Page 79 of Four Cards Exposed

The steering wheel’s leather crackled, he was grasping it so tightly.

“Tell me what happened, Sheriff.”

“She was coming into work for a few hours this morning, to help the new guy. She didn’t show up.”

“What time was this?”

“They’d agreed to meet at seven. When she didn’t show up at seven-thirty, Alma called her.” Natalie paused. “Then Rob stopped by her apartment. Her door was ajar.”

Jesus Christ.

“How long?” he asked, his mouth suddenly dry.

Natalie paused. “Her bed wasn’t slept in. We think it happened last night.”

James’s head throbbed. The combination of dizziness and confusion made him think of carbon monoxide poisoning. He wondered if he should stop the car, but if he stopped the car, he wouldn’t get to Sharp’s Cove.

Stop the car before you fucking crash.

An exit appeared ahead of him. James took it and slowed down, stopping as soon as he was out of the way of traffic. His hands shook against the steering wheel. He didn’t recognize this fear, this inability to think, or do anything other than shake.

“Are you still here, James?”

“I had to stop the car,” he said.

“Good. I should have asked you to do that,” Natalie said.

“What else do we know?” he asked, and it was the first reasonable question he’d asked since this conversation started.

“Not much,” Natalie said. “Rob and the new guy, Michael, are on the scene already. I’m on my way there right now, but wanted to call you first.”

“Thank you,” he said. Natalie didn’t owe him anything.

The scene.

Susan’s apartment.

James didn’t even bother putting his phone on mute before opening the door and throwing up.

After, he closed the door and took a sip of the lukewarm water bottle on the seat next to him.

Natalie made a strangled sound, but didn’t say anything. He was grateful for her silence.

“We were all out together last night.”

He remembered her text message.

I hope you didn’t expect us to remain a secret.

No more secrets.

He was glad he’d told her that.

But there was so much more he should have said.

This time, some instinct told him to put the phone on mute before slamming his palms against the steering wheel. The plastic and leather shook. His hands, still bruised from the fight on the boat, throbbed. The pain wasn’t nearly enough.

“Some of us left earlier. Susan and some of the guys stayed for a while longer.”