***
John heard Rachel walking along the corridor outside the hospital’s family room before he saw her. The heels of her boots clicked against the vinyl floor with the same speed that she lived her life. Fast.
Up until today, he’d enjoyed the challenge of not knowing what she’d say or do from one minute to the next. Today had been different. Today, her impulsiveness could have killed Bella. His daughter meant the world to him and he wouldn’t tolerate anything that could cost Bella her life.
Rachel slowed down when she entered the family room. He wondered if she had any idea what she’d done by convincing Tank to visit a different store.
“You wanted to see me?” Her hands twisted her knitted hat. She looked nervous, worried, and so unsure about what was happening that it made him forget what he wanted to say.
“John? Is Bella okay?” A panicked look replaced the worry.
“Bella’s fine. She’ll probably be going home in the next couple of hours.”
Rachel sat down in the chair beside him. “I’m glad.”
“So am I.”
“I’m sorry, John. I never thought it would turn out like this.”
He almost missed the softly spoken words, the apology he hadn’t expected to hear. “Did you think I asked Tank to go with you because he didn’t have anything better to do?”
She shook her head.
“I received multiple death threats. Oracom threatened my family. I wasn’t happy about you going into town in the first place, but Tank assured me that Walmart was safe. He had undercover guards in the store and an additional getaway car in the parking lot. When he was told that Walmart was too dangerous, you drove to another store that had no guards, no cameras, and no security clearance. Crafty Crafts was not an option.”
“I realize that now. I shouldn’t have pressured Tank into taking us to Kelly’s store. It won’t happen again.”
John swallowed deeply. “You’re right. It won’t happen again because you won’t be working with Bella anymore. I trusted you with my daughter’s life and you let me down.”
Rachel’s mouth dropped open. “But it was one mistake. Tess and I found her and she’s going to be okay.”
John gripped the armrest of the chair he was sitting on. “Do you have any idea why Bella ran to Tess’ old apartment?”
“No. Tess and I have just arrived. Tanner won’t tell us anything.”
“A man followed her down the street. The craft store was closed, so she went into the café. She thought she could hide in there. She took off her jacket and tried to look as though she belonged to another family.”
John had to stop talking. The terror that Bella must have felt was eating away at him. Part of that terror was of his own making. He’d never imagined that starting his own company would put his daughter’s life in danger.
He took a deep breath. “Bella heard Tess talk about her apartment when she went with you to look at the bridesmaids’ dresses a few weeks ago. When she went into the café today, she couldn’t see Tess to tell her about the man. Instead of telling someone else, she ran into the alley and up the back stairs to Tess’ apartment. She identified the man from images on the security camera in the café. The police, the FBI, and the CIA are looking for him now.”
“Is it possible that he wasn’t following her?”
John knew everyone was keeping an open mind about what had happened until they identified the man. “It’s possible.”
“Why didn’t she call out when the police searched the apartment?”
“Bella doesn’t remember hearing them. Her doctor thinks that she may have fallen asleep. Because she was so cold, she would have been unresponsive to any noise or movement going on around her.”
Rachel didn’t move from the seat beside him. He’d expected her to leave, to say goodbye to Bella, then get on with her own life. But she didn’t do any of those things.
She turned to him and put her hand on the arm of his sweater. “I know how upset you must be, but telling me to leave now isn’t going to help Bella. I could stay another week, wait until she’s feeling better. I don’t want you to pay me. I could stay in my own apartment and drive to your home each day.”
He didn’t have to think hard about his response. Rachel had already become more than Bella’s teacher. He couldn’t risk her getting any closer. “Bella will be okay without you. Tanner will take you home after you’ve seen her. He’ll check that your apartment is safe, and continue as your bodyguard during the day. When the death threats have been resolved, he’ll no longer be needed. If you want him to stay with you tonight, he’ll be happy to do that.”
Rachel took her hand off his arm and dropped her chin to her chest. “I don’t need Tanner tonight. I’m going to stay with Tess and Logan until this is over. Logan installed a state-of-the-art security system when he moved into his home, so I’ll be safe.”
“That’s good.”
She glanced quickly at him. “What else are you worried about?”
John leaned back in his chair. He didn’t know where to start. “Apart from a Technical Development Team that are now on high-alert and under twenty-four-hour surveillance, and the Department of Defense breathing down my neck, I still don’t know why Bella left Tank’s SUV. She knows she has to be careful. It’s out of character for her to run away.”
“It was important to her.”
“Scrapbooking supplies aren’t important.”
Rachel sighed. “Have you asked Bella why she needed them?”
“Of course I asked her. She said it was a surprise.”
“It was for your Christmas present. She wanted to finish it tomorrow so that she could give it to you on Christmas morning. Don’t be too hard on her, John. She’s only eight years old. We all make mistakes.”
“Mistakes don’t usually cost you your life.” The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them. His wife had made a mistake the night she’d gone out with some friends and taken Bella with her. She’d drunk nearly a full bottle of wine, got behind the wheel of their car, and driven four miles before hitting a tree and killing herself.
Rachel picked up a bag that she’d left on the seat beside her. “I saw Mrs. Daniels at the nurses’ station. She thought Bella might need some dry clothes, so she dropped these off. She said she’d see you both when you arrive home.”
For the first time since Bella had gone missing, he really looked at Rachel. Her normally pale skin was whiter than usual. Her big blue eyes swam in her face, filled with regret and so much worry that he felt as though he was looking at a reflection of his own face.
“I’m sorry, Rachel. This isn’t how I imagined saying goodbye to you.”
Rachel wiped her hands on the knees of her jeans and stood up. “I enjoyed spending time with Bella. I’ll say goodbye to her on my way out. Good luck with finding the man who followed her.”
Rachel left the room. He looked at the bag of clothes and tried to think of something positive that had happened today. But all he could see was the disappointment on Rachel’s face when he’d told her that she wouldn’t be teaching Bella anymore.
His daughter was resilient and would soon bounce back from what had happened. She’d miss Rachel for a few days, then find something else to make her happy.
He didn’t know if he could honestly say the same thing about himself.