What Have We Done (43)

The kids barrel out the door. Michael crouches low on the front walk and scoops them up as they hit him running full speed. He twirls them around and around and they giggle and a fragment of Jenna’s heart breaks. He’d always told Jenna that kids were off the table.

It’s then she feels the violent tug of a black bag being forced over her head.





CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

NICO

Nico lies on the hotel room bed, doom-scrolling through his social-media feed. Davis has already hosted a special edition of The Black about the “incident.” His accompanying posts remind everyone that mining is one of the world’s most dangerous jobs.

No shit.

Nico searches hashtags for Maverick to see if there are any photos of him with the mysterious woman who may have drugged him and used his phone to lure Nico to Mine B. Nico never got a good look at the woman. But Maverick said she was young, hot. Who is she? And what in the hell was that weapon? His shoulder still throbs. He hasn’t taken the pain meds since this morning. He doesn’t like how they make him feel. He gets his high from putting it all down on black or 100-to-1 odds.

His thoughts go to Natalie—the FBI asking her questions at her school. He’s feeling a flight instinct. Should he go to Ben’s funeral tomorrow? It’s risky. But he owes it to Ben.

He leans back, puts his hands under his pillow. His thoughts drift to Ben and one of the nights that changed all their lives.…

“Have you seen Annie?” Nico asks Jenna. She’s washing dishes finishing her chores, which are on the schedule Mr. Brood tacks up on a bulletin board every Friday to ruin their weekends.

Jenna shakes her head, suds crawling up her arms from dinner duty for the younger kids.

Nico thought he’d blown it with Annie after the park incident. Watching a guy get a beatdown isn’t exactly catnip for the ladies. But afterward she told Nico that he’d been brave, kissed him on the cheek. And she’s wearing the necklace he’d bought for her from the street vendor. He hopes it won’t turn her neck green.

Today, at lunch, he won twenty bucks playing dice behind the portable classrooms in the back of the school, so in science class he passed Annie a note and asked if she wanted to go to the movies—

his treat. He waited eagerly as she read the note, tucked a strand of hair behind an ear, and glanced back at him. The note made its way down the assembly line of kids and when he opened it his heart tripped: “Only if it’s a date.”

So he picked wildflowers in the abandoned lot, washed his best jeans and T-shirt, showered, even though it wasn’t his assigned day, and waited for her to come downstairs. When she never did, he checked her room, the bathroom, the kitchen. He’s feeling anxious. Marta never came back. But he

just saw Annie at school. And Ned Flanders told Arty that the foster care people said they’d found Marta, placed her in a new home. But maybe the foster care people are lying, covering for Mr. Brood because his brother runs this town. Nico needs to shake it off, he’s being paranoid. He needs to get it together.

He pushes open the door to Donnie’s room and finds him jamming like a madman on his guitar, his eyes closed, headphones over his ears since Mr. Brood has forbidden him playing through the amp, a rule Donnie breaches whenever possible. Donnie’s eyes pop open. He stops strumming and yanks off the headset with a smile.

“Look at you, Handsome.” Donnie loves nicknames. Eyeing the flowers, he says, “Holy crap, you clean up nice. You finally got the nerve to ask, huh?”

Nico nods. “Have you seen her? The movie starts in twenty minutes.” It takes fifteen to walk there.

“She got a call and hurried out. I thought she was goin’ to see you,” Donnie says. “Hey, I got something for you.” He stands, the guitar dangling by its strap as he trudges over to his footlocker. He opens it and starts digging around. “Benny got this for me when I went out with Amber that time.” It’s a small bottle of cologne, likely swiped from Rite Aid. Donnie approaches, opens his eyes wide, like he’s asking for permission.

Nico half smiles, nods, and feels a spritz of CK One settle around him.

“She’s probably out front.” Donnie smiles, waggling his brows. “Don’t do anything I would do.

…”

On the porch, Nico finds Ben and Arty huddled, talking in whispers. Ben wears a devastated expression when he gets a look at Nico holding the flowers.

“Hey, have you seen Annie?” asks Nico.

Ben and Arty lock eyes, then turn their gazes to Nico.

“What?” Nico asks.

“I’m sorry, man,” Arty says, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“Sorry about what?”

Then Ben says it: “It’s happened again.”

Nico remembers the tears rolling down his cheeks.

“She’s gone.”





CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

JENNA

Jenna is tied to a chair, a black bag over her head.

As expected.

She listens closely. The men speak in whispers, but she can tell that someone new is in the room.

Based on the short distance they dragged her, the chirp of crickets, the smell of oil, she thinks it’s a shed or garage. The voice says, “Okay, let’s get a look at her.”

The hood is yanked off.

Yep, she’s in a garage. A huge space that houses a fleet of vintage cars and several motorcycles.