“Have you seen the man who lives here leave today?” I ask, ignoring her questions.
She glares daggers at me but doesn’t waste time as she says, “He left in a hurry about two hours ago, I think. Why? Does he owe you money? I’m glad he turned my daughter down then. Who wants a debt ridden son-in-law, anyway?”
“Did he say where he was going?” I urge but she flicks her tongue.
“Of course not. But he sure as hell seemed in a hurry. Looked like he’d seen a ghost and hasn’t come back since.” She shakes her head. “This neighborhood isn’t what it used to be.”
I grab my phone and call Bellami who picks up right away. “A neighbor saw Jason rush out two hours ago. He knows something. Fuck, he has to know where Aoi is if he rushed out like that! Track his location as well.”
“Visha, calm down-”
“Don’t tell me to calm down!” I snap, yanking the car door open. “I’ll calm down when the love of my life is safe. Until then, I’ll hunt down anyone who might have a damn clue where he is.”
“Young man,” the old lady says in an annoyingly high pitched voice. “I remember him glaring at his phone as he rushed out.”
“His phone? Like he was checking his text messages?”
She tugs on her poncho. “I don’t know much about technology but when I was walking my dog, I caught a glimpse of his screen. It looked like a map? I might be wrong, though. My vision isn’t what it used to be.”
“Heard that, Bell? This can’t be a coincidence.” I rake my fingers through my hair. “A map. That bastard must’ve known where Aoi was headed.”
“I managed to track Aoi’s location up to Lake Wallenpaupack,” he says, and I register the drop in his tone as the information settles in my brain.
No. Please, no.
I thank the lady and slam the door shut, hitting the accelerator as I start heading to the lake. It’s fucking two hours away! What if I’m too late? Fuck, no I can’t think like that.
He’s alive. I can feel it in my bones.
“If he went to the lake, it’s most probably too late,” Bellami says on the phone.
“It’s not too fucking late. Call the fucking authorities around Wallenpaupack and tell them to move their asses!”
“Already did. They’ll contact me when they have news.”
“What about Jason? Did you find his location?”
My heart hammers in my chest as I speed up and the worst thoughts plague my mind. I clench around the steering wheel and force myself to breathe.
Bellami grunts and says, “I’m working on it but for some reason my hackers are struggling.”
“How hard can it be to find a regular fucking lawyer’s location?”
A cold chuckle escapes him. “He’s not a regular lawyer, Visha. He may have been once, but you don’t know what he’s been up to.”
I hit the pedal and curse under my breath. “The fuck do you mean?”
“I never trusted the fucker since he contacted me eight years ago, so I kept tabs on him and found out he’s involved in some shady business,” he says, and I want to punch him for not mentioning this earlier. “Stalking Aoi is a minor crime among the crap he’s got going on. I wouldn’t be surprised if Jason had an entire illegal business on the side.”
I blink the dread away as my vision blurs. “Then am I crazy to think Aoi may not have voluntarily left that letter?”
He sighs on the other end of the call. “Visha, you should think realistically. I know you want to blame someone for what’s happening and that you don’t want to believe he could’ve genuinely decided to end it, but you shouldn’t rule the possibility out. Aoi is a troubled man, you know?”
“I already know what he’s capable of and it’s partially my fault for breaking his heart twice.” I punch the steering wheel. “And now I may have lost him forever.”
“It’s not your fault, Visha.On va le trouver.12”
Liar.
