I dial his number, but it goes straight to voicemail, which is strange for so many reasons, one being that the news is reporting on the crash, so he’s heard about it. He should be chewing my ass out right now.
I try a few more times, then leave him a message to call me back. Then I call the police department to get an update on Maddy and Finn. The lead officer tells me they’ve tracked their locations via the watch and are working to gain access to the building. He was vague about his answers and told me he had to be.
It’s annoying.
I want to go track Maddy and Finn down myself, but I can’t leave Lily here by herself.
I slump back in the recliner and stare up at the lights on the ceiling until my eyeballs feel like they’re bleeding.
“Any updates?” Noah startles me as he takes a seat in the recliner beside mine.
“Lily had to have surgery because her appendix almost ruptured, but it went well. I’m just waiting for her to wake up so I can go see her.” I straighten in the chair. “The police are still looking for Maddy and Finn, but they were able to track Maddy’s watch.”
“That’s good.” He looks a bit pale as he swallows hard.
“What’s the deal with you two?” I ask abruptly, needing a distraction before I have a total breakdown.
He glances at me. “With who?”
“With Maddy. You two seem… I don’t know. Like you tell her stuff, which is weird for you.”
He shrugs. “I already told you that I didn’t start telling her things intentionally. She just has this way of getting me to tell her stuff I don’t necessarily want to. Plus, she accidentally found out about the steroid thing and wouldn’t let it go.”
I study him for a beat, the guy who used to be my best friend. Is he still in there somewhere? “Did you ever get that taken care of?”
He gives a tense glance around, then asks quietly, “The steroid thing?”
I nod, lowering the recliner's temperature. “Yeah, what else would I be talking about?”
He shrugs, but his avoidance of my gaze has me highly suspicious that he has all sorts of secrets he doesn’t want me finding out about.
I could press him for more details, stress the severity of the situation we’re in, but it won’t help. Noah and I may not really be friends right now, but we were once, and I know how his mind works. Trying to force him to do things usually makes him want to do the opposite.
“You should call her dad,” Noah suddenly mumbles.
My brows knit. “Who?”
“Maddy. Her real dad, anyway. He’ll want to know what’s up. Plus, what if the bodyguard who is supposed to be keeping an eye on Maddy while she’s at school was following her tonight? They could know where she is.”
“Good point.” I retrieve my phone and get up. “I’m going to go call him from outside. Let me know if there’s an update on Lily.”
He nods, and I walk off, heading out of the exit doors and stepping into the cool night air. Then I dial his number.
“Tell me you know where she is,” he growls into the phone, sounding way too unhinged for the put-together man I’ve met a few times.
I frown as I make my way over to a more discreet area near a cluster of trees. “You’ve already heard?”
“Of course I’ve heard, but her bodyguard can’t find her. He said she took off to northside and he lost her somewhere during the drive, like a fucking idiot,” he seethes. “So tell me you know where she is.”
“The police have my tracking app that’s linked to her watch.” I pinch the brim of my nose. “But I haven’t heard an update.”
“You shouldn’t have called the police. They’re corrupt. I’m going to call a contact of mine and see if I can get the location.” He hangs up before I can answer.
Tension builds in my chest. If the cops are corrupt, that means they may not even be looking for Maddy.
Or worse, they are, but for people who want to kill her.
CHAPTER 8
