The sweet scent of his skin. The blur of fire and forestry. “It’s alright, sweetheart, you’re safe now.” His voice in my ear . . .
My eyes flew open. Karson was not a normal human. The brain hypoxia might explain forgetting, but it couldn’t explain what I’d felt. The heat, the pain, the speeds we’d moved at—those things were concrete. Did Karson kill them? And if so, for what reason? Was it possible he was a partner in the development? He certainly appeared wealthy enough to be.
“In every case, you can’t ever assume you know the truth until you’ve explored every possibility.”It was my father’s voice replaying in my head.
I unfolded my legs and chewed on my bottom lip. There was probably a perfectly innocent explanation. I drove the few hundred feet to The Hollow with a dogmatic determination to confront him. If he wasn’t at the bar, I’d knock on his door and insist he told me the truth. I wouldn’t leave until he did. I tried not to think about Lucy. She’d asked questions and disappeared. Was it possible Mike was right, and she knew something that they wanted to keep hidden?
He wouldn’t hurt me,I deluded myself. He’d saved me. No one saves people and then kills them.
I paused by the bar’s doors, collected my courage, and pushed them open. Grace looked up with a surprised smile. “Hey, Amy, what are you doing here?”
“Looking for Karson.”
“Really? I knew it.” She smiled widely. What she thought she knew I didn’t have to guess, but why she thought there was something going on between us, I didn’t know.
Her smile fell, and she grimaced. “I think he left town. He went yesterday.”
Left town? Why the sudden need to leave? “Do you happen to know where to?”
“No, but you should ask Shelley—she’d know.” She gestured with her head. “She’s out the back.”
I opened the door, but Shelley wasn’t seated at her desk. I moved over to it, looking for anything that might help me find him. A stack of unopened letters sat neatly to the side. I glanced back at the bathroom door, listening for the sound of footsteps. Intrigued and unable to stop myself, I picked one up.
Karson Worthington
Apartment 3 The Wharf
Mercedes Place
Portland.
It had been redirected to The Hollow.
I heard the toilet flush. Panicking, I dropped the letter back in its spot, making sure it sat exactly as I’d found it and stepped back from the desk. Shelley jumped when she saw me, her hand flying over her heart. “Shit! Oh, Amy, you scared the shit out of me!”
“Sorry, Shelley, I was just wondering if you know where Karson is?”
She eyed me warily, moving to her desk. “He’s gone away.”
“Do you know where he went?”
She shook her head, lowered herself onto the chair behind the counter, and put her black-framed reading glasses on. “No.”
A blunt response. I got the impression that even if she did know, she wasn’t saying. “Everything okay?” She studied my face.
“Yes, definitely. It’s just a fundraiser thing. I pulled the short straw and said I’d ask him.” I fiddled with my bandaged fingers.
Her demeanor relaxed. “Oh, I’m not sure when he’ll be back. You never know with Karson. It could be a day, a month, or a year.” She picked up a pen and began to scribble on some paperwork. “But he did say he might be gone for a while.”
This news perked my ears. What need would he have to be gone for a while? Why the sudden departure? Was he running before he got found out?
“Oh well, it can wait until he gets back. Thanks, Shelley.”
By the time I made it to the door, I’d decided I would fly to Portland, find him, and find out the truth.
Chapter 36
The Bite
