by HELEN HARDT
“Not exactly,” Johnson said. “He had me in some kind of headlock against the wall and the knife at Mills’s throat. It wasn’t pretty.”
“Do you know where he was going?”
“Do you really think we interrogated him while he was threatening to kill us?” Johnson said.
I couldn’t help a laugh. I finally let go of Mills’s throat, and he crumpled to the ground, clutching his neck. I pulled one of my guns and held it on him.
“So there is something more important to the two of you than money,” Joe said. “Who’d have thought?”
“I’m not sure they ever gave it a thought,” I said. “Did you?”
“Not really. We’ve never been in the situation. We’re usually one step ahead of whoever we’re tailing. Hell, we went underground and turned the tables on Wendy Madigan when she tried to frame us. But this guy is something else.”
“Yeah, well, this guy was trained by the best,” I said.
Trained by the best. Just like I was.
No. Don’t go there. No more self-indulgence.
“I ought to blow your brains out on principle,” Joe said.
“Not worth it,” I said. “We’re not killers. We’re not my father.”
I’m not my father.
I took my gun off Mills. “Any more information you can give us?”
“Sorry. I can only tell you one thing,” Johnson said. “If he got the best of us, he can get the best of just about anyone.”
“Not us,” I said. “Let’s go, Joe.”
“Where do we start?” Joe asked once we were on the road.
“Colin was in Denver, last I heard,” I said. “Booker’s probably headed there.”
I checked my phone. “Shit. I’ve got about a hundred text messages from Marj. She knows something’s up.”
“She’s too smart for her own good sometimes,” Joe said.
“I agree, but it didn’t take a lot of smarts to figure out something big was up for you to miss a visit with Melanie and little Brad.”
“True that.”
My phone dinged with another text. Yup. Marjorie.
Jade and I are headed to
see Ted Morse in Grand Junction.
Apparently Colin is missing again.
He’s not answering his phone.
“Fuck,” I said.
“What is it?”
“Marj is going to see Ted Morse in Grand Junction, and she’s got Jade with her.”
“Oh, hell, no.”
“Oh, hell, yes. Do you think we can stop them? We’re over an hour away. She says Colin’s missing again.”
“Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck.” Joe swerved, turning the car around in the middle of the country road.
“Damn, Joe!”
“Sorry. I guess we’re going back to the city.”
“I guess so. But we won’t make it in time. If Ted has something planned, we won’t have time to stop him.”
I frantically texted Marj back.
We’re on the way.
What’s the address?
Jade and I can handle this.
Address please.
A few seconds later, the address came through.
We’re on our way.
I turned to Joe. “If Booker just got loose a couple hours ago, he couldn’t have gotten to Colin yet. Morse says he hasn’t heard from Colin in a week, according to all these texts from Marj. But Marj says she’s heard from Colin and he’s in Glenwood Springs.”
“Maybe Booker’s been in touch with Colin,” Joe said.
“Colin would have told—”
But would he have told us? He’d just found out his father had taken money from my father as payment for him. If Booker had gotten to him and they’d exchanged information, they had something in common. Something to bond over.
Of course, Booker had also tried to frame Colin, along with Dominic and Alex, by leaving his cufflink at the playground where he was watching Dale.
What was the connection?
Maybe Booker never actually harmed any of the children. Maybe, as Dale had said, he just watched.
“I have no idea where to look,” Joe said.
“Then we get to Grand Junction and take care of Marj and Jade.”
“I can’t believe Talon let her go into the city without him.”
“She was with Marjorie,” I said. “Talon may think he controls his wife, but he doesn’t.”
“Talon doesn’t think that. He just worries about her. She’s pregnant, or have you forgotten?”
“Of course not. Jesus, Joe.”
“Sorry. I’m a fucked-up mess.”
“That makes two of us.” I sighed. “We need to get to Marj. I can’t lose her, Joe. I just can’t.”
Chapter Fifty-Two
Marjorie
Ted Morse looked a lot like an older version of Colin.
Except, unlike Colin, his eyes were not kind. His eyes were… What were they, exactly? Just on the edge of menacing, but not quite. They were eyes that had something to hide, eyes that were well regulated to not give anything away.
They were not the eyes of a nice man.
“It’s nice to see you, Jade,” he said. “Come in. Take a seat.”
We walked in and he closed the door.
Morse wore a navy-blue suit. An expensive navy-blue suit with a black paisley silk tie. His shoes were Louboutins, I was certain, and he was impeccably groomed.
“You don’t look like a man who’s concerned about his son,” I said.
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means you look like a silver-haired mannequin at Saks,” I said. “Right down to your manicured fingernails. Did you have a two-hour massage this morning, too?”
“Marj…” Jade said.
“Come on. Look at him. Does he look like a worried father to you?”
“I’m sure you didn’t come here to insult me, Jade. I’m sure you’re concerned for Colin.”
“As much as she could be concerned for a man who left her at the altar. Or the man who convinced him to do so.”
Jade hedged a little. “She has a point.”
“You think I convinced him to cancel your wedding?”
“You’re not that good an actor, Mr. Morse,” I said. “And he didn’t cancel the wedding. He didn’t show up to the wedding because you told him Jade wasn’t good enough for him.”
“That’s preposterous.”
“Either you’re lying or Colin’s lying,” I said. “Hmm, I wonder which one would lie?”
“Look, Ted,” Jade said. “We’re concerned about Colin. We want to find him. If you haven’t seen him in a week, how do you even know he’s missing?”
“Because of this.” He thrust his phone at us, revealing a text.
I have your son.
“When did this text come in?” I asked.
“Right before I called Jade.”
“And I suppose you’ve considered that it’s a hoax?”
“Of course I’ve considered that it’s a hoax, but it was an Iowa area code. Not a lot of hoaxes come out of Iowa.”
An Iowa code. All the texts Joe and Bryce received had come from an Iowa area code.
“Okay, let’s assume it’s real,” I said. “Has he asked for anything?”
“Money.”
I laughed. “Poor guy. He has no idea you’d give up your son sooner than you’d give up money. In fact, you did give up your son once. For money.”
“You have no proof of that.”
“I have all the proof I need. You. Standing there looking like a fashion plate when your son is missing. If anyone ever accused my father of selling out one of his kids, he would not take it lying down. The most you can come up with is some false outrage. You’re a phony, Mr. Morse.”
Jade was ominously silent, both hands on her belly.
“Jade?” I said.
“It’s nothing. Just a little cramping. Probably gas. I’m okay.”
Shit. I really shouldn’t have
let her come along. “We’re going back to the hospital.”
“No, really, I’m—”
“No arguments. It’s what Talon would want. I’ll be calling him too, by the way.”
“No! Please let him have his little overnight with the boys. They all need it. Please, Marj.”
“My brother would never forgive—”
We all jerked at the fierce pounding on the door.
“Open up, Morse!”
Bryce! I nearly flew to the door of the condo where Ted Morse was staying.
Bryce and Joe stood outside.
Bryce pulled me into a hug. “Honey, are you okay?”
“I’m fine, but I need to take Jade to the hospital. She’s having some pain.”
“Oh, shit.”
“I’m okay,” Jade said. “It’s just a little cramping.”
“Still,” Joe said. “You two get to the hospital. Bryce and I can handle this clown.”
“For once I agree with you,” I said. “Let’s go, Jade.”
Chapter Fifty-Three
Bryce
“Start talking,” I said to Ted Morse.
“My son is missing. I showed the girls this text.”
I eyed his phone. “Iowa. Check your old texts and calls, Joe.” I frantically looked through mine. None matched the number.
“Bingo,” Joe said.
“You got a match?”
“Yeah. The first call I got. Looks like he got lazy and reused one of his old phones.”
“He probably didn’t think we’d be talking to Colin’s father.”
“Do you mind including me in this conversation?” Ted said. “It is my son who’s missing.”
“Spare us your fatherly concern.” I drew my gun on him.
He visibly shuddered. “I don’t want any trouble.”
“Just tell us what we need to know, and there won’t be any,” Joe said, pulling his weapon out as well.
“Look, my son—”
“How did you find out about Justin Valente?” I demanded.
“Look, I—”
“No excuses,” Joe said. “We’re here for the truth. If you’re truly concerned about your son, then you know we’re your best chance of finding him. Start talking.”
Ted sighed. “Can I at least sit down?”
“Sure. In fact, we’ll be happy to tie you to a chair.”
“That’s not necessary. You’ve got two guns on me. I’d be stupid to try to run.”
“Yeah?” Joe said. “You once tried to extort money from me, to frame me for what Tom Simpson did to Colin. I didn’t realize at the time that you’d do just about anything for money, including pimping out your own son. I’d bet you’d try to run if you think there’s a buck in it for you.”
“You’ve got the wrong idea about me.”
“I don’t think so,” I said, pushing him into a chair. “You got any rope around here?”
“Like I’d tell you,” he said.
I pushed the barrel of my gun to his temple. “I’ll ask that again. You got any rope around here?”
“D-Duct tape. Kitchen cabinet over the dishwasher.”
I nodded to Joe. He returned in a few seconds with the tape. I continued to hold the gun on Morse as Joe taped his ankles to the chair.
“False imprisonment is a crime, you know.”
“Is it?” I said. “Gee. Didn’t know that. By the way, so is selling a human being to my psycho father. And maybe it’s just me, but I think that’s a whole lot worse than tying the perpetrator up while I’m questioning him.”
“I agree,” Joe said. “Now. How the hell did you find out about Justin Valente?”
“What makes you think I know anything?”
“You knew we weren’t alone during that one camping trip with my father,” I said. “Even Joe and I have trouble remembering that trip. But you knew about it.”
“As I understand it, you two were around nine years old at the time,” Morse said. “How exactly do you expect me to believe you didn’t remember?”
“You’ve dealt with my father. It shouldn’t be any surprise to you that he would drug his own child.”
“You seriously didn’t remember? You didn’t remember taking the kid camping and then he didn’t come home?”
“No,” Joe said. “We didn’t fucking remember. We were nine fucking years old, Morse. We didn’t commit a crime by inviting a friend to go camping.”
Ted Morse met my gaze. “Do you really expect me to believe that not once in over thirty years did you ever have a clue what your father was capable of?”
“I’m not sure your son ever knew what you were capable of either. You sold him to a psycho.”
“I find it hard to believe—”
Joe cocked his gun. “I find it hard to believe you’re still talking without answering a question. Now where the hell did you learn about Justin Valente?”
Ted’s lips trembled. “To be honest, he came to me.”
“Bull,” Joe said.
“Wait a minute, Joe. He might actually be telling the truth.”
“Of course I’m telling the truth.”
“You can stop talking now. I have a million more questions for you, but right now, I’m talking to Joe. This actually makes sense. Marjorie and I were talking about it. I think, in some warped way, Booker was jealous of Colin.”
Joe raised his eyebrows. “Say what?”
“Yeah. Think about it.”
Then I stopped speaking abruptly. I had learned that my father had taken Justin as a protégé from Brad Steel. I still hadn’t told Joe that his father was alive. Now wasn’t really the right time to have that conversation, but I didn’t have a choice. I put my gun down and grabbed the roll of duct tape. Quickly, I taped Ted Morse’s chest around the back of the chair and then also stuck a strip of tape over his mouth.
“We need to talk,” I said to Joe. “Alone.”
Chapter Fifty-Four
Marjorie
“I told you everything was fine,” Jade said, once we got home.
“How was I supposed to know that pain was normal?”
“Because I told you it was.”
“My brother would’ve never forgiven me if you’d had any issue while you were with me,” I said. “He was really glad I called.”
“It took me a long time to talk him into not cutting his trip with the boys short,” Jade said. “And he only agreed if I went straight home and went to bed. I don’t like lying to Talon, so I guess that’s what I should do.”
“Absolutely. Get to bed. I won’t be leaving your side until Tal gets home tomorrow.”
“What about Bryce and Joe?”
“They’ll have to get along without me this time.” I smiled.
Jade returned my smile. “The two of them can certainly handle Ted Morse. Do you think Colin is really missing?”
“I wish I knew. I don’t trust Ted Morse as far as I can throw him, but after all Colin has been through, it wouldn’t be unusual for him to take off.”
“Or for Cade Booker… Honestly, Marj, I’ve given up trying to understand anyone in this whole situation anymore. Oh!” She clasped her hand to her mouth. “I didn’t mean…”
“It’s okay. Why would anyone understand why a person would cut herself open to relieve emotional pain? It made sense to me. It worked for me. But it was self-indulgent. Counterproductive. The physical doesn’t take away the emotional. You have to work through all of it.”
Jade smiled. “Melanie is a wise woman.”
“Do you need anything? Water? Herb tea? A grilled cheese and tomato sandwich?” I smiled.
“Actually, a grilled cheese and tomato sandwich sounds great.”
“I’m on it.”
Chapter Fifty-Five
Bryce
Joe stared through me as though I were invisible.
Not the reaction I expected from my hotheaded best friend.
Of course, it wasn’t every day you learned your father had faked his own death.
>
Again.
I’d been ready to take a punch for not telling Joe as soon as I found out about his father.
“You okay?” I said.
He shook his head slowly. “Not even fucking slightly.”
“I know.”
“You don’t. I appreciate it, man. I do. But you don’t know.”
I nodded. No use restating the obvious. He didn’t know what it was like to find out your father was a psycho pedophilic rapist, and I didn’t know what it was like to find out your father had faked his own death. Twice.
“When I saw him on the island, found out he was alive the first time, I nearly fucked him up good I was so mad. Then I found out he’d been keeping our mother from us. At that point, fucking him up was too good for him.”
“Honestly, I think he was doing all of it to protect your mother.”
“From her own kids?”
“From Wendy and the others, the first time.”
“What’s his excuse now?”
“Cade Booker. He’s known about him all along. Dominic and Alex have been working for him for years.”
“Why didn’t he just tell us?” Joe demanded. “We’re strong. We’re financially independent. We could have dealt with Cade Booker.”
“He knew we didn’t remember,” I said. “He didn’t want to traumatize us.”
“Unbelievable.” Joe rubbed his forehead. “Un-fucking-believable. As if finding out our father faked his own death again isn’t traumatic.”
“The way he put it to me was that you and your siblings could take care of yourselves, but your mother couldn’t. His first loyalty was to protect her above all else.”
“Fucker,” Joe said again. “We could have protected her.”
Except that Brad took her from the facility without Joe’s or his siblings’ knowledge. But now probably wasn’t a good time to remind Joe of that.
“Where is he? How do I get in touch with him?” Joe demanded.