Page 44 of Never Lost

Slowly, Erica nodded.

“Well—I made a promise tohim. And he promised to believe it.”

Amid the veranda, silent except for crickets, I watched Erica’s slim collarbone move up and down minutely as if, incredulously, it was nowherwho was struggling to breathe normally.

“You said you’re going back to this guy tomorrow morning, right?”

Erica nodded.

“Then give me that long. That’s all I ask. If I don’t figure out something by then, I’ll go with you.” I went for my phone.

“But, Louisa, what—” She stopped short as if something had occurred to her. “Wait a minute. Where’s Ivy?”

As if on cue, Ivy threw open the doors to the veranda and stumbled toward us, out of breath, her eyebrows, impossibly, even higher than they’d been before. “I don’t mean to scare anyone,” she said, panting. “But I think someone might know you’re here. I need to go check on the kids.”

“What? How do you know?” I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.

“After a night like this, I needed a cigarette, so I walked down to the end of the driveway,” Ivy confessed, noticing the looks she was getting. “Donottell the kids. Or my nursing professors. At least it’s not smack, okay? Anyway, I saw a strange car parked down the street. It gave me a funny feeling, so I kept an eye on it. And then I saw someone get out and start walking toward the house. And I think he saw me.”

There was no way to tell whether the noise we’d heard was related. But it wasn’t necessarilynotrelated.

“Ivy, where’s?—”

Wordlessly, Ivy handed me the burner phone, charged and ready, and with my hands as steady as they could be under the circumstances, I dialed a number I knew by heart, one I hadn’tintended to call that night, or maybe ever again. I turned back to Erica while I listened to the ringtone.

“Who are you calling?”

“I think if you can involve the cops, I can involve someone even worse than that.” I held up a hand when I heard the voice on the other end of my dad’s phone: a female voice. The housekeeper. It wasn’t unheard of for her to take messages, but given the circumstances, it sent a chill right down into my bones.

“Miss Louisa. Thank heavens. Your parents have been?—”

“I need to talk to Daddy. Please,” I cut her off as politely as I could. “Where is he? Why isn’t he answering?”

“Sorry, miss, but he can’t come to the phone right now.”

“But why not? This is really important. He’ll want to hear from me.”

“I know he will, miss. He’s been desperate to find you. But still, I’m afraid you’ll have to wait. He’s—he’s with other people.”

“Who?” I demanded, already knowing there was no possible answer that wouldn’t make the situation worse.

“The police.”

11

HIM

In the jungle river town, life unfolded like a dream—the dream of freedom, the one I’d never before allowed myself to have. The place was painted in emerald and sapphire. The air hung heavy, pregnant with the scent of hibiscus and orchids. In town, taco stands and handicraft shops dotted every corner as locals whizzed by on motorbikes, engines humming with the rhythmic splash of fishing boats cutting through the aquamarine river that spliced the town into two. A stroll along the dock revealed marinas adorned with boats of all sizes and colors, their masts standing tall against a backdrop of lush foliage. Monkeys and parrots shrieked and chattered from deep within. In short, it was paradise.

That is if the postcard someone had taped to a cabinet in Langer’s lab was anything to go off.

I turned it around in my hand a couple of times before tossing it aside, forcing my eyes to settle on what I was supposed to be looking at, and my brain on what I was supposed to be thinking about: the chemical formula I’d written outfrom memory on the 3D holographic display. The device had promptly spat back a visual representation of the molecule, and I moved my finger to rearrange the atoms, watching them bounce against each other like eager little insects. But it was my own face that teased me, reflected faintly in the glass like some haggard, dusty, wind-whipped ghost.

It didn’t make sense. And not just the formula.

I had to be the biggest idiot alive to trustMax Langer, of all people, to keep my sister safe until I could get to her. And if Iwasthat much of an idiot, it went without saying that I didn’t like my chances of reaching an earth-shattering scientific breakthrough in a matter of hours.

For the millionth time, I glanced out the window at the murk of the empty office park. Silence. I was alone. The helicopter was gone, the Porsche left behind. From now on, any getaway I made would be on foot.