Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 62480 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 312(@200wpm)___ 250(@250wpm)___ 208(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 62480 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 312(@200wpm)___ 250(@250wpm)___ 208(@300wpm)
I nod and think it over. “Maybe I should give the detective a call and ask for an update. I doubt she’ll tell me anything, but it’s worth a try. The idea that whoever did this is just walking around out there…”
He gives my hand a squeeze. “They caught your ex. I am sure they’ll catch this person too.”
“I hope so. The best use of my time is still probably focusing on where Ryan buried the other women’s bodies. It’s our best chance of keeping him behind bars.”
Auggie steers us off the road and toward a tree. There’s peeing and sniffing to be done.
“What are you going to do when all of this stops dominating your life?” asks Noah.
“That’ll be a beautiful day. I don’t know.”
“Something worth thinking about.”
“Move to another town where I am not so well known maybe,” I say. “But I love it here. I’m not sure I could stay away forever.”
“Hmm.”
“You know what I haven’t done in a long time?” I turn to him with a small smile. “Gone on a vacation.”
“Now there’s something we could be planning. Are you thinking sun and sand or what?”
“A beach would be good. Somewhere with a totally different vibe.”
“How about Havana?” he asks. “We could spend a week soaking up the sun and eating Cuban food. Or if you want to go further afield, there’s Thailand. The street food there is supposed to be amazing.”
“I don’t even have a passport.”
“We need to get you a passport.”
Auggie takes a keen interest in the remains of some asters. It won’t be long before the last of the late summer flowers die off and fall takes over. Then all of these gardens will start giving way to stick season, followed by the white of winter. Seasons keep rolling along year in and year out. In a way, it’s comforting how life just keeps keeping on. We’re only a couple of blocks away from the waterfront now. Walking down quiet streets with most of the houses sitting in darkness.
“You haven’t told me how things are at work with Jade,” I say with a wince.
And he winces right back. “We’re both keeping it professional.”
“Okay.”
“No one is universally loved, Sid.”
“I know. We’re all the villain in someone’s story, right?”
He grunts.
Which is when I see the vehicle. A dark sedan with tinted windows rolling slowly down the street, right behind us. And it’s not like we’re strolling in the middle of the road. We’re walking on the grass so the dog can inspect people’s front yards. There’s plenty of room for the driver to go around us and get on with their night, if that was what they wanted. But it isn’t what they do. Nope. They continue trailing us.
Auggie tugs on the leash, leading Noah toward a garden gnome posed beside a mossy boulder in someone’s yard. It’s a smiling statue wearing a hat at a jaunty angle. No idea what the thing could have possibly done to upset him, but my dog lifts his leg and pees like his life depends on it. Noah raises his brows at me and waits patiently for the canine to be done. Which is apparently going to take an eternity.
And the car is still hanging behind us, moving slowly in and out of the pools of light cast by the streetlights. The driver’s-side window lowers. What are the chances this is the same sedan from earlier, when I drove out to the hotel?
There’s something awfully familiar about this, and I have the worst feeling in the pit of my stomach. All of the dread. “Noah…”
“Yeah?” He turns my way again. Then he sees the car coming closer at such a sedate pace and frowns. “What the hell?”
I half expect a hand with a gun to appear out the side window. But no. Tires suddenly scream and the scent of burnt rubber fills the air. The car lurches forward, veering off the road, right toward me. I turn and sprint down the street. Leading them away from Noah and Auggie. Thank fuck I wore tennis shoes. Auggie starts barking and Noah shouts something. My heart is hammering, blood pounding loudly behind my ears. But it’s not enough to drown out the roar of the oncoming engine.
I have a head start, but it’s only going to take them a couple of seconds to catch up to me. I know that any moment now the car is going to hit me. Squish me like a bug, or send me flying into outer space. Turning toward a house might be my best move. I have all of a moment to make up my mind.
The next streetlight is a while away, but in the yard ahead of me is a big old tree. It’s not a good plan, but it’s all I’ve got. I sprint straight for the tree. To hide behind it or something. The muscles in my legs start to burn. You need to be a special kind of person to commit vehicular homicide. To want to crash your car into someone. And I hope they’re just that fixated on me.