“Silly boy,” Mom said. “You think she didn’t have a hand in this?”
Had I spoken out loud?
She exhaled, disgust crawling across her features.
“You’ll learn. You can’t trust a Wolfe.”
3
Margo
Some people come back from unconsciousness slowly, one sense at a time. Hearing, smell, taste. Drifting out of a slumber-like state peacefully.
Not me.
I rush into awareness like I’m bursting from underwater, gasping for air.
And the next thing to hit me?
Memories.
They burn through my mind, one after another, a flipbook of information.
It hurts. I cry out as I relive it.
Someone grabs my arm, threading their fingers through mine. They squeeze my hand, but I’m inconsolable. The truth is blinding, but I finally have answers.
I remember.
4
Caleb
I curl my fingers into the black hat on my lap. It’s hard not to critique Eli’s driving, because we’ve been going in circles for hours. Literally and figuratively.
Eli pried the entire story out of me, piece by piece. At some points, I let information go willingly. But others… He slowed the truck, and out my secrets came.
They float between us, suffocating me.
“So your folks hate Margo because of something her dad did.”
“Basically.”
“And your mom just… left.”
I sigh. “She went upstate. To some sort of… I don’t know. She called it a grieving retreat, but I’m pretty sure it was a resort.”
“Oh, Lydia.” Eli scowls. “And meanwhile, you were being used as a punching bag for your uncle.”
“He’s a twisted fucker,” I mutter.
“Karma will get him.” He’s confident in that assessment, but he’s wrong. Rich men don’t often bow to fate. They’re the exception to the rule.
My phone beeps.
Matt: Got it. Call me.
I flash the screen at Eli and dial Matt’s number.
Without saying hello, he says, “I found her location. Or, last known location. There’s no way to know if she’s still there, since her phone is off, but—”
“An address,” I snap.
“Easy, man, I was getting to that. You know the old bunkers on Columbus?”
Eli scoffs. “Who would take her there?”
Matt pauses. “I didn’t know you had company.”
“It’s Eli. Just get on with it.” I rub at my face. I feel as helpless as ten-year-old Caleb, letting someone else find Margo.
“I think she’s there. It makes sense when I analyze the data, you know? Her last cell ping was actually pretty close to that—which doesn’t make sense—but then her phone went off. And it’s the only remote place in the area. Plus, I hacked into a satellite, and it’s showing that there’s a car parked outside one of the barns.” He clears his throat. “So, yeah. I’d start there.”
“Fuck,” Eli says after I hang up. “What if we actually find her?”
“What?”
“The detective seems to think you’re involved, so…”
I lurch. “Oh my god, I didn’t even think to ask about her foster dad. She’s going to kill me.”
The truck speeds up, flying out of Rose Hill and toward a sort of no-man’s-land between there and Stone Ridge. Rumor has it this area is haunted, but every story is different. Some say the owner of the bunkers went crazy and locked people in, convinced it was the end of the world. Others are convinced we had a cult on our hands, and it was mass suicide.
Eli turns onto a gravel road. The bunkers are in the distance, the roof of a storage barn just visible over the hill. It’s swampy, dark muddy water on either side of the road. Feeble stalks poke out, waving in the wind.
He stops the truck just shy of the top of the hill. “What if they’re there?”
I laugh. “You’re asking me this now?”
“I mean, they could be armed.”
“That’s not stopping me.”
He sighs. “Fine. Don’t say I didn’t warn you…”
We crest the hill.
Nothing.
A barn and a low concrete building, and a whole lot of nada. Matt said there would be a car here, but this place looks abandoned.
“Fuck!” I yell.
“Chill out.” Eli pulls his truck around and puts it in park. “She could still be in there.”
I shove all my emotions down. I can’t afford to be hopeful or nervous or… terrified. We’re going to be smart about this. Logic over emotions. I want to burst into the buildings, scream her name, get her back. But that might get all of us killed.
What are the chances her kidnappers left her alone?
I find the folded knife he keeps in his glove box and flip it open. “You check the bunker. I’ll take the barn.”
We hop out and split up. The barn is old. It creaks and rattles in the wind. There’s a chain on the sliding doors, so I circle around. If someone got her in here…
I discover a door in the back. The knob is locked, but that’s easier to deal with than a chained sliding door. I take a step back and kick.
It flies open, banging against the wall.
This door leads into what appears to be an old office. There’s a desk in the corner, heavily tilting to one side. Thick dust covers everything. I creep through the door, into the main part of the barn. My eyes go to the hay stacked along one wall. The debris on the dirt floor.
And then…
“Margo!” I yell, sprinting for her.
She’s on the ground. On her side.
Her hair covers her face, and her hands are bound in front of her with duct tape. Her ankles are bound, too.
I fall to my knees in front of her, slowly pushing the hair from her face. Her eyes are closed. There’s a gash on her head, the blood sticky. It must’ve ran for some time, because it’s everywhere. All down her face, neck, soaked up in her shirt.
No jacket.
No shoes.
“Margo,” I whisper, rolling her onto her back.
She groans.
My heart jumps. She’s alive. That’s all the confirmation I need.
I pick her up, making sure her head is cradled on my chest, and head for the door. I’m a mix of emotions: furious at Unknown, if they were behind her abduction or simply taking credit for it. And so damn happy that I found Margo. In one piece.
I almost crash into Eli in the doorway.
“I got nothing—holy shit, you found her.” Eli stares at her. “What happened?”
I grunt. If I think about her injuries—I’m sure there are more than just the gash on her head—I’ll see red. So instead, I focus on the truck.
“Let’s hope it was just the car accident and not… something else.”
Eli hauls open the back door for me. I climb in without releasing her, holding her close.
“Turn up the heat,” I order. “She’s freezing.”
He complies, and then we’re on our way. He meets my gaze in the mirror. “Hospital, I’m assuming?”