“I think it may be related to the game itself,” Swede says.
Ronan sets his water bottle down with a clunk. “You think an onlinegamehas something to do with the people trying to hurt Hazel?”
Swede nods. “I know it sounds a bit out there. But once I started digging, I found some interesting connections.”
“Like what?” Alec asks.
“A pattern of women going missing. Five I’ve discovered so far, all with two things in common.”
My heart lurches. “What things?”
“They’re all from the northeast. Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, and most recently, Rhode Island.” He pauses. “That wouldn’t mean much on its own. But after researching the women, I discovered they all played the same online game.”
Alec stiffens. “Let me guess.Tenebris Veil?”
Swede jerks his chin. “Yes. And given the message Hazel received in the game, it makes me wonder.”
“Who are the women?” Matt asks. “Maybe Hazel knows one of them.”
“There are thousands of people who play,” I say. “Not as many women as men, but still a lot. And most people never share their real names. So I’m not sure…”
“It can’t hurt to hear their names.” Alec squeezes my hand again. “It’s okay if you don’t recognize any of them.”
But on the fourth name Swede rattles off, a flash of recognition hits me. “Amy,” I blurt. “What’s her last name again?”
“Amy Anderson,” he says, “from New Hampshire. She’s a nurse. Lives alone, no boyfriend, and her parents are in Florida. I’m not sure about her character’s name?—”
“Amy,” I breathe. “I know her. She used to be in my guild. I’ve talked to her. Had conversations…”
Alec’s hand tenses around mine. “Do you remember anything about her? Something she might have said?”
I search my memories, trying to catch a potentially helpful detail. “She hasn’t been on the game in a couple of months. I thought she had just quit. But—” My chest constricts. “She didn’t, did she?”
“Haze—”
As I try to recall the brief conversations I had with Amy, another memory jumps out at me. Feeling sick, I say, “She told me she was meeting a guy. Fromthe game. She never said who it was. Just that it was someone she’d been talking to for a while. And that she really liked him.”
Enzo frowns. “Did women do that? Meet men from the game?”
“Sometimes. Not often. But I heard about it happening.”
“Did anyone askyouto meet?” Alec asks. Tension laces his voice. He glances at Enzo. “Maybe this sick asshole is pissed at Hazel for turning him down.”
“No.” I tug on Alec’s hand to get his attention. “I didn’t have private conversations with guys like that. It was either small groups or just talking to Jess. No one asked me to meet. Ever.”
Alec doesn’t look reassured. “So, someone might be out there, targeting innocent women playing an online game. Convincing them to meet and then taking them.”
“We don’t know that for sure,” Ronan says. “Yes, Swede found a connection. But there are still a lot of unanswered questions. Did the missing women all make arrangements to meet someone from the game, or was it just Amy? Even if they all did, what does that have to do with Hazel? And how would they have discovered Hazel’s identity, or Jess’s for that matter, if she never told them?”
“It’s possible someone could have hacked into the game servers,” Matt suggests. “They should be fairlysecure, but with the right skills…” He shrugs. “I could do it. I’m sure Alec and Swede could, too.”
Alec scowls. “Yeah. I could.”
“But why Hazel?” Knox asks. “It doesn’t make sense.”
Swede looks at Enzo. “What about the guy who came after Hazel at the bar? The one hired in Boston? Did you find anything useful?”
Enzo shakes his head. “Unfortunately not. It was a Saturday night, the bar was packed, and the footage we got from the one surveillance camera gave us nothing. We’re still trying, but it’s not promising.”
