North Oak, Book 1 - BORN TO RUN

Chapter 8: No Escape

NO ESCAPE

Hills: We'll be home tonight. 

Cade: I watched the race last night. Great run.

Hills: Have you seen the paper? My hair's a mess.

Cade: You're beautiful.

Hillary smiled. Her husband always knew how to make her smile.

Hills: I love you.

Cade: I love you most. I miss my girls.

Hillary held her phone, hesitating. 

Hills: ...Even Alex?

Someone knocked at the door. Hillary glanced down to see if her husband had answered yet, and set the device aside when he hadn't. She went to the door and opened it.  Brooke stood behind Alex with Laura.  Alex stared at the floor.

"Alex has something she needs to tell you," Brooke said.

"Okay?" Hillary smiled.

"You're gonna wanna sit down for it," Laura told her.

Hillary backed from the door, allowing the girls in. When all were inside, she shut the door and turned to them.  Laura pulled out a chair for her mother. Alex hadn't looked up yet. Brooke guided Alex to stand before the chair while Hillary sat.

Brooke squeezed Alex's shoulders and then sat on the bed beside Laura. Alex glanced at them from the corners of her eyes.  Her hands clenched. She bit her lip. Hillary leaned forward in her chair.

"Well?"

Alex raised her eyes slowly to meet hers. Her swallow was audible. 

"You've got me with baited breath, dear," Hillary laughed nervously.

"I may have murdered someone," Alex blurted.

Hillary's eyes went wide. She took a sharp breath and tilted back in her chair as though the words had thrown her back. She stared at Alex. The girl turned her head away, eyes closed tight. Hillary glanced at Brooke and Laura, then back at Alex.

"Okay, that... that I was definitely not expecting."

"I know, right?" Laura said.

Hillary's phone chirped with a text alert, but she ignored it. She took a deep, steadying breath. "When did this happen?"

Alex stood awkwardly, holding an arm. "On my birthday. October eighteenth."

"Before you joined us."

Alex nodded.

Hillary gripped the arms of her chair. "Tell me what happened."

Alex looked away. "What's there to say? I shot the lady taking care of us."

"Why?"

Alex's breath caught. After a long moment, she exhaled it hard. "Because."

Hillary rolled her eyes. Teenagers. "That's not good enough, Alexandra. I've been harboring a fugitive. Do you know what could happen to me and my family for that? We could all go to prison for being accomplices." She looked away momentarily, deeply angry with North. How could he not know about this? 

Every obscenity Hillary knew and repressed rushed into her, she bit her tongue hard to keep from letting them all out. 

Brooke took a deep breath. "Where do we go from here? What do we do?"