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“C’mon,” he said, throwing the vehicle in park. For the first time I noticed a large screwdriver — rather than a set of car keys — was sticking out of the steering column. “We walk from here.”
Five blocks. That’s how far we went. Cody stuck close to me, with the dog running ahead then coming back to check our progress. I couldn’t tell you how many times we looked over our shoulders. Each time we did though, there was nothing there.
Suddenly he was pulling me downward, into the basement stairwell of a large building. He knocked four times at a gray steel door, in a very specific way.
Eventually the door opened with a welcoming wash of heat and light, and I saw Silas was on the other side. His face went wide with surprise, then it crossed with anger.
“You’ve gotta be kidding,” he cried incredulously. “You brought herhere?”
Cody said nothing. Extending a giant arm, he pushed the door open and guided us inside.
“Santiago’s gonnashitwhen he gets back!” exclaimed Silas. “You know that, right?”
“It was Santiago’s idea to keep an eye on her in the first place,” Cody pointed out. “Remember? Just in case she needed help.”
“So?”
“So she needed help,” Cody shrugged. “The kind of help that required a clean getaway. She’s sure as hell not going backtheretonight, that’s for sure.”
Silas shook his head in the familiar frustration of knowing the other person’s viewpoint was invariably right. “Fuck,” he swore.
Just then my brother’s dog shot past us. He bounded across the room, jumped onto a corner cushion of the sectional couch, and curled up instantly like he owned the place.
“And who’s THAT?” Silas asked, this time with an uncontrolled grin.
“That’s Sebastian,” I answered, relieved to see him grinning. “He belongs to Evan.”
Belongs.It was getting harder and harder to use the present tense when talking about my brother. But until I knew for sure what happened to him, I wouldn’t ever stop.
“Fine,” Silas eventually relented. He turned back to his friend. “Tell me everything that happened.”
We made our way inside, eventually sitting before the flickering, muted television. The underground apartment was warm and spacious. The open floor plan boasted a large living area attached directly to a decent-sized, well-maintained kitchen. Three evenly-spaced doors in the opposite wall led directly into what I presumed to be bedrooms.
Cody talked. His roommate listened. He told the story of the men who’d tried to abduct me, or perhaps even worse. Where most guys would’ve embellished their accomplishments and physical fighting prowess, Cody downplayed everything he’d done to the men. I got the impression Silas wouldn’t have been impressed anyway.
“At least they didn’t see you,” he reasoned. “That’s a good thing, anyway.”
Cody’s gaze dropped a few inches. Silas looked suddenly worried.
“You wore a mask, right?” he demanded. “Tell me you wore a mask!”
“I didn’t get the chance,” Cody protested. “They rushed her apartment so fast—”
Silas threw up his arms and they fought some more. I let them go on for another minute or so before getting between them.
“Look, this whole thing is on me,” I said quickly. “I was the one who followed Aimon Lozano. I’m the one he wants.”
I stood up, suddenly emboldened by an all new plan.
“Maybe if I just went down there, I could talk to him. I could explain how—”
“NO!”
They both shouted the word together, in perfect stereo. It happened so harshly and loudly that Sebastian’s pointed ears perked up.
“That’s thelastthing you should do right now,” said Cody.
For the first time all night, Silas nodded his agreement. “He’s right. That’s one meeting you won’t come back from.”
