“Inside. With the phone. He said if he sees me leave, he’ll shoot me. I can only go when you find me. You will come, right?”
“Which building are you in?”
She told me, then continued, “He said something else, too. He said to remember Ciara. I don’t know what that means. I asked him, and he wouldn’t tell me, and—”
The line went dead.
—
I speed-dialed Gabriel. When the line connected, I hung up. What was he going to do? This wasn’t a legal matter. I’d be dragging him into this. Forcing him to make decisions that weren’t his responsibility to make.
I glanced over. Ricky hadn’t said a word.
“We are awake, right?” he said.
“I think so.”
“Hard to tell after that call.” He paused. “Do you know what she was talking about?”
I hesitated. There was so much he didn’t know. Most of which I couldn’t share.
“Some of it,” I said. “The name she mentioned. Ciara. She’s the girl whose body I found while rescuing TC. Her death may have something to do with me or my parents. Gabriel’s been helping me look into that.”
“Do you want to call him?”
Yes. “This isn’t a legal issue.”
“Do you really think he’d tell you to handle it yourself?”
No. He’d come.
I shook my head. “I’ve dragged him into enough trouble. Did she sound as if she believed she was in danger?”
“Yes. The fact that it makes no sense actually supports it being real—she’d dream up a better fake story. But even if she is in danger, it’s almost certainly a trap, so . . .”
He trailed off, but I knew what he was thinking. Would I risk my life for a stranger? No. Whatever brand of heroism that requires, I don’t have it.
I looked down at the GPS coordinates Macy had given me. Macy. She wasn’t some anonymous victim. Even if she was, I don’t think I could have ignored her.
“We can go check it out,” Ricky said. “You’ve got your gun, and you’ve got me. I don’t think whoever’s doing this is expecting either.”
“You don’t have to—”
“You think I’d let you handle this while I go back to sleep?”
“We’ll take my car,” I said. “I want to explain more on the way.”
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
While Ricky drove, I navigated and told him about Ciara, which wasn’t easy, piecing the hole-ridden cloth into a plausible story. I told him about the body in the car, but I skipped the “head in the bed.” That’s where it seemed to cross the line to a potential legal issue for Gabriel, given that I’d had photographic proof and we didn’t report it.
When I finished, Ricky just kept driving, despite me telling him to make a left. He got turned around and back on course before speaking.
“So someone put this girl’s body in your car, wearing your clothes, dressed as you.”
“And then, while I was inside waiting for Gabriel, the killer took away all the evidence. Which sounds completely crazy, so you can’t blame him for thinking I was imagining things.”
Ricky glanced over. “I’m sure Gabriel knew you weren’t. I’m sure he told you to keep it quiet. I completely agree, and I’d expect him to do the same as my lawyer. I’ll buy whatever story you sell me, Liv.”
“I—”
“I know there’s more to it. There are things about my life I can’t share, either, because they could put you in jeopardy. I have secrets; you have secrets. I’m here for anything you want to tell me, but I’ll never push. Fair enough?”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
“So clearly that corpse was a warning. Clearly Gabriel is concerned, which explains him getting you that security system. But if you were in serious danger, something would have happened by now. Instead, it’s do as I say or this Macy girl ends up like Ciara. Meaning he needs something from you. Something you can’t give if you’re dead.”
“Presumably.” I looked out the window. “Any idea where we are?”
“You’re the one with the GPS.”
“Yes, but I haven’t seen a landmark for almost ten minutes.”
We were in the countryside. That much was obvious. On a dark, empty secondary highway. About a half hour outside Chicago, if I’d calculated the distance properly.
“There’s a town ahead,” Ricky said. “Big one, judging by that glow.”
I checked my phone GPS. “Looks like we’re going to turn off before we reach it. Take the next right. We’re getting close.”
Two more turns and we were there. Wherever “there” was. We passed a laneway leading into a golf course. It wasn’t one I recognized. I’m not much of a golfer, but James is, and this didn’t look like a course we would have played. It was meant for locals who wanted to knock a few balls around a half-dozen times a year. At three in the morning, it was pitch-black.
The GPS led us past it to a laneway with gates. Huge gates, adorned with Keep Out and Private Property and Trespassers Will Be Prosecuted. Also, massive padlocks.
“Let me out here,” I said.
Ricky did. I went up and checked the gates. Chains looped them shut, but the locks were unfastened. I peered through. The lane led to a group of dark buildings surrounded by empty fields. Hell of a place to drive into. Anyone watching would see us coming for a quarter mile.
I jangled the chains, then called back to Ricky, louder than necessary, “Seems to be locked tight.”
He could see damn well that the chains weren’t secured, but he said, “Think the call was a prank?”
“Maybe.” I made a show of squinting through the gates again. “Let’s drive around.”
I climbed back into the car.
“It’s too open,” I said as he backed onto the road. “But if Macy’s captor is listening, which I presume he is, I didn’t want him to think we were taking off.”
“You’re pretty good at this stuff.”
“It’s in my genes,” I said. “And I have Gabriel for a teacher.”
“No shit, huh?”
As Macy had said, a cemetery bordered the property. Cemetery on one side, golf course on the other. Both dark and silent and empty. Two routes to choose from.
“Which building are you in?”
She told me, then continued, “He said something else, too. He said to remember Ciara. I don’t know what that means. I asked him, and he wouldn’t tell me, and—”
The line went dead.
—
I speed-dialed Gabriel. When the line connected, I hung up. What was he going to do? This wasn’t a legal matter. I’d be dragging him into this. Forcing him to make decisions that weren’t his responsibility to make.
I glanced over. Ricky hadn’t said a word.
“We are awake, right?” he said.
“I think so.”
“Hard to tell after that call.” He paused. “Do you know what she was talking about?”
I hesitated. There was so much he didn’t know. Most of which I couldn’t share.
“Some of it,” I said. “The name she mentioned. Ciara. She’s the girl whose body I found while rescuing TC. Her death may have something to do with me or my parents. Gabriel’s been helping me look into that.”
“Do you want to call him?”
Yes. “This isn’t a legal issue.”
“Do you really think he’d tell you to handle it yourself?”
No. He’d come.
I shook my head. “I’ve dragged him into enough trouble. Did she sound as if she believed she was in danger?”
“Yes. The fact that it makes no sense actually supports it being real—she’d dream up a better fake story. But even if she is in danger, it’s almost certainly a trap, so . . .”
He trailed off, but I knew what he was thinking. Would I risk my life for a stranger? No. Whatever brand of heroism that requires, I don’t have it.
I looked down at the GPS coordinates Macy had given me. Macy. She wasn’t some anonymous victim. Even if she was, I don’t think I could have ignored her.
“We can go check it out,” Ricky said. “You’ve got your gun, and you’ve got me. I don’t think whoever’s doing this is expecting either.”
“You don’t have to—”
“You think I’d let you handle this while I go back to sleep?”
“We’ll take my car,” I said. “I want to explain more on the way.”
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
While Ricky drove, I navigated and told him about Ciara, which wasn’t easy, piecing the hole-ridden cloth into a plausible story. I told him about the body in the car, but I skipped the “head in the bed.” That’s where it seemed to cross the line to a potential legal issue for Gabriel, given that I’d had photographic proof and we didn’t report it.
When I finished, Ricky just kept driving, despite me telling him to make a left. He got turned around and back on course before speaking.
“So someone put this girl’s body in your car, wearing your clothes, dressed as you.”
“And then, while I was inside waiting for Gabriel, the killer took away all the evidence. Which sounds completely crazy, so you can’t blame him for thinking I was imagining things.”
Ricky glanced over. “I’m sure Gabriel knew you weren’t. I’m sure he told you to keep it quiet. I completely agree, and I’d expect him to do the same as my lawyer. I’ll buy whatever story you sell me, Liv.”
“I—”
“I know there’s more to it. There are things about my life I can’t share, either, because they could put you in jeopardy. I have secrets; you have secrets. I’m here for anything you want to tell me, but I’ll never push. Fair enough?”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
“So clearly that corpse was a warning. Clearly Gabriel is concerned, which explains him getting you that security system. But if you were in serious danger, something would have happened by now. Instead, it’s do as I say or this Macy girl ends up like Ciara. Meaning he needs something from you. Something you can’t give if you’re dead.”
“Presumably.” I looked out the window. “Any idea where we are?”
“You’re the one with the GPS.”
“Yes, but I haven’t seen a landmark for almost ten minutes.”
We were in the countryside. That much was obvious. On a dark, empty secondary highway. About a half hour outside Chicago, if I’d calculated the distance properly.
“There’s a town ahead,” Ricky said. “Big one, judging by that glow.”
I checked my phone GPS. “Looks like we’re going to turn off before we reach it. Take the next right. We’re getting close.”
Two more turns and we were there. Wherever “there” was. We passed a laneway leading into a golf course. It wasn’t one I recognized. I’m not much of a golfer, but James is, and this didn’t look like a course we would have played. It was meant for locals who wanted to knock a few balls around a half-dozen times a year. At three in the morning, it was pitch-black.
The GPS led us past it to a laneway with gates. Huge gates, adorned with Keep Out and Private Property and Trespassers Will Be Prosecuted. Also, massive padlocks.
“Let me out here,” I said.
Ricky did. I went up and checked the gates. Chains looped them shut, but the locks were unfastened. I peered through. The lane led to a group of dark buildings surrounded by empty fields. Hell of a place to drive into. Anyone watching would see us coming for a quarter mile.
I jangled the chains, then called back to Ricky, louder than necessary, “Seems to be locked tight.”
He could see damn well that the chains weren’t secured, but he said, “Think the call was a prank?”
“Maybe.” I made a show of squinting through the gates again. “Let’s drive around.”
I climbed back into the car.
“It’s too open,” I said as he backed onto the road. “But if Macy’s captor is listening, which I presume he is, I didn’t want him to think we were taking off.”
“You’re pretty good at this stuff.”
“It’s in my genes,” I said. “And I have Gabriel for a teacher.”
“No shit, huh?”
As Macy had said, a cemetery bordered the property. Cemetery on one side, golf course on the other. Both dark and silent and empty. Two routes to choose from.
