Chapter 25
Hours later, after a detour to the nearest ER for stitches, they finally made it back to her parents’ house.
Hailey was absolutely exhausted—too exhausted even to argue with Peter when he insisted on staying the night.
She’d deferred to her parents, who’d readily agreed to make up one of her brothers’ beds for him.
Secretly, she was relieved to have him nearby, and not just for his security training. The man was growing on her. He had a calming presence about him. Was easygoing in a manner that belied his capacity for intensity when in protective mode. And, yes, she couldn’t deny she liked his accent.
After she reassured her parents that she really was okay, Hailey tiptoed down the hall to her room.
Maggie lifted her head to look at her when she entered.
Jenna, sound asleep on the trundle bed, didn’t stir at the light flooding in from the hallway, for which Hailey was grateful. It was late, and they all needed sleep.
She was exhausted, but her mind continued to spin as she lay in bed.
What was she going to do? She didn’t want to leave Kincaid.
Didn’t want to leave her family or her church.
Despite the pressures of her job, she didn’t really want to leave Pendleton Accounting either. And she didn’t want to leave Peter.
But she would be foolish to ignore the danger she was in.
She’d nearly been killed today. Peter could have died too.
If he’d been leaning even a few inches farther forward to better see the road before pulling out of her driveway, he’d have taken the bullet meant for her.
She still wasn’t sure how both of them had managed to escape with nothing worse than that graze to her leg.
Eric had been going over Peter’s car when they emerged from the woods.
He’d promised to give her a more thorough update later, but his initial assessment was that every shot had likely been aimed at her.
The sniper had positioned himself so he’d be on Hailey’s side of the vehicle when they left the house.
The first several shots had come through her window and door.
After Peter turned onto the road and away from him, leaving the shooter facing the rear of the car, the shots had been concentrated on the right side of the vehicle.
Eric had found bullet holes in the passenger seat back.
If Hailey hadn’t been bent over at the waist, she’d have taken several bullets to her chest and possibly her head.
She shivered and thanked God again for his protection. It was a miracle she hadn’t been killed or severely injured—and that none of the bullets had hit Peter.
She never would have gone into work today if she’d known this would be the outcome.
But she’d genuinely thought there would be little or no danger since they’d caught the guys who ambushed her.
She’d been very wrong. But had she gone beyond the point of no return?
Did she even have the option of leaving now, or would this person continue to pursue her?
And why was someone so insistent that she leave?
Was Peter right in suggesting it was linked to Eukaria?
It had never sat right with her that a random citizen or group of citizens of Kincaid would hate her enough to try to run her out of town through vandalism and the stunt with the car trunk.
Now she was even more sure of it. There was no way—no way—this was about what Wesley had done.
The first couple of incidents, maybe. Hacking into her work computer, doubtful. But a sniper? It was too far-fetched.
Her scratched and bruised face chafed against the warm pillowcase, and she flipped her pillow to the cool side.
She half considered just giving up on sleep, but with Jenna, her parents, and now Peter staying at the house, the chances of accidentally disturbing someone were high.
Besides, even though her mind was wide awake, her body was bone weary.
Today had been rough in a way she hoped never to repeat.
She thought again about the possibility of this being connected to her job—specifically to Eukaria Investments.
She still wasn’t sure how though. The firm was based in Maryland.
It wasn’t impossible that they had employees around here, not with how easy it was to work remotely nowadays. But that seemed like a stretch.
And it didn’t explain why they were trying to get rid of her specifically. If she quit, the accounts would just go to another CPA. Maybe they wouldn’t bother to go through all the old records like she had, but they’d see the same red flags going forward.
She didn’t have an answer. But a connection between her situation and what she was uncovering at Eukaria made a lot more sense than anything else they’d come up with. How could she prove or disprove it though?
Especially now that she knew there was something criminal going on at the investment firm, getting to the bottom of things might be her only real option. She could go straight to the authorities, she supposed. Maybe that was what she should do.
But what if she was wrong about the extent of the anomalies?
She was confident about the embezzlement, but that would be an issue for Eukaria to investigate internally.
If she was correct about the money laundering, however, that was a different story.
She’d have no choice but to report it to the authorities.
But if she reported it and later discovered she’d misread the situation, that would be a headache of epic proportions.
It didn’t take much imagination to see Eukaria pulling their business, and her losing her job as a result.
She let out a quiet moan. If only Gleason weren’t on vacation—at least then she could show him what she’d discovered and let him make the call.
But he’d be gone for almost two weeks, and she had no idea if he’d check his email or voice mail at all before he returned—probably not, if she had to guess.
She just might be on her own until then.
And that brought her back to where her musings began. What should she do in the meantime? Run, lie low, or keep digging? Regardless of what she chose, she couldn’t afford to make any more careless moves. Next time, someone might die.
Eventually, she drifted into a restless sleep. In her dreams, she and Peter were chased through a dark alley, then through a maze papered with spreadsheets. Then she was backed into a corner, holding Jenna as they stared down a gunman.
She awoke with a start, breathing as hard as when they’d been running through the woods.
But in the glow of the night-light she kept plugged in for Jenna, she could see nothing was amiss in the room.
Maggie was watching her as if aware of her distress.
Maybe she was. Dogs could sense emotions, right?
Jenna still slept peacefully. Hailey could see the gentle rise and fall of her chest. She watched her little girl for a moment.
No matter what it cost her, she had to stay alive for her daughter, and she had to keep her safe.
She sank back onto the mattress. There was nothing she could do tonight, but tomorrow, she’d have to face this problem head-on. Whatever that looked like.