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“Maybe Jamie doesn’t want to be found,” I said.
“Maybe,” Tom said. “But maybe she’s in trouble.”
“Look,” I said. “I can hack her phone and track the GPS location. And I’ll get a pretty good idea of where she is.”
“Are you allowed to do that?” said Tom.
“Look, do you want to find her, or don’t you?” I said.
“Sure, but Eric,” said Tom, looking confused. “I don’t want to get you into any trouble or anything.”
“I understand,” I said. “There’s very little chance of me being caught, and even if I am, it wouldn’t go to court. Not unless Jamie wanted it to.”
“Well, I’m sure she wouldn’t—”
“You’d be surprised,” I said.
“What does that mean?”
“Nothing. Forget I spoke.”
“Eric,” said Tom. “This isn’t about an argument you had or something, is it?”
I sighed. I couldn’t lie again. Not now.
“To tell you the truth,” I said, “yeah. We did have a bit of a confrontation.”
“What were you fighting about?”
“Not much, to tell you the truth. I think it’s an old grievance.”
Tom looked at me suspiciously, and for a moment I wondered whether he’d figured me out. I braced myself for the worst, but in a moment he’d shrugged off the dark feelings and was staring me down.
“Do what you have to do,” he said. “Just tell me where she is and I’ll go there.”
“No,” I said. “I’ll go. It's hard to track someone like that, and I want you to wait here in case she comes back.”
“Eric, you don’t have to go after her. Not alone.”
“I have to,” I said.
“Eric, this isn’t about Marla, is it?” said Tom.
I stopped and turned around.
“No,” I said. “It’s not. I promise. I’ll get her, Tom. I promise.”
He nodded. “Well, go get her then,” he said.
I went back up to my room and got a raincoat and my emergency pack. From there, I headed out to the parking garage, where a black Wrangler had been left for me by my driver. It was dark by now, and the wind was howling as the storm grew stronger.
I realized that once I’d gotten Jamie back, I’d be facing an impossible choice. Because when we revealed the reason that she’d run away, Jamie would have to tell her dad.
Chapter Eleven
Jamie
Therewereallkindsof thoughts circling my head as I left the hotel that evening and got into my car. All kinds of wild possibilities as I tried desperately to predict what would happen now that I’d cut Eric Slade out of my life forever. But I knew one thing for certain. I couldn’t stay here in the hotel a moment longer. The entire conference had been a waste of my time, just another place where Eric and I could make all the same old mistakes we’d made four years ago.
