Fear Games

2. Wanted: Dead or Alive

RACHEL

I had to be completely honest with myself—I was never the best at keeping secrets, especially from my children. But I knew deep down that this was something that I couldn't share with any of them—my own kid or Eden's—and it was driving me absolutely mad. There were no words for how much I just wanted to spill the beans to every single one of them, but I knew I couldn't. Not yet, anyway. There was too much at stake.

That particular Monday afternoon, I was trying to get the hell out of the house before Emerald got home. Calix was the only one who knew what was up, so I knew he wouldn't ask questions about where I was heading off to. He'd be able to put two and two together. I was almost out the door, and grabbed the keys off the table by the exit. Just as I was about to leave, the front door flew open and in came Emerald.

"Hey, Mama," she said. Following closely behind her was Cinder and Kael. Echo wouldn't be home until an hour later because she was in the middle school. My daughter looked me up and down and must have realized I was about to leave, because she asked, "Where are you headed off to?"

"Just have to run some errands," I said as I leaned in to give her a kiss on the forehead. "You kids stay in the house, okay? And make sure that Echo gets home safely. And remember my rule?"

All three kids rolled their eyes and said in unison, "Don't open the door for anyone."

"Perfect," I said. "See you all later."

I rushed out of the house before anyone had the opportunity to antagonize me about my "errands." After climbing into my car, I turned on the music on my phone, and pulled out of the driveway. It wouldn't take my long to get to where I needed to be.

It was a nice thirty minute drive out of Fairview Falls listening to classic hits like Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, Ke$ha, Billie Eilish, Demi Lovato, Avril Lavigne. By the time I reached exactly where I needed to be, I was getting anxious. I truly hoped that I hadn't been followed. If I was, then that meant that all of this will have been for nothing. That I was a dumbass.

I pulled up to a cabin, which was hiding in some trees, which there wasn't typically much of in Nevada. This was a nice spot with a little cabin and lots of things to do. I technically owned half of this cabin because it belonged to my ex-husband Drake, but he never came here except for during the summer. He would have no idea that it was currently being used for something much more serious than a vacation.

As I got out of the car and headed toward the door, I looked around to see if there were any other cars. It looked like I was in the clear. I made my way up to the door, used my key to unlock it, and stepped inside.

The cabin was gorgeous inside, with beautiful paintings on every wall; a leather sofa, a recliner, and wide screen television set in the living room; a large kitchen with a center island, barstools at the counter, and drinks lined against the wall. There were stairs that went up into the bedrooms as well, which were also completely stunning. It was nice to come here every summer, even if it was only a half hour away from home.

"You made it."

The voice startled me, even though I knew it was coming. I turned around to see the person that I had been waiting to see. She stood there in pink pajamas, like she hadn't left the cabin in a while—which she hadn't. Her long dark hair was exactly the same, and so was the rest of her face, minus the fact she wasn't wearing makeup. Who would wear makeup when they were just alone in a big cabin in the middle of nowhere hiding from a killer?

I smiled at her and said, "Eden. I'm so happy to see you."

She returned my smile and ran over to me, wrapping me in a tight hug. "I'm happy to see you, too. It's been so lonely here by myself. Sometimes I even wonder if I'm safe here." When she pulled away, she looked me in my eyes and asked, "Are my kids okay?"