Stolen Promises (Promises to Zion Book 4) by Traci Wooden-Carlisle

Author:Traci Wooden-Carlisle
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: forgiveness, womens fiction, christian romance, family betrayal, afro american, christian saga
Publisher: Traci Wooden-Carlisle

Chapter 15

The car was quiet for the first few minutes of the ride to the hospital. The girls seemed to be in deep thought until Sophia spoke up.

“Will you tell me why you think Katrina was drugged and why we had to leave in such a hurry?”

Melanie glanced back at Rickie, checking to see if she wanted to answer the question. Rickie shook her head once and looked out her window.

Melanie took a deep breath and began to relay the night from her perspective when she faked going to the bathroom to check her friends. Every now and then she glanced over at Sophia who gasped or made a noise of distress. Sophia was openly sobbing by the time she was done.

“I’m so sorry,” Sophia said between breaths.

“It’s not your fault,” Rickie said, trying to soothe her.

“No one knew what they were like. We were all dreamy eyed over your man,” Rickie said.

“Not Melanie,” Sophia said. Melanie could see her looking her way, but she kept her eyes on the road.

“Melanie was right there with us. She just happened to see Ward drop something into my drink,” Rickie said, still trying to assuage Sophia’s guilt while keeping her spot next to Katrina.

“No. I think Melanie saw something in him. I think that’s why she asked those questions about his job,” Sophia said with a quivering voice.

“You knew something,” Sophia said more in resignation than accusation.

“I wasn’t sure, and I wasn’t about to say something when I wasn’t sure. You were so happy. I wanted you to be happy until…well, you know.” Melanie prepared for the words of censure or incrimination for not saying anything sooner but they never came. Instead she heard a quiet “thank you” from the passenger seat.

“You’re welcome. We’re friends. We look out for each other,” Melanie said with sincerity, keeping her eyes on the road. She would do just about anything for her friends.

After that, the car grew silent as the women returned to their thoughts. The night had been more than any of them had bargained for. Katrina moaned, drawing everyone's attention to her, but other than that everyone remained preoccupied with their own thoughts.

Melanie’s thoughts ricocheted between her encounter with Marc and the realization that they had been invited to a party to be drugged and who knew what else. At one point Sophia let out a sob, and Melanie briefly lifted one of her hands off the steering wheel to squeeze one of Sophia's.

She wondered if Marc was telling the truth about his surveillance assignment with the men casing cars. She shook her head at the fanciful thought of having a real-life knight in shining armor. He had no other reason for being there. She’d rejected him, and she’d been taught that men handle rejection well. Oh, she really wasn’t going there.

Melanie told herself to face facts. There was no way he could have known that she was at that party unless he'd followed her. Her heart rebelled, wanting to hold on to the idea of that type of loyalty and adoration directed at her.

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