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Elisa wanted to fix this, make it better for Rachel, but she could tell from the staccato way Rachel delivered her words that the anger and pain wrapped around her conflicted feelings for her mother. The feelings were too ingrained for Rachel to let go.
“You paid the price.” That sort of upbringing sounded so horrible to Elisa. She didn’t have much growing up, but she had her mom and never doubted her love. Her heart ached for how much both Rachel and her mom had missed. “Grief does terrible things to people.”
Rachel pulled her hand away from her mug. “Apparently.”
Elisa wasn’t sure what to ask next, but she tried. “Are you close with her now?”
“No. She and Dad got divorced. He was the one who held the family together and then he stopped trying.” Rachel glanced at the ceiling for a few seconds before facing Elisa again. “I guess what I’m saying is I get messed-up family dynamics. I understand loss and how it can wipe out everything else.”
“I really am sorry.”
“And I know the position you’re in sucks.” Rachel winced. “But if you can, maybe, hold back a little. I’ll work on Josh.”
A pretty big jump in topic but Elisa went with it. “How?”
“Get him to appreciate your side and be more open about the days before Abby left so you can put the pieces together.” Rachel’s warm smile reappeared. “And in the meantime, forget him. I’ll help you search or whatever you’re doing, so that the two of you don’t end up arguing again.”
That sounded simple, but... “What happens if you find out something about Josh that scares you?”
“I’ll leave him. That’s not a hard question for me, Elisa. I have limits.”
Those limits depended on her getting away before Josh launched whatever plans he had for her. Belaboring that point probably amounted to a waste of time right now. Rachel brimmed with confidence. Some of it not likely realistic because Josh had significant height and weight advantages on her.
But Elisa did find the offer of assistance interesting. If they found something incriminating and Rachel wasright thereto see it, it could save Rachel’s life. And it didn’t hurt to have a witness. “Any chance you’re in the mood to check out a storage locker with me?”
Rachel laughed. “I have no idea what that means, but I thought you’d never ask.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Unit 357.
Elisa headed down the walkway with Rachel by her side. They hadn’t said much since leaving the café. Rachel looked like she was on a mission, dressed in black boots, a long black skirt, and a black turtleneck. Elisa’s less dramatic jeans and oversize sweater fit in with a quick trip to a space lined with blue storage unit doors.
They got to the right unit and Elisa unlocked it. The second she lifted the pseudo garage door she froze.
Nothing. The temperature-controlled room was completely empty.
Rachel walked inside and spun around. “I don’t get it.”
Without breaking the threshold, Elisa scanned the space, taking in every wall and every corner. There wasn’t so much as a dropped receipt or dusty footprint in there. “Me either.”
“Not to question your idea of fun but this is kind of anticlimactic,” Rachel said from the center of the five-by-ten room as she turned back to face Elisa. “What’s supposed to be in here?”
“Abby’s things.”
“Wait, what?” Rachel’s shoulders fell and her bag slipped down her arm. “She left. Why wouldn’t she have taken her stuff with her?”
Excellent question. “I asked Josh something similar, but he didn’t have an answer.”
Rachel stood there, not moving. “Josh knows about this?”
“He rented the unit and gave me the keychain.” Elisa tightened her hand around it now.
“I’m so confused.” Rachel shook her head. “What exactly did he say was in here?”
“He didn’t.” Which confirmed to Elisa that this was some sort of mind game. Gaslighting. A move meant to make her question the conversation and send her spinning. “He suggested I might find answers to my questions in here.”
“If Abby rented the unit and it’s now empty, I get it. She unloaded it. But Josh...”
