Cam was a few miles from Travis Bingman’s home when she finally picked up her phone. She swiped the screen quickly so she wouldn’t have to see the number of calls she’d missed from Alex’s number.

He knew she was gone.

She sighed.

She’d had no doubt that he would eventually figure that out.

But she wasn’t about to talk to him and tell him where she was or what she was doing. At least not until she had some answers.

She went to her contacts and found the name she was looking for. She needed to line up a favor, even though she had no idea if she’d need to cash in on it or not.

Better safe than sorry, she thought. She wanted all of her ducks in a row, just in case.

Her brother answered on the second ring. “Don’t tell me you need another prescription.”

“Hello to you, too,” she said. “And, no, I do not need any more drugs.”

“Good. I still regret writing that.”

Guilt rippled through her. “If it makes you feel better, he barely used it.”

“It doesn’t,” he said bluntly. “It’s the principle of the thing.” He paused. “I assume he’s doing better? If he’s not taking the drugs? Or maybe he’s dead…”

“Miguel!” She inhaled sharply.

“Sorry,” he mumbled.

“Look, I’m not actually calling about Alex,” she said. “I…I have a favor to run by you.”

“Another one?” he asked. “Didn’t writing an opioid prescription for a patient I never saw count as a favor?”

He had her there.

“Yes, but this is something else.” The maps voice directed her to turn at the next street.

“Are you driving?” Miguel asked.

“Yes,” she said, distracted. She couldn’t look at her screen to verify the street number—not with Miguel on the phone—but she thought she remembered it. “This is a different favor. And I’m not sure if I’ll need it.”

“That’s sort of…vague.”

“I know. Just hear me out, okay?” Cam drew in another lungful of air, then slowly expelled it. “I might need a place for someone to stay, and I’m wondering if you could help me out.”

“You want me to be Alex Castillo’s roommate?” He barked out a laugh. “No fucking way, Camila.”

“No, no,” she said. “Not him. A kid. Necco.”

“Necco?”

The idea had come to her last night, too. She knew that if she managed to find this Necco kid, he wasn’t going to be safe staying in Bentley. She wanted to make sure she had a way out for him. Her thoughts immediately went to Alex, and how he’d managed to find his way out of the city—and into a better life—with the help of Mrs. K and her brother. Cam didn’t know the first thing about Necco, but she knew what it was like growing up more on the street than in a home. If she could get him out of that environment and provide him with a safe place to stay, to live…well, it just might be the out he was looking for.

She didn’t know for sure, of course. Necco could turn out to be one of those hardened street kids who had already dedicated their life to the streets and their gang.

But something told Cam that Necco wasn’t like that. After all, he’d helped Alex escape.

“Who the hell is Necco?” Miguel asked. “Isn’t that like a wafer or something?”

Cam almost smiled. Yes, yes it was a candy.

“He’s a kid who helped Alex out,” she told him. “I think he might have some info that will be…helpful.” She chose her words carefully, remembering that her brother didn’t have all the details regarding why Alex had shown up at her house. She needed to keep it that way. If Miguel found out what was going on—and just how much danger Cam might be in—he’d likely blow a gasket.

“And he needs a place to stay in Red Lake?” Miguel asked doubtfully. “Does he know where this place is?”

“He won’t care,” Cam said.

“Trust me, he’ll care.”

Cam lifted her foot off the accelerator as she approached the first house on the dusty country road. She read the street number stenciled to the mailbox parked at the end of a long gravel driveway. 412.

That wasn’t it.

“I don’t have many details yet,” she said to her brother. “I just wanted to touch base with you to see if it might be a possibility.”

“I need a hell of a lot more information before I give you an answer.”

“What if it was life or death?” she said. “Like, if he couldn’t come to you, he might die?”

Miguel’s answer was immediate. “Then you bring him. No questions asked.”

She smiled.

This was the Miguel she knew.

“You’re the best,” she said.

“Wait, what’s going on? What are you not telling me?”

Another house came into view.

“I gotta go,” she said.

“Cam.” His voice was thick with warning.

“I’ll call you later, I promise.” She ended the call.

Glancing at the screen, she noted the address for Travis Bingman. She looked out the windshield, squinting at the black stickers peeling off the mailbox.

It was a match.

She pulled into the dirt and gravel driveway and stared at the house in front of her. It was a doublewide trailer that had been prettied up at one point, with vinyl siding and window boxes and plantation shades framing the windows. But weather and neglect had taken its toll. The cream-colored siding was caked with dirt and dust, and the window boxes were filled with weeds, not flowers. An expansive lawn surrounded the property, and this was an oasis of lush green grass. The beauty of the lawn was a stark contrast to the condition of the house.

Cam pulled the key out of the ignition and picked up her phone one more time. Quickly, she opened her web browser and typed Travis’s name into the search bar. She hit the Images button and a gallery of photos appeared. The first one was of a red-haired man in a police uniform.

She smiled.

That was her guy.

She reached for the door handle to step out of her car just as a large German shepherd came bounding toward her. With its teeth bared, the dog snarled and barked at her and she made the decision to sit tight.

The front door opened and a man stepped out onto the stoop. “Griswald, knock it off!”

The dog turned to look at its owner, then slunk back toward the house. It gave her a couple of backward glances, but the barking stopped.

Cam opened her door and took a cautious step onto the driveway.

Travis Bingman had aged considerably from the photo she’d just looked at online. His thick mop of red hair had disappeared almost completely, and even from the distance she was at, she could tell he hadn’t shaved it intentionally. However, what hair he was missing from his head, he more than made up for with his thick beard and moustache.

“Can I help you?” he called out.

His expression was wary.

She didn’t blame him. He lived on a mostly deserted country road. How many strangers randomly pulled into his driveway?

She offered what she hoped was a friendly looking smile. “You’re Travis, right? Travis Bingman?”

He folded his arms across his chest. He’d put on a significant amount of weight since the photo online. His face, once angular, was now jowly, and his stomach stretched the lower half of the Vikings T-shirt he was wearing.

“Maybe,” he said noncommittally. “Who’s asking?”

“Isabel.” She used the name she always used when she needed an alias. “I’m actually a friend of Alex’s. You remember him?”

Travis cocked his head. “Castillo?”

She nodded.

He immediately straightened. “How do you know Alex?”

“We were friends back in the city.”

He was eyeing her with suspicion.

Rightfully so, considering Alex’s line of work and how deeply undercover he operated.

“I haven’t seen him in a long time.”

Cam nodded. “I’m sure. You left the department last year, right?”

Travis nodded.

“I actually was hoping I could ask you a couple of questions about that,” Cam said.

He frowned. “Why? What does that have to do with Alex?”

“I don’t know that it does,” Cam admitted. It was the angle she was going to work, but she didn’t want to tell him that just yet. She didn’t want to put all her cards on the table, especially if she wasn’t sure he would cooperate.

He readjusted his arms, puffing out his chest a little.

She got the message.

He was going to be a tough nut to crack.

“You were let go?” she asked.

His eyes narrowed. “I resigned.”

“The harassment charge, right?”

He stared stonily at her.

“From what Alex told me, they were trumped-up charges.”

Something flickered in his eyes, but he said nothing.

“He said he thought you were set up.”

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Travis growled. “And when was the last time you saw Castillo?”

She ignored his last question. “Like I said, I have a couple of questions—”

“Yeah, well I’m not answering them,” he barked. “So you better get the hell off my property before I take matters into my own hands. ’Cuz you are trespassing right now.”

Her heart thudded against her chest. His reaction was one she’d considered but hoped she wouldn’t see.

“What did you do to piss your sergeant off?” she asked. “Because he set you up, didn’t he?”

Travis’s eyes bulged. “Are you with the department? They sent you out here, didn’t they?”

Cam shook her head. “No. I swear, I have no connection to Bentley PD. I’m here because…because Alex is in trouble.”

He stilled. “What?”

She couldn’t tell him the truth. But she could give him a few nuggets and hope it would be enough to get some information from him.

“He’s missing,” she told him.

“Missing?” he repeated.

She nodded. “I know he’s been involved with the gangs in Bentley. Undercover.”

Travis maintained a good poker face. His expression gave away nothing.

“I’ve tried to talk to the department, but I can’t get anywhere. I have a feeling they’re not telling me everything, and I’ve got a bad feeling about the sergeant.”

Travis’s mouth tightened.

“I remembered what Alex told me about your case, and I thought I could ask you some questions, see if you might know—”

He cut her off. “I haven’t seen Alex.” His words were terse, but his tone wasn’t nearly as antagonistic.

She tried to look dejected. “That’s sort of what I thought you might say.” She sighed. “I have one other lead. A person he mentioned a couple of times. A kid. Necco is his name, I think?”

Travis offered a grim smile. “Yeah, Necco.”

Hope blossomed in Cam’s chest. “You know him?”

Travis shrugged. “Sure. Had a few run-ins with him, but Castillo always insisted he was a good kid.”

Cam tried to keep her voice calm even though she was reeling with excitement. This was the break she needed; she could feel it.

“Any idea what his real name is? What he looks like?”

Travis unfolded his arms. “Name was Curtis…last name isn’t coming to me. Maybe Myron? Started with an M.”

Curtis. He didn’t have a lock on the last name, but at least it was something.

“What did he look like?”

“Well, I haven’t seen him in a year,” Travis said. “Who knows what he looks like now? But he always wore a hat. Magic.”

Cam nodded. She knew that much. “What do you remember?” she pressed. Because anything would be helpful compared to what she currently had—which was pretty much nothing.

“He was tall and skinny,” Travis said. “A couple people called him Slim, but it never stuck. He was just Necco.”

“Why? Why that nickname?”

Travis chuckled. “That kid was always sucking down Necco candies. Nasty shit, if you ask me. But he was always lifting a few packages from the store. They’d last him a day or two, and then he’d be back for more.”

“Did you ever arrest him for shoplifting?”

“Owner never wanted to press charges.”

“Why not?”

“Guess he figured it was a small price to pay to stay on Necco’s good side. Especially since everyone knew he had ties to La Gente.”

“Is he a member?”

“Nah,” Travis said, shaking his head. “At least he wasn’t back then. Just a wannabe. He liked to pretend he was, loved to talk shit, but at the end of the day he was just a punk-ass kid.”

A punk-ass kid who had saved Alex’s life.

But Cam didn’t say that.

“And you think he’s still in Bentley, right?”

“No idea. I haven’t been in town in over a year.” He blew out a breath. “I avoid it like the plague.”

She could understand why. A part of her wanted to stay and talk more with Travis. She wanted to dig a little deeper into his story, see just what she could unearth in regard to the harassment case that had ended his career.

But finding Necco had to take priority.

“I’d love to come by later today and chat more with you, if I could,” she told him.

“About what?”

“Just about what happened to you.”

“Why?” His eyes raked over her, the suspicion back. “Who are you?”

“No one,” she said simply. “But you were a friend to Alex. And any friend of Alex is a friend of mine.”

He sucked in his cheeks, and she could tell he was mulling over her words.

“Is it okay if I come by later?” she asked.

He stared at her, eventually giving a slight nod.

“I’ll do that,” she said. “Just as soon as I find Necco. I’ll be back.”

She turned to go.

“Hey, wait.”

She spun around.

Travis’s hands were shoved in the pockets of his baggy jeans. “What’s up with Alex?” He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down. “He in some sort of trouble?”

“I don’t know.” It was another lie, but it was the only thing she could tell him. “But I intend to find out.”