“What the hell?” she murmured. How had he gotten inside? Then her eyes widened. She’d left Dani in the hallway, but she’d never checked the spare bedroom…the hall closet. The other bathroom.

She turned and nearly ran to the back of the house, relief flooding her when she found Dani standing where she’d left her, her eyes swimming in fear.

Harper once again held a finger to her mouth, then went to the spare bedroom and pushed the door opened. It was dark and quiet. She turned the light on, finding the room undisturbed. She opened the closet door, then paused to look under the bed. The bathroom was also empty. Other than the damn balloon, there was no indication that anyone had been inside.

She blew out her breath, then went back out to Dani.

“All clear.”

She took Dani’s hand and led her into the living room. Dani gasped when she saw the balloon.

“Oh, my God.” She turned to Harper. “He was inside. He was really inside the house.” She sat down heavily on the sofa, staring at the balloon. “Just like before. At home. He would come during the night while I was sleeping.”

Harper pulled out her phone from her jean’s pocket, calling Ja’wan. After four rings, it went to voice mail. “Come on, come on.” She called again, as she went to the window and looked out. The street was empty. There was no sign of the patrol car, no sign of Ja’wan and Bill Ford.

“What the hell?” she murmured as she ended the call.

“What is it?”

“Looks like our backup is gone.”

“What? Why?”

“I have no idea,” she said abruptly. She grabbed Dani by the shoulders, holding her in front of her. “We pack our things. We go through the garage. We get in the car and get the hell out of here.”

Dani nodded but there was fear in her eyes. “He was inside. What if—”

“He’s not inside now.” She motioned out the window. “Without backup, I feel like we’re sitting ducks. We need to get out of here.”

Dani nodded. “Yes. Okay. Yes.” Dani took her hand. “But don’t leave me.”

“I’m not going to leave you. I promise.”

It didn’t take them long to pack the few things they’d taken out. Harper shoved her clothes haphazardly into her bag without thought. She kept Dani behind her as they went through the kitchen and to the garage door. It, too, was protected by a deadbolt, locked from the inside. Still, she was cautious as she opened the door. The deadbolts hadn’t seemed to deter him from entering the house.