Page 98 of Coerced

I carried Aria outside, holding her close to my body and feeling nothing but relief as I did. I had no less than a dozen things I wanted to say to her, but all of them could wait. She was safe for now, and that’s all that mattered to me.

Of course, I realized she was probably scared and confused, so as I walked down the street toward my vehicle, I filled her in on what she could expect. “I’d love nothing more than to take you out of here right away. Unfortunately, the police have been called, and we need to wait around, so you can give a statement. As soon as I can take you home, I will. For now, you can stay out here.”

“Sasha was outside, and?—”

“She’s fine. Some of the boys in the neighborhood were playing with her in your driveway when I got home. I took care of her, so she’s safe inside your house right now.”

Some of the tension eased in her body. “Thank you.”

I’d do anything for you,I thought. Instead, I replied, “Of course.” We continued down the block, and once we were within twenty feet of the vehicle, I said, “I have a surprise for you.”

Aria tipped her head back to look at me, curiosity in her eyes. All I could do was offer a half-hearted smile inreturn. When she heard the car door open, she looked in that direction. And once her best friend stepped out with tears in her eyes, Aria’s body started shaking with the force of her cries all over again.

“You brought Britney,” she cried.

“She’s the reason I knew where to find you.”

We made it to the car, and I set Aria down on her feet. Britney charged forward, wrapping her arms around her best friend. I stood, watching the two of them for a few seconds, but my attention was ultimately pulled away by Banks coming in my direction.

“Aria?” I called.

“Yeah?”

“How about you and Britney get in the car while I handle a few things here? When the police are here and ready to talk to you, I’ll let you know. I’ll be right here until that time comes.”

She sent an uncertain look my way and gave me a nod in return.

Then she and Britney climbed back inside the car.

It was going to be a few hours before we were able to get out of here and back home to Steel Ridge. But the minute I had her alone, I intended to tell her everything I believed she needed to hear.

TWENTY-SEVEN

Aria

We were finally alone.

It had been hours. Whole hours since Ronnie and Vic showed up at my place and coerced me out of my home. Hours since they took me to my parents’ place. And hours since I’d learned the truth about how they really felt about me, that my own father would help pin me down to be restrained by criminals while my mom and sister watched.

It had also been hours since Paxton and his coworkers came to the house, rescued me, and I needed to give the police a statement. That statement involved admitting not only what my father had done, but that I’d also played a role in criminal activity.

Paxton had been present as I gave my statement, the look on his face rather stoic throughout. Deep down, I knew what it meant. It was the beginning of the end for us.

Everything had been a blur. And it was only by some miracle—or Paxton’s words or promises—that a couple hours after he’d shown up and rescued me from that horrible, horrible situation, we were finally able to leave and return home.

The drive back had been silent.

Well, not entirely.

There had been conversation, but it was mostly muted and between Paxton and two of his coworkers. Since so many of them had come out in a couple of vehicles, they needed to ride back with us.

I didn’t necessarily mind.

As the guys spoke, it gave me time to think, to prepare for what was ahead for me. The guys had made a couple of phone calls and were having one of their buddies meet us at Paxton’s place, so he’d be able to bring me straight home without the need to make an additional stop at Harper Security Ops. Hart was waiting here for them when we arrived.

Paxton had been nothing short of amazing. He opened my door for me and held my hand firmly in his as he walked me to my front door. I had suspected he might come inside for a few minutes, just to make sure everything was okay, but he said, “I need to run home to let the dogs out.”

I gave him a nod. “Okay.”