29. Kennedy
CHAPTER 29
KENNEDY
I close the Bible in my lap and set it aside to stretch. It’s nearly ten in the morning, and I’ve already been up for what feels like half the day. I wish I could say it’s getting easier to be trapped inside all the time, but that would be a lie.
Truthfully, it’s triggering a whole bucketload of fear, given the last time I was in this similar situation, I didn’t see the attack coming. I try to tell myself it’s different this time. That this time around, it’s not U.S. Marshals guarding the house but soldiers. People who came to my aid when they didn’t have to. They chose to help me. They weren’t ordered to do it.
After grabbing a glass of water from the kitchen, I head into the bathroom where the only window I’m allowed to look out of resides. It’s blocks of frosted glass, so while I can see the natural light outside, no one can actually see me.
This is miserable.
Not that being in this house with Lani and Bradyn has been awful. In fact, they’re the best parts of it. We’ve spent almost every night this past week playing board games or watching old movies.
While Tucker and Elijah haven’t gotten any closer to cracking the code without a key to go off of, Bradyn remains hopeful that they’ll figure it out and promises me that he’s working on a Plan B if that one fails.
Something that will free me from these chains.
With nothing else to do, I head back into the kitchen and check the cookies I put in the oven. It’s my mom’s recipe, one I memorized since I’d helped her in the kitchen for as long as I could remember.
Mom. My eyes get a bit misty, and I take a deep breath. She would’ve loved it here on the ranch. Every year, we’d binge-watch cheesy Christmas movies where the big city girl fell for the flannel-wearing cowboy and gave up everything to move to his ranch. Dad used to joke that it was the only real fear he had.
I smile to myself and set the hot pan on top of the stove to sit for just a few minutes before I move the cookies to the cooling rack.
The front door opens, and Bradyn stalks in. I start to greet him with a smile then notice the twisted rage on his face. “What is it?” All happiness drains out of me.
“You need to see this.” He grabs the remote from the end table and turns on the TV. After flipping a few channels, he stops at the news.
Senator Alexander Brown is not a man I’ll ever forget.
I only met him once, when he’d shown up at our dorm to talk to Olivia our freshman year. But the darkness in his eyes still haunts me even to this day. In some of my most recent nightmares, it’s him holding the gun when that door opens—not Vincent.
“I stand before you, a father terrified for his daughter.” A picture of Olivia smiling pops up on the screen, and a stabbing pain shoots through my chest at the sight of her. “She’s been troubled since the sudden death of her mother and even dropped out of college to spend all her time at home these last two years.” He sucks in a breath and wipes the tears from his eyes. “She went out to meet her friend two nights ago and never returned.” He closes his eyes and pauses a moment while I continue staring at the screen, sure that I must be imagining all of this.
The image of Olivia disappears and is replaced with one of me. My student ID image from UC Davis. “This is Kennedy Smith. She’s the friend my little Olive Bug went out to meet, and she’s missing too. Kennedy has always been a troubled girl. It’s how they bonded, but where Olivia tended to withdraw from the world, Kennedy had a violent streak. I am asking for your help in locating both of these girls so I can make sure my Olive is safe and Kennedy gets the help she needs.” His gaze shifts to the cameras, and it feels as though he’s looking directly into my soul. “Kennedy, if you’re watching this, please reach out. Let me know that Olivia is safe so I can have my daughter back. Whatever you need, I’m here to help you.”
The blood drains from my face, and I stumble back into the counter behind me. Breathing ragged, I’m trying desperately to separate the anger from the fear. How dare he. How dare he stand there and taint Olivia’s memory like that! A troubled girl? She was only troubled because of what he’d done to her!
“Breathe, Kennedy.” Bradyn places both hands on my shoulders. Where did he come from? Wasn’t he across the room?
“I took that picture of her,” I say, my voice shaky. “Me. We went to the park after finals were finished, and I took it. He used a picture I took to condemn me to the world.” I’m rambling, and I know that, but I can’t seem to find stable ground. “And she’s dead! He knows she’s dead! He killed her, and he’s acting like—” I suck in a breath and close my eyes.
“Breathe,” Bradyn says again then pulls me against his chest and wraps both arms around me. Focusing on the steady beat of his heart against my cheek, I manage to catch my breath. But only barely.
“My parents are dead. Olivia is dead. And he’s just standing up there, asking an entire country to track me down and hang me for it.”
“That won’t happen, Kennedy.”
I pull back and start to pace, desperately needing fresh air but knowing I definitely can’t have any tonight. “Bradyn, I’m dying here. The entire town has seen my face. They all know I work here. They’re going to come looking. They’re going to?—”
“Even if they do show up, they’re not getting through the gate,” he assures me. “No one is coming for you, Kennedy. He knows where you are, but he knows he can’t touch you. Not yet. It’s why he’s trying to get someone to turn you in.”
“He just put out a massive wanted poster with my picture on it, Bradyn. All they have to do is say I might be here, and the police will be beating down your door.” My chest aches, panic squeezing my heart like a vice, so I press the heel of my palm against it and rub. “I’m never going to get away from this.”
“Yes, you will. We’ll get it figured out.”
“You’ve been saying that for a week. At what point does running make more sense?” I ask, tilting my face up to look into his gorgeous hazel eyes. “At what point am I going to have to disappear again?”
A muscle in his jaw ticks, and his gaze hardens. “You won’t have to run.”
“There might not be a choice. There’s already not a choice.” I throw up my hands. “I can’t even go outside. I’m trapped, waiting for someone to kick in the door all over again.”
“That’s not going to happen,” he insists.
“Bradyn.”
“No.” He crosses toward me and stops a few inches in front of me. He raises his hands and grips my biceps, gently stroking in his attempt to offer me some form of comfort. I’ve gone cold, though. Cold and afraid. “You’re not going to have to run. I promise we’re going to find a way.”
“I don’t see how.”
“Don’t you trust me?” he asks.
I tilt my face up. “With my life. Haven’t I proven that?”
His gaze flicks to my mouth for a second, and my heart jumps. Then it travels back up to my eyes, and I momentarily forget all the reasons us getting closer is such a bad idea. “I won’t let them get to you. I just need you to hold on a bit longer. I will find a way to finish this and get Olivia, your parents, and all the others who died at his hands the justice they deserve.”
I swallow hard. “I’m just tired, Bradyn.”
“I know.” He reaches up and runs his knuckles over my cheek. I close my eyes and lean into the touch as it soothes some of the brokenness in me. Then he’s gone. Moving away and making me long for his touch again. “Are you okay if I go finish up? I’ll be back soon.”
“I’m okay. Honestly, I’ll probably go catch a nap.”
“I’ll be done soon. I just have something I need to take care of first.”
“Okay. I’ll be here.” I turn away then remember the cookies. “Want a cookie for the road?”
“Absolutely.”
I cross into the kitchen and pluck one from the pan then hand it to him. He’d eaten nearly a dozen of them between yesterday and the day before, but he takes a bite and savors it like it’s the first time he’s tasting it. “You have a gift, Kennedy.”
“I don’t know about that, but I’m glad you like them.” I turn the oven off and put the unused dough in the fridge. “Thanks for letting me know.”
He nods. “I’m sorry we don’t have answers yet.”
“It’s okay.” But as he walks out the door and I head down the hall toward the guest room I’m using, I realize that it might be time to permanently remove myself from this place. That way, the monsters don’t drag Bradyn down with me.
“Kennedy?”
I come awake quickly, shooting up out of bed, my heart racing. “What is it? Are they here?”
“No. Easy. I’m sorry.” Bradyn gently runs a hand over my back. “No one is here. It’s just late, and I thought you might be hungry.”
I take a deep, steadying breath, letting my panic subside. “I haven’t eaten anything but cookie dough all day.”
“I figured.” I can hear the smile in his voice. “Come on, let’s eat. I have something to show you. Get dressed and meet me in the living room. Dress warm.”
“Oh, okay.”
Bradyn retreats and shuts my door softly behind him. Leaving my leggings on, I pull a sweater over my head, slip into some boots, and head out into the living room. He’s standing in the kitchen, wearing dark jeans, a sweatshirt with the ranch’s brand on it, and a baseball cap.
He stares at me for a moment, gaze traveling over me as though he wants to memorize me. My stomach flutters.
“Are you ready?”
“For what?”
“A surprise.” He grins. “Come on.” He turns and heads down the opposite hall to the laundry room and entrance to the garage. A Hunt Family Ranch work truck is backed inside with the door down, which is unusual since he normally parks out front. He opens the back door and gestures. “Hop in and lie down.”
“We’re leaving?”
“For a bit. I’m smuggling you out.” He grins. “If you’re up for it.”
I don’t even respond, my heart leaping at the thought of being free from four walls for even a short period of time. Even if I must view the sky lying in the backseat while he drives, I’ll take it because it means I can see the stars.
The truck smells delicious. A combination of his pine- and leather-scented cologne and something that smells a whole lot like food. My stomach growls.
He climbs into the driver’s seat and hits a button. I hear the garage door rumble as it opens; then he turns his truck on and pulls out of the garage before closing it behind him. The road is bumpy, but the moment I get my first look at the bright stars, I feel a bit of the tension I’ve been carrying slip away.
I can breathe again.
“You doing okay back there?”
“Great,” I reply. “Where’s Bravo tonight?”
“Hanging with Echo,” he replies. “Elliot agreed to keep him for a few hours.”
“That’s great.”
“He doesn’t do well without a job, so the playdate helps him relieve some of that anxiety.”
“Is that why you’re taking me out? Is this a playdate for me?”
Bradyn snorts. “I guess you could look at it that way.”
Silence surrounds us as Bradyn drives. Given that I can only see the stars through the windows, I have no idea where we’re headed. I’m just grateful to be outside—sort of.
The minutes tick by in silence with just the hum of his heater and the steady but muted road noise filling the cab of the truck. Then, he comes to a stop and turns it off. “We’re here. You can sit up now.”
“Really? You’re sure?”
“As sure as I can be,” he says as he turns back to smile at me. “Come on. Let’s get some air.” Bradyn exits the truck, and I climb out when he opens the door. We’re standing beside a pond, the moon glittering over its sleek surface.
Large oak trees surround us, aside from the break in the road and the pond in front of us. I take a deep breath, enjoying the crisp, clean air. It feels so good to be outside, to be standing beneath the bright moon and not huddled inside, trying to soak up whatever I can through those frosted blocks in the bathroom.
I hear something behind me and turn as Bradyn lowers the tailgate of his truck. He spreads a blanket onto the cold metal then retrieves a wicker basket from the passenger seat and sets it onto the blanket.
“Dinner is served,” he says, gesturing casually as though the man didn’t just put together an entire picnic for me.
Just for me.
Outside in the cold January air, all because I was feeling cooped up. The last hold I’d had on my feelings snaps. Since the moment I met Bradyn Hunt, I’ve been falling a bit more for him each day. It’s been hardly any time at all, but I feel as though I’ve known him for a lifetime. I’m tired of questioning how it’s possible. I want desperately to lean into it. Into him.
“You did this for me?”
“You were hungry and needed to get out. We’ve also secured the ranch, so the only way they’re watching us is from the entrance. We’ll be safe out here.”
“Bradyn—” My eyes fill.
“You deserved a break,” he says then takes a seat on his tailgate. “Come on. Have a seat, and let’s eat while it’s warm.”