Finding Eden (A Sign of Love Novel)(97)

"Carolyn said we'd need to open up an account in your name to cash the check from my showing so I can finance our trip," I said as Eden entered in the information on the computer, booking our hotel.
She nodded, creasing her brow. "I have another account in my name, too, that Felix left for me." She looked up at me. "We can access that, too, now that I have a birth certificate."
"Okay, but I'm paying for this trip."
She put her hand to my cheek. "Okay. Still, Felix left me that money because he wanted me to have it. It wouldn't be right to leave it there."
I nodded, thanking Felix in my head each time his name came up. I would be forever in his debt for taking care of my girl when I hadn't been able to.
The next day, we both accompanied Carolyn to the bank where Eden's mouth fell open when we learned that Felix had left several hundred thousand dollars for her. When we got home, she dropped down on the couch, her face in her hands, choking out sobs. I pulled her close and held her as she cried. I could hardly believe it either. What an incredible, generous man. Thank you, Felix.
And so it came to be that Eden and I were driving out of Ohio in Molly's car just as the sky began to dim. We had successfully snuck out through the back bushes while Xander made his first statement to the press in front of Carolyn's house. It was the perfect diversion.
As the miles flew by, my shoulders began to relax, and I felt like I was finally able to draw in a full breath for the first time in a little over a month. Eden shot me a flirty smile and winked, putting her feet up on the dashboard. My heart flipped in my chest and I almost laughed at myself. Would I ever stop being a lovesick schoolboy around her?
Her smile faded and she squeezed my hand. "How are you feeling?"
"Better." I smiled over at her. "It's a lot easier now that we've got a little bit of freedom." I looked at the road in front of us.
"Yeah," she agreed, squeezing my hand back. "Everything feels more hopeful when you're free. Who knows that better than us?"
I nodded my head slowly, keeping my eyes on the road and glancing at the speedometer to make sure I was going the speed limit. I wasn't going to risk that freedom for anything.
She was quiet for a minute. "Think the media will look for us?"
"They won't know we're gone. We haven't been outside your mom's house in a month, so they'll think we're still holed up. And even if they did know we left, by the time they knew to look for us, we'll have Molly's car parked in a parking garage somewhere. The news plays the same fuzzy pictures of us coming out of my building again and again. The only other one they have of you is from when you were a kid. I don't think anyone will recognize us, especially if I put a ball cap on and you put your hair up." I grinned over at her and she smiled back, nodding.
We were quiet in our thoughts, just watching the scenery go by. After a few minutes, I said, "You know what I keep thinking about, Eden? You know what I've thought about off and on all these years?"
"Hmm?" she looked at me and leaned her head back on the seat.
"Me kicking over that water system was just chance—a random, unplanned act that ended up flooding the cellar."
"Yeah," she said softly.
"Yeah. So how did Hector know? All those years, how did he know that there would be a flood on that day, under an eclipse? If he didn't plan it, how did he predict it?"
I glanced at Eden and she was studying me quietly, her brow furrowed. "I don't know," she finally said. She tilted her head to the side. "Do you think, I mean, is it possible Hector had some kind of psychic gift and that he . . ." She sighed, looking frustrated before continuing, "I don't know . . . thought it was the voices of the gods speaking to him?" She turned more fully toward me, getting that bright look in her eye that made my chest feel tight—my knowledge seeker.