Chapter 18
OLIVIA
I t takes a while and a hell of a lot more chamomile tea for Chloe to open up and tell Carlos the full story, adding a hell of a lot more details than when she originally told us. When she’s finished, I can see the concern etched deeply into his handsome features.
Just as I can see the curious glances he keeps stealing at my best friend. I don’t think he even realizes he’s doing it. Chloe certainly isn’t aware. She’s too busy staring at her tea, likely wondering if she’s going to be able to survive this entire ordeal.
“I think the first thing we need to do is keep Chloe out of sight for a while,” Carlos concludes after a long minute of processing, “somewhere safe and quiet that can’t be traced back to her or Olivia.”
“What about Olivia?” Dax asks with a deep frown. “She’s a victim in this, too.”
“I don’t want to live my life in hiding,” I cut in. “We made it this far, right? ”
“The circumstances have changed, I’m sure we can all agree on that,” Leo says. I know what he’s talking about, and it does make sense, but I don’t want to hide under a rock, not anymore.
“After what he put me through, after what he put Chloe through, don’t even think about locking me away somewhere for my own safety,” I shoot back, raising my chin in defiance. “Just because I’m pregnant doesn’t mean?—”
“Wait, what?” Chloe gasps.
Carlos’s eyebrows pop up in surprise. “Whoa.”
“Ugh,” I groan and rub my face with my hands, wishing it weren’t such a big deal. But it is. And Chloe is my best friend. This isn’t how I wanted her to find out about it. “I’m sorry, Chloe, I… it just happened.”
“Who’s the father?” she asks, looking around the room.
When Carlos notices my hesitation, as well as Dax, Leo, and Beck’s heavy silence, he bursts into a dry chuckle. “She doesn’t know yet. They’ll need DNA when the baby’s born,” he says.
“Oh, my days,” Chloe laughs. “You were not kidding about the sharing thing. Holy smokes! This is all so weird and wonderful at the same time. I don’t even know how to react!”
“We’ll throw a baby shower when this nightmare is over,” I reply, then give my men another hard look. “Until then, I’m not going anywhere.”
“Olivia…” Dax tries to convince me, but I won’t budge.
“You told me I’d be safe with you, did you not?”
“Shit,” Beck curses under his breath .
Carlos chuckles again. “The girl’s sharp. Gotta give credit where it’s due.”
“Besides, I think we have to consider a different approach,” I say.
“As far as Devon PD knows, I’m not here.
Chloe showing up in public might raise a red flag.
She’s still Mrs. Jackson’s granddaughter; people might recognize her.
So it makes sense that she needs to hide somewhere else until this blows over. ”
“And you stay here like a sitting duck while I cower in some safe house?” Chloe snaps. “No way. We’re in this together, Olivia, all the way through.”
“You barely survived what Marcus threw at you the last time,” Leo kindly reminds her.
“It’s a miracle you made it all the way across the damn country, Chloe.
It’s time for you to sit back and let us do what we need to do in order to keep you and Olivia safe.
That being said, as much as I hate to admit it, Olivia might be more useful to our cause right here in town. ”
“You’ll need a place to stay,” Carlos tells Chloe.
“My uncle has a cabin a few miles outside of town, on the other side of the ridge. Nobody knows where it is, and it has all the amenities you’ll need.
I’ll drive you up there. We’ll grab some food and stuff on the way.
Put my cell number on speed dial and call me if anything so much as feels wrong. ”
“I am safe here,” I add, looking at my best friend.
“Dax, Leo, Beck… they’re with me almost all the time.
I stick to my job and our places. I keep a low profile.
If push comes to shove, I could always join you at the cabin.
Until then, I can do more from here,” I say, shifting my focus back to Carlos.
“Get me a high-powered laptop and a network masking device, and I could work some magic to assist you. ”
“How?” Carlos’s interest is piqued.
“For starters, if Marcus gets curious about Ember Ridge, and if he picked up Chloe’s face from a CCTV camera somewhere along the way, I could easily work my way through the town’s entire camera system and alter the footage to keep my face and Chloe’s out of it. It’s tedious work, but I could do it.”
“It’s also illegal,” he mutters, “even if I approve it.”
Dax shakes his head. “Given what we’re dealing with, I think we can bend the law here just a little bit.”
“I’m telling you guys, nobody can crack a system like Olivia,” Chloe adds.
“That’s why Marcus was so desperate to keep her under his thumb.
It’s not just about all the stuff that she knows about him, it’s about how useful she is to him.
Without her, Marcus is exposed in certain areas of his shady business dealings in Devon.
It’s only a matter of time before somebody picks up on that stuff. ”
Beck scratches his beard, settling into the armchair by the window.
“Let me get this straight,” he says. “Carlos takes Chloe to his uncle’s cabin, where she’ll be safe and out of sight.
He’ll then bring his IA buddies into the conversation while Olivia gets online and starts tampering with security footage all over town to make sure her presence here, as well as Chloe’s, remains hidden. ”
“Yep,” Carlos concludes. “Kinda shady, but yes.”
“In the meantime, we need to carry on with our lives. Act normal, continue to do our everyday routines,” Dax adds. “Our shifts at the firehouse, taking care of Luke. ”
“I’ll continue my shifts at the diner,” I say.
“While keeping a low profile,” Carlos reminds me, “which means you keep casual conversations to a minimum.”
I offer a shrug in return. “It’s what I do anyway. Coming to Ember Ridge didn’t mean Marcus would stop looking for me. I was aware of that from day one.”
“You could just stay home and not work at all,” Leo offers. “You’d be well taken care of, Olivia.”
Chloe snorts before I can even muster a reply. “In your dreams, buddy. My girl is independent. Pretty sure her hair would fall out if she were to let a man take care of her, financially speaking.”
“It might not seem like the healthiest mindset,” I say, taking over, “but Marcus used his financial support as a way to keep me dependent on him for a long time. I can’t let that happen ever again. And it’s not about you guys at all.”
“I know that,” Dax sighs, “though it bugs me that we’re dealing with that asshole’s shortcomings.”
“We’ll fix that once said asshole is in prison, where he belongs,” Beck replies with a broad, confident, and downright charming grin. “Until then, it sounds like we’ve got some kind of a plan going.”
Dax nods. “I’m adding cameras and motion sensors to the security system here,” he says.
“While you’re at it, have the alarm company connect it to the 911 dispatch for rapid response,” Carlos suggests.
“What about Luke? Should we send him away with Chloe?” I ask. I loathe to think of him being in danger after he’s already been through so much .
Leo shakes his head. “No, my boy stays with me, where he’ll be the safest. Unless that changes somehow, he stays put.”
I feel as though we’re bracing for some kind of war, even though Marcus hasn’t been anywhere near Ember Ridge, as far as we know.
Our enemy plays dirty and breaks all the rules, while we try to keep our hands clean and not dance with the devil for too long.
Whatever comes next, I feel better with Leo, Dax, and Beck by my side.
Hiding in that cabin with Chloe would keep me away from them, even if just for a short time.
Still unacceptable to me.
I’m staying right here, and I will fight Marcus with everything I’ve got.
“Can I hang out with Olivia for a little while longer before we go?” Chloe innocently asks. She gives Carlos a solid puppy-dog-eye look for good measure.
And it works.
“Of course. Take all the time you need,” he says. “We’ll head out when you’re ready.”
Chloe clutches her mug of tea with both hands as she brings it up to her lips. We’re huddled close together on the sofa, catching up, while Carlos and my men discuss the arson cases in the kitchen.
I overhear bits and pieces of the conversation, but I stay focused mostly on my best friend, simply thankful to have her back and alive.
“I cannot believe what you went through, Chloe. ”
“Me neither. Looking back now, it feels like a bad dream.”
“But you survived.”
“So did you. And look at us now.” She laughs lightly, then glances down at my belly. I’m not showing yet, but I know what has her attention. “Don’t you think this happened a little too fast?”
I nod in agreement. “It did happen fast, but it feels right, Chloe. It felt right from the first kiss, from the first night we spent together. I’m safe with them, happy, content. I’ve found something here, something I wasn’t sure I’d ever have, let alone deserve.”
“Are you kidding me, Olivia? You deserve the world!”
“I have my fair share of sins.”
“Don’t we all?” she snorts. “None of us are saints. There are things we did or didn’t do because we were afraid, angry, or insecure.
It’s okay. It’s what makes us human. What makes us better humans is acknowledging our shortcomings and working on making sure we don’t fall into the same pattern again.
And you, girl, get the top prize for that. ”
I give her a confused look. “What do you mean?”
“Well, you were practically a kid when you met Marcus. Looking back now, it’s no wonder he became your whole world,” she says. “You were rudderless, living on the streets. You had no one looking out for you?—”
“I had you and your folks.”
“Come on, you know what I mean,” Chloe sighs. “Besides, I always thought my parents could have done more about your living situation. ”
“You guys were going through a rough patch of your own. I would’ve been an extra mouth to feed, and I couldn’t, for the life of me, impose in such a way on you or your folks.”
“Ah, there it is,” she giggles, “that Fairchild pride.”
“It was my undoing in the end, though, wasn’t it?”
“You loved Marcus. He felt safe. He gave you a home, he helped you find your purpose. Whether he actually felt the same for you, well, that will always be a mystery, I guess. Maybe he had real feelings for you, or maybe it was just some kind of unhealthy attachment. He played his part and hooked you, Olivia. You were too young and inexperienced to see through it.”
She shakes her head slowly. “As was I. I should’ve seen the signs. I was on the outside looking in, watching you pull away from me, from us, one day at a time, until it got to a point where I had to get Marcus’s permission to reach you. That was mind-boggling.”
“Gosh, I didn’t even realize it until it was too late.”
“It’s never too late for true friends,” Chloe reminds me, giving my hand a gentle squeeze. “You opened your eyes. You saw what he truly was. You understood and you moved on. Sure, Marcus didn’t like it and he’s still coming after you, obviously, but you broke free. That’s all that matters.”
“I’m just so sorry that I got you and your parents involved,” I reply, tears working their way back to my eyes. I blink most of them back, but a few slip past, rolling down my cheeks.
Chloe reaches out and wipes them away gently with her thumb.
“That man is a cancer to all of Devon. My parents were vocal against him. They were literally two of the last people standing between him and complete control over the district. He would’ve found another way to get to them.
I think it was just a matter of when, not if. ”
“Still—”
“I can’t blame you for any of it. A man like Marcus doesn’t take no for an answer.
He’s a controlling monster. His hissy fits get people killed.
I’m sorry, too, and Lord knows, I’m going to need some therapy to get over the entire ordeal.
But seeing you here now,” she pauses, a smile blooming across her face, “gives me hope, Olivia. Look at you, healing, rebuilding, in love with not one but three amazing guys. You’ve got a baby on the way.
There’s a future ahead for you, and I know with unshakeable confidence that your parents would be so proud of you. ”
“I’m just glad you survived, Chloe. Not knowing what happened to you has been a constant, quiet torture for me.” I begin to sob and pull her into a tight hug.
“I’m glad, too.”
We sit like that for a while, crying and hugging, until she pulls back and gives me a cool, confident grin.
“What?” I ask.
“You know I’m going to be this baby’s godmother, right?”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
“Ladies, how are we doing?” Carlos asks as he walks back into the living room. “Ready to roll, Chloe?”
“Yeah, let’s go.”
“You stay safe,” I tell her. “I’ll call you, and I’ll come see you whenever I can, okay? ”
“Yes, ma’am,” she replies and gets up, then looks at Carlos with the kind of confidence I’ve always dreamed of having. “Looks like you’re going to be my knight in shining armor.”
Carlos thinks about it for a moment, never taking his dark eyes off her.
“Happy to oblige,” he shoots back with a wry smile.
Dax, Leo, and Beck come out of the kitchen with matching expressions—stern, determined, and clear in what they need to do next.
I guess the chat they had with Carlos earlier is sinking in.
Priorities and objectives are shaping up.
Looking at my men now, I can’t help but feel reassured that I am in good hands, that there is light at the end of this wretched tunnel.