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He walks around it but doesn’t touch anything. “Could anyone else have made the bed? Maybe she had someone over?”

I shake my head. “No.” I glance at the alarm clock on the nightstand. Eight twelve blinks in bright red. “She would never bring someone back here. That’s one of our rules. Look at my bed. That’s not how I left it, either. Whoever was here made both beds differently. Tucked in the corners, folded the blankets over the pillows.”

He walks to the other side of her bed.

I take a step toward him. The closer I get to Lynn’s bed, the stronger the evil energy gets. “Someone else was here. I can feel it. There is a presence here, stronger near her bed. It’s the same energy from my readings. It is the same man. I know it.”

Jake squats near the head of the bed. Tilts his head and his eyes narrow. “There’s something under the pillow.”

I gasp. My heart explodes inside my chest.

He takes his phone out and takes several pictures from all different angles. “I need to call in to dust for fingerprints. There’s no telling what else they may find, but I want to see what’s under the pillow before they show up.”

My mouth goes dry, and my throat closes on a sob. I can’t speak, so I nod instead.

He reaches into a pocket and pulls out disposable gloves. “I keep a box of these in my SUV.” Then, he moves the pillow like he’s disarming a bomb. Underneath, there’s something that shouldn’t be there.

Chapter50

Avalon

We both stareat the folded piece of paper, and I take a step closer.

His hand comes up to stop me. “Did you notice this before?”

I shake my head. “No, I touched the pillow, but I didn’t look under it.”

He takes more pictures from different angles and opens the single sheet of paper on top of the blanket now. Jake looks at the nightstand, where a notepad and pen lie.

I get closer and lean over the bed to read the note.

The words are so neatly written that they look more like a printed message than handwriting.

Tsk. Tsk. Tsk.

You’ve been a naughty girl.

Playing games you’re not invited to and meddling in things that don’t concern you. You changed the rules of the game, and now I have your friend.

She’s a pretty little thing, so full of life. I like them like that.

All sunshine and trust. Never seeing the dark side of life.

I don’t know how you’re figuring it all out. Or how you found that necklace.

You found my little birds. So fast, too. Victoria was a gift. But not Alice. How did you find her in that hole? You took my little bird, and now I have one of yours. It’s a fair trade, don’t you think? Mine for yours.

A sob catches in my throat and I press a hand to my mouth. Tears stream down my face, and the words on the note blur. I wipe my face with the back of my hands and read the rest of the letter.

The words are not as neat now. They dig into the papers as if that monster put extra pressure into the pen.

But I confess I’m curious. I’ll have fun finding out all of your secrets. I’m sure I can make your bird—no, not yours—she’s mine now. I can make my bird tell me everything she knows. And then when all of your secrets are mine, I’ll come for you, too. I like that. I like the idea of having the two of you.

And maybe I’ll even keep her alive long enough to see me play with you. Oh, the games we’ll play. It will be so much fun.

Jake wraps his arms around me and pulls me into his chest. There’s no holding back now. The sobs and tears come, not in a trickle, but like a tsunami. Wave after wave of sorrow and pain crashes into me. My knees buckle, and his hold on me tightens.

“I’ll find her. I promise you—I’ll find her.”