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A small slip of paper, folded once, was wedged in the spine. Carefully, Dorcas pulled it out and unfolded it. No letters, no message, just a telephone number with three digits written beneath it.

“I don’t recognize the area code,” Dorcas said.

“It’s Georgia. I grew up near Atlanta.” He pulled out his phone and tapped away at the screen. “The number belongs to a storage center in Mayford. How much you want to bet the other set of numbers is the unit your sister rented?”

“Could be.” Hope quickened her pulse. If that were the case, that’s probably what the key in the mayonnaise jar was for. “Why would she put that kind of information in a phone book where anyone could find it? Why not just store it in her phone?”

“Who knows? Maybe she was worried about her phone getting stolen. Or maybe she assumed it was safer in the book because nobody uses them anymore. If that’s the case, she was right; they tore the shit out of this place and never found it.” His lips tightened as his eyes scanned the room. “Hell, she might have even left it there in the hopes of you finding it. I suppose we’ll know for sure once we find her.”

“Do you think we’ll find her alive?” Just thinking about the alternative made her heart stutter. For the millionth time, she wondered what Rita had gotten herself into. Why hadn’t she told Dorcas about it? If she’d known, she might have been able to help before things spun out of control.

Nate closed the phone book and pushed it to the side of the counter. “Until I see evidence to the contrary, I’m going to assume that Rita’s alive.”

“That’s not a ringing endorsement.”

“Would you rather I lie to you?” Agitation lined the corners of his eyes as he dragged a hand through his hair. “All I know is somebody wants something from your sister. I don’t know who they are, I don’t know what they want, and I don’t know how far they’re willing to go to obtain it. Considering what they did to this place and yours, they must want it pretty badly. And no, I don’t know if your sister’s alive, but I’m going to assume she is. In the meantime, I’ll keep you safe. That’s a promise.”

She stared up at him, not sure how to respond. In a way, she appreciated his blunt honesty, and his promise of protection. But she felt something more, something wild and strange, and it made her breath catch in her throat. Try as she might, she couldn’t put it into words. She wasn’t quite sure she wanted to. All she knew was that it scared her, so she ruthlessly shoved it aside. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” A faint smile curved the edges of his mouth. “Now come on, let’s go. We still need to pick up the stuff for the carpet. After that, we’re stopping at my place so I can pack a bag.”

Confusion narrowed her eyes. “A bag?”

“Yeah. I’m crashing on your couch again tonight. Tomorrow morning, we’re driving to Georgia.”

Chapter 7

NATE WOKE THE NEXTmorning to the sound of the alarm on his phone, his neck stiff from sleeping on Dorcas’s couch.

Groggy and disoriented, he grappled for the phone, and it took a few tries before he was able to turn the damn alarm off. He could have slept in Shailene’s bed, but he wanted to be closer to Dorcas’s room, just in case someone tried to break in.

He stretched, his spine popping in a few places as he got up off the couch. While the fog of sleep lifted, he scanned the darkened room, taking stock of his surroundings. Nothing moved, and the only sounds came from rain pounding the roof and wind whistling under the eaves.

Curious, he went to the sliding glass door and opened the vertical blinds to let some light in. He frowned. So much for the accuracy of last night’s weather forecast, which called for partly cloudy skies and a high in the low nineties. Rainy weather made for lousy driving conditions, and barring accidents or construction, the trip to Mayford would take at least seven hours each way. Factoring in time for meals, gas, and checking out the storage locker, they’d have to leave in the next hour or so if they wanted to get back before midnight.

With that in mind, Nate walked to Dorcas’s bedroom and cracked open the door.