Was that cinnamon? Was my attacker chewing gum?
“Leave Upshaw where she belongs,” the man said.
“Mary Louise?” My words were smothered by the thick glove. This wasn’t a random mugging or carjacking. Someone had followed me here and waited for me.
“Leave it alone or you will get hurt,” he said.
Then the hand on my chest disappeared for a second before returning to slap something that sounded like paper over my heart.
“This is your final warning. Heed it. Please.”
It sounded like a genuine plea. Was it possible that my assailant didn’t actually want to hurt me? Or maybe I was hallucinating. The lack of oxygen and the blood thundering in my ears could be distorting everything.
Then he was gone just as suddenly as he’d appeared.
This was too many whammies in one night.
With shaking hands, I reached for the door handle and yanked it shut. It took me four tries to find and press the lock button. By the time I had, my attacker was nowhere to be seen.
With shaking hands, I found my phone on the floor and dialed.
“N-Nash?”
I wasn’t a nail biter, but I’d nibbled my way through my left hand and was about to start on the right.
On the surface, Nash looked calm, but his leg was bouncing under the table. After giving my statement to the Lawlerville police, I had begged Nash to take me to see Mary Louise. I had an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach.
He’d put up a fight, seeing as how I was ready to disobey direct orders from an anonymous bad guy. But I needed to see with my own eyes that she was okay, and Nash wasn’t ready to let me out of his sight.
“Are all prisons this awful?” I asked Nash.
He glanced around at the cracked ceiling tiles, the flickering fluorescent lights, the peeling vinyl floor. “No. The place Tina Witt’s in looks like a country club in comparison.”
I frowned. “What’s the difference?”
“This place is privately owned. Which means the owners can funnel the profits into their bank accounts. There’s no real incentive to improve the facilities if you get to pocket what’s left over after expenses.”
The door opened, and I jumped out of my chair. Mary Louise entered.
“Oh my God. Are you okay?”
Her face was bruised and swollen, and her left arm was cradled against her chest in a sling. But what made it all worse was the fear in her eyes.
I wanted to hug her, but she looked as if she were about to collapse in on herself. “Do you need a doctor?”
“I’m fine,” she assured me.
“What happened?” Nash asked.
“A little altercation in the cafeteria,” she said dully. “It happens.”
“We need to get you out of here. I’m calling Fran,” I decided.
“Don’t,” Mary Louise said, her voice suddenly sharp. She shook her head. “No more calls. No more petitions. No more meetings. I’m done.”
“What are you saying?” I whispered, sinking back into my chair.
“Did someone threaten you, Mary Louise?” Nash asked.
Her gaze shifted to the door. “I’m saying it’s best for everyone if I serve out the rest of my sentence.”
“No,” I said firmly. “We’re so close, Mary Louise. Don’t you want to see Allen graduate?”
She shook her head again, tears welling in her eyes. “It was foolish of me to hope. There are better ways for you to spend your money. Other people you can help. I can do another nine years.”
She said it like she was trying to convince herself.
I looked at Nash with desperation.
But he shook his head at me, his eyes all cop.
“Listen to me, Mary Louise,” I tried again. “We’ll figure this out. I’ll do whatever I can to keep you safe. Just don’t make any decisions yet until I see what I can do.”
“You don’t understand. I need to stay here. I need you to stop helping.”
“We can’t just leave her in there,” I said, jogging to keep up with Nash as we headed toward his SUV.
“Just let me think, Sloaney.”
“She’s obviously being threatened. Someone attacked her, and now all of a sudden, she doesn’t want us to help?”
“I know. Calm down and shut up so I can think.”
“We don’t have time to think!”
Nash stopped, and I ran into his broad back. He turned to face me. “Honey, I know. But you need to understand, you getting attacked the same day that Mary Louise gets jumped is not a coincidence. They might be focusing their threats on the two of you, but that doesn’t mean you’re the only two targets.”