Senora pulled into the hotel parking lot, letting out a huge sigh as she parked. She turned to Ty, who was maddeningly calm in the passenger seat, completely unbothered by what had just happened.
“How much time do you think we have?” Senora asked.
Ty shrugged.
“The Sheriff isn’t known for his quick wit, so I would say about an hour before they come looking for us, if that.”
Senora nodded.
“Do you have any idea what’s happening? Why would that woman choose to die over telling us what she knows? That doesn’t make sense.”
“Nothing about Addie’s disappearance and death make sense.”
“At least we agree on that.”
“Are you going to call J?”
“And tell him what? That a witness killed themselves rather than talk to me and I stole confidential files from her office? I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“I definitely wouldn’t spend too much time dwelling on it. Why are we here?”
“I’m going to grab my overnight bag so we can leave.”
“You’re packed already?”
“I always pack up every day before I leave for the day, no matter what. Most of the time, I bring my bag with me, but I was in a rush this morning and didn’t really think about it. I only had a few interviews to conduct.”
“Things changed pretty fast.”
“You’re telling me. I’ll leave the car running, and I’ll be right back.”
Ty shook his head.
“I’ll come with you. There’s no telling if there’s someone waiting for you here or not. Robin could have made a call before she took her life, or sent a text. She was scared, but I think most of her fear came from not knowing who she could trust. And we have no idea where Clara went.”
“This is such a mess. How many secrets can a town this small have?”
“It only takes one good one,” Ty offered.
“You sure are calm about all this.”
“Panicking solves nothing.”
Senora rolled her eyes.
“Let’s get going. I think we need to leave town and regroup.”
She grabbed the file, stuffed it into her backpack and slung the pack over her shoulder. Leading the way, she took the stairs two at a time and pulled out her key card.
“Where do you think we’re going to go that they can’t find us?” he said when they were in the room with the door closed.
“I don’t know. I was hoping that you had an idea.”
“I do, but I don’t think you’re going to like it.”
Senora went to the closet, about to grab her overnight bag, when Ty stopped and put his finger to his lips. She froze, watching him move quickly and silently to the curtain by the front window. He moved it carefully and let it drop back in almost the same instant.
“I overestimated the amount of time we had,” he said. “We need to leave. Leave your stuff here.”
She nodded, putting her laptop and its charger into her backpack and zipping it closed. She had everything she needed on her back. Everything else was just creature comforts that were replaceable.
“Come this way,” Ty said, leading her to the back of the room. He looked out the window and looked back at her. “You’re not afraid of heights, are you?” he asked sheepishly.
“That drop-off is steep,” she said. “And there’s nothing but woods back there.”
“I know. It’s perfect. Come on, I’ll help you.”
His offer rankled, but they didn’t have time for her to remind him that she wasn’t some damsel in distress. She could handle herself.
He opened the window quickly, holding his hand out to her.
“I’ll lower you as far as I can so it’s not so far to fall.”
“Alright,” she said, her throat going dry at the thought.
It wasn’t horribly high, but the ground dropped on the back side of the hotel and the second story room was much further from the ground on this side of the hotel than on the front. It was a bit of a drop, even if it was more than survivable. She grabbed his hand and crawled out the window. He lowered her over the edge, leaning over as far as he could before he stopped and looked into her eyes.
“You’ve got this. Let your joints bend and tuck and roll to your right as soon as your feet touch the ground.”
“Got it,” she said, though she didn’t feel nearly as sure of herself as her tone suggested.
Ty let go, and for a moment, Senora wanted nothing more than to reach out and grab him in midair rather than let her body fall through the air. She did as he said, relaxing in spite of her fear and rolling right as she hit the ground. The landing still jarred her body, but she rolled into it, tumbling down the hill for several yards before she came to a stop.
Before she could get to her feet, Ty was at her side, pulling her up and dashing toward the forest behind the hotel without asking if she was injured. She took off after him, relieved when there were no broken bones and no hint of pain. When the adrenaline wore off, it might be a different story, but for now, she was good to go.
They covered the distance between the hotel and the edge of the forest quickly, but Senora still waited for the shoot from the hotel, and the slam of a bullet into her back.
Don’t be dramatic; the Sheriff isn’t going to just shoot us, she thought, but she didn’t feel any better until they burst through the tree line and into the darkness.
The air was stale and heavy, the breeze that pushed the sizzling air around too weak to penetrate the dense forest. They turned, crouching down low and watching the hotel in the distance.
“Are you alright?” Ty asked.
“Now you ask? What if my leg was broken and you just yanked me onto my feet like that?”
Ty chuckled under his breath.
“So, you’re fine,” he stated.
“I’m fine, no thanks to you.”
“Wait, I’m the one that saved your life just now. You were going to putz around the hotel room for another thirty minutes, and you would have been caught.”
She shot him a look, but he was focused on the hotel.
“How did you land so quietly beside me? I didn’t even hear you hit the ground.”
“That’s because you were too busy tumbling down the hill.”
Senora scoffed, but movement in the hotel caught her eye before she responded.
“They looked out the window,” Senora whispered.
“No need to whisper; they can’t hear you,” Ty said, still chuckling. “They’ll assume we went around the front.”
“Even with the back-window open?” she wondered.
“I closed it before I jumped.”
“What?” she said in shock, her expression incredulous. “How did you-”
“There was a ledge, and I held one of the rafters above my head. It took two seconds, though I couldn’t lock it from the outside.”
Senora shook her head.
“I don’t see how that’s possible.”
He shrugged.
“You can see the window as well as I can. Does it look closed?”
She scowled.
“I already saw that it was closed,” she admitted. “You’re insanely limber for a man your size.”
He smiled.
“Thank you.”
“It wasn’t a compliment.”
She was still watching the hotel, and even through the closed drapes, she knew they were tossing her room and going through her overnight bag.
“It’s only a matter of time before they realize that I am not coming back for my bag,” she said. “We should get going. Eventually, they’re going to realize that we went this way and come after us.”
“They won’t.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“You’ll see.”
“Do you ever just say what you mean without resorting to speaking in riddles?”
“All the time, but this is more fun.”
“You’re exasperating.”
“And you’re beautiful when you’re mad, and you just fell two stories to the ground.”
His lips brushed her cheek so fast that she didn’t have a chance to step back. Her skin burned where he’d kissed her almost impulsively. Her hand went to the spot, and she looked at him, shocked by the gesture.
“What was that for?”
“For being so brave. You’re amazing.”
“I’m a Federal Agent.”
“And a damn good one. Now, let’s get going. We have a lot of ground to cover before they bring out the four-wheelers and get serious about finding us.”
“Four-wheelers?”
“They won’t get here in time unless we stand around talking all day.”
She narrowed her eyes, and he laughed, then started walking deeper into the woods without waiting to see if she was going to follow. She watched him for a moment then fell into step behind him, jogging to keep up with his long stride every few yards.
“I can slow down,” he offered.
“I’ll manage. At least there’s a breeze on this part of the trail.”
“There’s a reason for that,” he said.
The tone of his voice set her on edge. He sounded amused, and so far, that hadn’t boded well for Senora.
She heard the raging waters before she saw anything. When he stopped, she moved to the side to stand beside him only to have his arm shoot out and grab her.
“What?” she said, then she caught sight of the ledge before them, and her eyes trailed down the steep cliff until she saw the river below. “We’re trapped. There’s no way we can get down that.”
“Yes, we can,” he said. “Just go where I go and step where I step.”
She shook her head.
“There has to be a better way.”
“This is the only way.” He pointed to a narrow wooden bridge that ran across the river to the other side. “We must be on the other side of the river before they find us or we’re screwed.”
“What’s on the other side of the river?”
“Immunity.”