with her foot.
“Let me guess… The machine malfunctioned?”
“Something like that.”
“Nice move. Just be aware that the shift changed ten minutes ago, and the new nurse supervisor’s a real jobsworth. Great if you’re sick, not so good if you’re horny.”
“Is this a social visit?”
“Nope. I came to tell you that Detective Jonas has gone to ground.”
Jonas! That was his name.
“He stole the Nissan Sentra a couple of days ago,” Emmy continued. “Took the keys out of a lady’s purse while she was shopping, then just drove the car out of the parking lot. Nobody’s seen it since. We’ve got a team out canvassing low-end motels and guest houses, but I’m not convinced we’ll find anything. The guy’s a cop, so he knows the places to avoid. I’d put money on him sleeping in the car. That’s what I’d be doing in this situation.”
“Fuck. I was hoping we’d have something concrete by now.”
“Look on the bright side—we’re gathering more information about him. Lara’s not the first woman he’s done this to. There was another one last year, but she was a lot more vocal and put a complaint in.”
“What happened? Did he get a disciplinary?”
Emmy’s hollow laugh bounced off the walls. “You know what cops are like—they stick together. The woman moved out of state, and it all got swept under the carpet. Then Lara rocked up and Jonas had someone new to fixate on.”
“That bastard.”
“How can a police officer get away with that?” I asked.
I’d trusted him, and he’d repaid me by making my life a living hell.
“These guys rarely go from nothing to what he did to you. My bet is that we’ll find more victims as we look back further. The cops in Baysville aren’t being particularly forthcoming, but my new buddy Senator Wilmslow is helping out there. We’ve also tracked down Jonas’s mother. She lives in Indiana, but she hasn’t seen him in four years, and she doesn’t like him much either. She told us he deserves everything he gets.”
“Sounds like there’s a good story there.”
“And the guys from our Indianapolis office are busy ferreting it out. Jonas didn’t seem to have any friends other than his work colleagues. I’ve pulled everyone spare onto this, and we’re doing all we can.”
“Thanks, babe. If he’s still out there, we need to sort out a guard roster for Lara as well. The doc says she can leave tomorrow.”
“Okay. That’s soon. Good, but soon.” Emmy flopped into the chair beside the bed, sucking on her teeth as she stared straight ahead.
Nick grimaced. “Shit.”
“What?” I asked.
“Emmy’s thinking. That’s not always a good thing.”
She sat forward, elbows on her knees. “I do have a bit of an idea.”
“Do I even want to hear this?”
“Probably not, but I’m gonna share it anyway.”
Nick didn’t look thrilled at the prospect. “Go on.”
“What does Jonas want?”
“That’s obvious. Lara.”
“Exactly.”
Six feet two of angry Nick leapt up and glowered at Emmy. “Oh no. No, no, no. A million times no.”
If he shook his head much harder, he’d have a worse concussion than I did.
“Hey, hear me out.”
“We’re not using Lara as bait.”
Bait?
“It could speed things up. Draw him out.”
“No fucking way. I’ll build her a fortress and send everyone in the company out to look for that asshole before I put Lara in the line of fire.”
“Fine.” Emmy leaned back in the seat, tilting her head up to meet Nick’s gaze. “Okay, how about we make him believe Lara’s running around loose? She can stay locked down in Fortress Riverley.”
“Now, that’s a better idea. You’ll do it?”
Nick got a worrying gleam in his eyes as he looked Emmy up and down, and she nodded.
“Better than going to meetings.”
“You’re taller and thinner, but with the right clothes it could work, as long as you’re not seen together.”
“Guys, what are you planning? This is my problem too, and I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
Nick perched beside me and took my hand. “The quickest way to get Jonas to show himself is to make him come to you. Or think he’s coming to you. I’m not risking your safety, so Emmy can take your place.”
“Isn’t that dangerous? I mean, if he could hurt me, he could hurt her too, right?”
And how would I live with myself if someone else got injured because of my mess? It was bad enough that Nick had spent a night in jail without Emmy being stalked by a man who made my skin crawl with fear every time I thought of him.
“Emmy can look after herself.