“Sweetie, it was only a divorce dispute. Furniture, that kind of thing. There aren’t dangerous thieves around.”
He visibly deflated, his shoulders lowering from around his ears to their normal place. Determined to change the subject, Lily unlocked the apartment and said, “Barbara texted that she took you two to the library. Did you get anything good?”
His backpack rubbed against his shirt, signaling a shrug.
Desperate to take his mind off the cop, Lily almost mentioned her own night out and had to snap her mouth closed on the idea as she locked the apartment door behind them. She couldn’t believe that had been just tonight, just an hour ago. She’d had so much fun. A handsome man had flirted with her. She’d felt freer than she had in a long time.
And now her past was back, stomping her down again. What if Jones was back too?
No. She wasn’t scared of him, not physically, but she felt terrified all the same. Because what the hell did he want?
“Where were you?” Everett asked, glancing at her purse as she set it on the table.
Jesus, what a time for him to actually start paying attention. “I, uh, went out to dinner.”
He frowned. “By yourself?”
“No.”
His frown deepened. “With who, then?”
“Just . . . just a new customer I ran into. He’s in town for a couple of weeks taking care of some things for his uncle. He was by himself and asked me to . . .”
His frown went crooked. “So you were on a date?”
Lily blanched. “No! We had dinner at Mia’s. That’s all. Then I came home. Obviously, because I’m right here.”
“You’re allowed to date,” he grumbled. “I was just worried about the police.” He glanced at her, eyes narrowed a bit. “Was it about Dad?”
“Dad? Everett, why are you asking that?”
“Because he’s wanted by the police?” he snapped back.
She squeezed her eyes shut. Yes, it had been a stupid question, but Everett seemed more and more on edge these days. “I’m sorry,” she said in the most even voice she could muster. “I already told you the police were here about some missing items. It wasn’t about your dad,” she added, lying through her teeth. “Ev, are you doing okay?”
“Yes,” he said, but that was all.
“Do you . . . do you want to talk about your dad?” God, she hoped he said no.
He did, thank God.
Lily let out a long sigh. He could have been more polite, but the truth was he had a right to be snippy. And he wasn’t even wrong. Detective Mendelson had been here about his dad. Oh, he was using Amber as an excuse, but he’d obviously caught Jones’s scent. Because Jones was here.
No. No, she didn’t know that. He couldn’t be here. If he’d buried a bunch of money in the backyard, that would certainly be a reason to stop by but definitely not a reason to stay. He wouldn’t risk that.
Maybe seeing their old house had made him think more of Everett. Maybe even someone like Jones had regrets, and that’s why he’d phoned only a month after the last call.
She needed to think this through. “I’m going to take a bath. Unless you wanted to watch a movie?”
Everett shook his head, looking sorry now, his head ducked low. She knew this wasn’t easy for him. He probably felt lost, unable to control his life or any of the adults in it. She could understand that because she felt the same.
If she had a number for Jones, she’d call him. Demand to know what he was doing and where he was. But for now, all she could do was sift through the rubble of his destruction and try to interpret the pieces. He’d never given her any answers before, and he definitely wasn’t going to start now.
CHAPTER 16
He’d tried to have fun with Josephine tonight, but anytime he relaxed just a little, his brain would jolt back to anticipation. You need to get home. You need to check your messages. Your dad is waiting.
He kept telling his brain to shut up. Dad hadn’t been on Discord this morning or this afternoon, and Everett didn’t want to get his hopes up, because maybe he’d walked away again.
When he did manage to tamp down his own thoughts, he would eventually relax, and then his brain would escape his control and snap right back to Dad again.
He and Josephine had gone to the library to look up school yearbooks, and they’d found all the girls, even Tiffany Miller. But Everett had barely been able to pay attention. He’d just wanted to be back at his computer.
A soft metal click told him his mom had locked the bathroom door; then the rushing roar of the pipes filled the hallway when she turned on the tap. Everett raced to the desk and dropped into the chair to log on.
He hated himself for doing it. Hated that hope buzzed through his muscles. And he really, really hated that he still believed his dad would show up.
But then . . . he did.
Hey, LM, it’s me.
LM. Little man. It was a code, kind of, that didn’t give him away. Everett flushed hot all the way to his scalp. He checked the timestamp.
The message had come in only one hour before, and Everett felt furiously glad that he hadn’t stayed home all afternoon waiting for it. What was his dad busy with, anyway? Stealing cars and robbing old people?
Feeling immediately bad for that, he shook his head as he checked his dad’s username. It was just a bunch of letters and numbers. Everett added him as a friend.
You still there? he messaged back, unwilling to act excited to finally hear from him. When the rush of the pipes abruptly cut off, Everett jerked back in fear, then craned his neck toward the bathroom. He waited, holding his breath, until he heard the faint shushing sound of his mom shifting in the water.
He’d just relaxed back in his chair when a new message arrived. Yes! Still here! Sorry it took so long. Things are complicated, and I had to find a safe place to stay.
Where are you? Everett wanted to ask, but he knew his dad couldn’t give that away. So he typed, Is everything ok? instead.
Everything is great. I’m talking to you!!!
Everett couldn’t stop the smile that popped onto his face. He didn’t even want to. His dad hadn’t disappeared again. He’d kept his promise. It was a small thing, maybe, but it was something good.
Another message arrived. Can you talk on the phone? Or here on Discord?
I can’t, he wrote back with a glance toward the bathroom. Not alone.
Got it. No worries. I’ve been feeling guilty about the call anyway.
Why?
You’re too young for me to ask you to keep a secret this big.
That’s not true, he wrote back immediately.
His dad sent a winky face. Oh, you’ve got practice already, huh?
Everett pressed his lips hard together at that. He could tell his dad about the lockers. Tell him what he found. The missing girls and his suspicions. But when the words formed in his head, they sounded like a dumb campfire story.
But he did know how to keep a secret. I didn’t tell her you called, he said. I wouldn’t.
Thank you, LM. I’ve missed you a lot.
Everett felt so full of happiness he had to wait until the shaking of his fingers eased so he could type back. I’ve missed you too, Dad. He backed up the cursor and erased “Dad” so there’d be no evidence. I’ve missed you too. A lot. Where have you been?
All over really.
Other countries?
Sure. Brazil. Costa Rica. Dollars go a long way in some of those small villages! It’s not so bad, but it’s lonely.
He was sweating a little, his armpits prickling strangely under his shirt. It should be nice talking to his father, but instead it felt like time was slipping away, and he wanted to hold tight to it like a rope.
Are you ever coming back? He typed that, then stared at it for a long moment, afraid to send it, afraid for the answer. He tapped the RETURN key, then squinted his eyes mostly shut as if that would shield him from the reply.
If I did . . . , his dad responded quickly, would you see me?
A strange laugh popped from Everett’s throat at that. Yes! Of course!
His dad sent another winking emoji. I’ll hold you to it!
Deal, Everett responded. Then he carefully typed, That would be so cool. If you could do that.
Maybe I could.