“In the other room,” my dad said folding his arms. “Why?”
“Oh, just wondering how long it took for her to get to you,” I said.
“Not long after I started calling for her,” he said with a sigh. “I know you two don’t get along any longer but it would be nice if you both could try. Anyway, that’s not why I’m here. Something is going on around here and I wanted to bring you up to speed.”
I looked at Leah. Her head was down… her eyes glued to her notebook.
“The guards already stopped by. Guess someone’s sneaking around the resort?” I asked.
“Indeed, and people around here are pretty worried about it,” my dad said. “They came to us, pleading for Donovan to do something.”
My throat dried. “What do they want him to do?”
“They want to put it to an end. As long as they keep sneaking around and stealing our stuff, we’re not safe.” My dad scratched the top of his head. “That’s what they think anyway.”
“What do you think?” I asked.
“I’m not sure we have enough evidence,” my dad said with a shrug. “We know there are people living in a town roughly to the east. It’s likely some of them have been there longer than we’ve been here.”
I rubbed my palms together. “Why do we need to put an end to it? Couldn’t we talk to them and figure out a way to work together?”
“They’ve been stealing,” my dad said. “Not that I don’t agree with you but the others don’t think we can trust people that steal from us. I’m just afraid people will get hurt.”
“They’re going to want me to fight, aren’t they?” I asked. I touched my throat, where the words had felt as though they’d scratched on the inside.
My dad held up his hand. “Oh, no. I told Donovan to keep the both of you out of it. You both stay here. Under no circumstances will either of you leave this resort.”
“What are they planning to do exactly?” I asked.
“No exact plan has been devised as far as I know,” my dad said.
He pushed himself to his feet. He wobbled slightly but quickly steadied himself. The look he shot me sealed my lips shut.
“I should be getting back to Eva,” my dad said. “She’s hosting a dinner party of some kind. I need to get ready before guests arrive. She didn’t even want me to come by today.”
“Shocking,” I said. “I wish you’d give your whole relationship with her some thought.”
My dad groaned. “I’m not going to get into it.”
“I just don’t know what you’ve gotten yourself into,” I said.
My dad huffed. “I don’t know either. Anyway, I’ll stop by as soon as I can.”
“Adam, we need to get to the store,” Leah said folding a piece of paper and tucking it into her back pocket. “Ready to go, Adam?”
“Yeah,” I said.
My dad shook his head. “I can take her. It’s on my way and I’d love to get to know your girlfriend better.”
“Oh, it’s okay, Martin,” Leah said. “Adam doesn’t mind.”
“Of course, I don’t,” I said smiling at her.
“Well, I won’t mind either,” my dad said. “Get your jacket, sweetheart.”
The back of my neck felt hot. “Are you sure, dad? Maybe I should come with you two.”
“Don’t you trust me, Adam?” my dad said furrowing his brow.
Well, he was sleeping with my ex but there was no need to bring that up. Not to mention, I trusted Leah. It was the rest of the people at the resort I didn’t trust.
“It’ll be fine,” my dad said. “I’ll take good care of her.”
“I don’t know,” I said.
Leah forced a smile. Perhaps she didn’t see a way out of our predicament. “I won’t be long, okay?”
“Okay,” I said. “Sure, I shouldn’t join you?”
“Jesus, Adam,” my dad said giving me a grimace. “You make it seem like I’m an incompetent old fool.”
“I’ll be fine,” Leah said placing a kiss on my cheek. She pulled on her jacket and grinned. “Shall we?”
“We shall,” my dad said wearing the biggest smile I’d seen since arriving. Even bigger than when we’d been reunited.
I couldn’t blame him, though. Leah was not only beautiful but just being next to her made me feel amazing.
After the door closed, the room felt empty. And quiet. I couldn’t sit down. My arms itched.
It felt like days had gone by before I heard the key slid into the lock. I bolted to the door almost before she got it open.
I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her inside, quickly locking the door. She was stiff in my arms. I instantly knew something was wrong.
I pulled back and looked at her. Her head was down.
“Leah,” I said placing my finger under her chin.
She raised her head enough that I could see the blood dripping out of the cut above her eye and the long scratch on her cheek. I swallowed hard as I took a step back. Anger clenched my fists.
“What happened?” I asked. “Where’s my dad?”
“I told him I’d be okay,” Leah said refusing to meet my eyes.
I stared at her. “And then what?”
She didn’t answer. She pushed past me and locked herself in the bathroom.
9
Stevie
I paced on the already worn-down living room carpet. “How are we going to find weapons? Leaving here would be a risk.”
“We’ve got shotguns and knives,” Gage said. “I could go south and see what if anything I can find.”
“If they are heavily armed, we’re definitely going to need more than a few shotguns
