Protect Her

Chapter Nine

***Trigger Warning: This chapter contains heavy themes of domestic violence. Please take care of yourself and skip if you feel this may be triggering for you. If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence of any kind, please reach out to someone in your community. In the US, that number is 1-800-799-7233**

Camryn

Tomorrow.

We were leaving tomorrow.

As I stared down at the scrambled eggs I was making, I tried to wrap my mind around our impending escape. Somehow, we made it through the last two days completely unscathed, as Derek and his team worked to set this all up. At 8AM tomorrow morning, I'd drive Riley and me to the park and leave a key to my car on its tire. We'd walk to the other side of the park just like we were on a normal adventure and one of Derek's men would pick us up. He'd take us to a private airport where we'd get in a helicopter and be flown directly to the roof of Derek's building. That way, we wouldn't be caught on any security cameras.

While all this was happening, someone would stage my car and our house to look like a crime scene. To look like both Riley and I had been killed, and putting the groundwork in place for Robby to be blamed with it. And while Robby was on trial for our murders, Riley and I would be in an entirely different country. The whole thing sounded so crazy to me, more like the plot of a movie instead of my life. The closer we got to actually making this happen, the more antsy I was becoming.

On one hand, Robby was like a changed man in the last few days. He was a doting, loving father and husband, and we'd spent the last few days in a calm and peace I hadn't felt in months. It made my heart ache for the way things used to be, how I expected them to be forever. On the other hand, I knew what he was capable of and still terrified of the man I once thought walked on water. What if, even after all of this, he found us? Derek swore that would never happen, but the thought was in the back of mind. If he found us after all of this, there was no doubt in my mind he'd kill us. It was easy to think this would work while I was sitting in front of Derek, so confident and protective, but when I was on my own, it was harder. It was in my own thoughts and vulnerability that the doubts crept in. Was I crazy to trust a complete stranger? He seemed like a genuinely good person, but I knew very well that people aren't always what they appear to be.

"Momma, did our pictures come back yet?" Riley asked from the kitchen table. She was sitting next to Robby, playing some silly game with her strawberries while I cooked breakfast.

"Hmm?" I had been so wrapped up in my own thoughts, I hadn't really even heard what she said.

"Our pictures... You know, the ones your friend took, and you told me not to tell daddy about?" She popped a strawberry into her mouth, giving me a mischievous grin. I nearly dropped the spatula I was using to stir the eggs when it registered, all the blood running cold in my veins.

Riley had no clue what she'd just done. She thought she was just telling her dad about a fun surprise we'd done for him, but my five-year-old was about to unravel the entire plan before it even had a chance to work out.

Thank God I still had my back to them, so Robby didn't see my jaw drop to the ground. I turned around to see him looking back at me curiously.

I rolled my eyes and laughed, composing myself and trying to play it off. "Sweetheart, I told you that was supposed to be a surprise!"

I put scrambled eggs onto both of their plates and continued on as if nothing happened.

"You guys took pictures?" Robby asked, grabbing the bottle of orange juice from the fridge.

I nodded. "It was supposed to be a surprise for your birthday next month, but somebody doesn't know how to keep a secret..." I arched my eyebrow playfully at Riley.