“Maybe she needed money for that. Now that she got some jewelry to pawn, perhaps she will disappear.”
“Possibly.”
“Either way, you don’t need to worry about me or Janelle. We’ll be out of here in twenty minutes, I’m sure.”
I moved toward my vehicle. “I’ll be expecting a text from you,” I called out as I opened my car door.
“I’ll send you a selfie with Polly, Janelle, and Kobe.” He shook his head. “Worrywart.”
I gave a grudging smile and got in my car. As I drove down the lane, I watched Maxwell in the rearview mirror as he waited by his car for Janelle. I headed out through the iron gates, and just as I was about to pull onto the main road, a bright yellow moped went speeding past me. I slammed on the brakes so I didn’t plow into the small bike, swearing under my breath.
There was a girl on the bike wearing jeans and a black hoodie, and her dark hair flew behind her as she sped past me. I knew instantly that was the person who’d ransacked Janelle’s room. I hit the gas, and my car lurched forward. Pressing the accelerator, I fell in behind the girl. My heart was pounding as I inched closer to her moped. I wasn’t about to let her get away this time.
Glancing over her shoulder, her eyes widened. She gunned her engine, but her moped was no match for my car. I flashed my lights at her, hoping she’d pull over. I didn’t want her to crash, but the odds weren’t in her favor. Not the way she was driving. She swerved onto the other side of the deserted road, and I pulled up even with her.
I pointed toward the side of the road, praying she’d obey my request for her to park her vehicle. She didn’t. She sped up and tried to race around the front of my car. That was a mistake. When her bike made contact with my vehicle, even that little bump sent hers flying off the road into a ditch.
I slammed on my brakes, feeling sick. Once my car came to a stop, I scrambled out and raced back toward where her moped had crashed. By some miracle, she’d landed in a thick patch of switchgrass on the side of the road. She was sprawled on her face, and beside her lay her beat-up bike, engine still sputtering.
I knelt beside her, and she groaned. “Anything broken?” I asked, stomach churning.
“Go away,” she cried. “Just let me die in peace.”
From her surly response, I gathered she wasn’t dying. All her limbs were intact, and she wasn’t bleeding, so I calmed down. The switchgrass had cushioned her fall, and she looked unhurt. “I don’t think you’re going to die anytime soon.”
She slowly rolled over and stared up at the blue sky. There were a few scratches on her pale cheeks, and her dark hair was matted with strands of grass. She’d been exceptionally lucky, even if she didn’t appear to know that.
“What’s your name?” Even though I recognized her as Geraldine from her Facebook photos, I needed to hear her say her name.
She scrunched her face up, and tears streaked down the side of her face. “It’s all his fault. God damn Archie, it’s all his fault things went to shit.”
“Can you stand?”
She ignored me and kept silently crying. I let her go on for a few moments, and then I stood. When my shadow fell across her, she mumbled, “I wish I had died.”
“You don’t mean that.”
“Of course I do,” she wailed. “I have nothing to live for.”
Sighing, I held out my hand to her. “How about we go to the station and have a chat? I’ll have a doctor come check you over.”
She ignored my hand and got gingerly to her feet. “I don’t need a doctor. I’ve broken bones before. I know what it feels like.” She pushed her tangled hair out of her face. “Just arrest me and throw the key away.”
Grimacing, I said, “You’re not getting off that easy. You’ve run me ragged, and I want some damn answers.”
“Whatever,” she muttered.
“First off, what’s your name?”
She met my gaze, lifting her chin. “Surely you know the answer to that, Sheriff.”
“Humor me.”
More tears dribbled down her face, and she whispered, “Kimora Brady.”
Chapter Nineteen
Maxwell
