“I don’t think you understand what’s going on here, Kate,” Tom said. “Someone doesn’t want you to find answers. After you called me and asked about a job here at the San Francisco branch, we started getting warnings.”
“What do you mean, warnings?” Ryan asked.
“Anonymous phone calls, mostly,” Kari answered. “They never referenced your name, Kate, but they said to keep what we knew about the nursing home to ourselves. That it would be in Tom’s best interest not to be involved if word of the study leaked.”
“Then why did you suggest I see a lawyer?”
Tom sighed. “I wanted to help. I saw how frustrated you were. I thought maybe if you could find the answers on your own, if I wasn’t directly involved, it wouldn’t hurt to give you a little push. I didn’t know the lawyer you picked was going to recognize you.”
So Kate was the link. If she hadn’t come to San Francisco, if she’d never called Simone and scheduled that appointment, if Simone hadn’t recognized her, it was likely none of this would be happening now. The lies would still be truth.
Ryan looked to Kari. “Did anyone else visit Katie at the nursing home, that you know of?”
Kari bit her lip. “There was another man, older, white hair, large build. And a young woman once that I remember. Other than that, I’m not sure. Kate was there for a long time, though.”
An older man and a young woman. That could be anyone.
“I’m not much help, I’m afraid,” Kari said softly. “My memories from that time are pretty vague.”
The anger seeped out, was replaced by a weary disappointment. Everything Kate discovered just seemed to confuse her more. She was learning the how but not the why.
“No.” Kate blinked back frustrated tears. “You’ve been a big help.”
“Kate.” Tom stepped around the couch.
Out of the corner of her eye, Kate caught Ryan’s tense shoulders, the way his arms dropped to his side in a protective measure. She held out a hand to stop him and glanced at Tom. “What?”
“If I’d known what was really going on, I wouldn’t have kept quiet. I thought Jake was on the up and up. After your press conference the other day, I knew I needed to find you. To tell you what I knew. I’ve been trying to get hold of you since.”
So many lies. Every time she turned around, there seemed to be one more, smacking her in the face. She wasn’t sure what to believe anymore. “I need to find the answers, Tom. I’m not going to stop until I do.”
“I’m not so sure that’s a good idea.”
“Nothing’s going to happen to her,” Ryan interjected firmly from across the room. “If anyone tries to hurt her, they’ll have to get through me first.”
There was a warning laced through his words that had both Kate and Tom turning. A muscle in Ryan’s jaw twitched. His eyes hinted of vengeance.
Tom nodded and glanced back at his wife. “I know how you feel. If there’s anything we can do, let us know. We want to help.”
Sweat trickled down Kate’s back under Ryan’s intense gaze. She could see he was serious, that he’d take on anyone who came after her.
And for reasons she couldn’t explain, that knowledge scared her more than what the truth held.
***
“We’ve been driving around for an hour, sweetheart,” Mitch complained from the passenger seat of Simone’s rented SUV. He flipped the map in his lap, studied street signs, then glanced back down. “Your sense of direction’s crap.”
Simone shot him a less-than-amused look. She was still having trouble dealing with the fact he’d changed his work plans and pushed his way onto this trip with her. Not only was he now seated beside her as they searched for Walter Alexander’s home in the suburbs of Vancouver, he’d waited patiently while she’d finished her business in Seattle. Hadn’t even complained once. She knew he was supposed to be at the Queen Charlotte Sound site doing whatever work an engineering geologist does, but every time she’d brought it up, he’d brushed her off and told her he was right where he was supposed to be.
What kind of man did that?
One who’s crazy about you.
Her pulse picked up speed, and her hands grew sweaty against the wheel.
A minivan? He was clearly certifiable. Problem was, the idea didn’t sound as insane to her as it had before. Which meant he’d sucked her into his alternate reality and that she was certifiable