back door, peering out the window. He glanced at her when she entered. “How’s he doing?”
“Sleeping. I’m not too surprised. He slept some in the car. It seemed like he slept a lot, but now that I think about it was more like catnaps. He needs a good night’s rest.”
“As do you, probably.”
She couldn’t help the yawn that escaped. “Mmm. Probably.” She walked to the dryer and checked her socks. Dry. Perfect. The boots were still damp so she left them in and started the dryer again. She handed Lance his socks and then sat in the nearest chair to pull hers on.
“Go get the rest, Amber.”
Amber hesitated. She’d had to rely on herself for so long that trusting someone else—even Lance Goode—wasn’t a likely possibility. “I probably wouldn’t fall asleep anyway.”
“You’ve got to or you’re going to get punchy and careless. Trust me, I know.”
Amber rubbed her gritty eyes. It had been all she could do to stay awake and read to Sam. She sighed. Lance was right, of course. She had to sleep. “All right. There’s a couch in Sam’s room. I’ll go try.”
“What about the other bedroom? That would be more comfortable.”
“No, I want to stay close to Sam. If he wakes up in a strange place he might get scared and start to wander. I’ll be fine.” He frowned but didn’t protest. “Wake me in a few hours and you can take a turn.”
He nodded and she headed back down the hall to the room where Sam slept. Sam rolled over and opened his eyes when she walked in. She went to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Go back to sleep, Sam. It’s all right.”
His eyes closed, and she waited for him to drift off again. When she was convinced he was once again sleeping soundly, she snagged a pillow from the other side of the bed, a musty blanket from the closet and made herself as comfortable as possible on the couch. She didn’t expect to sleep but told herself she could at least relax a little. Her lids closed and she breathed deep.
* * *
Lance rubbed his forehead and moved to another window. It had been three hours since Amber had disappeared into Sam’s room, and Lance had just looked in on them. They were both asleep in spite of Amber’s allegation she wouldn’t be able to. He’d figured she would. Her fatigue had rolled off her in waves. He’d pulled the boots out of the dryer and put his on. He’d placed hers by the couch where she now rested. She’d opened her eyes briefly when he’d entered, saw what he was doing and shut them again.
He glanced from her to the sleeping child and shook his head. It was a huge responsibility that she was taking on and he had to admire her determination. He just prayed she let people help her before it was too late.
From