Falling Star (Combustible Book 2) Read Free Page B

your son. How this is affecting Blaze.”
    “Of course, I do.” She wiped a tear from her face. “I also know that if I go home right now, I’m going to fall back into the same pattern I’m trying so hard to break.”
    “But if you were clean, and Wade did this, don’t you have the strength to stay away?”
    “He broke into my house, Trent.”
    Pinching the bridge of his nose, he stood. “And they have the asshole in custody now. Your boy misses you. Isn’t that enough to want to come home and stay clean?”
    “Soon. I need to fix me before I can go back. I need to be all the way better.”
    His hope died. He didn’t understand, probably never would. “I’m sorry, Tina. I hope you come home soon. We miss you. Your boy breaks my heart when he stays over and cries himself to sleep because his mother isn’t there for him.”
    “Don’t you think I’m doing the same thing without him?” She covered her face with both shaking hands. “Just go. You don’t understand, and I don’t really expect you to at this point.”
    “I love you, sis. I don’t want to see you self-destruct. I don’t want to see Blaze hurt. I want you well.”
    “Soon.”
    Lost. Defeated. He dipped his head and walked away, trying to shove at least some of the doubt under the rug.
     

Chapter 4
     
     
    Beginning of September…
     
    Flashing lights and screeching sirens made Ella’s heart jump. She pulled over onto a shoulder of the narrow road and shut down the new Jeep Renegade. The day she left Hollywood she’d traded in the Humvee for something far less conspicuous, hoping to blend in with everyone else.
    First, the fire truck sped down the road. Her head dropped to the steering wheel, and she closed her eyes while trying to steady her breath. An ambulance followed and tears flowed.
    Another panic attack threatened to encroach every time she heard sirens. The anxiety only got worse with the lights. Flashes of memory tried to surface as the shaking started. Two days lost. That’s how long the man with steel gray eyes had held her. The only memories she got were slivers that churned her fear. The rape kit had come back clean, but her captor had changed her clothes, had held her. She relived the sensation of his strange, smooth hands with scar tissue that felt wrong.
    Fear gripped her once again. At first, she thought she could keep traveling, sticking to small towns… in a sincere attempt to find herself again. Within a few days, she’d realized she needed a place to call her own, a purpose. Ella had spent an hour on the phone with a friend from school. The only person she’d kept in contact with after moving to Hollywood. The one, other than her brother, who knew her as anything but Raven Star.
    Two hours later, she had a plan. Buy Mila’s old house. Open a boutique in rural Lakeridge, California. And find her place.
    Sam still believed she was coming back to LA. He hadn’t sent a single email yet, which meant he was probably mad about the way she left. She needed a fresh start without people’s misconceived perceptions based on what the tabloid media portrayed.
    Her phone rang and she nearly jumped through the roof. She sucked in a breath and forced her heart rate to slow before hitting talk. “Hi, Mila.”
    “Are you all right?” Mila asked.
    “Hey. Sorry, the sirens gave me a mini panic attack. I needed to stop for a few minutes and just breathe. Ever since the accident, sirens and lights freak me out. Pathetic, huh?”
    “Of course not. Take all the time you need. But I should warn you now. We’re down the road from the fire station.”
    “It’s okay. I’ll get used to it. Might even help me move past some of that shit.” She forced half a smile. “I want to take my life back. Not mope around and worry about what might have happened.” Ella started her Jeep and pulled onto the road again. “Hey, don’t be surprised. I’m wearing glasses, and I had a stylist bring my hair back to its natural color, maybe a