Return to Paradise
Page 9

“We’re just trying to get an idea of what happened with John Smith here in town. As you probably know, he’s a person of high interest. There are several incredibly generous rewards that are being offered for any information on his whereabouts.” She turns her attention to me. “I was sorry to hear about what happened to your home, by the way. But I’m sure the reward money could go far in rebuilding.”
Is this woman really trying to bribe me into telling her about John?
“After all, I’m told the blaze started at a party you were throwing,” she continues. “I’m sure you’ve been wondering how you can make things up to your parents after something like that.”
My mouth drops open a little, and I feel like I’ve been punched in the gut.
“You’ve been watching me,” Sarah says, changing the subject. “I’ve seen you.”
“Of course you’ve seen me,” the woman says. “We wanted you to know that we’re here, keeping the town safe.”
“You’re following me,” Sarah says, gritting her teeth a little.
“I’m simply doing my job by ensuring that we follow up on every lead.”
“And you think Sarah is a lead?” I ask.
“We think you know more about John Smith than you might even realize.” Walker never takes her eyes off Sarah. “You were dating him. You must have some information that would be relevant to our investigation. Something that might help us to decipher exactly what happened at your school.”
“I hardly knew him,” Sarah says, staring down at the table. “We weren’t dating.”
“We saw a video that looked like he was flying out of your burning house,” the woman says to me. She turns back to Sarah. “He was carrying you.”
Sarah smiles.
“It’s crazy what you can do with cameras and a few hours on the computer, isn’t it?” she asks.
“Sam was always good at stuff like that when we had presentations at school,” I add. “He probably did it.”
Sarah kicks me under the table. I can’t figure out why until the agent turns to me and smiles.
“Samuel Goode. His mother, Patricia Goode, is a nurse. Father is Malcolm Goode, a . . .” She pauses for a moment before smiling a bit. “Current whereabouts unknown. Sam hasn’t been home since that night either. His mother is worried sick about him. It would be nice if she had any assurance that her son was alive.”
“Sam is . . . ,” Sarah starts, but then stalls. I recognize the look on her face. She’s trying to connect all the dots and carefully plotting out what she’s going to say.
Speaking carefully has never been my strong suit.
“Sam Goode is a conspiracy theory nut job,” I say, lounging back in my booth a little. “That little twerp wears the same NASA T-shirt every day of the week. You should hear the kinds of things he talks about. Aliens. The Illuminati. Personally, I think it’s his way of trying to get people to notice him when all the attention goes to me and my buddies on the team. He probably finally had enough of it and ran away, using the school thing as an excuse. He’s smart, but he’s also a total wuss. Trust me when I say he can’t handle himself in a fight. Not exactly terrorist material. If you ask me, he’s probably hunting for Sasquatches in the woods somewhere. That’s where I’d try to find him, at least.”
I take a big swig of my soda and glance over at Sarah, who’s looking at me with a mixture of disgust and confusion. I give her a little kick under the table, and she manages a smirk.
I take a chance and lean forward, grabbing Sarah’s hands in mine. They’re soft and tremble slightly. I have to hold them still against her initial urge to pull away.
“Isn’t that right, babe?” I ask, flashing the toothiest grin I can muster her way.
“That’s probably true,” she mutters.
“Well, that’s very enlightening, Mr. James,” Agent Walker says.
“I think I’m ready to go now,” Sarah says, scooting towards Walker.
The agent doesn’t move.
“But you haven’t even eaten yet,” she says. Agent Noto still hasn’t so much as breathed as far as I can tell.
“I’m not hungry,” Sarah says.
“Why don’t we talk a little more?”
“Oh, are you charging us with something?” I ask.
“What would we have to charge you with?” Walker says with a smile that’s just a little too forced.
“Nothing.” I shrug. “I just know you can’t keep us here unless you are actually going to arrest us or something. That’s how my father’s always said the law works.”
Walker gives a few short laughs, which seem to say, “How very cute that you think that’s how things work around here.” Still, she slides out of the booth. Agent Noto follows her.
“If you happen to remember anything,” Walker says, pulling a business card from her suit pocket and holding it out to Sarah, “do let us know. We’ll be in touch.”
In a flash, Sarah’s left the booth and headed for the door. It takes me a little longer to get out, and Walker’s standing in my way when I stand.
“That girl is trouble,” she says, still holding up the card. “Don’t let her take you down with her.”
We stare at each other for a moment. Her eyes are light and intense. Finally, I take the card and slip it into my pocket then push past her. On the way out, our waitress rounds the corner with our steaming pizza.