Page 35

I was preoccupied when I walked out of Rudolph’s suite, understandably, which was maybe why I didn’t immediately notice the man standing a few yards down the hall.

When I finally spotted the tall figure with silver hair and tattoos, hovering in the middle of the hallway, the jolt of recognition felt almost inevitable.

That said, I think my sudden appearance surprised him as much as he surprised me, because he snapped erect and took a couple of steps backwards.

I hadn’t forgotten what Finn said about bad optics, bad precedent, bad move . I remembered every word.

I also remembered what Adrien English had said less than an hour earlier.

I hadn’t approached U.N. Owen AKA Troy Colby. He was not just by chance wandering on the fifth floor. He had come after me, and I instinctively felt my only option was to confront the threat.

“U.N. Owen, I presume?” I called.

He turned and started to walk away.

“I’m not amused.”

He faltered and turned back. He scowled. “Are you talking to me?”

Seeing that we were the only two people in the hall, it was a safe bet.

“You handed me a manuscript at the Stranger Than Fiction panel? That’s not how submissions happen. But had you gone through the proper channels, your manuscript would still be a hard pass. I don’t like gimmicks and I don’t like games.”

He wasn’t wearing his dark glasses, and his very pale eyes bugged out of his head as he goggled at me. “W-What?”

“Using my name for a character? No. I don’t like cute.

I don’t care how minor that character is.

It’s too cute. Yes, you got my attention, But for all the wrong reasons.

If you are serious about submitting a genuine manuscript, send three chapters of a book you actually intend to finish, along with a synopsis and a cover letter with the name of the editor you’re submitting to.

However, Millhouse Books does not accept unagented submissions. ”

“Are you crazy?”

“That’s it. You can stop pestering my authors. You’ve got my verdict.”

It took every ounce of will I had to turn my back, pull out my key card, and wave it in front of the electronic lock to my room.

Colby stepped toward me, I could feel his breath against the side of my face. My neck muscles locked; my head started to shake with tension. The lock sensor turned green.

I opened the door, gave Colby a forbidding look, and pulled the door shut.

My final glimpse, before the door settled heavily into the frame, was of Colby’s open mouth.

I turned the deadbolt, stepped back from the door, and pulled out my cell. My hands were so unsteady I nearly dropped the phone.

It took two tries before Finn answered. I could hear boisterous voices and laughter behind his, “Are you still at dinner?”

“No. I’m upstairs—”

“Come on down. J.X. and Christopher are here. Hayes, Pat Robinson—”

I interrupted, “Colby was up here.”

Finn’s voice changed. He suddenly sounded a whole lot more sober and a whole lot less cheerful. “What do you mean? In your room?”

“Wandering around in the hall outside.”

Finn said sharply, “On my way,” and disconnected.

I’m not sure how many times I paced up and down the floor before I heard the electronic lock beep and click over. The door opened and Finn, wearing jeans and a black Aran knit sweater, stepped inside.

“Keiran?” he spotted me by the fireplace. “Are you okay?”

I came to meet him. “Is he still out there?”

“Colby? No. I saw three women headed for the hot tub. Nobody else.”

“He was waiting in the hall when I left Rudolph’s room.”

Finn put his hands on my arms, steadying me. “Okay. Let’s start at the beginning. You came back from dinner and—?”

“Even before that, on the walk back from dinner, Adrien was telling me that Colby has been hanging around, trying to find out what floor I’m on, if I’m on my own.”

Finn was guiding me to the sofa. I folded onto the cushions, gazing up, trying to gauge his reaction.

He was not happy.

There were lines in Finn’s face that hadn’t been there when he’d walked into the room.

“He’s getting frustrated,” Finn said. “We saw that during the Backstory Q&A. You’re not reacting as expected.”

“Neither is he!”

I didn’t resist when Finn joined me on the sofa, taking my hands in his.

“You’re okay, Keir. You handled yourself like a pro at the Q&A. Now walk me through what happened up here. Why were you in Rudolph’s room?”

Jesus. I hadn’t even had time to assimilate the unexpected proposal from Rudolph. Well, not a proposal. Had it been a proposal? A suggestion, maybe. I didn’t want to pin too much on a casual conversation over 86 proof whisky.

I said, “I thought I’d grab my jacket before I joined you and Hayes—”

“Ha,” Finn growled.

“But when I got off the elevator, Rudolph was coming back from the pool and he asked me to have a nightcap. So, I said yes, we had a nightcap…”

“And?”

I swallowed. “When I left Rudolph’s, I spotted Colby standing a few feet from the door to this suite. He saw me, turned, and started to walk away, and I—”

“ Please tell me you didn’t speak to him.”

“But that’s not a normal reaction, Finn,” I protested. “To just ignore this weirdo and his libelous manuscript when he’s trying to infiltrate my authors and find out my room number? That’s not what an innocent person would do.”

“You spoke to him.” Finn actually dropped his face in his hands, which scared the hell out of me.

“I had to. I couldn’t pretend I didn’t see him, so what’s my excuse for not asking the normal questions?”

Finn raised his head and scrutinized me. “What exactly did you say to him?”

I related the entire conversation.

Finn heard me out in silence.

“You think I made a mistake,” I said.

“Hell, yes! I said don’t engage. What part of don’t engage translates to a hallway dissertation on cover letters and character names?”

“What choice did I have? I couldn’t pretend I didn’t see him. We looked each other in the eyes.”

Finn opened his mouth, but then closed it.

“Finn, he believed me.”

Finn’s brows drew together.

“I saw it in his face. He believes that I think it’s all a gimmick. Maybe he won’t believe it for long, but he believed it in the moment.”

Finn was silent, thinking.

“I went with my instinct,” I said. “That’s all I had.”

He said finally, “ If it’s true that he believed you, that he believes you have no clue about what happened between Dominic and Milo, it gives you a tactical and psychological advantage. That’s a big if. Either way, though, it’s dangerous because he’s liable to double down to clarify the threat.”

“But it buys us time. Doesn’t it?”

“Maybe,” Finn agreed grudgingly. “You managed to avoid confirming anything, you showed no reaction to pressure, you kept your own cards hidden. He still doesn’t know what you know—or how rattled you are.” He added, “You took a hell of a risk.”

“I felt cornered. I had to go with my gut.” I offered it as both explanation and apology.

Finn let out a long, controlled breath. “All right. You were there. I wasn’t.

You’re smart. You know the stakes. I’m not going to second guess you.

” He met my eyes, grimaced, and said, “I mean, I am , because the idea that you confronted him on your own scares the shit out of me. We don’t know how dangerous this guy is.

But you’re right, if he bought what you said, he’s got to be very confused at this moment. ”

I leaned forward and rested my forehead on his shoulder. He put his arms around me immediately. “What’s this?” he asked gently.

I moved my head in negation.

“You kept your head,” he said quietly. “I’m not happy about it, but it was a gutsy move.”

I sat up, rubbing my eyes. “I’m just tired.” As I gazed around the room, I belatedly noticed Finn’s suitcase standing by the dining room table. “Did you move in with me?”

His breath came out in a half-laugh. “Is that all right? I thought it was easier than running back and forth between floors every time I need to brush my teeth.”

“Of course. That was the original plan before…”

Before everything had blown up. Before Finn had suspected I was keeping secrets and that getting more deeply involved with me was liable to drag him into a whole lotta trouble.

And now, when he knew for sure I’d been keeping secrets, and getting more deeply involved with me had definitely dragged him into a huge fucking mess, we were closer than ever.

Life was strange.

I said, “The thing is, Colby’s too young.”

“Too young for what?”

“He can’t be a lot older than Kyle. He’d have been a child when everything happened between Milo and Dominic and me.”

“He may have grown up listening to speculation and rumor. Or he may simply be an opportunist, and your original idea that he might accept a publishing contract as a blackmail payoff wasn’t so far off mark.”

“Maybe Colby is just the messenger. Maybe U.N. Owen is someone else. Maybe U.N. Owen is Milo.”

“I don’t think Milo is U.N. Owen.”

It had been difficult for me to accept the idea, but once reconciled to it, I’d felt it was an inevitable conclusion. Milo had the most to gain by pinning Dom’s death on me. He was the only person who knew for sure I’d been at the graveyard that night.

So, Finn’s grim certainty surprised me. “You don’t?”

“No. While you were gallivanting around old Monterey with Adrien English—”

“Droll.”

His mouth twitched, but he continued, “I was checking up on a few things.”

“Milo is dead?”

“I don’t think Milo is dead, no. But I also don’t think he’s behind this attempt to wreck you.”

“Wreck me?” I echoed uneasily. “You don’t think it’s just blackmail?”

“Unfortunately, no. If that tire had blown on the coast road, there’s a good chance you’d have been killed. You said it yourself. Killing their victims is not the blackmailer’s usual business model.”

I digested that unwelcome news.

“You remember I asked you about the Devlin Family Trust?”

I nodded mechanically. Even though the thought had already occurred to me, it’s not easy to accept that someone hates you enough to kill you.

Finn said, “A family trust is a legal entity used to hold and manage assets—typically for things like estate planning, tax efficiency, privacy, and control of assets after death.”

“Right. The Devlin Family Trust owns the Cadillac DeVille that followed me. I’m still not sure—”

“The Devlin Family Trust also holds the deed to the house Colby rents.”

Hell. That was where I’d heard the name before. When I’d first tried to find out who U.N. Owen was.

“Not a coincidence, obviously.”

“No. The trust was set up in the name of Mary Catherine Devlin-Baldwin.”

I stared at Finn. “ Baldwin ? Judge Baldwin?”

“His wife. His late wife, to be exact. There’s nothing inherently shady in the trust. Mary Catherine Devlin-Baldwin came from money, and the trust was part of how that money was managed.”

I said, “Judge Baldwin can’t be behind this.

He wasn’t—yes, he would have used his influence to keep Dominic from being kicked off the football team.

But that’s not what I meant when I said he was rich and powerful.

He’s a good man. A sincerely good person.

Caring. Generous. Everybody, and I mean everybody, in Steeple Hill looked up to him. ”

Finn looked unimpressed.

I said weakly, “He sent me Christmas presents every year.”

Because I was the sheriff’s kid, sure, but it had still been a thoughtful gesture. Those had been genuinely nice gifts.

Finn said, “I’m simply telling you where the trail leads.”

“But that can’t be right.”

“You don’t think Dominic’s father might have some hard feelings toward the people he believes disappeared his son?”

I felt like I’d walked into a meat locker, felt the chill in my bones.

“But how would he know any of this? How would he know we were involved? How would he have found out? And why would he come after me ? I didn’t kill Dominic. Where would he get the idea that I killed Dominic? I didn’t even know Dominic. I don’t think he ever spoke directly to me in my entire life.”

Finn said, “I think we should ask him.”

“Ask him? Ask Judge Baldwin?”

“I think that’s the simplest and best option.”

I stammered, “B-but what if we’re wrong? We can’t talk to him without revealing…revealing way too much. I’d be implicating myself to a judge.”

“Retired judge. But yes, I think we should be completely candid. Don’t forget. He’s also in legal jeopardy. If Baldwin orchestrated or knowingly participated in a plan to harm, blackmail, or discredit you—or worse—”

“But maybe he didn’t!”

Finn didn’t seem to entertain that possibility, because he kept right on.

“That’s conspiracy. If he’s asked, encouraged, or paid someone to commit a criminal act, that’s criminal solicitation.

If he even knew about the plan or helped in any way to facilitate it—which seems pretty likely given that Georgi Argyros is the licensed driver of that Caddy—”

“Jesus Christ.” I closed my eyes. “ Geo used to work for the judge . In fact, that’s how he got out so fast after he went to jail for stealing a car. Judge Baldwin interceded.”

“I’m guessing Geo still works for the judge. Though maybe not in an official capacity.”

“I can’t believe it.”

Finn said nothing.

I opened my eyes, looked at him. “I don’t know, Finn. I don’t see how we prove any of this. It’s all guesswork and speculation. It’s all circumstantial.”

“We don’t need ironclad proof—just reasonable suspicion in order to point out to Baldwin that he’s got a lot to lose, too.

If we approach this right, we might be able to pressure him into admitting the truth.

Our goal is to get him to back off. Even if he doesn’t confess his involvement, if we can stop this from spiraling any further out of control, that’s mission accomplished. ”

“But if he had Milo killed?”

“I still don’t think Milo’s dead.”

Neither did I, really. I thought it over and had to admit, “I don’t believe Geo would kill Milo. He wouldn’t have anything to do with that.” I smiled without humor. “In fact, I could see him offering me up in place of Milo.”

“Geo may not know the truth. He may think you really did kill Dominic. He might even think you had something to do with Milo’s disappearance.”

I sat motionless, feeling mostly numb.

Finn said quietly, “It’s up to you, Keir. There is a risk. I won’t lie to you. But I think it’s our best shot at ending this now before any more damage is done.”

I had no idea what the right decision was. This was Finn’s area of expertise. Not mine. His proposal terrified me. But it wasn’t as though I had a better plan.

I let out a long weary breath, nodded. “Okay. If you think this is the way. When do you want to talk to him?”

“I don’t want to give him a heads up. I think we pay him a surprise visit early tomorrow.”

“What if he won’t see us?”

“If we’re right, he’s absolutely going to want to see you. Even if we’re wrong, he’d probably be willing to give you a few minutes of his time.” Finn’s smile was sardonic. “That smart kid he sent Christmas presents to? Hell yeah, he’ll see you.”