“That’s not…I don’t understand.”
She quickly explained Michael’s theory about the alias.
“Smart. But… Wait. Are you there?” His voice rose sharply. “What if she sees you?”
“I’m in the parking garage, looking for her car.” She kept her voice low as she moved between the rows of vehicles, checking license plates. “If I find it, I’ll know for sure she’s here.”
“Delaney, it’s too dangerous. You need to…”
She gasped, eyeing the car that’d pulled her up short.
“What?” Noah said. “Are you okay?”
There it was, Violet’s car. “I found it, Noah. She’s here. I’m hanging up to call the police.”
“No.” The command in his voice surprised her. “Stay out of sight. I’ll call Detective Norton. They need to handle this properly.”
The elevator dinged, catching Delaney’s attention. The doors slid open, and a woman stepped out.
Her heart stuttered.
She recognized the slight figure holding the hand of a small child with blond curls.
Delaney ducked behind a concrete pillar. “Noah.” She kept her volume at a whisper. “They’re here. They’re heading for her car.”
“What?” His voice rose. “Are you sure?”
“Call the police.” She ended the call and shoved the phone in her pocket.
Heart thumping, mind racing, she ducked low and, using the line of parked cars for cover, hurried to a staircase. She slipped through the door as quietly as she could, then barreled down, hanging onto the railing to keep from tumbling and knocking herself out. She had to get to her car.
Right now, she was Charlotte’s best hope. She couldn’t let them disappear.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Noah yanked the wheel hard left, tires shrieking against asphalt as he executed a U-turn. There was no fast way into Norfolk from Driftwood, just dark and winding two-lane roads. But he was already halfway there, having just left Lowell’s house.
He slowed to find the detective’s number in his phone. As soon as it rang over his speakers, his foot pressed the accelerator. The engine roared, and his BMW shot forward.
“Detective Norton.”
“Delaney found them.” Noah’s words tumbled out. “Violet’s at Seaglass Towers in Norfolk. Charlotte too.”
“How could she possibly?—?”
“Doesn’t matter. Charlotte’s there. Delaney saw them leaving the building.”
“She’s sure?”
“Positive.”
The detective shouted to his team, issuing commands. They’d get Norfolk PD moving immediately.
“Noah, where are you?”
“Headed that way.” He checked his speedometer—sixty-five and climbing. “I’m about twenty minutes out.”
“Stand down. Let the police handle it.”
