Hidden (Nicole Jones #1)(68)

THIRTY-THREE


The moonlight streams across the hay in the pen, and I hear footsteps. I sit up quickly to see a shadow looming over me.

‘It’s just one of the animals,’ Ian whispers, startling me further.

I take short, shallow breaths. ‘I know,’ I finally say. I brush the hay out of my hair and adjust my glasses on my nose. I scramble to my feet. ‘OK, time to go.’ I have no idea what time it is, but it’s dark and we need to move.

As we get outside, a car is coming up the hill toward us, the headlights blinding me for a second. Ian hooks his arm around mine and pulls me away from the side of the road. He leans into me and he is kissing me; this time it’s a diversion. The driver will only see a couple kissing in the moonlight.

When the car passes, Ian loosens his hold on me slightly. In the moonlight, for a second, I see a sadness in his face. He knows it’s over, too. I wonder whether after I do the job for him he will let me go quietly or call the Feds on me. Or maybe he’ll call Tony. The anger is still simmering just beneath the surface, and he is still carrying a gun.

We continue down the road, past Veronica’s gallery and the National Hotel, around the curve and the Sunswept Spa.

‘Where the hell are we going?’ Ian mutters.

‘It’s a bit of a walk,’ I say.

‘Where, to Long Island?’

‘You mean Rhode Island.’

‘Yeah, whatever. Too many islands for me. I’d rather be connected to real land.’

I hear the car turn the corner behind us before the headlights hit us. We move over to the side of the road; Ian’s hand curls around mine, his other hand is clutching the duffel bag. I wait for the car to pass us, but it doesn’t. It slows down until it is crawling beside us. I look over at it and see Steve has opened the passenger window. If he is surprised to see Ian, he doesn’t show it.

‘Can I give you a ride?’ he asks casually, as though he is merely picking up a fare.

Ian gives his head a quick shake. ‘We’re fine here.’

But Steve doesn’t buy it, and the SUV suddenly jerks forward and across our path. Steve jumps out and comes around the front. Ian’s hand tightens around mine.

‘What’s going on?’ he asks, looking from me to Ian and back to me again.

‘Just taking a walk,’ Ian says.

‘Nicole?’ Steve is not stupid.

‘Ian and I are going back to my room,’ I say. I do not want him here. Ian has a gun, and he has used it before when someone got in the way. ‘I’m fine. You can go home.’

However, Steve is looking straight at Ian now. ‘The police chief is looking for you.’

‘Be a pal and don’t tell him you saw me, OK?’ Ian flashes the smile that used to make me melt and usually charms. Steve is not charmed.

‘Why? Why should I do that for you, after what you’ve done to Nicole?’ I have never heard Steve so confrontational. I want to tell him to let it go, that I can handle it from here, but the words get stuck in my throat. Instead, I reach out and touch his arm. He glances down at it, then at my face. ‘Why are you doing this? Why are you taking him to your room?’ He is genuinely perplexed.

‘It’s OK,’ I say again. ‘I’ll be OK.’

He doesn’t believe me. He turns on Ian again. ‘Are you threatening her?’

Ian slings an arm around my shoulder and it is all I can do not to flinch. ‘She wants to take me to her room. Last I knew, she was a grown up and could make her own decisions.’

‘Nicole?’ Steve asks.

A lump forms in my throat, keeping me from speaking. I swallow hard. ‘It’s OK,’ I whisper. ‘I’ll call you later, all right?’

His anger gone, Steve is deflated. He strokes his beard and studies me for a few seconds before nodding. ‘OK. But if I don’t hear from you in an hour, I’m going to call Frank.’

He’s going to tell Frank Cooper where I am. Where Ian is. He’s giving us an hour. Not much time in my world, but I’ll have to make it work.

‘That’s fine,’ I say.

Steve gives me one final minute to change my mind, and when I don’t say anything, he climbs back into his SUV. The engine roars and he peels away as though he’s going to a fire. We watch his taillights go around the corner and disappear.

I shrug off Ian’s arm and begin to jog.

‘What’s the hurry?’ I hear him ask from behind. I am moving too fast for him.

‘You heard him. He’s going to call the police chief in an hour.’

‘If you don’t call him.’

‘He just said that. He’s going to call. So let’s get this done.’

Ian manages to keep up with me and soon we are approaching Hydrangea House. I open the front door and we go in. Lillian is sitting in the dining room to the left and spots us. She frowns when she sees Ian.

‘A friend,’ I explain. ‘He’s just here to pick something up and he’ll be gone.’

She doesn’t believe me. She’s staring at the duffel bag in Ian’s hand, and I can see she’s weighing whether to charge me for another person in the room.

‘Really,’ I say quickly. ‘He’s not staying.’ I begin to climb the stairs, Ian behind me. Lillian doesn’t say anything, but between her and Steve, my hiding place isn’t going to be safe for very long.