Page 98

When Jake opens the French doors, I follow, and he puts his arm around my waist. Outside, the ferocity of the rain has subsided to a steady drizzle. The sky lights up, and a few seconds later, a rumble overtakes the pitter-patter of rain. “I love storms. Lightning, thunder, wind. It makes me feel alive.”

Jake’s body tenses. He sighs and then relaxes, his shoulders dropping as if someone cut the strings holding him up. “Emily went missing on a day very much like this.”

Oh my God. Here I am babbling about how much I love storms, and Jake is reliving the worst day of his life. I take his hand. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think—”

He turns to me and brings both of our hands to his chest. “No. Don’t apologize. I didn’t say it to upset you and I wasn’t done.”

I frown. “Not done?”

He brings my hand to his mouth and kisses my knuckles. “Today, you gave me more than your body. You gave me a fresh memory. A better, happier memory.”

“What do you mean?”

He tucks a lock of hair behind my ear. “You gave me something else to think about. Next time it rains like this, I’ll think of you and making love to you.”

I go on tiptoes, put my free hand behind his neck, and kiss him once, looking him in the eyes. This is my chance. He brought her up. He opened that door. It must mean something. I send a small prayer into the universe that what I’m about to say won’t upset him and go for it.

“Jake, I want to help you find Emily.”

His face goes hard for a split second and then smooths over. There’s a battle inside of him. He’s fighting blame, guilt, and mistrust. On one side are old habits, self-preservation and resistance to outside help. On the opposite side there’s me, my gift, and a need greater than himself to find out what happened.

I wait until his gaze meets mine again. “You don’t have to decide now. Think about it. Let’s enjoy this weekend together and forget about everything outside these walls. You can let me know Monday when you go back to work.”

He nods once, a slow, barely noticeable movement. “Yes, please help me find her.”

Chapter49

Avalon

The momentI open the apartment door, the feeling of wrongness slams into me like a rogue wave. Nothing out of the ordinary, and yet, my heart races as fear coils in my stomach like a poisonous snake. I look around, trying to place what doesn’t fit. Everything looks fine. Nothing out of the ordinary. I leave the door open and take two steps in, allowing the disturbing energy to settle into me.

My gaze searches every corner, every surface, and finds nothing. I listen, straining to hear anything that doesn’t belong, but the only sound I hear is my own heartbeat drumming in my ears.

I take slow steps to the bathroom and peer inside. The open shower curtain and dry tub suggest it hasn’t been used for a while. The counter is clean, and our belongings are neatly tucked away into their travel bags.

I walk to the bedroom and stop at the door. Empty. Where is she? Lynn doesn't get up this early, but her bed is neatly made. She never makes her bed. I step into the room and open the closet door. Again, nothing is out of place. Our suitcases rest on the floor. My shoes are perfectly aligned, the same way I left them. And so are Lynn’s—all perfectly organized. This is so unlike her. What the hell happened? Did she go on a cleaning frenzy? I talked to her last night, and she never mentioned cleaning up or going out. She said she was staying in to watch TV.

I approach her bed and run my fingers over her pillow. Dread overcomes me.

Lynn!

I rip open my purse and grab my phone and call her—it goes straight to voicemail. Lynn never turns her phone off or allows the battery to die. I hang up as soon as the voice message starts and tap her name again.

And again. And again. I wait and listen to her entire voice message this time, but it’s the same as it has always been.

I start a desperate text message asking if everything is okay but stop. Backspace. Each delete tap is like a stab into my chest. If something is wrong and someone has her phone, I don’t want to alert them.

I force air into my lungs. And start again.

Me:Hey, where are you? Want to grab breakfast?

I stare at the screen until it goes dark. No response comes. I knew it wouldn’t. My entire body shudders. I tap my phone again, open the Life360 location app, and tap Lynn’s name.

It says, ‘Device off since Sunday, 10:57 p.m.’

I knew it would be like this. He’s too meticulous to make a rookie mistake.

I run out of the apartment, slamming the door behind me, and frantically dial Jake as I rush to the stairs. I’m not waiting for the elevator.