Free Runaway Mistress by Robyn Carr

tell me what you’re hiding.”
    Jennifer let out her breath in disappointment, shaking her head in defeat before she even realized her actions were as much as admitting there was something major. “I’m not hiding anything,” she said.
    “Oh, yes, you are. I don’t much care what it is, unless you did prison time for ripping off little old ladies.” That brought a slight chuckle from her. Very slight. “I’m an expert on women, Doris, and I know how tough the world can be for some. And I’m an excellent secret keeper. It’s just that this might be too big a mystery for me. Please understand—I can’t leave you with all my worldly goods and my very best friend without knowing why you’re hiding out in Boulder City.”
    Jennifer moved her mouth as though she were literally chewing on the question. She decided quickly it would be okay to be honest. Louise was eighty and not very talkative. If there was anyone in this town who could be trusted, it was probably Louise. “If you tell anyone, it could be very, very bad.”
    “I have no reason to tell. But I do have a need to know.”
    “It was a man. He was violent. He—” She took a deep breath. “He threatened to kill me if I left him.”
    “Do you think there’s any chance he could be looking for you?”
    “I think there’s every chance—but I think this is the last place he’d look.”
    “And why is that, exactly?”
    “Because this is such a quiet place. No gambling, no nightlife, not exciting. It’s not what he’d expect of me. He’d think that I’d run off to L.A. or New York City before I’d hunker down in a town full of—” She stopped suddenly.
    “Full of little old ladies and their ancient dogs?”
    Jennifer bit her lip. “He’d expect me to want more excitement than is found here, Doctor.”
    “All right, all right, so there is much more to you than meets the eye. I thought as much. Maybe later you’ll trust me enough to give me a few more details. I might even be able to help at some point. I do have a lot of experience with this sort of thing. I helped open a facility in Las Vegas that’s strictly a women’s and girls’ shelter. Anyone female can get help there, as long as they’re drug free.”
    “I’m okay here. For now,” she said, but there was a tentative tone with it. “But what if something…If I have to leave in a hurry? What about Alice?”
    “My neighbors will see after her in an emergency. You aren’t using credit cards or making long distance phone calls to friends or family, are you?”
    There was a long pause. “No,” she finally said. “I really have no one.” She couldn’t keep the sadness from her voice as she realized that even when she’d had a rich gentleman friend, she had no one. “And I know what I have to do to be invisible.”
    “Then you’ll be very hard to track. So? What do you think, Doris? Can you help me out?”
    “Yes,” she said, flashing a heartfelt smile. “I could probably do that.”
    “That’s good. Maybe you can come over later and look around. I could show you how to work the computer so you can e-mail me. Rose lives on one side and Alex on the other and—” Louise stopped as Jennifer’s expression changed rather suddenly. “What’s the matter, dear?”
    “Alex. He looks at me like I’m going to pick his pocket.”
    “Ignore him—he’s not always such a crank. Even Alex warms up after a while. And, Rose…Well, I’m not even going to try to explain Rose. But I leave next week. I need someone to watch over Alice and the two of you get on so nicely. So—that’s that. I just can’t tell you how much I appreciate this.”
    “You’re sure your neighbors will be okay with this?”
    “Absolutely. Thank you for taking it on.”
    “All right, then,” she said, making an effort to keep the relief and excitement from her voice. “I don’t have anything else going on.”
    “Well, isn’t this just my lucky day,” Louise said. “Oh, and Doris? If anyone