Careless Whisper

by Stacy Claflin

  Sam poked his head out. “Did you refresh the page again?”

  “What are you doing? I told you, I’m going to get food.”

  “Yet all you’re doing is standing out here, muttering to yourself.”

  “I wasn’t muttering.”

  Sam glared at him. “I could hear you.”

  “I’m hungry!”

  “And yet you’re not going anywhere. You know how stupid that would be.”

  “How are we going to launder that money?”

  Sam yanked him inside and slammed the door. “You can’t just talk about that out in the open!”

  Owen glowered at him. “How long is it going to take?”

  “These things take time. You think it can happen overnight?”

  “I just want to eat! We can’t use even one bill?”

  “If the cops are involved, then they definitely marked the bills. We can’t afford any stupid mistakes like that.”

  Owen took a deep breath. His stomach rumbled as he thought about the sandwich fixings in his dad’s fridge. “I want out.”

  “You want to give me sixty grand? Free and clear?”

  “I changed my mind about being part of this. It was a dumb idea.”

  Sam glanced over at the unconscious girl. “Even if you walk away, you’re still part of it. You’ve been involved every step of the way. We’re almost done. Just two more money pick-ups. Then we clean the cash. We’re almost there! Besides, it’s not like you couldn’t stand to lose a few pounds, anyway.”

  Owen gritted his teeth. His former friend had a point. They were almost done. Why give up so close to the prize?

  “See my point?” Sam asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Good. Let’s call the remaining parents and remind them of the ransom demands.”

  “What about the laundering?” Owen asked.

  “I know people, but I need all the money before I talk to them.”

  “Of course you do.”

  “Check the blog again. We need to use threats if that post is still up.”

  Owen’s stomach rumbled as he re-checked the site. “Still up.”

  “Time to turn up the heat.”

  Chapter 34

  Alex rolled over. His hand brushed Zoey’s pillow. Her empty pillow.

  He cracked open an eye, and the morning light revealed her side untouched. His heart sank. She hadn’t come home last night? Granted, she was only at his sister’s house. But it still meant she was upset enough to not come home.

  Unless she had come home but hadn’t gone to their room.

  Alex flung off the covers, pulled on a hoodie, then tiptoed down the hall and the stairs, not wanting to wake Ari. He checked the living room.

  Zoey wasn’t sleeping there. Maybe she’d gone to the apartment that had been converted from a garage into their old living space. He went through the kitchen and checked.

  Empty. Though that reminded him Ariana wanted to move in there, and they’d been putting her off.

  He returned to the kitchen and started the coffee. Thank goodness it was Friday. He needed the weekend to recover from what felt like a month-long week. Maybe he should look into a getaway for the family. The twins would be old enough to enjoy the lodge with a theme park inside that was only about two hours away.

  Alex sipped his coffee and imagined how much fun that would be. They could focus on their family, and not worry about anything else. Hopefully put Zoey’s mind at ease. Maybe Ariana would be willing to stay in the room with the twins while Alex and Zoey stole away for a date, and Alex could convince her to stay in town.

  That could work.

  But first, actual work. He glanced at the time. About ten minutes before his alarm would go off. May as well hit the shower and get the day started. He could look into the lodge once he was ready to go.

  Once he returned back downstairs, he found a note from Ariana saying she’d left for school early. Was she avoiding him, too? If so, the Mercers needed a getaway weekend more than he thought.

  He stuck some frozen waffles in the toaster and checked the lodge’s availability on their website. There were two rooms at twice the normal price because of fees for booking last minute. Normally, he’d say no way, but these weren’t ordinary circumstances—not when his wife wanted to move away and his daughter was asking about divorce.

  Alex was tempted to book one of the rooms but decided to wait until he spoke with Zoey. He certainly didn’t want to go alone if she objected.

  He ate quickly, listening for keys in the front door. After rinsing the plate, he texted his sister.

  Alex: Z there?

  Macy: She left already.

  Alex: How long ago?

  Macy: A few minutes.

  Alex: How’d last night go?

  Macy: Good. Talk to her.

  Alex: OK. Thx.

  He glanced at the time. Zoey had planned it so she’d get home after Alex left for work.

  That was an easy fix. He texted Nick.

  Alex: I’m going to be late.

  Nick: Everything OK?

  Alex: I’ll let u know. Updates on case?

  Nick: Not yet. Ur off the case tho.

  Alex: I know. Cu soon.

  Nick: GL.

  Alex: Thx. Gonna need it.

  He drew in a deep breath and watched the time, which seemed to move twice as slow. Then he moved to the living room to watch from the window.

  After three long minutes, Zoey’s car finally pulled into the driveway.

  Disappointment was clear on her face when she saw his sedan parked in front of the house. Not that it was a surprise, but it still stung.

  She took her time getting out of the car, especially considering the twins weren’t with her.

  Alex opened the door before she reached the porch.

  Zoey sighed. “Not working today?”

  “Going in late.”

  “Oh?” She stepped inside and set her bag down. “Why’s that?”

  “We need to talk.”

  She held his gaze. “You aren’t going to change my mind.”

  “This is something we need to decide together. We’re a team, not a dictatorship. Neither of us gets to call the shots.”

  “How is this even a debate? The kidnappings were supposed to stop, and they haven’t. Our children aren’t safe. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to see Laney or Zander getting abducted in their lifetime.”

  “You don’t know about me?” he snapped. “You think I want them kidnapped?”

  She squared her shoulders. “That’s what will happen if we live here.”

  “Not every child in town has been taken. Most haven’t.”

  “Name one kid close to us or our family that hasn’t gone missing at some point.”

  “We’ve been over this. The ring has moved on. This new case is unrelated.”

  “You know that for sure?” Her brows drew together.

  “Not with one-hundred percent certainty, but they—”

  “It doesn’t matter!” Zoey put her hands on her hips. “It’s another round of kidnappings—here! I’m done. I don’t see how you aren’t! Especially since one of the suspects attacked our daughter. We aren’t unscathed in the matter. Even you can’t deny that.”

  “Even me? What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “You’re stuck on the idea of staying here, living next door to your parents. We’re on the same street we grew up on! I grew up in this house and you one house away. Maybe this is a sign that we need to stretch our wings and plant roots elsewhere.”

  Alex drew a deep breath and counted to twenty silently before speaking. “If the ring is targeting us, moving won’t help. We may as well be around people who care about us. My family, your best friend, Nick and G. The list goes on and on. We have a support system here.”

  “And we can find a new one somewhere else. You aren’t changing my mind.”

  “What if I say you aren’t going to change mine, either?” He lifted a brow.
r />   She didn’t reply.

  “Why don’t we take a getaway this weekend and clear our minds? Spend some family time together and forget everything else for a couple of days?”

  “You think a mini-vacation will solve our problems?”

  “No. I think it’ll help us to re-center ourselves. I’ve already looked into the lodge we were talking about a while ago. They have two rooms available this weekend.”

  “You’ve thought about everything, haven’t you? Without me, no less.”

  “I considered an option for a weekend and still talked to you before booking it. You’ve decided on your own we’re going to move away. Permanently!”

  She threw her hands in the air. “Go to work, Alex. I don’t want to discuss this now.”

  “We have to sometime. And if you don’t want to talk about any of it, we should go to the lodge this weekend.”

  “Oh, is that how it is now?”

  He bit his tongue. “Let me know what you think, and I’ll book the room. But don’t take too long. They don’t have many vacancies left.”

  She didn’t respond.

  Alex grabbed his things then stormed outside.

  What happened to them? Things had been going so well, and suddenly it felt like the world was going to implode.

  Just as he started the engine, his phone alerted him of a text.

  His heart skipped a beat. Was Zoey ready to talk so soon?

  The text wasn’t from her.

  It was from the same unknown number as before.

  Unknown: Happy now?

  Dancing dots indicated a new message being typed. But when it came in, it wasn’t a text. It was a video.

  Alex’s stomach knotted more than it already was.

  He pressed play.

  The video showed two men in masks standing next to a woman on the floor. Behind them was a couch with stains and holes, and the paint was peeling off the dirty wall. The taller guy held up some papers.

  “See these, Alex?” he sneered. “These are the locations of the remaining girls.”

  Alex’s pulse drummed.

  The masked man waved the papers. “Should something happen to these, there will be no way of finding them. They’ll die in their boxes. You sure you don’t want to delete your blog post?”

  The video ended.

  His heart hammered. He forwarded the message and video to Hanks.

  Another video came in. Same two guys, they each waved one sheet of paper.

  “We’re waiting!” said one of the men.

  The video stopped.

  A new text came in.

  Hanks: The blog doesn’t matter now. Media about to report the case.

  Another text, another video.

  This time, the men burned the two papers.

  Chapter 35

  Ariana waved to Damon before opening the front door. Once inside, she listened, curious about why Dad’s car was parked in the driveway in the afternoon.

  The house was quiet. At least that meant he and Mom weren’t arguing. Not that she could hear, anyway.

  She tiptoed through the living room to the stairs, then she peeked in the kitchen. They weren’t in there, either.

  Maybe she’d get lucky and be able to get ready for the dance without running into her parents. She didn’t want to think about anything other than tonight. Dinner and the school dance with Damon. Nothing else mattered until tomorrow. Then she could go back to worrying about everything else. She needed the break.

  She crept up the stairs, careful to avoid the ones that tended to creak and groan with the slightest weight. Once in her room, she locked the door and stood in her closet, trying to pick out the perfect outfit. It was so hard to decide since she’d gotten so many amazing clothes from Mom’s work.

  Ariana grabbed a shimmery purple dress then held it up as she looked in her full-length mirror. Normally, it’d have been perfect, but the dance’s theme was under the sea. She would look like a mermaid if she wore it there—or worse, she’d look like she was trying to look like a mermaid.

  No way. She shoved it back into her closet for another event. She held up an emerald green one with a slit up the right leg, but put that one back. It was too elegant for tonight’s dance. That was more of a homecoming or prom dress.

  Sighing, she flipped through her clothes. She pulled out a dusty rose camisole minidress with a lacy top. It was chilly for this time of year, but she could easily wear a coat and be fine.

  She spread it out on the bed and sat at the vanity, where she applied thicker eyeliner, more mascara and shimmery eyeshadow. Perfect. Now all she needed was to fix her hair and slip into the dress.

  Twenty minutes later, she stood in front of the tall mirror looking for anything that needed to be tweaked or adjusted. She spun around, watching the layered skirt fly out.

  It was perfect. She sprayed on some perfume then texted Damon.

  Ari: I’m ready.

  Damon: Cant wait!

  Ari: How long?

  Damon: Already here.

  Ari: Y not tell me when u got here?

  Damon: Didn't want to rush u.

  Ari: Be right out.

  She double-checked her reflection, grabbed her coat and clutch, then opened the door.

  Mom and Dad were yelling in their room.

  Her heart sank.

  She tiptoed to the twins’ room to see if they were okay. They weren’t even there. Maybe they were next door with Grandma and Grandpa.

  Ari paused outside Mom and Dad’s room and cupped her ear to the door. They were so loud, their voices weren’t muffled in the slightest.

  “We have to move!” came Mom’s voice. “It isn’t safe here anymore. This isn’t the same town it used to be.”

  “Another ringleader was taken down today!”

  “And what about those buried girls? You said there’s no way to get them now!”

  Ariana gasped. Then she quickly covered her mouth.

  Her phone vibrated with a text.

  Damon: Ru OK?

  Ari: B down in min.

  Damon: No worries. Just checking.

  “I didn’t say there’s no way to get them!” Dad’s voice bellowed from the other side of the door. “The feds are triangulating possible locations based on the other girls’ locations.”

  “I already have a job offer! There are police openings in that town. We can make new friends!”

  Ari’s stomach twisted. If Mom was that serious, Dad would soon agree.

  They would be moving away from Damon, from her friends, from everything and everyone.

  She balled her fists. Maybe they would move, but she wouldn’t be. She could talk Mimi and Papi into moving back here. They’d raised her when she was little, why not come back and finish the job? Or she could move next door with Grandma and Grandpa. They’ve always said she was welcome anytime. If that didn’t work, Aunt Macy and Uncle Luke would say yes to her staying. And if even that fell through, she could stay with Damon. He had a huge house to himself.

  Her parents continued yelling on the other side of the door.

  Ariana wasn’t going to let them ruin her evening. They could do what they wanted, but she wasn’t going anywhere. Nobody could make her.

  Footsteps sounded toward the door.

  Her heart leaped into her throat, and she raced toward the stairs.

  The door flung open. Mom stepped into the hallway. “What are you doing?”

  Ariana stood tall. “I’m going to the dance with Damon, remember?”

  She rubbed her temples. “That’s tonight?”

  “Yes. I’ll be home late. Don’t wait up.”

  “You still have a curfew.”

  Ari squared her shoulders. “I’m not moving anywhere. You can’t make me leave my school or my friends.”

  With that, she bolted down the stairs then out the door, ignoring her mom calling her name.

  Chapter 36

  Ariana raced down the walkway, nearly twisting her ankle thanks to the wedge
heels.

  Damon stood at his car, the passenger door of his convertible open, a flower in hand. His eyes widened as she neared. “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah. Let’s just go.”

  He helped her into the seat then slid a purple corsage over her hand. “Your parents still arguing?”

  “Yep. I don’t want to think about it.”

  “Understood.” He kissed her cheek before closing her door. After he climbed into the driver’s side, he said, “I have the perfect distraction.”

  “What?” She glanced toward the house.

  Mom was on the porch, waving furiously to her.

  Damon pulled away from the curb, and Ariana breathed a sigh of relief.

  “We’re going to a new restaurant,” Damon said. “You’re going to love it.”

  It took Ari a moment to realize he was answering her question. She glanced in the side mirror. Her mom was on the grass, staring after them. “I can’t wait.”

  “Emily and her date are going to meet us. I wasn’t going to tell you, but you seem like you could use some good news.” He turned out of the neighborhood.

  Relief washed through her. “You planned it with Em?”

  “Yeah. She wanted to go with you to this place.”

  A prick of curiosity grew. “I wonder what it is. Did we talk about going there?”

  “I’m not sure, but she assured me you’d be thrilled.”

  She glanced down at the corsage and tried to remember what she and her friend might have discussed. Nothing came to mind.

  “You look smoking hot, by the way.”

  Heat crept into her cheeks. Even though they’d been together for about a year, he could still make her blush. “You look great, too.”

  “I wasn’t fishing for a compliment, but thanks. I tried to clean up.”

  Ari managed a small laugh. A few minutes later, when he turned into the parking lot, she was already feeling better. She studied the building and the sign—the name was in a foreign language, Greek maybe—and she still couldn’t think of what place she talked about with Emily.

  When she and Damon got inside, her friend was already there with the school’s star tennis player.

  Emily hugged her. “You look amazing! Where’d you get that dress?”