Page 24 of Allie's Shelter

It seemed every scenario she imagined had a grain of plausibility in it. Wasn’t that the very definition of paranoia?

Her contemplation of the colorful oak leaves dotting the yard was interrupted by the chime of an instant message on her laptop. Damn. She’d forgotten to disable that feature. As a fugitive, so far she could definitely say she’d make a great captive. She bit her lip, wondering if it was safe to answer. The only person she chatted with through instant message was her best friend Nicole. Allie thought of the false alibi she’d given Cochran. Maybe the sheriff had already called to check out her story. She owed her friend some sort of explanation. But what if Bradley’s thugs used that thread of information to trace her here?

She didn’t want to compromise Ross, but she couldn’t leave Nicole hanging either. She dropped to her knees at the edge of the bed and typed in a quick greeting.

The reply came back immediately. ‘Are you okay?’

‘Yes. You?’

‘Fine. Have a new hobby answering questions about you.’

Allie smiled. ‘Thanks.’

‘Where are you?’

It was a fair question, one Nicole might very well ask, yet a chill slid down Allie’s spine. A dozen scenarios played through her mind in the matter of a few seconds. All of them dark and ending unhappily for her and Nicole.

The cursor blinked at her, demanding she offer up some sort of answer. ‘Hanging out with Aunt Ruth.’

Nicole, the real Nicole, knew Aunt Ruth was away on a cruise. ‘That’s great. You two needed to catch up.’

‘Yeah. I’ll be in touch soon.’ Allie managed to type in the reply on the first try, despite her sweaty palms and shaking hands. Her finger slipped off the power button, but she got it on the next attempt and closed the laptop.

“Ross.” Her effort to shout came out in a creaky whisper. She pushed back from the bed, found the power cord, and yanked it out of the wall. “Ross!” Her voice was stronger this time as she rushed out of the room to find him.

The rush of relief made her lightheaded when she saw him charging down the hallway toward her. “What is it?”

“I—I—” She had to swallow back the terror clawing at her throat as she struggled for rational thought.

“Are you hurt?” His hands were on her shoulders, steady and warm. Having him close was the embodiment of a security blanket. Whatever was going on, he would help her get through it. Calmer, she noticed his eyes were darting behind her, looking for the threat.

“No. I’m fine. Nothing like that. It’s Nicole.” Allie cleared her throat. “My friend. My, umm, alibi. We IM. I didn’t want to reply, but I thought I should after giving her name to the sheriff.”

“Okay.” He took a step back, shoving his hands into his pockets and leaving her feeling alone and vulnerable again.

“Not okay.” Through the panic, she struggled to say things in the right order. “I’m sure it wasn’t really her, but I got scared and shut everything off in case they’re tracking my laptop somehow.”

He scowled in the direction of the open bedroom door. “You’re sure that’s possible?”

“Yes. Unlikely, but possible.” She took another steadying breath. “But if they could do that—track or hack my computer, I mean—they’d have what they want already. Why would they still chase me?”

“Good question.” He scowled down at her.

She didn’t feel small, or in trouble, but she discovered how much she preferred his smile to the hard, cold expression clouding his features now.

“I really need to tell you everything.”

“That would make things easier.”

A grin teased the corner of his mouth and she had to work to keep her mind on business when it wandered down memory lane, back to those sweet days when they shared everything from kisses to chemistry homework.

“First I need an untraceable internet connection.”

“Meaning untraceable to you?”

“Yes. Please?” She reached for him but caught herself and thrust her hands into her pockets. The last thing she needed was to make this personal when he was likely involved with someone else. Maybe he’d been hers once, but those days were truly a lifetime removed from this moment.

“The computer in my office is as secure as it gets this side of a military operation.”