Two
“Thank you so much, Mrs. Klein,” Melissa said as she held out a couple of twenties in her fist, not realizing she was clenching her hand until she noticed her white knuckles.
The older woman glanced at Melissa and smiled before waving her hand. She’d retired and moved to Bluff after thirty years of teaching in the Houston ISD. Her husband’s family was originally from the area, and the two of them had returned to live out their retirement in a small town. She was the perfect neighbor because she didn’t know everyone yet and had no idea about Melissa’s past in Bluff.
“I can’t take all that and especially not for—” Mrs. Klein glanced at her watch “—an hour and fifteen minutes’ worth of work.”
“Please do. I didn’t realize I’d be back so soon and I’ve messed up your whole evening.” Tears free-fell down Melissa’s cheeks now, and they had nothing to do with the words coming out of her mouth.
“Don’t worry about it, dear. Seriously. There’s still time to catch CSI with Bernard if I hurry.” Mrs. Klein’s brow furrowed and she had a mix of pity and kindness on her face. She really was a sweet woman. “The baby was no trouble. She’s been asleep the whole time.”
Melissa told herself to get it together. She would. It had been easier to leave town when she thought she was saving everyone she loved. With everything that she’d been through in the past twelve months, she figured she could endure most anything. Seeing Colin again was too much. She’d been naive to think that she could see him again and then walk away a second time without a few tears. He looked good... unbelievably good. Different, but good. His quick smile and easygoing charm had been replaced by distrust and cautious eyes.
The way he’d looked at her, so angry, so hurt...so final.
For Colin, there wasn’t a lot of gray area. Life was black-and-white. She should’ve known that once she’d left him, he’d be done. Having her fear confirmed hurt. The only consolation was that she’d always have a piece of Colin with her in their daughter.
“At least take something for your time,” Melissa managed to get out before Mrs. Klein could walk out the door.
Melissa flipped on the front porch light. Nothing happened. The electricity in this old house was about as reliable as the cell coverage in town. Both were spotty.
“Oh, great. Now what?” Melissa asked rhetorically as more tears streamed.
“It’s really okay, dear. Don’t make yourself sick over it,” Mrs. Klein said, patting Melissa on the shoulder. “Are you going to be all right?”
Melissa suppressed a sob. “I’ll be fine. It’s been a long day and I just need a good night of sleep. That’s all.”
She wished a few hours of rest could fix all her problems. Instead, she’d be meeting with her handler in a little more than an hour and a half. Her world would never be the same again.
“Whatever’s going on will get better with time. I promise,” Mrs. Klein soothed.
The woman had no idea how complicated Melissa’s life had become.
“At least take something for your trouble.” Melissa held out the fistful of twenties toward Mrs. Klein.
“If it’ll make you feel better.” The old woman peeled off the top twenty and tucked it inside her pocket. She winked. “I’ll take Bernard out to breakfast with that money in the morning.”
“Thank you for everything,” Melissa said. She closed and locked the door after watching Mrs. Klein walk across the street to see that she was safely home. She texted Carolina that she’d left the party.
Melissa was relieved that the older woman hadn’t pressed to find out what was really wrong with her. She’d been mute for twelve long months, save for the conversations she’d had with the feds, and she wanted to shout from the rooftops now that she was free. But she wasn’t really free. Richard was still out there. Somewhere. Melissa shivered at the thought. She was about to leave everything she’d ever known behind for witness protection because of that man. And there was a very real possibility that she would never see Colin again. A sob tried to escape. She suppressed it.
The feds had said that Richard should be somewhere near the Canadian border by now. Melissa had been under so much duress, especially in the past two months since talking with the agents, that she could barely think straight. She told herself that was the reason she’d been misguided enough to think seeing Colin one more time would somehow fill the ache in her chest.
Everything had spun out of control. Her relationship with the feds hadn’t exactly been a friendly alliance. The only reason she’d collected evidence against Richard was because they threatened to take Angelina away from her. Ever since they’d approached her while she picked up the mail that cold January morning, she’d been walking a tightrope.
Richard had been good at covering his tracks, so culling evidence against him had been difficult. She’d eventually gathered the proof needed for the feds to get an arrest warrant. She’d risked her life, not to mention her daughter’s. And what had they done with Richard? Allowed him to escape. No one could save Melissa now if Richard got to her. If it wasn’t for Angelina, for that smiling angelic face, Melissa would’ve lost hope a long time ago.
Melissa was weary, lonely, and part of her felt like she’d never live a normal life again. At least her father was in protective custody. His health was sketchy but he was in a decent facility in the Pacific Northwest. That’s the only information she’d been given and that’s all she needed to know. She wasn’t ready to forgive her father for what he’d done to ruin both of their lives, but she’d felt the need to protect him. And now, she and Angelina would be Bethany and Claire soon. A new life, a fresh start, shouldn’t feel like such a death sentence. But it would be because they’d be living a life without Colin.
Head pounding, heart aching, she closed her eyes before leaning against the door and then sinking until her bottom hit the hardwood floor. She twisted off her wedding ring, noticing the red marks on her finger it left behind because it had always been a little too tight, and threw it across the room. Relief flooded her at getting that thing off her finger. She’d put it on so no one would question her about it. The only reason she’d held on to the ring was because she figured she could sell it if times got tight. The government had made promises to her, but who really knew if they could be trusted? They’d allowed Richard to slip through their fingers and that wasn’t exactly reassuring.
Seconds turned into minutes and Melissa had no idea how long she’d been sitting there when she finally opened her eyes again.
Her father was safe. The baby was safe. Colin was safe. And she was exhausted.
She blocked out thoughts of how much Colin hated her now. She’d seen it in his eyes as he stalked toward her. The anger was so palpable that she’d had to turn her face away. Right then, she knew that he would never forgive her for leaving. And what had she really expected? For him to tell her everything would be okay? A hug?
Maybe it was good that Melissa Rancic would no longer exist in less than—she checked the clock—an hour. Maybe it was time to turn over a new leaf. Maybe it was time to make a new life for herself and Angelina. The thought of causing Colin any more pain was like a knife to her heart anyway. He deserved so much more.
She pushed up to stand as a knock sounded on the door from behind. She jumped. Her heart leapt to her throat and
