“Are you okay?” Jared asks when I don’t answer his question.

“I’m good. I was just, uh, I came over here to have dinner with Dave and Leah.” I cup my hand over the tracker. It’s not very large, but it’s also not completely covered by my hand. Dear god, don’t let him shine his light in my lap.

“It’s after midnight.”

“Oh my gosh, is it? I had a glass of wine with dinner and I was just out here . . . thinking and I must have fallen asleep.” I rub my eyes with one hand, the one not covering the tracker, to avoid meeting his gaze.

“Is your car not running again? Didn’t you guys just get a new one? Do you want me to take a look at it tomorrow?”

I swallow. I’m in Tabby’s car. Of course, he would offer to fix my car instead of wondering what the hell I’m doing and why. Why does he trust me so much?

“Yeah, well, it’s already in the shop so Tabby let me borrow her car.”

He leans down, inches from my face, his eyes serious, and I’m pretty sure he’s going to call me out on my crappy lies. “I’m glad you’re here.”

“You are?” Because you’re going to arrest me now?

“I’ve always wanted to make out in the back of the cruiser.”

A bark of laughter escapes me, releasing some of my nerves. “I’ll meet you there in two minutes.”

As soon as he walks away, I let out a sigh of relief and hide the tracker under the seat.

Thirty minutes later, we’ve steamed up the windows in the police cruiser and he’s handing me back my shirt. “Is this new?”

“No.” It’s just a plain, black T-shirt. I haven’t worn it until now because it’s too hot in June to be wearing black during the day.

He then hands me my pants, which are also black.

“Are you sure you weren’t out here going to a funeral?” he teases, his voice light.

I laugh. “I guess I got dressed tonight without really looking at what I was putting on.”

“Did you have a nice dinner with David and Leah?”

I don’t answer for a moment, pulling my shirt over my head. “Yeah, it was good.”

“Paige didn’t want to come?” He’s buttoning up his uniform. He didn’t have to take off as much as I did.

“No, she, uh, wanted to chill at home.”

“That doesn’t really seem like her.”

“Oh, well, you know. Teenagers.” I roll my eyes. “She’s getting to that age.”

“I guess. I better get back to work.” He’s finished getting his uniform buttoned up and he leans over to kiss me on the lips.

It’s not until I’m back in Tabby’s car and driving home that I wonder what he was doing in their neighborhood. It’s not normally where he patrols, since it’s a residential area. Unless he was out on a call . . . I shake my head to clear away the thought. I’m seeing conspiracies everywhere.

 

 

 

~*~

 

 

 

The next morning, I wake up bright and early and head back to the parents’ house.

Time to go Chuck Norris on their asses.

It’s still early in the morning when I knock on their door. Now I’m the one coming after them. Part of my plan involves the element of surprise. I’ve never stood up to them before, ever. I’ve never been one to talk back to them or even suggest anything. They’ve always had me in my place. Well, no longer.

I alternate knocking and ringing the bell for about five minutes until the door finally opens.

“Good morning,” I say brightly.

Mother is in a robe and slippers, her hair tied up in a messy knot and a sleeping mask pushed up on her forehead.

They never were morning people.

“What are you doing here?”

“Today’s my deadline. Remember?” I walk past her into the house.

“And you’re so anxious to turn over lover boy’s money that you had to show up first thing?” Father asks from the staircase. He’s also in a robe, just from bed, his hair a scruffy mess.

It’s odd to see them this way, not all put together and perfect—sort of vulnerable. It almost makes them look human.

The inside of the house is as nice as it looks on the outside. Furnished, but entirely too homey for them. Overstuffed couches in the living room. Flowers on the dining table. The walls are painted a cheery, pale yellow.

“Actually no. I’m here to offer you a deal.”

Father’s face flushes. “We don’t want a deal. We told you what we want.”

“If you leave town today, I’ll give you ten thousand dollars, plus another two thousand a month for the next five years.” It’s all bluster. I know they won’t take it, but I need to figure out what they will take and stall them with it.

Mother laughs. “Do we look like a bank? Your offer is ridiculous and you know it. We want a payout now. We’re not going to wait any longer.”

And there it is, confirmation that they can’t wait any longer. Hence the rushing and the pushing. What do they really want? Jared’s money? Is that my only leverage?

Time to test my theory.

“I get it. But no matter what you want, there’s not enough time to run a real con here. Ruby will be back and we’ll have to be gone before then. We need to start over somewhere else. Paige and I will go with you and pay you back and do what you want to get your money.”

As if. Come on, come on, call my bluff.

“No, no, no.” Mother shakes her head. “No new deals. We know what we want, and you’re going to give it to us one way or another.”

“Fine. But I still need more time.”

“You’re stalling us on purpose. I bet you have those numbers already.”

Of course I am. But it’s what they’d expect from me at this point—I’ve done a lousy job of hiding my feelings for Jared. I stay silent for a moment, letting the conversation cool. “I don’t know how you expect me to hand over something I don’t have.”

“I don’t know how you expect us to not take Paige and turn you in. We’ve been lenient up till now. But you’re forcing us to act.”

Annnd time to dangle the bait. “Fine. I have one account number.”

The small one not connected to the others. They’ll need more, but this little taste will give them incentive to wait while I follow them around, unravel their true scheme, and prepare an escape hatch for Paige.

“Come on.” Mother stands and motions me to follow her up the stairs. “We’ll check it out now before you leave to make sure it’s not a trick.”

“I know better than to trick you.”

“I would hope so, by now.”

Father stays downstairs while I follow Mother up. She leads me down a hall and into an office.

“Here.” She points at the computer—a top-of-the-line model—resting on the large oak desk. “Show me the account details.”

“I’m not going to transfer any funds from here.”

“I know. I just want to see it. We have a guy for the transfers.”

A guy who can probably make the transfer untraceable, at least for as long as it takes for them to get what they need and disappear.

It takes a few minutes to pull up the account and while I’m tapping away, I glance around surreptitiously. Is there anything to give away their plans? Of course not. They wouldn’t leave anything lying around.

Father calls out something from downstairs and Mother sighs.

“Don’t touch anything.” As she’s leaving, she stops and bends over by the door, grabbing the document safe, the same one they’ve been carting around my whole life, and leaves with it.

Why did she do that?

She had to realize removing the safe from the room does nothing but bring it to my attention.

Is it a ruse? They want me to think something important is in the safe?

Or maybe something important is actually in there.

I glance around the office again, looking for any clues. But there’s nothing out of place. Except for one of Father’s mint toothpicks on the corner of the desk.

Which might come in handy for what I have planned.

I grab a tissue from a box on the table and pick up the toothpick, shoving it into my bra.

Then I get back to the computer, pulling up the information as quickly as I can, before Mother returns.

I’ve almost reached the right screen when she appears in the doorway.

“Do you have it yet?” She’s still in her robe, but the sleeping mask is gone and her hair is pulled back into a neater bun.

“Um, yeah.” I tap a few more keys and pull up the screen right as she comes around the desk.

There’s a silence so loud it nearly hums as she reads over the information.

“There’s only fifteen thousand in this account.”

I clear my throat. “I guess so.”

“This isn’t nearly enough. We can’t do anything with chump change.”

“Well it’s all I have. I can get the other account numbers. I just need more time.”

“Your father isn’t going to like this.” Her lips press together.

I shrug, turning back to the computer to close out the screens. “I can’t do anything about that.”

She’s quiet for so long I finally turn around and look up at her.

Her eyes meet mine, and something in them softens. “Charlotte, I—”

“Leah!” Father yells from downstairs again. Her fake name, not her real one.

It’s just as well. Whatever she was going to say was probably a load of crap anyway. Something to butter me up, manipulate me somehow. It’s what they do.

I try not to let it bother me. It’s not me, it’s them. I know that.

But it still hurts.

She’s my mother.

I stand up. “I better go. I’ll have to get more information from Jared to keep you guys happy.” The sarcasm leeches into my tone.

She sighs and shuts her eyes, shaking her head. “I’ll talk to your Father. I might be able to get you a few more days. You need to hurry. If we run out of time, you’ll lose everything.”

I nod, watching her closely. More manipulation? Probably. She’s the good cop now.

I leave their house minutes later, feeling a little wobbly but more energized than I have since they showed up. Now to find out what they’re really planning.

 

 

 

~*~

 

 

 

The same night, I park a few blocks away on a cul-de-sac that gets even less traffic than the parents’ street. Maybe this way I can avoid getting caught again by Jared.

It’s only a matter of time. At about ten o’clock, the Mercedes pulls out of the garage like a sleek and silent shark.

They aren’t easy to tail, so having the tracker is invaluable. I follow the little dot on the screen, staying far enough behind them that they won’t even see the lights from Tabby’s car. They follow a familiar road and I know their destination before we’re even halfway there. They’re heading to Castle Cove Park. When the dot stops, I park the car and get out, pulling on a black beanie to cover my hair.

They’ve picked a great place to hide their conversation; it’s too windy to hear much without getting close enough to be spotted. But I have to try.

They’ve left the car in the parking lot next to the little playground. Thankfully, there are trees and bushes I can hide behind and peer around while I stalk their location. They’re at the top of the hill, their backs facing me as they stand side by side.

The wind is blowing in from over the sea and I slink behind them, sticking to the shadows around the trees surrounding the open grassy area. I’m glad I wore all black again; it helps me blend into the shadows.

This might actually work in my favor since the wind throws their words in my direction. Even so, I can only hear bits and pieces.

“She’s not going to . . . account . . . information,” Father says.

“She will if we . . . Paige.”

“I don’t know. She’s changed. She loves him.”

My mouth drops open and I want to protest. I do not love him. I like him. A lot. I greatly admire him. I . . . esteem him. I don’t know, maybe I love him. Dammit.

Mother laughs, the sound full of derision. “She’s an idiot.”

She’s not wrong.

Long seconds pass while they keep talking but I can’t hear any of it.

Then— “It won’t . . . account number or not. We’ll get it ourselves eventually. Especially after we turn her in. You can be the one to help the grieving deputy through this trying time.”

“What if she does . . . ? We need money . . .”

Father shrugs. “We’ll turn her in anyway . . . and Paige. Can’t . . . without her. No one can find out about . . .”

My blood runs colder than the wind over the sea. What do they need Paige for? What can no one find out about?

“Wait and see . . . either way, we’ll get what we want. No one will suspect—”

Their voices jump in volume as they turn and head in my direction. I duck back into the shadows and slide myself around the boulder, keeping out of their line of sight as they move back toward the car.

They drive away while I stay huddled behind the boulder.

They’re going to turn me in anyway? Even if I give them what they want?

Then what’s the point? Why bother with all of these shenanigans? Why didn’t they just take Paige when they had the chance and run?

They need money, and they need me. For what yet, I’m not sure, but there’s got to be a good reason they didn’t just take Paige and run that first night.

What do they want from me?

I need to cast suspicion on them. Turn the tables in my favor. Instead of being the one on the run, I want to send them scampering. I need to find a way to expose them for who they really are without getting caught in the crossfire.

And I have an idea.

I’m going to frame them. Not with something as inglorious as the truth, but by setting them up for a fall.

I step out from behind the boulder and run right into a warm body.