Page 68 of Bitter Truth
“Take out your phone. Turn it on, set it on the console, then put your hands on the wheel.”
I wait until he’s done as I’ve said, then I take the device and go into the settings to disable the screen lock.
“What do you plan to do?” he asks.
He pales, recognition dawning across his face as I make eye contact with him in the rearview mirror. I smile.
“Don’t worry about that.”
Opening his contacts, I scroll, but don’t see the name I’m looking for.
“What do you have Garrett’s number saved under in here?”
“Uh-uh. There’s no way I’m telling you that. He’ll kill me if I do.”
“Did he tell you who I am?”
“Yeah.”
“Then you should know that you won’t have to worry about him by the time I’m done.”
His mouth drops open, but no words come out.
“It doesn’t matter,” I say. “You probably weren’t smart enough to delete the call after you placed it.”
Sure enough, there’s a call in the log that corresponds with the time Jake and I were in the bank yesterday saved under the name Mr. G, though whether the G stands for Garrett or Glover I couldn’t say.
All I know for sure is that the man who’d been caught in the Facebook photo with the hitman, the one a Google Lens search identified as Garrett Glover, looks too much like Jake for comfort. Considering that he’s using Janine’s maiden name, the one she chose for the account at the bank, it makes sense that they’re related. But how closely are they connected?
The pictures I found online were all too old or blurry for me to determine what age he might be. I tried searching vital records, but I didn’t even know what town to search, so it’s not surprising that I was unable to find anything.
As much as I’ve longed to ask Mallory for help, to see what she can uncover about the man, to at least find out whether Garrett Glover is his real name or an alias, I can’t. I don’t want to put my friend in danger, and this? It’s a big steaming pile of it.
So I’m forced to go in blind. For all I know, Janine had another son after she left Gator Glade. This man, Garrett, could be Jake’s younger brother.
Which means that no matter how badly I want to end this with violence, I need to do my best not to let it escalate to that. Because if Jake does have a sibling he’s never met before, I can’t be the one to take that opportunity away from him.
The tattooed teller in the seat before me lifts a hand.
“Don’t,” I say.
“I have an itch.”
“Too bad. How well do you know Janine?”
“Who?”
“Cadence Glover?”
“That’s a real person?”
I stifle a groan. This guy doesn’t strike me as smart enough to be lying.
“How many accounts does Garrett have at your bank?”
He shakes his head, refusing to answer.
“We can do this the easy way, or the hard way.”
