Page 120 of I Will Ruin You

“Sorry?”

“What must she be thinking? I ran out of the house, got the neighbors to watch her. If they’re watching the news, if they see something online—”

“Why don’t you call?”

“I don’t even know their number.”

“Call your house. You still have a landline?”

Bonnie nodded, thought about what to do, got out her phone, and tapped the screen. Seconds later, someone picked up.

“Mom?” said Rachel.

Just one word, but Bonnie could hear the anxiety in the little girl’s voice.

“Hey, sweetie. Who’s there with you?”

“The next-door lady.”

“Can you put her on, please?”

There was the sound of the receiver being fumbled, then a woman’s voice. “Bonnie?”

“Jill, yes, it’s me. Does Rachel know what’s happened? Do you know what’s happened?”

“I don’t. I’ve just been trying to get Rachel to go to bed.”

“Okay, well, don’t let her look at the news on TV or a phone or anything. Something bad happened at the school and we can’t find Richard.”

“Oh, Bonnie, what’s—”

“I can’t explain now. Can you stay?”

“As long as necessary. I can sleep over. Jack can bring me what I need.”

“Thank you, Jill. Say goodbye to Rachel for me.”

She got off the phone hurriedly, fearing Rachel might grab the phone from Jill before she could hang up.

“I can’t talk to her,” Bonnie whispered. “I wouldn’t know what to say.”

Fifty-Six

Richard

“Flash your lights,” Stuart said.

I turned the pickup’s headlights on for one second, then off. The driver of the black Audi popped his high beams for a moment in return. The car drove slowly into the lot, coming to a stop, angling across two spots, about three car lengths away from us. The light from a phone dimly lit the interior of the Audi by the steering wheel, as if the driver was making a call or sending a text.

“Oh shit,” Stuart said. “That’s probably for me.”

He got out a phone and powered it on. I was guessing it was a phone he was afraid could be tracked, so he’d been leaving it off whenever he wasn’t using it.

“Come on come on come on,” he said to the phone, waiting for it to be active. Once it was, he waved it in the window, a signal to the other driver.

The phone rang.

“Yeah,” Stuart said, hitting the speaker icon immediately.