“It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have left. I should have taken your calls. I wish I could go back and make different choices. I was afraid to look for you when I first got to the shelter because there was so much water under the bridge, I thought we’d both drown in it.”

“Honey, nothing could drown us.”

“I know that now. I finally got up the courage to call you earlier this year. But I couldn’t find you. Your number was disconnected. I even looked online, knowing I wouldn’t find you there. I thought maybe you were hiding from me.”

“I would never do that. Your father got out of prison a few years ago, and he came after me. I had no choice but to leave town and start over, and phones are like trackers these days. I had to get rid of mine and get a new number. But it had been years, Trace, and you never reached out. I thought you were done with me.”

“Never. I was messed up, Mom, in survival mode. I’m so sorry.” Sadness engulfed her, warring with panic over her father going after her mother.

“It’s okay. I’ve been there, baby. I hate that you went through that.”

Tracey pushed past the sadness, not wanting to get mired down in it, and focused on her bigger worry. “Did he find you? Did he hurt you again?”

“No, but he tried. He grabbed me on my way out of the grocery store and tried to force me into his car. Luckily, there were some men who heard me screaming and ran over to help. Your father took off, but I was terrified he’d come back. I left town right then. I didn’t even go home to get my stuff. I was afraid he’d be waiting for me. I ended up here, in Annapolis, and once I got settled and felt safe, I called the police to report what happened.”

“Did they arrest him? Is he in prison?”

“They never had a chance. He got into a high-speed chase the day after he attacked me and flipped his car over a retention wall, into oncoming traffic. He was killed instantly.”

“Oh my God. Was anyone else hurt?”

“A truck driver slammed into his car, but luckily the driver wasn’t badly injured.”

“Thank goodness. Does it make me a horrible person that I’m relieved he’s gone?”

“No, honey. He never brought anything good into your life, and he hadn’t been the guy I fell in love with in decades, if he even ever was. Has Dennis ever looked for you?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Good. And now you have Diesel, who seems very watchful.”