by Connie Mann
“Unfortunately, no, Mama. But we’ll find her, don’t worry.” She looked at Sasha. “Have you called her cell phone?”
Sasha rolled her eyes. “Of course. First thing we tried. It goes right to voice mail.”
“Have you checked her computer?”
Sasha shook her head. “I tried, but I’m not very good with that stuff. I couldn’t get past the password.”
“Let me start there.” Cat hurried down to Blaze’s room, surprised at how neat everything was. She spied the laptop on the desk and opened the lid. Sure enough, it asked for a password. What would a teenage girl use? She typed in Blaze. No. Then she tried lame and Teddy. Still nothing. She tried MamaRosa, and bingo, that worked. She went first to Blaze’s social media pages, started looking up her friends. It made her sad to realize there weren’t that many. She went to the messages feature and started contacting her friends, asking if anyone had seen her. She IM’d Bryan immediately, but he wasn’t online, so she left him a message asking if he knew where Blaze was and to let her know right away if he saw or heard from her. She struggled over whether to include her new phone number, but finally did. She could always get another phone later. But in the meantime, she wanted Bryan to be able to reach her.
She sent a few more messages, then returned to the porch.
“Has anyone heard from her?” Sasha asked.
“I contacted a bunch of people, but no one has responded yet.” She looked from Sasha to Mama Rosa to Pop. “I’m going to go check with some people. I’ll let you know what I find out.”
“I’m going with you.”
Cat eyed Sasha and her growing belly and shook her head. “No, I need to go alone. You keep an eye on things here, in case Blaze comes home.”
Sasha folded her arms, tilted her head. “What are you hiding, Cat? Is this connected to you in some way?”
Cat matched her sister’s stance, determined to keep her feelings from showing on her face. She hoped not—oh, she hoped not. But right now, she couldn’t be sure, and that terrified her. She kept her voice matter-of-fact. “That’s what I intend to find out. I’ll be back later.”
Before Sasha could ask more questions, Cat hopped in her car and took off.
She’d start at Bryan’s, see if he was home, and maybe, please God, Blaze was with him and didn’t want anyone to know.
At least that’s what she was praying for when she took off in that direction.
But when she arrived at the tidy mobile home where Bryan lived with his parents, it was obvious no one was there. Cat climbed the steps and knocked on the door anyway, just in case, but no one stirred.
“Blaze? Bryan? If you guys are here, let me know, OK? Everyone is worried about you, Blaze.”
She waited, watched the windows for any signs of movement behind the curtains, but the place had an empty feel.
Cat walked back to her car. If Blaze wasn’t here, then the possibilities got a lot more scary.
She drove out to Eddie Varga’s hangout by the Gas-n-Go and found him huddled with the same guys as last time. Eddie still sported a white bandage on his upper arm, the blinding white a stark contrast to his olive skin. When he spotted her, he stood and sauntered over, a new arrogance in his stance that set off her radar. Never let them see you sweat.
She climbed out of her car with a confidence she was far from feeling. “Hey, Eddie, how’s it going?”
He crossed his arms over his skinny chest, white undershirt hanging off his thin frame. “What d’you want? You want another piece of me? I’ll take you down.”
Cat flicked a glance at the bandage and raised an eyebrow. “Don’t think that worked out so well for you last time, did it?”
He spewed a string of curses, and Cat wanted to take the words back. Never smart to pull the tiger’s tail. Especially if you wanted him to give you information.
She made a placating gesture. “Look, Eddie. No hard feelings, OK? Let’s just call it a misunderstanding.”
He straightened and started toward her. “I’ll give you mis—”
Her words came out in a rush. “I could use your help.”
He stopped, eyed her. “What are you flappin’ about?”
“Have you seen Blaze Martinelli?”
“Who?”
“The Martinellis’ newest foster child. Sixteen, dark hair with a green streak in it?”
“Why would I?”
Cat shrugged, kept her tone deferential. “You keep an ear to the ground, seem to know everyone. Thought maybe you’d heard something.”
He narrowed his gaze. “If I did?” He eyed her up and down, and Cat hid her revulsion. “What’s it to ya?”
Before she could tell him what she thought of his slimy suggestions, Eddie stiffened as he spotted something behind her. Cat looked over her shoulder and saw Nick Stanton explode out of his Safe Harbor police SUV.
Fury rolled off him in waves as he stalked over to them. Cat froze and anxiety coiled in her gut. He looked ready to inflict serious damage on someone. He couldn’t have found out about her past, could he?
But instead of reaching out for her, Nick grabbed Eddie by the shirtfront and pulled him up to his toes.
His jaw was clenched tight as he growled, “You are going to tell me what’s going on in this town, Varga. Right. This. Minute.”
Chapter 15
Nick couldn’t remember the last time he’d been this angry. He shook Eddie like the rat he was, hoping the truth would fall out of the man’s lying mouth. Eddie didn’t say a word, just went deathly pale and still, frantic eyes darting around. Behind him, his minions got to their feet, but one glare from Nick, and they all sat back down.
“I don’t know what you mean, Copper,” Eddie squeaked.
“Do. Not. Play. Games. With. Me. Varga. Not today.”
“Easy, man. I’ll tell you whatever you want to know,” Eddie said, tone cajoling. “Just tell me what you’re talking about.”
“Scopolamine.” Nick tossed out the word and watched Varga’s eyes widen in confusion. Behind him, Cat let out a gasp.
Nick took his eyes off Eddie just long enough to glance over at her, but her expression had gone carefully blank. She obviously had heard of the deadly drug before. He’d deal with her next.
He focused on Varga. “What do you know about it?”
“I-I’ve never even heard of it, man. What is it?”
“Devil’s Breath. The zombie drug.”
That got a response. Varga paled and his eyes went wild. “Oh no, man. I don’t do that stuff. It’ll kill you. That is some scary, crazy drug.”
“So you have heard of it.”
Varga nodded. “Everybody’s heard of it. But I ain’t never done it, though. Uh-uh. That’s bad stuff.”
“Who else here in town has it?”
“Here? In Safe Harbor? Nobody, man.”
Nick waited, eyes narrowed.
“You gotta believe me. If somebody has Devil’s Breath here, I ain’t never heard about it. Anybody knows me, knows I wouldn’t do that stuff.”
“What about selling it?”
Varga would have reared back in shock if Nick hadn’t still been holding him. “I don’t even want to touch that stuff. It can mess you up just getting near it. I don’t want no part of that. You got the wrong guy, man. If some of that’s here, it ain’t me.”
Nick loosened his grip enough to set Eddie back on his feet. “If not you, then who?”
Varga started shaking his head before Nick finished speaking. “I don’t know, man.” He glanced at Nick’s face. “I’m telling you. It ain’t me.”
Nick studied Varga’s face for another long minute before he abruptly let go. Varga stumbled back a few steps, then straightened.
“If you hear anything about Devil’s Breath. Any mention, anyone say it in passing, I expect to hear from you, Varga. Because if I don’t—or I find out you lied to me—your life won’t be worth spit. We clear?”
Varga nodded. Nick looked past him to the others, who als
o nodded.
He speared Varga with a look. “Are you right-handed or left-handed, Eddie?”
“Right-handed. Why? What’s that got to do with anything?”
Whoever shot at Cat’s car would have had to do so with their left hand. He studied Varga’s cronies, circling the tables. “What about you?”
Every single one professed to be right-handed. He didn’t think they had any reason to lie, so he simply nodded. “Do not leave town. Any of you.”
Then he turned, took Cat’s arm, and propelled her toward her car. Once they were out of earshot, he said, “You are going to get back in your car and drive to the county park just down the road and wait for me.” When she bristled, he added, “Do not make me chase you down, Cat. You won’t be happy.”
She nodded once. He released her and watched as she pulled out of the parking lot, and then he got in his SUV and followed.
He wouldn’t stop until he learned everything she knew about scopolamine.
Cat’s knuckles were white where she gripped the steering wheel. She knew why Nick wanted to talk to her, and it made her stomach churn with anxiety. She wanted to bang her head against the steering wheel in frustration at her own stupidity. She hadn’t been able to hide her reaction to the name of the drug. And Nick, of course, had heard her gasp. He’d want to know the whole story, and his demeanor said he wasn’t in a very patient mood.
So, how much to tell him, without making him suspicious and sending him chasing down her past?
It was possible that Nick’s mention of scopolamine had nothing to do with either her uncle or Garcia. It was also possible it would snow on Christmas Eve in south Florida. But neither scenario was probable.
The question she didn’t want to think about—but honestly couldn’t ignore—was what if Teddy died of scopolamine? Was that what had Nick so upset? And if that was true, then she couldn’t ignore the fact that her uncle or Garcia were likely in Safe Harbor.
But did that mean they had Blaze? That wouldn’t make sense.
Cat turned into the small roadside park and pulled into a spot at the farthest end of the lot. She’d have to get Nick talking, see if she could get more information. She walked past several trails leading off into the woods to a smattering of picnic tables and grills, where she climbed onto a table under a huge live oak tree.
She didn’t have to wait long. Nick pulled in next to her, slammed the door, and marched over to where she sat, clearly still furious. With his dark sunglasses and rigid demeanor, along with the uniform stretching over his broad shoulders, he was an imposing sight. Good thing she wasn’t easily intimidated. And had had a bit of time to school her features.
He rested one booted foot on the bench and leaned toward her. “Spill.”
Cat eyed his stance, crossed her arms. “Take off the shades.”
He looked up as though surprised. Then he slowly removed his sunglasses and tucked them into his shirt pocket. Cat met his gaze, expecting the fury she saw in their dark depths. What she didn’t expect was the worry she glimpsed behind it.
“What do you know about scopolamine, Cat?”
She could at least tell him some of the truth. “When I was young, a friend of mine, ah, overdosed on it.” A chill passed over her as she relived the horror of Daniel’s death. “I did some research on it after that.”
She watched his face, and her own drained of color as she read the truth there. She’d hoped against hope she was wrong. Her hands wanted to shake, and she gripped her arms, tight. Her heart pounded so hard she wasn’t sure she could get the words out. “That’s what Teddy died from, isn’t it?” Her words were a mere whisper.
Nick wouldn’t release her gaze. “That’s what it looks like.”
“Sweet Jesus. His poor parents.” Cat scanned the woods as she thought of Daniel’s parents on the news so long ago, begging for anyone with information on their son’s whereabouts to come forward. Then several days later, their absolute devastation when Daniel’s body was found.
“What else do you know about Devil’s Breath?”
Cat snapped her eyes back to his. She had to be careful. “Why would I know anything else? From everything I’ve read, it’s a horrible drug.” She paused. “It can cause a heart attack.”
“Right. So where did Teddy get it?” Nick’s anger crackled in the air like a whip.
“How would I know? I’ve only been here a few days.”
“And yet, we have a teen die of a nasty drug right after you arrive.”
“Are you saying I brought the drug here?” Her horror was not exaggerated. “No. Not on your life. I told you a friend died from it. Why on earth would I bring it here?”
“That’s what I’m trying to figure out.”
“You are searching in the wrong place.”
“Or maybe I’m in exactly the right place.” When she didn’t say anything else, just glared at him, he asked, “Where’s Blaze?”
Cat looked away, shrugged, trying to hide her worry. “I’m not sure right now. Why? What do you want with her?”
“I want to ask her about scopolamine, too. I stopped by the marina, but Sasha said they can’t find her and you’d gone to look for her. Where would she go? From what I know about her, she doesn’t normally disappear on a regular basis, does she?”
“I don’t know her that well. I’m trying to find her, make sure it’s just teenage stuff.”
He studied her. “But you don’t believe that.”
Cat met his gaze. “Frankly, I don’t know what to believe.”
“Is she in trouble? Maybe she’s involved in all this somehow.”
“No. She wouldn’t have any part of a drug like that. I know that much.” She eyed him sternly. “And you don’t believe she’s involved, either. Blaze is a good kid.”
“Yet she’s missing all of a sudden, and you’re worried enough to come back to town to try to find her.”
A chill shimmied down her spine. The man didn’t miss a thing. “I just want to be sure she’s OK.” She met his eyes again. “I think maybe she’s trying to find out what happened to Teddy.”
“She should let me handle it,” he spat.
“Which is exactly what I told her.”
His eyes widened in surprise.
“Look, Nick, if what you say is true, and somebody has brought scopolamine here, she could be in serious danger. Especially if she’s asking the wrong questions of the wrong people.”
He straightened to full cop stance again, hands on his utility belt. “Which is why you should both let me handle this.” He paused. “Do I need to get an Amber Alert set up?”
Cat froze. Unsure. If her uncle or Garcia were in town, and if they had Blaze for some reason, then yes, a hundred times yes, they needed to find Blaze, fast. Her life would definitely be in danger. But what if she was wrong? That would put a target on Blaze’s back and announce Cat’s presence in neon lights. She had to dig around a bit more first.
“I don’t think so. Not yet.”
They stared each other down.
“Who are you running from, Cat?”
“Me? We’re talking about Blaze. Why would you ask me that?”
“Because you live off the grid. Use multiple names and keep disguises in your suitcase.”
She waved that off. “I’m a performer. Wigs and costumes are part of the deal. And I told you, I move around a lot—”
“Do not insult me by lying again.”
Her chin came up. She might not always be able to tell the whole truth. But she wasn’t a liar. “I haven’t lied to you.”
“Then tell me who or what you’re running from. I can help.”
Oh, she was tempted. Cat studied him, at the pure masculine strength radiating from him, the concern in his rich, dark eyes and the strength of character she sensed in him. She almost launched herself into his arms, desperate to tell him the whole story, let him fight her battles for her.
But like the last time such insanity had crossed her mind when she was around
him, she stopped herself in time. She couldn’t think like that. No one could fight her battles for her. And if Nick got involved, he wouldn’t stop until her entire past was revealed. If that happened, she had no doubt her uncle and Garcia wouldn’t be far behind. If they weren’t in Safe Harbor already.
That thought made her heart beat faster. She had to go, find Blaze, fast. Once Blaze was home, safe and sound, Cat could figure out if her uncle was behind this. And if he wasn’t, she could still disappear before he found her.
Nick’s steady gaze made her squirm. She wanted to assure him she wasn’t running from anything, but she couldn’t do it. She settled for, “I appreciate the concern, but it’s misplaced. I’m fine. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go.”
She had one hand on her car door handle when he said, “Do not mention the scopolamine to anyone.”
“I have no reason to,” she assured him.
He didn’t look as though he quite believed her. “Let me handle this, Cat. Do not get in my way,” he warned. “And if you haven’t heard from Blaze by tonight, I expect to hear from you. I’ll find her.”
Cat had no doubt he would, too. She just wasn’t sure if getting him involved would help or make things worse in the end. Unsure what to say, she climbed into her car and drove away. She felt his eyes on her car until she disappeared from view.
She had to figure out if Blaze had gone off on her own, or had been kidnapped. Fast.
Blaze woke suddenly, startled by a loud bang, followed by the screech of metal on metal. She tried to sit up and realized several things at once. Her hands were tied. So were her feet. And there was some kind of black cloth over her face.
In a second, memories of last night whooshed in, bringing the same desperate panic with them. Someone had grabbed her!
Despite her galloping heartbeat, she forced herself to lie perfectly still, pretending she was asleep as she heard footsteps approach. Where was she? No light penetrated whatever was over her head, so she had no sense whether it was day or night. She strained to pick up any background noises, anything that would give her an idea of where she was, but there was nothing.
Something hard jabbed her in the side. “Wake up, girlie. The boss wants a photo.”