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CONCERNED:i’ve spent a lifetime studying him
ABBY:Why? How do you know him?
CONCERNED:he’s dangerous and someone needs to stop him
Lifetime? Elisa didn’t know how that could be possible. That sentence pointed her away from Rachel being Concerned, but other snippets led her in the opposite direction.
CONCERNED:you like that he’s attentive, brings gifts, says the right things
ABBY:Yeah, that sounds horrible...
CONCERNED:it’s a con
Elisa thought back to her conversation with Rachel about Josh’s strengths. They sounded a lot like Concerned’s list.But comparing and contrasting styles and word choice didn’t clarify anything.
Elisa held on to Rachel’s words—I’m concerned. No way was the use ofconcerneda coincidence. Elisa refused to believe she was drawing incorrect conclusions or twisting words to fit her new theory. No, Rachel dropped the truth then left town. That wasn’t a coincidence or Elisa overreaching, but it was terrifying.
While she sat there, waiting for the alarm company to call back with a time for tomorrow’s installation, she thought back to why they needed the protection. The break-ins where nothing went missing. The inexplicable window. The medicine... the piece that still sounded so unrelated yet how could it be?
She needed caffeine. She thought about eating that one stale doughnut they hadn’t finished off over the weekend. It was supposed to be espresso flavored. Nathan declared that “disgusting,” but she craved it.
She got halfway to the kitchen when her cell phone buzzed. She tapped on the screen and slammed to a halt. Stood there, boneless and blinking, because the first text from Josh made her brain shut down.
Las Vegas!
A photo popped up. Hands, likely those of Josh and Rachel. Then Elisa noticed the details. A bouquet and the banner at the bottom of the photo.
Just married.
Chapter Fifty-One
Life had become a series of painful family dinners. Even Nathan seemed to notice tonight. He kept his head down and played with his spaghetti. Neither Elisa nor Harris said anything negative, but the surprise wedding announcement, instead of filling the house with a celebratory mood, cast a pall.
After fifteen agonizing minutes filled with bursts of awkward conversation and long silences, Nathan asked to be excused. Elisa almost sighed in relief as he went to enjoy his allowed hour of game time in the other room.
As soon as Nathan disappeared around the corner, Harris shoved his plate to the side and rested his elbows on the table. “What’s wrong with you?”
Hushed tone or not, she hadn’t expected the immediate attack. “Me?”
“You told Nathan his uncle got married with the same enthusiasm you’d use to explain what a funeral is.”
Probably because she was preoccupied with worryingabout another dead wife in Josh’s life. “You’re not exactly cheering the news either.”
“It was a surprise.” He shrugged. “It would have been nice to be there.”
“Because you like to attend all of his weddings?” Okay, she could admit that was a bit of a cheap shot, but Harris’s mood made her defensive. She wasn’t the one who ran off and got married. She wasn’t the one with a list of dead and missing spouses.
“What the fuck, Elisa?”
Harris’s usual even mood abandoned him tonight. He seemed determined to be pissed and, for some reason, aimed all of his anger at her. “It was a joke.”
“It wasn’t funny.”
“None of this is.”
He let out a long sigh that telegraphed how frustrated he was with her. “‘This’?”
“Do you want the list? The thing with Meredith. Rachel’s sudden change of heart.Abby is still missing.”
