Understood (Unspoken #1)(16)

Her hands wrapped around the steering wheel. She had no memory of getting into the car or starting it. She backed from her driveway with no sense of direction or purpose. She needed to escape. And so she ran.

eee

“He said what?” Jake all but yelled into his cell phone. “You’ve got to be shitting me. If this is some sort of joke, Luke, it ain’t funny.”

“I wouldn’t f**k with you or Ellie over something like this,” Luke said. “Ellie wasn’t in this morning when I hit the office. I’m hoping you have something to do with that and not Ray.”

Jake dragged a hand through his hair and started for his truck. “Goddamn. I hope she hasn’t seen it. Not that it f**king matters. It’ll be all over town by tonight.”

Luke sighed over the phone. “I didn’t see the show, but Gracie did. She called me awhile ago. She said he really did a number on Ellie.”

“Fuck! That slimy little bastard. I’d like nothing better than to kick his ass right now.”

“Calm down, Jake. I didn’t call to piss you off. I was hoping you knew where Ellie was and if she was okay.”

“I’m heading over there now. I told her to take the day off. She was home when I left this morning. Hopefully she’s still there sleeping in.”

“Okay, man. Let me know if there’s something I can do.”

“Thanks, Luke.”

Jake slapped the cell phone shut and shoved it back into his pocket. He closed his eyes and swore. Why now? Why when he was so close to making Ellie happy again did Ray have to wreck everything?

Even if Ellie hadn’t seen the show, how the hell could he possibly keep her from finding out? They lived in small town, Texas, for God’s sake. It was the small town motto. Know thy neighbor as thy self.

He got behind the wheel of his truck and drove as fast as he could to Ellie’s. Halfway there, he spotted Wes Hoffman’s squad car. Wes flashed his lights at him as he tore by and Jake flipped him the bird. Luckily it wasn’t a different cop or he’d have been pulled over.

His cell phone rang a few seconds later. He dug it out of his pocket keeping one hand on the wheel and looked at the LCD screen. Wes.

“Yeah,” Jake said as he put the phone to his ear.

“Where you going in such a hurry?” Wes asked. “Be damned glad I met my quota of tickets this month or I’d write your ass up.”

Usually Jake would have grinned and given him hell right back, but he wasn’t in the mood.

“It’s Ellie,” he said. “I don’t have time to get into it. If you want the story, holler at Luke.”

There was a short pause. “Is there anything I can do?”

“No, but I appreciate it. I’ll talk at you later.”

Jake hung up and tossed the phone aside. He knew Wes felt a lot of responsibility for what had gone on with Ellie. But it was hardly Wes’ fault. It was the dumbass cop on duty the night Ellie had asked for help. Jeremy and Wes both had been torn up when they’d learned that Ellie had gone to the police and basically been ignored.

It wasn’t long after they’d learned the truth that the cop who had handled Ellie’s complaint had left. Jake was certain Wes and Jeremy had a lot to do with that.

A few minutes later, he pulled into Ellie’s driveway only to see her car gone. He frowned. They’d made plans to have lunch together. Maybe she was out on a quick errand. He hoped like hell she hadn’t seen the story.

He got out and walked in to see if she’d left him a note. He didn’t find one on the coffee table or the kitchen table. When he stuck his head in the bedroom, he knew without a doubt she’d seen the show. Shards of glass littered the floor and the TV screen was completely busted out.

He swore viciously even as fear clutched at his chest. Where had she gone? Why hadn’t she called him? He could only imagine how upset she was.

A dull ache invaded his temples. Did she not trust him enough to run to him? Or was she too busy running away?

He hurried back out to his truck and climbed in. He picked up his phone and punched in Luke’s number.

“Ellie saw it. No doubt in my mind,” he said when Luke picked up.

He quickly explained the scene in her bedroom and that her car was gone.

Luke swore. “I haven’t seen her, but I’ll be on the lookout.”

“If you see her, make her stay put. Then call me.”

“I will. Want me to call Jeremy and Wes and have them be on the lookout as well?”

“I just spoke to Wes so I’ll call him. You call Jeremy.”

They rang off and Jake immediately placed a call to Wes.

“Did you get the story from Luke?” Jake asked as his way of greeting when Wes answered.

“Yeah, man, that sucks.”

“Ellie saw it. And she’s upset. I don’t know where she’s gone but I’m looking now. Do me a favor. If you see her, make sure she stays put until I get there.”

“Will do,” Wes said. “I can have the other on-duty guys keep an eye out as well. If she’s out driving around, someone will see her.”

Jake thanked him and hung up. He backed out of Ellie’s driveway and put his brain to work figuring out where the hell she would have gone.

Chapter Nine

It was the last place Jake had thought to look, but in retrospect, he supposed it made the most sense. It was where it had all started.He looked up into the bleachers of the high school football stadium to where Ellie sat staring out over the field. Where she’d watched him and Ray play as teenagers.