“It would only be for a little while. Just until they get things figured out.” I tried to sound optimistic.

“How are they planning on keeping you safe if they don’t know what they’re protecting you from?”

I eyed the police officer standing outside our hotel room door. He had been trying to pretend like he hadn’t been watching me for our entire phone call. I still wasn’t used to them following us around. “They’re going to keep a security detail on us when we get home, like they’re doing now. So far it doesn’t look like anyone even knows where we are.”

He snorted. “Because you’re not home. All that’s going to change once you get home and word gets out. It’s only a matter of time.”

That went without saying. It was one of the reasons I’d been hesitant to move in with Scott, because of the house’s notoriety and strange following. He’d received his share of hate threats and messages, but at least those had been gone by the time we’d gotten together. Still. Every few months we’d find someone wandering slowly by the house, trying to pretend like they weren’t taking a picture of our place.

“It’s not permanent. It’d only be while they continue their investigation. Besides, Scott won’t even consider letting her stay in the safe house. He’s been talking about bringing her home with us since we drove to pick her up.”

“And Kate? Any chance she’s said anything about this?”

“No, but come on, Thad. You can’t expect her to make any decisions in the state she’s in.”

We had no clue what she thought about everything going on around her. She hadn’t spoken much since her first interaction with Scott, at least not to us or when we were in the room. She stayed huddled on her hospital bed with Shiloh pressed against her chest, her eyes darting back and forth across the room continuously. Even though her body was still, she was poised to run at any given moment. She jumped at the slightest noise.

“I can’t even begin to tell you everything that’s wrong with this plan.” I could see him sticking out a finger as he listed each item on his list. He’d always been my logical and practical one. “You don’t know where she’s been or what she’s been doing for eleven years. No clue. Nobody knows why she left. Still. She clearly hasn’t been alone all this time.” I could hear his eye roll. “Then she suddenly pops up out of the blue with a baby, but once she’s rescued, she stops talking? Come on, Mom. You’ve got to admit, there’s something weird about all of it.”

I sighed. “Everything about this is weird.”

“What about her family? Why aren’t they there? How come they’re not rejoicing that she’s been found and coming in to swoop her up? Let her go live with them.”

“I explained all this to you before,” I said. “Kate was an only child. Her parents died in a car accident when she was a teenager. Most of her extended family lives in Sweden, and she was never close with any of them, because they were all wild and crazy.”