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“Dead?”
Paulson shrugs. “If that’s what it takes.”
“Oh,” she whispers. Then her lips settle into a not-quite-smile that makes me hold my breath.
This would be so much easier if we could take John, Blaine and Stellan out, but that’s not how this is going to work.
Nothing’s simple when it comes to those three.
“You know where they are?”
“Yes.”
“How’d they buy the phone under Lindsay’s name?”
“Our darknet guy says they’ve been all over Russian sites and other places, hiring people to surveil her. Mimic her. It’s four years ago, only with higher stakes.”
“What do you mean?” Lindsay drops her phone and sits up, leaning intently, listening fully.
“We know you know this, Lindsay. Drop the act.”
“Know what?” Her face is blank. Too blank. I know when she’s hiding something.
“You have a friend who helped you access the darknet from your time on the Island.”
Her eyes flicker with emotion she snuffs out, fast.
She says nothing.
“You’ve been communicating with him – or her – by using online retailer reviews.”
She snorts. “You’re crazy. Quit saying that.”
“But I’m not wrong.”
Paulson’s eyes ping between us. He already knows this information. I told him earlier, when I figured it out and brought him in on the case.
“Do you have any idea how ludicrous you sound? Reviews? I’m using book reviews to communicate with someone? I’m not that nerdy.”
“Let’s pull up some of the reviews you’ve left on books lately, Lindsay. Shall we?” I pull out my own phone and tap the links I’ve stored in it.
Emotion fills her face.
It’s anger.
“I don’t have time for this crap, Drew. I’m exhausted, and Daddy’s going to chew you out for wasting his time.”
I ignore her and talk to Paulson instead.
“Clever, like I told you. If you’re constantly being monitored, how do you communicate with someone your watchers aren’t supposed to know even exists? You use code, right? Encrypted code. Except Lindsay isn’t a developer. Not a coderchick. So what does she do? She uses books.”
“Shut up, Drew.”
“Reading’s therapeutic, right?” I continue, ignoring her. “The people at the mental institution likely encouraged her to read. Pre-approved books. And when she asked for permission to leave reviews on book retailers, she probably got an enthusiastic yes. Her interest in literary pursuits was progress.”
I flash her a look designed to put her on guard. “You picked some of the most ridiculous books, but you and your helper were smart. Self-help books. Make the staff think you were focused on self-care.”
“You’re inventing all this, Drew.”
