he mention anything that might make you think he knew who you were? Or was interested in your mother? Or father?”
“No. I think he was just some jerk.”
“You’re sure?” I asked.
“You spent more time with him than I did.”
That was true. “Can you tell me exactly what he said?”
“I don’t remember. But I know he mentioned my purse.”
“Your purse?” I asked.
“Yeah. It’s a Hermes.”
Was that a brand? A secret code? “I don’t know what that means.”
“It cost around $3,000.”
Holy shit. I didn’t know purses could cost that much. Maybe the loser who’d attacked her knew though. He probably knew exactly how much he could resell it for too.
“Yeah I know. It’s nuts. I didn’t buy it for myself, if that makes it any better.”
“The cost of your purse is not my business. I’m just trying to make sure I don’t miss anything.”
“I really think it was random. It was just bad luck. Is that crazy?” she asked.
“No. That happens all the time.” I glanced over at her. “You want to give me directions to the place where your cousin’s getting married?”
“Yeah. Let me find them.”
She pulled her phone out but dropped it twice. She sighed and tried again, finally getting to the map application.
I did not feel good about dropping her off while she was this rattled. Hell, I was still rattled too. “Is any of your other family there yet?” I asked.
“The wedding planner’s there.”
It was stupid that I was even considering asking her to join me. There was no way I needed to acquire an extra person for my trip, especially not for a trip that was designed so I could get my head on straight. But leaving her wouldn’t feel right. If my little sister had been alive, I wouldn’t have wanted her to be left alone in this state. “You should come with me,” I said.
“Where?” she asked.
“Camping.” Not only did I not want her alone, I didn’t want her in a location where it would be possible for someone to track her, in case the guy from the parking lot really hadn’t been random. If someone was following Loren, he’d know she planned to go straight to the wedding venue. I wasn’t going to take that chance with her safety.
She turned in her seat, straining her seatbelt. Her face was animated again, for the first time since I’d seen that bastard grab her in the parking lot. “Me?”
I turned my head to the side. “Is there anyone else in the car?”
She laughed. It was a tiny sound, compared to the laughs she’d let loose on the plane, but I liked hearing it all the same. “You would actually let me come with you?”
“Yes.”
“I have to be back in time for the wedding. I need at least a full day to practice setting up the shots.”
“So how much time does that give us?” I asked.
“Let’s see.” It was seven p.m., and the sun wasn’t close to setting just yet. If we worked fast, we could go ahead and camp tonight. “Two full days.”
“If you’re really serious, then yes. I would love to.” She rolled the window down, and the chilly evening air flowed into the Jeep. “I know this is nothing compared to the scenery in parts of Alaska. But it’s so different from Georgia. I’ve seen it before, but I can’t tear my eyes away.”
What the hell was I going to do with a newly-traumatized young woman that I barely knew? Taking her camping with me was probably a terrible idea. And yet, I was relieved that Loren was going to come with me.
No matter what happened, I would do my best to protect her.
Chapter Eight
Loren
“So where are we headed?” I couldn’t believe I was even able to formulate a complete sentence. All those times my parents had warned me about the dangers of the world, I’d scoffed at them, and told them they were paranoid.
But in the scheme of things, what amounted to a mugging wasn’t that big of a deal. It happened to people every day, and they went on with their lives. People got mugged in downtown Atlanta, and I went there all the time. And I’d even seen someone be mugged when I was in London.
But even so, my head was filled with a weird buzzing. And now my arms were shaking, not just my hands.
But you had a bodyguard. So it never happened to you.
“We’ll start at a campground in Chugach State Park. It’s pretty close.”
The buzzing in my mind