Hunted Read Online Free PDF Page A

Leticia said with a little laugh. “I’m proud of me too.”
    Unease tightened her stomach. “Did Carl… Did anything happen to make you decide this?”
    Another pause, and Zoe could feel Leticia’s hesitation before she answered. “He tried to go after Xander.”
    Zoe sucked in a breath, her spine going rigid as her eyes narrowed and her fingers tightened around the phone. That piece of shit.
    “We were arguing again and he got physical, then Xander tried to get between us to protect me. Carl sent him flying, would have beaten on him if I hadn’t screamed at Xander to run. Luckily the neighbors heard us this time and when they showed up Carl took off. Right then I realized I couldn’t afford to wait any longer. My baby’s the most important thing in the world to me—he deserves to live without fear.”
    “And so do you,” Zoe added, unable to hide the edge to her voice. She’d been volunteering once a week at the shelter for more than a year now, and too many times the women she’d come into contact with there actually believed that they deserved the treatment their abusers dished out. It made her furious. No woman or child should ever have to live in fear of a beating or worse from a man in their life when he lost it.
    “Yeah, I know.”
    But Zoe got the feeling Leticia didn’t know it. Not yet. She would though, eventually, when she’d had enough time and distance from Carl to see everything clearly. “Did you go to the police?”
    “Yes, and I got a restraining order like you told me to.”
    “Good.” She glanced at her watch. Ten minutes to six. “Listen, I can still come in, it’s no problem—”
    “No, we’re fine. But thanks. Just…you’re sure this place is secret, right? I mean, even the cops, they don’t know where it is, right?”
    One of the reasons she’d refused to leave before was because she was so afraid of Carl and his connections across the city. It was no secret that some politicians and cops down here were known to be corrupt, and even though Leticia hadn’t said who Carl was or what he did, clearly she believed the strings he was capable of pulling were powerful ones.
    “Right. Only the workers and the women who stay there know the location, and we’re all bound to secrecy. You and Xander will be safe there,” Zoe promised.
    A loud sigh filled the line. “Be nice to feel safe enough to sleep through the night for once. Maybe not tonight or even the next one, but hopefully in a few days it’ll sink in that we’re not in danger anymore.”
    Zoe hated that she and Xander had lived that kind of life for so long. “Do you have a plan in mind yet? Where you want to go?”
    “I’m not going back to Tennessee. He’ll look for me there, track down my family. He knows people, has connections all over the South, and a lot of them owe him favors. Trust me when I tell you, I have good reason to be scared of him.”
    Jesus, who was this guy? “Then we need to start thinking about somewhere else you could go. A different city for sure, but out of state would be even better. We’ve got contacts through social workers, even the FBI—”
    “ No . No Feds or cops or anyone else like that.” Her voice was so panicked that Zoe felt a chill run down her spine. “Just you and whoever can help me here. That’s the only reason I came in. I trust you .”
    “Okay, it’s all right, I won’t say anything to anyone,” Zoe said, rushing to soothe her. Her cousin Tuck was on the FBI Hostage Rescue Team and his girlfriend, Celida—who was also Zoe’s best friend—was an agent too. They’d have solid contacts to help her, but she wasn’t going to break Leticia’s trust. “I’ll be in first thing in the morning to talk everything over with you. Okay?”
    Maybe by then Leticia would realize she needed more help than Zoe or the others could give her, and she’d allow Zoe to contact Celida about this. Maintaining Leticia’s trust was key, however, and she wouldn’t rush her