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He looked over his shoulder at the closed door, and shook his head. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to be talking inside. Someone could be listening.”
“Stop trying to avoid the question and just tell me.” I balled my hands into fists.
“I don’t know why you pulled the knife on me.” He threw his hands in the air. “One minute everything was fine, and the next you were holding a knife to my throat and kicking me out of the car. I had no fucking clue what was happening. You drove off before I could even help you, and Ryzen fled after you.” He shook his head and huffed. “This has all been a damn mess. What else do you remember?”
“Enough. Enough to know that I was trying to get away from him. And enough to know that Ryzen’s been trying to kill me.”
Valik narrowed his eyes. “No, he—”
“Yes,” I snapped. “He fucking is. I found all the pills in his office, Valik. And a vial of liquid that causes amnesia. He’s been drugging me to excess so that I won’t remember.”
Valik genuinely looked frightened at that moment, his eyes wide and body completely tensed. Was it fear for me or for him? I didn’t know. But what I did know deep in my gut was that he was a good man with a good heart. “He’s been putting alprazolam in my tea. It causes amnesia. The woman from the cliff—she gave me her phone for a second, and I saw it with my own two eyes,” I choked out. “He doesn’t want me to remember, Valik. He wants me dead.”
Valik’s shoulders slumped forward and he held his head in his hands. It was quiet for a moment, and I reached under the pillow and grabbed the switchblade. If he was about to try to turn me over to Ryzen, I was going to have to stop him.
“You’re sure?” he whispered. I nodded, and he let out a deep breath. “Fuck.”
‘Fuck’ was right.
He paced around the bed, shaking his head. “I have to get you out of here.”
Oh, thank God. “How?” I pushed the knife back under the pillow and stood to face him.
“I don’t know. I need a few days to think. We can take the ferry but would need a car to get there.”
“No.” I shook my head. “There’s no time. Ryzen’s bringing a priest here to marry us any day now.”
Valik’s lips curled in disgust. “What? He can’t fucking do that.”
“He can try. Look, I might have found another way off the island. Glenda told me about some boats down under the pier.”
He raised his eyebrows and blinked slowly. “I’ll never underestimate you again, Nova La Roux.”
I chuckled, shaking my head. “It’s dangerous though. If we could call someone to help us… Where are the phones?”
“I don’t know.” Valik shook his head and peeked out the curtains. “Ryzen took all our phones. We’re all at his mercy, Nova. He has a safe in his office, but I’ve seen inside it… it’s empty except for papers.”
“Wait, I had a phone with me when I crashed. And, um…” I squeezed my eyes shut. There was another memory on the verge of coming out. What was it? “I had, um… crap. I don’t know. But I definitely had a phone. What happened after I crashed?”
He sat down on the edge of the bed, his jaw clenched. “Ryzen and the other guard, Lindell, took you straight into the maids’ quarters and had me and the other security stand guard. They didn’t want the guests to be alarmed. The doctor came and shortly thereafter we were at the airstrip and headed this way.” He gripped my hand and squeezed. “I swear, Nova, I didn’t know how bad a shape you were in until I saw you the next day right here in this room. Ryzen said it was just a little accident.” He let out a deep breath. “I should have fucking known. After all this time, I should have put the pieces together.”
“I’ve made the mistake of trusting him too, Valik. I don’t blame you.” I squeezed him into a hug and was quiet for a moment. “You don’t know where he put my stuff? My dress? He wouldn’t have just left it there, especially not my phone.”
Valik’s jaw tensed. “Lindell carried a black bag out the maids’ quarters and put it in the back of the SUV when we were leaving. Ryzen had it over his shoulder when we got off the ferry here. So, it’s here somewhere.” Valik’s back tensed, and he snapped his fingers. “Wait. The day we got here, I saw Ryzen walk into the woods with a shovel, and I thought it was odd considering there’s nothing out in the direction other than woods and that little shack. Do you think…” His voice trailed off.
“Do I think he buried the phones?” I scrunched up my nose. “That sounds like a crazy thing to do. But considering how this whole thing is one big ball of crazy, yes. I totally think he would do something like that. There’s only one way to find out.”
A car alarm beeped outside and Valik rushed to the window. “Fuck, Ryzen’s back.”
Panic gripped me again and I shuddered.
“Get into bed and act like you’re asleep. Everyone heard you screaming from outside, so he’ll know. We can’t hide that.”
“What are we going to do?” My breath caught in my throat as the front door slammed shut and moments later footsteps pounded up the stairs.
Valik pushed me back onto the bed and covered me with the blanket. “Shh.” Valik rushed to sit in the chair and opened a magazine. I closed my eyes just as Ryzen walked in.
“What happened today?” he hissed.
