I swiped at my eyes, tension beating through me. I waited to see if Blackwood would find me despite my makeshift disguise.
After a few minutes, the girl beside me relaxed.
“He’s gone out the emergency exit at the back. He must think you came in and went right back out to confuse him.”
I stepped away from her and stared around. She was right. Blackwood was gone.
“Thank you so much for your help. I don’t even know what to say?—”
“You don’t have to say anything. You see someone in trouble, you help, right?” The girl studied me with concern. “Do you have somewhere to go right now?”
I shook my head. I could go to my mother’s, but it was bound to be the next place Blackwood would look for me. He’d been on his way there, or at least had been pretending to be. My mind was so cloudy, it felt dangerous to wander around while I didn’t remember what the hell was going on.
“I think I need to find this person.” I lifted the dog tags from my sweater.
The girl eyed the name thoughtfully. “Lucciano, Massimo.” She dropped the tags. “You don’t know who he is, but you wear these?”
“I know, it doesn’t make any sense, does it? I can’t make much sense of anything lately, to be honest.”
She stared at me, clearly puzzled, but not afraid.
“Lucy,” a sharp voice said beside us, and I nearly dove to the floor.
“It’s fine, Nina. I’ve got it under control,” the girl who had helped me said quickly.
A woman stood beside us, alert and professional. Something about her screamed security. She wore all black and had her deep-red hair in a severe bun. Her gray eyes were watchful and full of assessment. She took me in from head to toe, a frown creasing her brow at the odd sight I made.
The girl, Lucy, turned back to me. “Well, I’d invite you home with me, but I’m only here on a work trip. I’ve got a hotel room for a few nights, though, and you’re welcome to hide out there.”
“Lucy, no!” the woman in black protested, clearly alarmed.
“Yes, Nina,” Lucy argued back. She had an air of confidence that was at odds with her age. Maybe she was rich? Or maybe she was just used to having her say.
“You see a woman who needs help, you help,” Lucy repeated her words from earlier.
“My job is to keep you safe, no one else,” Nina argued back softly.
Her job was to keep her safe? Was she a bodyguard? Why would this girl need a bodyguard?
“Yeah, and she’s with me. Enough arguing about this in public, you’re drawing more attention than anything else. I’m done talking about this,” Lucy said abruptly, then turned her attention to me.
“Do you want to go to the police?”
I shook my head. Not until my head cleared. I had no answers for their questions.
“I don’t think I can make myself understood right now. I’ll go tomorrow, when I’m calmer. But why are you helping me?” I blurted out.
Lucy shrugged. “People have helped me when I needed it before. People have even helped me when I didn’t deserve it. You never know what someone is going through... I’ve learned that the hard way. I’m Lucy, by the way.”
I’d learned that there were two types of people when it came to helping others. The ones who walked away, afraid to be dragged into someone else’s issues, and the ones who ran toward the trouble to help. To find the latter felt like a miracle.
“Katarina,” I said, and stuck my hand out to shake hers. I waited for a bad feeling or a tingle of intuition that I shouldn’t trust this kind stranger, but it didn’t come.
She seemed genuine. And I had no alternatives. I’d have to trust her for now, at least.
“Katarina. Can I call you Kat?”
I nodded.