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“He wasn’t in Boughton very long,” Alex said, swallowing the lump of anxiety in her throat. “I wonder if he got any information?”
“Couldn’t get any about us,” Gideon said calmly. “The only people who know I was there are the guys at the truck stop who’re fixing my car. No one knows you were there.”
“Except the waitress at the truck stop. And the clerk in the store. And Jerry’s tracker that was working at the hotel,” she shot back.
“The people at the truck stop won’t remember either of us. It’s been too long. And even if they did, Jerry’ll be looking for a woman by herself. He won’t be asking about a couple.” He took a deep breath. Touched her hand. “The tracker might show you were at the motel, but that’s it. You’re gone, and Jerry has no way of knowing when you left or which direction you went.”
Alex took a deep breath. Another. Gideon was right. After they’d gotten rid of his tracker, as far as Jerry knew, she’d vanished. She could be headed back to Evanston, for all Jerry knew.
But he knew her well enough to be pretty sure she was heading toward Seattle. Jerry knew it was the only place she’d lived besides Evanston.
She hadn’t realized she’d started pacing again until Gideon grabbed her hand. “Watching you prowl the room is making me crazy. Pull the curtains closed. Leave just enough room to see what’s going on.”
Alex nodded. That was smart. She didn’t want Jerry to glance up at the wrong moment and spot her.
She tugged the heavy curtains together until there was a six-inch opening. Then she waited for the white car.
Gideon moved closer and stared out the window. Their motel had the ‘No Vacancy sign lit. So did two others close by.
The one across the street still had ‘Vacancy’ lit. Gideon nodded at it. “My bet is that Jerry’ll stay there. They have rooms, and it’s close to the interstate.”
Alex studied it. “Doesn’t look like his style,” she said. “He’d go for a more expensive place.”
“He might not have a choice. Looks like everything close to the highway is full.”
He moved to sit on the bed again, and after a few moments, called, “Hey, Alex?”
She turned around, and he tossed her a hat. “Put this on. Hide that hair of yours. It’s a dead giveaway.”
“He can’t see my hair from his car,” she said, but she pulled it on anyway.
“You never know. Sunlight hits you at the wrong moment? Red hair is all he’ll see.”
She stuffed all her hair beneath the stocking hat and resumed her watch.
It was near dusk a few minutes later when she saw a white car exit the highway. It drove past their hotel, and she focused to see if the car had Illinois plates. She thought it might, but it was too far away to be sure.
“A white Mercedes just went by,” she said without taking her eyes off the car. “Was it Jerry?”
“Yeah.” The bed rustled as Gideon stood. Walked over and opened the curtain. “Which hotel did he choose?”
She nodded in front of her. “The one across the street. Thank God this one says no vacancy.”
“Yeah.” He slung his arm around her shoulders, and she stiffened for a moment. Then leaned into him. His arm felt like… security. Safety. Its heavy weight across the top of her back was reassuring. She wasn’t in this alone.
They stood close together and watched as Jerry unloaded a briefcase and a suitcase from his car, then hurried into the lobby of the low budget motel across the street. They watched for ten more minutes, but Jerry never reappeared. A light went on in a third-floor window, and a man was momentarily visible before he jerked the curtain closed.
“Jerry?” Gideon asked.
“I think so. His shape looked right. Hair color and style, too.”
“Okay.” He drew the curtains closed, then grabbed the local information binder on the table. “Let’s take a look at restaurant menus.”
Alex recoiled. Stared at Gideon in disbelief. “We can’t go out to eat! I’m not leaving this room until the pass is open and we can get on the road.”
“Alex, we have to eat,” Gideon said calmly. “We’ll use Grubhub. Or Uber Eats. Or whatever delivery service is available in Livingston. I’ll meet them down in the lobby so they won’t know what room we’re in.”
She swallowed the lump of nerves in her throat. “Okay. Yeah. I should have thought of that.”
