Chapter 20
Allyson was going stir-crazy. She felt caged, but she shouldn’t have felt that way. Keith’s property was enormous, and she could walk for an hour without seeing the same spot twice. Still, she wasn’t home and needed to prepare to start at the clinic. Sean was counting on her to start the following week.
It had been over a week, and the first snowfall of the winter covered everything with a blanket of white. It looked beautiful, and she enjoyed the crisp air as she walked down the pathway around the property.
Crash struggled to keep his annoyance in check and spend time with the kids. Why he thought he wouldn’t be able to handle it was beyond her because he was a natural.
Cameron had moved into the bunkhouse with Elijah because he said the couch wasn’t comfortable. Allyson didn’t believe that for a minute. It was probably because the kids were up at the crack of dawn, and Caleb liked to wake her son.
Everyone brought to the compound dealt with things better than expected, but Axel seemed to struggle. His dad let it slip that Axel had nightmares every night, and when Crash talked to him, his friend said things were under control.
“It’s so pretty,” Sidney smiled as she walked toward Allyson on the path.
“Yes, it is.” Allyson stopped to chat with the young girl.
“I needed to stretch my legs, and Mom and Dad hovered. A lot.” Sidney sighed.
“They’re scared for you.” Allyson understood completely.
“I know, and the truth is, so am I. All the stories I heard about my uncle make me wish I could scrub all his DNA from my system.” Sidney leaned against a tree. “Too bad that’s not possible.”
“Your DNA doesn’t define you. You’re an amazing person, and that’s because wonderful people helped you.” Allyson smiled at the young woman.
“I know, and I’m eternally grateful for all those men who got my mother and me out of there.” A tear ran down her cheek. “I miss her letters.”
“You kept in touch?” Allyson asked.
“She sent letters every month. She wouldn’t call because she was scared he’d find me. Her brother is a monster. I guess it was inevitable.” Sidney wiped her face. “Do you think he’ll give up?”
Allyson didn’t know the answer, but she felt that if Nasir had searched for nineteen years, he wouldn’t stop unless someone stopped him. The thought sent a shiver through her, and she wrapped her arms around herself.
“I wish I knew, honey, but you have some of the best people in the world doing everything to keep you safe,” Allyson assured her.
“I don’t remember anything about that time. I was only two, but I have this flash of a man running with me in his arms. Brent carried me to the helicopter, but this man isn’t Brent.” Sidney shook her head. “It’s weird, right?”
“No. We all have flashes of memory from when we were little. It’s hard to distinguish which is real and which is what we’ve been told,” Allyson said.
“This is so clear, though. The guy is olive-skinned and has dark eyes. I wonder if he’s the uncle who took us.” Sidney sighed.
“It could be.” Allyson shivered as a cold wind blew around them. “Let’s go get some hot chocolate.”
“That sounds like a plan.” Sidney smiled finally.
They silently returned to the bunkhouse and found Crash outside with Caleb, building the worst snowman she’d ever seen. He glanced up when Allyson got closer and grinned.
“Mila is napping, so we decided to come play in the snow.” Crash helped Caleb put snow on the pitiful snowman.
Allyson would never say anything because the little boy was working hard on it, and Crash seemed really proud of himself. Someone laughed behind her before she could tell Caleb how good it was.
“What the heck is that supposed to be?” Megan walked toward them.
“It’s a snowman,” Caleb grinned.
Megan looked at the little boy and crouched to talk to him. She took his little hand and pressed her lips together for a moment before she spoke.
“Did you make this yourself?” Megan asked.
“No. Brent made it, and I helped.” Caleb hugged Megan.
“Brent made it.” Megan looked up at her brother.
“Don’t say a word, or I’ll throw you in a snowbank,” Crash warned his sister.
It was nice to see them forget about everything going on and enjoy the day. She wasn’t sure how long they had to stay on the compound, but they couldn’t do this forever. She wasn’t sure if she needed to be there; after all, she and Brent had only recently gotten together. A lot of people still didn’t know about them.
“You have seen a snowman before, right?” Megan continued to tease Crash.
“Keep it up, little girl, and you are going headfirst into that snowbank,” Crash narrowed his eyes.
“Let me show you one on my phone,” Megan went on as she pulled off her glove.
That was all Crash needed. He lunged toward his sister, and she shrieked as she turned to escape him. She didn’t stand a chance. He caught her and tossed her over his shoulder. With her begging, screaming, and beating on his back, Crash walked toward the large bank of snow that had been plowed there when Keith cleared the roadway of the compound.
“Brent, don’t you dare. My phone is in my…” Megan didn’t finish as Crash tossed her into the pile.
He didn’t stop there. He started taking handfuls of snow and throwing it on top of her. Allyson felt bad for her, but she wasn’t about to get in the middle of that snow fight.
“Jerk,” Megan shouted as Brent walked away, slapping the snow from his gloves.
“Next time, don’t diss my snowman,” Crash called over his shoulder.
“That wasn’t very nice.” Allyson chuckled.
“Bet she won’t make fun of my snowman skills again.” Crash grinned.
His smile disappeared as he looked past her toward the road from the main gate. Allyson saw two police cruisers and Keith’s Jeep driving toward them.
“Megan, take Caleb inside,” Crash said as his sister stepped beside them.
As the cars came to a stop, Aaron got out of one, Nick out of the other, and Keith out of the Jeep. When Nick opened the rear door of his cruiser, Crash seemed to hold his breath as someone stepped out of the vehicle.
“What the fuck?” Crash gasped.
“Who is that?” Allyson asked.
Crash didn’t say a word but began to stalk toward Nick and the man who exited the car. Allyson also moved toward them but stopped when she saw Axel run down the bunkhouse steps and follow Crash.
She didn’t know who this man was, but Crash and Axel seemed to recognize him. Neither of them looked particularly happy to see the guy either.
“Who is that?” Sidney asked.
“I don’t know, but maybe we should go inside with Megan and the kids.”
Allyson wrapped her arm around Sidney and guided the girl to the bunkhouse. As they stepped inside, Allyson looked over her shoulder in time to see Nick and Aaron stop Crash and Axel as they lunged for the unknown man. This could be trouble.