Chapter 14
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Pen didn’t know what to think. She needed sleep but needed to keep her head on straight. Foster was only asking her to be nice, and maybe because his house was closer and he could get to bed faster. There was nothing else behind his offer, and she should take it at face value.
“I think that would be great.”
“Awesome. Let’s go. I don’t live too far away. The bed is already made up, so you don’t have to do anything, just go to sleep.”
“Thank you for the offer. It will be nice to get sleep without waking to the road noise.”
The drive didn’t take too long, and before she was ready, they were at his place.
The house was small, the neighbors close, but it was a charming neighborhood.
It was nothing like where she’d grown up.
With her mother they’d bounced around from place to place, and her father lived in a mansion with high walls and gates where neighbors couldn’t see each other at all.
“This is nice,” she said when he helped her out of the car. She was tired and her body sore, but she could walk on her own.
It would be embarrassing to have to be carried inside. Before, he’d carried her to the helicopter. That couldn’t have been helped because at that point, she had been helpless. She still remembered how good it felt to be in his arms. Being that close to him would be dangerous with how she felt.
A shiver snaked through her, and he narrowed his gaze and cocked his head to the side. “Are you okay?”
His question brought up a well of emotional reactions. Was she okay? She had no idea, but right now, she was on the edge of something, and she wanted to fall in, praying he would catch her. It had to be exhaustion. “Yes. I’m good.”
“Awesome. Let’s get you inside. There is a bathroom right next to that bedroom. I have one in my room, so the bathroom in the hall is all yours.”
“Oh, that’s nice.” She was relieved she wouldn’t have to share the bathroom. Not that she would really mind it, but she didn’t want to inconvenience him.
The room was nice, with a double bed and enough room she wasn’t squashed. A knock sounded at the door and she reached over, pulling it open.
“Yes.”
“I have a T-shirt, the sweatshirt you borrowed the other day, and a pair of sweats my mom bought me that were way too small, but I didn’t have the heart to toss them out. They might be big on you, but it will be better than anything else I have.”
“Oh, wow, thank you. I’m sure they’ll be great.”
“I’m going to let you sleep. Wake up whenever you want tomorrow. I’ll text you when I’m on the way home.”
“Thank you.”
She shut the door, leaning against the hard surface. He was just being nice, nothing more. There wasn’t anything to his offering her a quiet place to sleep. Giving her clothes was also him just being practical. She would need something to put on that was clean.
She pushed away from the door and stripped down to her underwear. The mattress was soft enough it felt good against her body, but supportive enough she didn’t sink into a pit.
Bright sunlight filtered in through the curtains when she woke. Stretching out slowly, she waited for her muscles and tendons to allow her to point her toes while her hands were over her head. It took a while for her to be loose enough to stretch.
She let go a loud groan then quieted. Was she alone? The house was quiet, but Foster could be in the den. He did say he had to go to work. What if he wasn’t at work but here?
The clothes he’d given her came in handy.
She opened the door and poked her head out.
“Hello?” She waited for an answer before she stepped all the way out and moved to the bathroom where she found a toothbrush in a wrapper, like what she got when she’d gone to the dentist. She ran her tongue along her teeth.
They weren’t too bad. She’d always been proud of her smile, but two years being held captive had taken some of the shine down.
Of course, in those weeks and months she hadn’t had a toothbrush, she had other worries.
Right now, she was thankful he’d been so thoughtful. Brushing her teeth felt good, like she was returning to a world where things like cleaning her body and her teeth was her big worry and not fighting for scraps of food or drops of water.
After washing up, she headed to the kitchen and found a note about the food he had in the refrigerator. He also told her to relax and enjoy the day.
She opened the refrigerator and grabbed a slice of cheese and some bread. It was the perfect breakfast. After eating, she moved to the couch and reached for the TV remote. Did she want to watch TV? She wasn’t sure.
She glanced at the door and wondered if she could take a walk. If she walked out, she would end up leaving his door unlocked. That wouldn’t be right. Maybe he hid a key somewhere. Would it be wrong to look?
After a moment of hesitation, she moved to the door, looking for a key. She didn’t find one on the table close by and then decided she should just go out to the back yard. If she stayed in the yard, she wouldn’t have to worry about leaving the front door open.
She poured up a glass of water and stepped outside. The sun was out, and she was a little warm, so she removed the sweatshirt and draped the arms over her shoulders.
The yard wasn’t huge, but there were two a fruit trees in the back. She slowly strolled over, looking at the trees, thinking they looked good.
“Oh, I didn’t know anyone had moved in with Foster. I’m Willa.”
The words frightened her and she turned to find a woman staring at her, a huge smile on her face. Pen recovered quickly, mainly because the woman had a warm smile. She was pretty, nice hair and smooth skin. Pen guessed she was a little older than her, but not by much.
“Hi, I didn’t move in. I just—oh boy, anything I say will sound wrong. I slept in the guest room. I’m not with him. I’m Pen, well, Penelope, but people call me Pen.”
Willa’s lips quirked up on one side, and she looked back at her porch. “Would you like some lemonade and cookies?”
“Um, sure. But I don’t have a key, and I don’t want to leave his house open.”
“I have a key to Foster’s place. Let me grab it and I’ll come over and lock the front door so we can sit and talk.”
“Sure.” As soon as Willa raced inside, Pen had second thoughts. Maybe she shouldn’t trust this woman. What if Willa wasn’t who she said she was?
She drew in a slow breath and let it go just as slowly. There was no way anyone knew she had spent the night at Foster’s place last night. Her father didn’t know she was back in the States, and no one who’d abducted her had any idea where she was.
There was a knock at the front door, and she headed to the entryway. Before opening the door, she checked the peephole, seeing Willa. It was safe.
Pen opened the door, checking outside before stepping out. Willa’s lips spread into a wider smile as she locked the door.
“There, it’s all locked up. Come on, I made cookies this morning. I like to bake when I’m thinking. That’s a new thing for me, baking, not thinking.”
“Oh, I’m not sure I’ve ever baked cookies.”
“I’m trying to gear up to baking bread, but I thought I would start slow. I have fears of ruining every loaf I make.”
Pen noticed that Willa slowed to match her pace. She was doing better, and honestly the guest bed she’d slept in had been more comfortable than the hotel bed. She was thankful they’d put her up in the hotel, but the beds weren’t that great, and the noise had bothered her.
“I’m not great in the kitchen.”
Willa laughed. “I’m much better at serving drinks and food than I am making it. But I think the cookies turned out okay.”
“Thank you for inviting me over.” They were on the walkway up to Willa’s door and she glanced around, searching for anyone watching. “It’s been a while since I’ve done anything like this.”
“Well, I’ve got you covered. We’ll set the alarm once we’re inside.”
She nodded, worried that Willa would think she was weird for being so paranoid. They stepped inside and sure enough, Willa locked the door then turned to her.
“Are you okay if I set the alarm? I don’t want you to feel trapped.”
Her throat closed as she nodded. “Yes, thank you.” Her voice came out squeaky. The emotions were just too high to speak normally. But Willa didn’t make a big deal out of her voice or the tears gathering in her eyes.
Willa set the alarm and then moved to the kitchen. She followed and took a seat at the table. Willa brought over the plate of cookies and two glasses. She grabbed the lemonade from the refrigerator and poured it into the glasses.
“The cookies are snickerdoodle. I thought about making chocolate chip, but I didn’t think it would go as well with lemonade.”
“Interesting.” Pen picked up one of the cookies and took a small bite. “Wow, these are great.”
“So what is your favorite type of cookie?”
Pen shrugged as she took another bite. “I’m not sure. I-I—” She set the cookie down as the emotions built. She didn’t want to cry just minutes after meeting Willa.
“Hey, it’s okay.” Willa handed her a box of tissues, which for some reason brought more tears.
She hid her face in her hands, wishing she had a handle on her emotions. So far, she’d held it together, for the most part, but now with this woman being so nice to her, she was losing it.
Willa’s hand on her back brought up a memory of when she was younger, back when she had friends. Someone had comforted her. Who had it been? Becky, or was her name Betsy? She’d lost contact with everyone. Would they think she’d just fallen off the face of the earth?
She wiped her nose and sniffled, trying to get control of her feelings. “Sorry. I shouldn’t be so emotional.”
“Hey, it’s okay. Sometimes life is difficult. My ex was stalking me. It was a hard time. If Cy hadn’t helped me, that’s my husband, if he hadn’t helped me, I would be in a mess of trouble.”
Pen met Willa’s gaze. “Your ex was stalking you?”
“Yes. And let me tell you, it was crazy in the end.” Willa sat back and bit into her cookie. “Want to hear the story?”
Pen nodded. It would be good to focus on something other than her own misery. “Sure.” She took another bite of cookie as Willa spoke, telling what had happened.
For a moment she forgot about her problems and what she’d been through as she listened in horror to the twisted tale.
“So if my ex hadn’t been there, stalking me, I probably would have ended up dead.”
“That’s incredible.”
“Life is weird. My ex probably would have killed me, but he saved me. I don’t know what you’ve been through, but I can promise you this, if Foster is helping you, you’ll get through it.”
Pen picked up her glass, staring at the liquid for a moment before taking a drink.
Foster had been so nice, and helpful. But could it last?
No one, not even her mother, had ever helped her this much.
She wanted what Foster promised her to be true, but her history showed her that depending on anyone would surely lead to disappointment.