Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 99399 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 497(@200wpm)___ 398(@250wpm)___ 331(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99399 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 497(@200wpm)___ 398(@250wpm)___ 331(@300wpm)
We spent the next few hours banging out details while I kept an eye on my phone in case Wolfe texted. But by the time 2:00 p.m. rolled around, I still hadn’t heard from him.
I left the park and found a place to grab a salad for lunch, wishing like hell I had his number. When I couldn’t stand it anymore, I drove back to the campground. His van was there, but when I knocked, it was empty.
There was no sign of him.
His friend Brennan waved me over to his site. “Will went out with Jake from the bar. I think they were going hiking.”
My stomach dropped. He’d actually gone on their hike? I’d sort of expected Wolfe to have a conversation with Jake and let him down easy, then spend the afternoon with me. Had I misread the situation?
Even so, “I thought he’d be back by now. Do you know when they left?”
His eyebrows dipped as he tried to remember. Val poked his head out of Brennan’s van. “Early. Like at eight? I was up making coffee.”
“Maybe it was a long hike?” Brennan suggested. “I think Jake mentioned something about an overlook?”
“Nah, a waterfall,” Val corrected. “I meant to ask Jake which one.”
It had been seven hours since they left. That was a hell of a hike.
“Okay,” I said, trying to be casual about it. “Maybe they stopped to grab a sandwich or something. If you see Will when he gets back, let him know I was looking for him?”
As if I wouldn’t be spending the rest of the afternoon with eagle eyes on the campground entrance until he returned.
“Totally,” Brennan said.
Val nodded.
I made my way back to my own site and set up my laptop at the picnic table to continue working until a sudden rainstorm forced me to move into my rental car. When four o’clock arrived and he still wasn’t back, I lost my cool and called his cousin Gabe.
“Hey, man, what’s up?”
It wasn’t until after his friendly greeting that I realized it was after hours in South Carolina, so I quickly apologized.
“Sorry to bother you. I was just curious if you happened to have the number for Wolfe’s new cell phone.”
Gabe paused. “He hasn’t given me a new number.”
I let out a laugh. “That’s not what I asked, asshole.”
“What’s going on? Aren’t you there with him? Ask him yourself.”
I glanced around at the rain that had only gotten heavier. “He’s hiking with a friend. Except he’s been gone a very long time, and I’m starting to worry. It started raining a while ago, which means they should have been back by now.”
“I don’t have his number, but I could probably figure it out if he’s used it to post to his social media accounts or something. It’ll take some time.”
“Yeah, could you? If he doesn’t come back soon, I’d like you to be able to ping it or check its location. Just to see if he’s okay.”
“Will do.”
“Thanks, Gabe.”
“Anything, brother. I’ll hit you back in a bit, okay?”
I tried to control my anxiety by reminding myself that the sun wouldn’t set for hours yet.
At this point, I would almost be happy to learn the two of them were safe and comfortable snuggling at Jake’s right now, as long as it meant Wolfe was okay.
But I knew Wolfe Marian.
I trusted the connection we’d forged yesterday. There was no way he’d suddenly shift his focus like that and leave me hanging without an explanation.
I knew he wouldn’t lead Jake on like that either.
Thinking of Jake made me remember JJ’s earlier teasing about finding dirt on my “competition.” I suddenly wondered if he’d been serious.
I shot off a text asking for info, and JJ typed back immediately.
JJ
Nah. No dirt. Pretty much what we thought before.
Financial picture’s bad. Mortgage on the bar is in arrears by several months. Jake’s been looking for a short sale to avoid foreclosure, but no dice yet.
Good guy going through hard times?
I clicked off my phone and frowned. JJ was probably right. None of that was a smoking gun.
But there was still the outstanding mystery of Wolfe’s missing journal, which had to have been taken by either Shay, Jake, or Brennan. If it held song lyrics like he’d said, then it would be worth a fuck ton of money in the wrong hands.
I tried to stay calm and wait for Gabe to get back to me, but the later it got, the more convinced I became that something wasn’t right. By the time five o’clock rolled around, I wanted to peel my own skin off.
I pulled on my rain jacket and walked over to Wolfe’s van to peer inside like a total stalker.
The driver’s seat was empty. The note wasn’t there, which meant Wolfe had seen it. When I peered in the other window, I saw what looked like a cell phone tucked into a side pocket next to the bed.