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since the last day with her family. She almost couldn’t leave the mountain. She’d almost begged her daddy to forgive her, to let her serve him as good daughters are supposed to do. The fear of the unknown had once terrified her, of what was beyond the fences of their lavish prison, the certainty that there were worse evils than her father. He had never raised his voice, never beat her, never denied her food or a warm bed.
    She’d once thought he wore a halo. Now, she knew the fires of Hell burned behind him.
    “Hannah?”
    Ivy turned to her sister, all anger and pain directed at the young girl. “ Never call me that name again!”
    Tears spilled from Sara’s round eyes and Ivy wanted to cry with her. She didn’t. Instead, she whispered, “Please.”
    Sara nodded, but averted her eyes and turned to Maddie, who put her arm around Sara’s shoulders and led her to the adjoining room. First she’d turned Mina away, now Sara. She was losing everyone she had promised to protect. She was hurting those she loved the most. What was wrong with her?
    She had to get out of this place. “Is there someplace else you can take us?” Ivy asked Jocelyn.
    “What’s wrong?” The social worker looked around, obviously not understanding why Ivy was upset by the beautiful, well-appointed suite. “It’s a little big, but Chris knows the manager and this hotel is discreet. You’ll be safe here.”
    No place was safe.
    “It’s too expensive.”
    Jocelyn relaxed. “Don’t worry about the cost, we have it covered.”
    Ivy walked slowly around the large room, mostly to give herself time to calm down. Jocelyn understood the path that had led Ivy into prostitution. She hadn’t looked down at Ivy or the others, and though Jocelyn didn’t come right out and say it, Ivy suspected she’d once walked a few streets herself. More important, Jocelyn hadn’t turned her over to the cops for kidnapping. She believed that Kirk Edmonds had raped his daughters, and wanted Ivy to report him. “To bring him to justice,” she’d said more than once.
    How could Ivy explain to Jocelyn that no one would believe her? That if their father had five minutes alone with Sara, she’d never say a word against him? When Kirk Edmonds spoke, you wanted to believe every word he said. You wanted to believe that he was right, that he loved you and would protect you. He could make anyone believe he had the keys to the kingdom of heaven, and if you just did what he said, you, too, would be saved.
    He could make you feel all that and more, right before he pulled the cornerstone from the foundation and your world crumbled.
    Jocelyn sat on the love seat and said, “I have a plan.”
    Ivy stared out the window, but focused on nothing. Everything she’d been working toward for the last six years—gone. She had nothing left except a scared fourteen-year-old to protect.
    “Ivy, please sit down.”
    Ivy complied, looking the woman in the eye. She already knew Jocelyn couldn’t solve their problems. But right now, for the next few days, Ivy needed her. Ivy could lie better than most anyone. The key was never breaking eye contact.
    Jocelyn was thirty-five, pretty, with pale, smooth skin making her appear younger. Ivy had no use for do-gooders—they rarely understood the real world—but Jocelyn was different. That she’d helped her when she most needed it heaped another layer of guilt on Ivy’s soul.
    It’s okay, as long as Sara is safe.
    “You need to report the fire,” Jocelyn said.
    “I think they know by now,” Ivy snapped.
    “I heard on the news that two firefighters were injured. You have information that will help them in their investigation!”
    “That I saw a person in the shadows? Couldn’t even tell if he was male or female! How tall or fat. He could have been a figment of my overactive imagination.”
    “You smelled alcohol. You saw an intruder. The fire spread quickly. It was arson. Someone tried to kill you, your sister, the other