AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The car was gone.
“Bastard,” she whispered to herself. She’d had a feeling, all along, the driver would make off without her. The fifty, which she’d thought of as incentive for him to stay, turned out to be the opposite.
It was then a voice from behind reached her.
“Miranda?”
She turned and, involuntarily, her hand moved to her chest. Her mouth dropped open.
It was him. Trey. Bruno. Whatever. There was a moment where she had to cling to her equilibrium because she could feel her knees going out from under her, her breath being sucked from her lungs. This was a nightmare moment, surreal.
He looked different. He’d shaved his head and the all-black garb made him even more conspicuous. She didn’t think that was his intention. But it didn’t matter—he was just one of a cast of thousands. Who would care to take notice?
Part of her wanted to run as fast as she could in the opposite direction. She pictured herself weaving through the crowd, heading for the end of the trail alongside Westlake Avenue and heading up to the Fremont Bridge. Its bright blue span was now bisected, the bridge raised to accommodate a tall-mast sailboat.
Another part begged her to drop, curl into a fetal position, and open her mouth and scream.
But the third part, the one with all the logic and reason, told her to calm her ass down and figure out what the hell was going on. She needed to slow her heart rate and respiration because she was dealing with Steve’s murderer; of that she was almost 100 percent certain. And she could take no chances with her own safety.
“What are you doing here?” She had to work to keep her voice even, to not reveal the fear she felt by speaking in too high of a tone or with shaky words. “It was you who called me with that story about the file cabinet, wasn’t it?”I’ve been so stupid! I should have known better! I should have waited for my father to return.
He smiled and spread his hands wide, as though what he’d done was a harmless practical joke. “Really, Miranda? You’re asking me that?”
She didn’t even get his response, let alone feel comforted in any way by it. She told herself she wasn’t in much danger. There were people—witnesses all around, packed in close.Get ahold of yourself!Her heart was hammering. Sweat poured down her skin inside her clothes. She breathed in and out, shakily, but it worked and her respiration and heart rate came down. A bit.
“Was it or not?” she asked again.
He eyed her. She was sure he wouldn’t answer.
Just turn and get away, while you can. There’s nothing you want to hear from him, and there’s nothing he could say to change that. And whatever he may say will be a lie, anyway.
However, there was one way he could respond that might change her mind.
At that thought, she stopped just as she was about to turn and head away from him. The idea chilled her so much it felt as though ice were running through her veins. It was a moment of prescience, because Miranda knew what he would say next before he said it. She hoped against hope he wouldn’t, but deep down, she knew the words were about to fall right from his smiling mouth.
“Your dad’s with me.”
And that did it. For maybe a second or two, her heart stopped beating.
“No. No, he’s not. He’s at the hotel.” Her denial came out weak, sad. Could it be true? Was that why Daddy was nowhere to be found? Why he left no note or text? Had he been trying to protect her? And yet, she’d walked right into the trap with eyes wide open. And she was unsure she could back out again.
“Come on. You know it’s true.” He simply stood there in front of her, confident in his knowledge and what he had over her.
“Let me talk to him, then.”
He shook his head. “I don’t have my phone on me.” He shrugged. “Sorry. Thoughtless of me to be out without the electronic tether. But if you come back with me, you can do better than talk to him; you can see him.” He stopped smiling and did a reasonable impression of earnest when he said, “Please. I just need to settle some things with you guys. I’m not out to hurt anyone.”
She thought of asking if he’d been out tohurtSteve, but decided against it. He’d never admit to such a thing, even if she could think of not a single soul in the world who’d want to harm Steve, let alone kill him.
For a moment, the noise and bustle all around paused. She needed to sit down, dizzy, mouth dry. Maybe that’s why her speech deserted her.
After her not saying anything for a while, he turned away. “Okay. Have it your way. You always were stubborn and, sometimes, just a little stupid.”
She watched as he began striding away, blending in with the crowd. It was hard to admit, but she never thought she’d look atthisman with longing when she saw the back of him.
What choice do I have?
Her gut clenched as she thought of Steve, stabbed, bleeding out. This man, as she well knew from her own research, was a liar and a sociopath. Those things meant if he did indeed have her father somewhere, wasn’t it her duty to, if not save him, at least see what the hell was going on? She started after him. As much as she didn’t want to, she raised a hand and called, “Wait.”
