***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**

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.

"That's really sweet, babe. I'll act surprised when I get them." He chuckled, brushing a rough kiss across my cheek and sitting back down. I let out a sigh of relief that he was taking the excuse at face value and not pressing me for more.

"Sorry momma!" She giggled.

"It's okay Ry, now eat your eggs! We need to get going." Riley was going to her last day of kindergarten today. Of course, no one but me knew that, and I'd have a hard time not being emotional about saying goodbye to her teachers. She'd go to school where ever we ended up, but her teacher here was wonderful and it broke my heart her experience was ending this way.

Last night, I had briefly talked to Derek about how I was feeling and when I questioned whether I was making the right decision, he quickly shut it down. He assured me that none of this was happening because of my decision to escape; it was happening because Robby was a monster. If I kept that in the back of my mind, I might make it through the day in one piece.

"What time do you think you'll be home?" I asked Robby, sliding into the seat next to him.

"Probably around 4AM. I'm working an eighteen." He rolled his eyes. "One of the rookies called in and I volunteered to take the extra hours to get the sergeant off my back about a complaint I had."

"Complaint?" I frowned. He hadn't mentioned anything about getting written up. He was like the golden boy of the department since his father was buddy-buddy with the chief, so it had to have been pretty extreme. Regardless, it wasn't my problem anymore, and if he was getting home so late, it meant he wouldn't even stir when I got to leave with Riley in the morning, and that was a godsend.

"It's no big deal, babe." He said, shoveling eggs into his mouth. "Just some dirt bag claiming we were too rough when we arrested him. I've got it handled."

Figures. That wouldn't be the first unnecessary roughness complaint he'd had, and it probably wouldn't be the last either.

I stood up, kissing Riley on the top of her head. "Let's go, sweetheart. We don't want to be late!"

"I'll try to call around bedtime." Robby said, finishing his breakfast.

"Sounds good." I forced a smile, hoping he wouldn't. If I was lucky, this would be the last time I would have to speak to him. "Say goodbye to daddy, Ry."

"Bye daddy!" She threw her arms around his legs tightly. Robby ruffled her hair.

"Have a good day, baby." He bent down and gave her a quick kiss, and then turned to me, wrapping me in his arms. I fought the urge to wince. "I love you, Cam."

"You too." I gave him a smile and pulled out of his embrace. "Have a good day!" I called over my shoulder and waved as Riley and I headed out to the garage. It was incredible how such an enormous amount of weight was lifted off of me the second we left his presence.

I dropped Riley off at school and occupied myself with a little shopping until I could be sure Robby was gone. Derek gave me strict instructions to keep up my daily routines so that no one noticed anything off, and this was normal for me after dropping Riley off.

I needed a few hours to get everything settled before I picked her up again. We'd have a quiet night at home, and then in the morning, we'd be on our way to a new life.

When I passed the car down the street from our house where Derek had been sitting, I waved, although this time it was one of his men. I recognized him from the first day, but since then, Derek had taken over patrols himself. Just knowing he was out here gave me an overwhelming sense of safety, and I was somewhat disappointed he wasn't here today. As if he could tell I was thinking of him, the Bruner phone he'd given me started ringing.

"Hello?"

"Hey Camryn, it's Derek." As if anyone else called me on this line. His voice sounded upbeat on the other end of the line.

"Hey! I just drove by your surveillance van thinking you'd be there." I said, pulling into the driveway.

"I had a few things to take care of at the office this morning, but that's Tyler. You're in expert hands with him." Derek chuckled.

"Thank you, but hopefully it won't be needed. Robby left this morning for an eighteen hour shift. He won't be home until about four in the morning and he'll be so tired he won't even notice me getting up in the morning." I assured him, as I grabbed a few things out of the car.

"Good. I'm glad to hear that. I was just calling to be sure you still felt good about the plan."

"I think I've got it down." I said, shutting the car door. I was probably being overly cautious, but I didn't want to speak to Derek while I was inside the house, in case Robby had it bugged. "I'll be at the park in the morning."

"Right. My men will meet you on the other side, and we'll take it from there. You're almost there, Camryn. Stay strong."

I smiled softly. "Thank you, Derek. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Bye Camryn." There was something about the way he said my name that sent chills down my spine. I just could tell if they were good chills or bad chills yet—he always left me on edge.

Derek was such a mystery to me. He had such a tough and domineering exterior, but every once in a while, his gentle and thoughtful side came through. Like at night, when he'd text me through the burner phone to make sure I was okay. Or how he'd dropped everything to help me get away from Robby without much thought at all. He seemed to have the same hero complex that his brother did—always needing to be saving someone—and while generally, that would annoy me, I was glad to have him in my corner as all of this shook out. I would never be able to express how thankful I was for his help.

I spent the afternoon tying up loose ends at the house. As I was preparing to leave it for good, I was getting nostalgic. Robby and I had looked like at least a hundred houses, but this one had stolen my heart immediately with its huge windows and charming character. It was older and had been refurbished, and I loved that that meant it came with stories. Robby, on the other hand, wanted to build a new house because those stories I loved so much came with heavy repairs.

Everything about it was magical to me, and I could already see us raising our babies on the wrap-around porch, a tree house, the old oak tree in the back, and quiet nights spent watching the sunset in the backyard. In the end, he conceded, and we bought the great big house on the corner lot. He had modernized it a little, but I was still just as mesmerized by it.

I remembered the first night we stayed here, sleeping in the master in our sleeping bags because our furniture hadn't been delivered yet. Bringing Riley home for the first time and how the antique wooden floors I loved so much would creak as I paced back and forth, trying to get her to sleep. I remembered baking cookies with Riley in the kitchen and the hundreds of hot summer days we'd spent outside by the pool. Even with all the bad that happened here, it was the good that stuck with me right now.

By the time I had to go get Riley, I had everything settled. Our bags were packed neatly underneath her bed and I had cleaned the house from top to bottom. I knew it seemed silly to clean, but I knew that if everything went according to plan, our house would be crawling with cops and detectives and all sorts of people as they investigated.

Riley and I headed home after a few stops and I waved once again to Trey in the surveillance van. When I opened the garage, my heart nearly fell to the ground. Robby's truck was here. What the hell was going on? Wasn't he supposed to be working?

"And then Henry took the ball, and he threw it over the fence. Mr. Taylor made him sit at the picnic table for a few minutes because that's not keeping our toys safe..." Riley babbled on about her day at school as I unbuckled her and carried her inside the house. I was rattled, but doing my best to keep things running smoothly. He had been kind the last few days, and I had no reason to think tonight would be any different.

When we got inside, I noticed three empty beer bottles on the counter already. The TV was blaring and I could see Robby sitting on the couch, motionless, holding a bottle of vodka in his clenched fist. I swallowed the lump in my throat and bent down to Riley. "Sweetie, why don't you go upstairs, okay? Here, you can take the iPad and put your headphones on, okay?"

"Okay, momma." Riley agreed eagerly and took it from me, skipping off to her room.

Once I heard the door to her room shut, I sucked in a sharp breath.

"Robby?" I said gently, tiptoeing into the living room as if I was walking on eggshells. "Is everything okay? I thought you were working a long shift."

Robby snorted. "They got some else to cover."

"Okay... Is everything..."

"No!" He bellowed, jumping to his feet. "Everything is not okay. I'm suspended. Turns out that motherfucker who filed the complaint has a video of the arrest, and now the department thinks it reflects badly on them, so I'm suspended."

My eyes widened in disbelief. "Wow" I hadn't meant to say that out loud and immediately put my fingers to my lips.

His face twisted with rage. "Wow? That's all you've got to say? No, I'm sorry, baby? No, how can I help, baby?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean..." The back of his hand collided with my cheek sharply and fell back against the couch.

"Why don't you try that again?" He snickered, towering over me. I knew what he wanted from me and in order to deescalate the situation, I could play along.

"I'm sorry, baby. What can I do to help?" My voice was nearly a whimper.

A sinister smile blanketed his face. "I'm so glad you asked." He grabbed me roughly, turning me around and shoving my face into the couch.

"Robby, please..." I begged, as he slid one hand around the front of me and started groping my breasts.

Without a word, he reared his fist back and slammed it into my side, sending a searing pain through my already broken ribs. I hissed, collapsing against him in the worst pain of my life. It made me so physically ill I thought I might throw up.

"Just shut up and lay there. I'll be done soon." He growled, continuing to peel my clothes off.

I was gasping for air, trying to figure out how I could get to the phone in my purse. Trying to figure out how I could get Tyler's attention just a few yards away from me. As Robby fumbled with the button of my jean shorts, I started to have a panic attack. I couldn't let this happen, not when I was so close to getting out. The thought of him touching me, the thought of his inside of me, was more than I could bear. In a split second decision, I jerked my knee upwards into his crotch, giving me a moment's reprieve as he fell back in pain.

I bolted up, thinking that if I could grab my purse, sprint up the stairs and get to Riley's room, I could lock the two of us in there and call Derek. When I was a foot away from the stairs, Robby grabbed me by my hair and yanked me to the ground. I hit the tile of our kitchen floor, writhing in pain. It took a minute for me to focus enough to see that Robby was towering over me with his gun pointed at my head.

I blinked several times, staring back at him, terrified to move. Holy shit. Had I pushed him too far? He was going to kill me right now. When I was hours away from escaping. He was going to murder me with hit NYPD issued gun on our kitchen floor. Tears started to stream down my cheeks, but he didn't seem to care.

"Why do you make me do this, Cam? Why do you make me hurt you?" His voice was hoarse.

"Robby, please, don't do this." I begged, thinking of anything and everything I could to reason with him. "You don't want to do this. It's just a suspension. You'll be back on the job in no time."

"This isn't about my fucking job, Camryn. It's about you. After everything I do for you, it's never good enough. All I wanted was to come home and have my wife make me feel better. And you couldn't even do that. Is the thought of having sex with me really that repulsive? I really should just kill you and get it over with."

"Robby..."

He interrupted me by spinning the bullet chamber and chuckling when it stopped. "Feeling lucky, baby?" His finger flicked the trigger, teasing that he was going to pull it at any second.

"Please. Not with Riley here." I begged through my tears.

Robby stared at me for a second as a dark cloud seemed to lift from him. "I'm going to the bar. You better be ready when I get back." He turned towards the door and tucked the gun back into his waistband.

I stayed on the ground until I heard the diesel engine of his truck fire up and drive off. Once I knew he was really gone, I propped myself up, leaning against the cabinets and bawling my eyes out.