One of Those Faces (43)

“What makes you say that?” Wilder asked, pulling a pack of gum from his front pocket.

I shrugged. “It just seems like something a man would do.”

“Which part?”

“Going around and strangling women.”

“What makes you think they were strangled?” he asked.

This wasn’t an interrogation, right? Surely police didn’t make house calls for those. “I saw an article. The person who found Holly’s body said she’d been choked.”

He nodded.

“Didn’t anyone else see anything that night?”

He glanced around the apartment. “Everyone was either asleep or out.” He turned back to me before standing up. “I really want to help you if you’re in trouble of some kind. But you have to tell me.”

I held his gaze. “There’s no trouble. Really.”

He stared at me for a moment longer. “Okay. Then you’re going to keep hearing from me until this is solved.”

A promise? A threat?





CHAPTER TWENTY


The next morning when Iann woke beside me, I pretended to be asleep, keeping my eyes closed as he kissed me on the forehead before walking to the bathroom and shutting the door behind him. I opened my eyes and stretched as the door opened, and he walked past me back to his side of the bed.

“Oh, you woke up?” he asked, pulling his wrinkled button-up shirt over his bare shoulders and rubbing his bloodshot eyes.

I glanced out the window at the first rays of sunlight creeping in. “Do you have class this morning?”

He finished securing the last button and sat down beside me. “No, I have clinic hours first today.” He met my eyes. “Is everything okay?” he said after scanning my face for a moment.

I relaxed my forehead. “Yeah, I just still feel bad . . .” About everything. “About the other day.” It was half-true. I still felt bad about what I’d done to him, but I could get over that. I couldn’t get over the other things. The pendant. The rabbit’s foot. Sarah. Sam. Holly. That other girl. The lighter.

Iann frowned. “Me too.”

“Today’s your actual birthday, right?”

He looked surprised. “Yeah.”

“I’ll take you out tonight to celebrate.”

One side of his mouth attempted a smile. “You already gave me my gift and everything. I’m good.”

“I know it’s not the same, but . . .”

He stood up from the bed. “It’s not about my birthday, Harper,” he said. “That’s not why I was angry. It’s fine. Really.”

He grabbed his car keys from the nightstand. “I’ll see you later,” he said without turning around.

If he knew the real reasons I was holding back so much, maybe he could understand. Or maybe he would want out. I was already sacrificing the few pieces of myself that remained intact with this relationship. But I couldn’t entirely part with this barrier. It had served me well over the years. And as much as I liked Iann, I couldn’t be sure if he was worth giving that up. One day he’ll see you. Truly see you.

Yes, one day he would. It was inevitable.

And then he’ll leave. The more unanswered questions that emerged each day made me less certain if I could really keep this up with Iann. And the more certain I became that I was losing myself. I didn’t recognize half the things I was doing anymore.

But I knew I couldn’t do nothing.

I pulled out my phone and opened my text chat with Danny. I hadn’t reached out to him since our first exchange. I called the number, and the line only rang once.

“This is Danny,” he droned, the loud clacking of a keyboard in the background.

“That was fast. I guess it’s all hands on deck there, huh?” I said.

The typing stopped. “Harper?” he asked.

“Yeah, sorry to bother you at work.”

“No, not at all. I’m glad you called. Did you ditch that imaginary boyfriend of yours?”

“Actually, I was calling to see if you could help me figure out how to research some stuff?”

“Okay . . .” He drew out the word in a long breath. “What kind of stuff?”

I paused. I had no idea how to explain.

“It’s fine. Is there coffee?”

“What?” I asked.

“I’ll help you,” he continued, “but will there be coffee?”

I smiled. “Of course.”

He laughed. That sweet music. “Perfect, I’m in.”



That familiar heat spread throughout my limbs when I saw him. I had raced across town after the studio to meet him tonight. He sat at the table closest to the window, his hair glinting in the fading sunlight. The first couple of buttons of his blue shirt were open, and his sloppily rolled sleeves slid down his arms as he typed on his laptop. He looked up and smiled when he saw me approaching, waving me over.

“There she is,” he announced as I sat down. “So, what are we researching, and will it bring the FBI down upon us?” He hadn’t changed at all. It was impossible to feel uncomfortable around him.

I put my hand to my chin. “Probably not,” I said, mockingly. “Let me get you that coffee I promised first.” I motioned to the waitress bringing a cup of water to the table beside us. “Can I get two coffees, please?” She nodded, her eyes lingering on Danny as she walked by. “Thanks for meeting me,” I said, glancing out the window at the river across the street.