by Lee Strauss
“Yeah. I’ve spotted a lot of familiar faces. Some dress the same way and emit the same confidence or lack of confidence. Others are so different I have to look twice.”
Marlow drank the last of his beer, and I finished mine soon afterward. “What should we do next?” I asked.
“We could go to where the investigation is taking place? See if the detectives found anything.”
“I wonder if they’d tell us if they did,” I said. “But, I doubt if they’re still there. It was light out when that footage was taken.” I waved to the window beside us. “It’s dark now.”
Marlow pushed back his hoodie, ran fingers through his hair and pulled it back over his brows. “I wish there was a way we could find out who the Gingerbread Man is.”
Maybe there was. I cocked a brow, leaned over the table and whispered, “How are your hacking skills?”
36

Marlow
We went back to Sage’s dorm expecting quiet and privacy so we could put our combined hacking skills to use, but instead we were accosted in the common room by an emotionally distraught couple that I quickly concluded were Teagan’s parents.
“Sage!” Mrs. Lake threw long thin arms around Sage and squeezed. Pulling back, she grabbed Sage by the shoulders and implored her. “Please, tell us everything you know.”
“Of course,” Sage said, leading us down the hall and into her room. She offered a chair to Mrs. Lake, and then pointed to Teagan’s as she spoke to Mr. Lake. “There’s a chair for you if you’d like.”
Mr. Lake studied the chair, and the knowledge that it belonged to Teagan flashed across his eyes before he crumbled into it. He was the same height as his wife, but rounder in the belly. His facial features were unremarkable and the hair on his head was thin and streaked with grey—not exactly a handsome man, which was why I couldn’t stop staring at Mrs. Lake.
She was mesmerizing. Though she had to be in her mid-forties, she could easily pass for much younger. She had glossy blond hair that hung in waves over narrow shoulders, bright blue eyes and delicate facial features. She dressed like an upscale business person in slacks and a shimmering blouse.
I was amused and strangely comforted to see this odd coupling. It gave me audacious hope that someone like Teagan, or Sage, could actually be interested in a skinny geek like me someday.
“We’ve talked to the police,” Mr. Lake said. “Frankly, they weren’t a lot of help.”
“What happened?” Mrs. Lake asked. Gold bangles clinked together at her wrists as she motioned to Sage. “Do you know where Teagan is?”
Sage sat on her bed and scratched at her arms, a nervous habit I’d noticed before. I stood by the door like some kind of guard.
“I’m afraid I don’t know where she is, Mrs. Lake. I was out late with some friends.”
Mrs. Lake cut her off. “Teagan wasn’t with you?”
Sage shook her head.
“But you two went everywhere together. You were inseparable.”
“I know, but since we’ve been at DU, we’ve made new friends. We’re on different study tracks, so our paths don’t cross as much as you would expect.”
Mrs. Lake let out a small “oh,” then motioned for Sage to continue.
“It was late when I got in and I didn’t want to wake Teagan so I didn’t turn on the lights. That’s why I didn’t notice she wasn’t in her bed.”
All eyes darted to Teagan’s bed, which was still a mess of tossed and twisted sheets. “I didn’t even know she was gone until the alarm on her phone went off.”
“Where is her phone now?” Mr. Lake asked.
“The police took it along with her laptop.”
“Mr. and Mrs. Lake,” I said, breaking in. “Do you have any enemies?
Their heads both shot up to look at me. Mr. Lake shook his head, like the question was preposterous. Mrs. Lake’s eyes fluttered, and her neck flushed red. She narrowed her eyes as she scanned my sloppy, baggy look. “Who are you?”
I cleared my voice. “A friend.”
“Of Teagan’s? Do you have a name?”
Sage jumped in. “He’s actually a friend of Ben’s. Just offered to walk me home tonight. She stood and ushered me through the door. “Wait for me in the lounge,” she whispered sternly.
I nodded and left, agreeing that my being there wasn’t a good idea. It was never a good thing when someone took notice of me and started asking questions. How could I explain that I’d met Teagan online. That we’d become friends but that we hadn’t actually met. And that I wasn’t from this realm so they shouldn’t bother asking the other Marlow Henry about Teagan because he didn’t know her.
I collapsed in a heap on the couch. What a mess.
The lounge was a weigh station where the girls from this building met up. A lot of coming and going this time of night. Some getting coffee in preparation for a long night of cramming for exams.
I should be doing that myself. I already missed a major physics exam.
Unless I didn’t.
I decided to help myself to a coffee. Something about me caused the girls in the room to give me a wide berth. Maybe this hoodie and baggy pants gave off a badass vibe. Had to file that info for later. I poured the strong-smelling dark liquid into a mug that looked relatively clean. I heard whispering.
“Sage Farrell brought him home.”
“Is she slumming it?”
“Maybe he’s helping her study.”
“Or she’s scoring drugs.”
“No, he’s got something to do with Teagan Lake. Did you see her parents blow through here?”
“So sad. I hope they find her.”
I scooped an extra sugar into the coffee. It looked like mud, but it was better than nothing. I went back to the empty couch pretending I hadn’t heard a thing the girls said.
I decided to take stock.
Three weeks ago, a freak storm shocked me through my laptop just before I met Teagan online. We had no idea we were chatting through two realms. There were two of everyone, well, except now, there was only one Teagan. A wave of sadness consumed me and I let myself soak in it as I finished my coffee.
Teagan from this world chatted with me after the Teagan from my world was dead. This was what convinced me that all the crock Garvin had fed us in physics class could be true. Another freak storm appeared. I ran outside with my laptop. I jumped, my laptop didn’t.
At least I hadn’t arrived naked.
So what was causing the storms? My gut told me the answer to this question was key.
In my realm Teagan’s body was found in a park the next day. Was it the same park that was behind Believe in Beans in this realm? I’d never had reason to visit that end of the campus before. I didn’t even know if there was a Believe in Beans in my realm.
So why wasn’t Teagan’s body found in this realm? Not that I wanted her dead. It was why I was eager to jump, so I could do something to save her.
But the question remained. What made the villain change his MO? Teagan’s body hadn’t been found, so I hoped that meant she was still alive. But why was the villain keeping her alive when he obviously didn’t care about the other victims?
The detectives told Teagan when she reported the warning she’d gotten from @gingerbreadman that none of the others had gotten a message.
What made Teagan different?
My head jerked up to a slight commotion in the lounge. Girls voices twittered, “Hi Ben!”
Ben? Sage’s brother? The one whose clothes I was wearing? I folded myself into the couch and kept my head down. Ben was tall with broad football player shoulders. Like Sage, he had dark hair and eyes. He walked with quick strides, on a mission to get to Sage’s room, and he didn’t give me a second look. I heard him rap on Sage’s door. It opened and he disappeared inside.
I wondered how long I’d have to wait for Sage. And where exactly was I going to sleep tonight? In this lounge on this lumpy couch?
A bigger question niggled at the back of
my mind as I yawned into my sleeve.
Why was Mrs. Lake lying?
37

Sage
“I don’t like that boy,” Mrs. Lake said after Marlow left the room. She played with her gold bangles, then looked up at me from under damp lashes. “It’s always the bad ones we’re attracted to.”
I noted her slip up, using the word “we” as if she were part of the equation. Mr. Lake was a good guy. I didn’t think he had a bad bone in his body. The way he sat slumped over with his face in his hands, so helpless and weak-looking. I pitied him.
Mrs. Lake wasn’t the easiest person to live with. She was an enigma, a dichotomy. She was cold and distant while being outgoing and friendly. Flamboyant and something else… frightened?
Teagan couldn’t resist her charms, doing everything Mrs. Lake asked, never once disobeying her, at least not aggressively. Teagan had developed a large passive aggressive toolset to cope.
Teagan was cute and adorable, but not nearly the beauty queen her mother had been at the same age. Mrs. Lake was a hard role model to live up to. Her moods were as unpredictable as the weather, high or low.
“Mars?” I asked to clarify. Was he the “bad boy” she was referring to?
“That’s his name?” she said with a huff. “His mother named him after a planet?”
“I’m pretty sure it’s a nickname.”
“That’s what they always do,” Mrs. Lake said softly, “the ones that are hiding something. The deceit begins small, then grows with time.”
I cut a look to Mr. Lake wondering what he was making of his wife’s comments, but he kept his head down.
Talking about Marlow with Mrs. Lake wasn’t a good idea. I searched for something else to say, some words of comfort, but I was at a loss. I scratched at my arms and looked anywhere but at Mrs. Lake’s face.
My dorm room was small and with the three of us, it was like we were meeting in Mrs. Lake’s walk-in closet. The longer Teagan’s parents stayed, the more it shrank.
We jumped at a hard knock on the door. I thought it was Marlow checking in, but was surprised to see my brother’s face.
“Ben?”
“Hey, I heard.” He nodded at me then quickly said, “Hi Mr. Lake, Mrs. Lake.”
Mr. Lake reached out to shake Ben’s hand. “Good to see you,” he said.
“I wish it were under better circumstances.”
Mrs. Lake’s eyes washed over Ben from head to toe. Her appraisal of my brother had always been favorable. It kind of creeped me out, especially once Ben grew taller and filled out. Even though he was my brother, I knew he was good-looking. All the girls liked him.
I was sure that Mrs. Lake liked him. She was beautiful and alluring. A perfect cougar.
“Hello, Ben,” she said smoothly.
“Mrs. Lake. Is there anything I can do?”
She pressed a fist to her mouth. “I don’t know. We’re waiting on news from the police.”
“Teagan’s picture is looping on the news,” Ben said. “An alert has been broadcast.”
“There must be more,” Mrs. Lake insisted.
“We can put out flyers,” I said. “I’ll make them tonight and if Teagan hasn’t been found by morning, we can canvas the area.”
Mrs. Lake smiled weakly. “That would be wonderful.” She stood. “We should go. We’re at the Riverside Hotel if you need to reach us.”
She gave me a quick hug and then moved on to Ben, holding him a little longer than necessary. I closed the door behind them and let out a long breath.
“For a slim woman,” I said, “she sure takes up a lot of space.”
Ben smirked. “She sure does. I’d hate it if our mother looked like that.”
I wasn’t sure what to do about my brother being here, knowing that Marlow was sitting in the lounge wearing Ben’s clothes. I was surprised Ben hadn’t noticed him coming in. Chances weren’t good that he’d miss him on the way out too.
“You don’t look great, Sage.”
“Thank you?”
“I mean, this is just such a shock. You and Teagan are so close.”
The sob I’d been pushing back all day finally surfaced. I ran to the bathroom to grab toilet paper for my tears and blew my nose like a foghorn. “I didn’t even notice she was missing until this morning.” My voice was muffled by the tissue paper. “She’d been gone all night. If I’d noticed earlier…”
“Sage.” Ben reached for me. “It’s not your fault. No one expects you to be at Teagan’s side twenty-four seven.”
I let my brother hold me. We weren’t the huggy-kissy type, but tonight I needed him.
When it started to feel weird, I pulled away and finished wiping my tears and blowing my nose. I winced at my reflection in the mirror. My eyes were bloodshot and my skin was blotchy and all I could think of was how I didn’t want Marlow to see me like this. I washed my face with cold water hoping I could also wash away my vanity.
Ben sat on my bed while he waited and stood when I walked out.
“Are you going to be all right? I’m supposed to meet friends but I can stay with you if you want.”
“No, I’m fine.” I was still wondering how I was going to get him past Marlow. “You can go.”
“I’ll help hand out flyers tomorrow. I can round up a bunch of help.”
“That would be great, Ben. Hopefully, we won’t need to. I’ll text you in the morning.”
He reached for the door handle. “Well, get some rest, okay?”
I couldn’t chance that he’d notice Marlow. “I’ll walk you to the door.” I’d distract him with conversation or something if I had to.
Turned out it wasn’t necessary. The lounge was empty, and Marlow was gone.
38

Marlow
I didn’t want to chat with Mrs. Lake again or chance running into Ben Farrell so when I heard voices coming from down the hall, I took it as my cue to head outside. Turning left outside the door, I swung around to the side of the building and rested against the brick wall. I kept my eye on the entrance so I’d know when it would be safe to go back inside.
Mrs. Lake walked ahead of Mr. Lake by a measure of one stride. Mr. Lake slumped with heavy shoulders and reached for his wife, touching her elbow. She paused and stiffened. He let his arm drop to his side with a weariness I could sense from my hiding spot. I didn’t need a degree in counseling to see that all was not well in their relationship and that it was something that went beyond the disappearance of their daughter.
Mrs. Lake slipped into the passenger seat, and I had to admit that she had nice legs. Ben didn’t appear for another fifteen minutes, and by that time I was chilled to the bone. I was grateful for Ben’s hoodie, but the temperatures had dipped, and I needed something closer to a winter jacket to keep warm in this weather.
I waited until Ben finally drove away and then hurried back inside. My lips tugged up into a soft smile when I saw Sage waiting in the lounge for me.
“Where were you?” she asked, her face filled with real concern.
“I stepped outside when Teagan’s parents left. And I didn’t want to risk having your brother notice my clothes.”
“Yeah,” she agreed. “That would be hard to explain.” She turned and started down the hall. “Come on. We have work to do.”
Sage pulled both chairs up to her desk, sat in one and began typing away on her laptop.
I rubbed my arms to stimulate my body heat. “What are you doing?”
“Hacking into Teagan’s laptop.”
I stared at her in surprise. “You’re a hacker?”
“Sort of.”
This girl never failed to surprise me. I thought she wanted me to do the hacking. “How can you be a sort-of hacker?”
“I sort of do it as a hobby, and I sort of don’t tell people and I sort of practiced on Teagan.”
Wow. “Did she know?”
“No. Our friendship was already becoming strained and I didn’t thin
k she’d be cool with it. I mean, who would? I wouldn’t if she were doing it to me. I didn’t invade her privacy, much. It was a while ago. I only did it a few times to exercise my chops.” Her eyes cut to mine. “I didn’t know about you and your chat forum, if that’s what you’re worried about.”
I was kind of. “I’m not worried.”
I watched as Sage worked her magic. I had a kindergarten level of skills when it came to hacking. She easily showed me up in the computer tech department.
“I’m taking math and computer sciences,” she said, as if that explained things. “There, we’re in.”
“We’re in?”
“Yeah. Teag’s laptop is sitting open in an office at the police station.”
I looked at the window on Sage’s laptop and gaped. What I saw was someone’s desktop. There was a pile of paper to one side and a dirty coffee cup next to that.
“You linked into her webcam?” I asked
She nodded, and I sensed a spot of pride under the surface.
“Can’t they tell you’re spying?”
“They could if they were looking for me,” she said. “But it looks like whoever was examining her laptop has left his or her desk at the moment. Perfect timing.”
She typed some more.
“What are you doing now?”
“Bringing up the last message Teagan got, the one from @gingerbreadman. I’m looking for an IP address. I’m sure the police have done the same thing, but no reason why we can’t both look.”
A bunch of code came up on the screen. Sage sighed. “No IP address. The guy knows computers.”
Most people our age did. Even I knew how to cover my tracks if I wanted to. What I didn’t know is if computer technology worked the same in this realm as it did in my own.
“Did you check his echo?”
“Echo?”
“Sometimes there is a residual echo, a cyber shadow. We think we’ve covered our tracks but there’s always a little something left.”