Page 94 of What They'll Say About Us

I was a little surprised by his sudden turnaround. He'd gone from saying there was no way that Paige had killed herself to suggesting it was a strong possibility.

"Anyway." He waved his hand to the door. "I need to get on with things here. Are you sticking around for a while?"

"For a while."

"I'll say one thing for you; you've definitely gotten everyone talking."

I gave him a smile as I left. People were talking, but I didn't know if anyone was telling me the truth, and I couldn't help thinking that the flash of bitter anger I'd seen in his eyes might be the first time he'd shown me how he really felt about Paige.

Had I mistaken his easygoing, helpful nature for innocence? I needed to figure that out fast, because there was a scenario where Nate might not have left town at all, where he might have made Paige pay for not loving him the way he loved her.

Chapter Twenty-Two

As I got into my aunt's white Subaru, I checked the surrounding area to make sure no one was watching me, waiting for me to leave the theater. But it was very quiet in the parking lot behind the theater, and no one else was around.

Before I started the engine, I called Colton. I needed to tell him what I'd learned and also find out what was happening with him. He didn't answer right away, and I was about to leave a message when he suddenly picked up.

"Tessa," he said. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes. You sound breathless."

"There's a lot going on," he said.

My heart jumped at the excitement in his voice. "What's happened?"

"The trap worked. The car that Morgan saw yesterday showed up at Hale's house."

"His house? Why there?" I asked with surprise.

"I needed a location that would make sense to whoever was following you, somewhere you might have gone."

"Oh, right. Was Hale there?"

"We didn't go near his house. I left the car on the street. I had a team of officers strategically positioned, and we got our guy."

"Who was it? Someone I know? Someone Paige knew?"

"No. He's most likely a hired gun. We've ID'd him as Steven Williams, a thirty-eight-year-old with a long rap sheet of criminal activities. He's not talking, so information is still being gathered. I believe someone hired him to kill Vincent and probably to burn down your apartment building. Maybe he was also responsible for the close call you had with that car several days ago."

I felt both happy and disappointed at the same time. "So, we have him, but we still don't know who's behind this?"

"We'll know soon. We'll be able to run through his bank and online accounts. We'll figure it out. It won't take that long, even without his cooperation."

"It has to be someone with money. Did Hale come out of his house at any point during this operation?"

"No. I haven't spoken to Hale today. His house looked closed up, no open blinds or curtains."

"He's not here at the theater, either. Do you think he took off?"

"We'll find him. And when we do, we'll bring him in for formal questioning. This is almost over, Tessa."

"I like your confidence. Hale seems like the most likely person to have hired someone to do his dirty work."

"Agreed. The rest of you were kids back in the day. Although, I do have Ray sitting in an interrogation room, so I don't want to make too many assumptions yet. Let's see what happens with him and Hale, and then we'll move on."

"Ray seems like someone who might also have contacts with a hired killer. I don't know what his finances are now, but he might have the ability to hire someone to clean up whatever mess he might have made back then."

"We'll see. I have to go, Tessa. Just sit tight. Stay put. I'll be in touch as soon as I know something."