“Gag!”
“Oh, be quiet. You secretly love these movies.”
I roll my eyes, but cuddle closer to her. We fix the blanket so it covers us both, and we watch the movie.
Amelia has been sleeping for over an hour, her head resting against my shoulder. The credits from the movie we watched are rolling, and the SD cards on the table in front of me are calling my name.
Sam texted me that he got to the hotel okay, and that I better call or text him if I need anything.
I’m relieved that we may finally get the friendship I’ve been wanting from him, but I guess I shouldn’t get my hopes up too quickly.
My fingers itch to grab the SD cards and see what’s on them.
I carefully untangle myself from the blankets and put my feet on the ground.
“Hey, come on. Let’s go to bed.”
The third time Amelia slept over, she went from the couch to my bed. It’s big enough for us to both fit, and it’s more comfortable then her sleeping on the couch. And it makes me feel just a little better having someone there.
“Amelia?”
She groans, shifting on the couch.
“Come on. Bed.”
I get up and take her hand. Her eyes open.
“Bed.”
“Ugh, fine.” She gets up, taking the blanket with her and shuffling to my bedroom. I follow after her, get her tucked in, and then I go back to the living room. I stare at the coffee table, wondering if I should do this at all. I have no idea what I’m going to see, but I need to know.
I need to know if my gut instinct is right. And I won’t be able to sleep until I know.
Snatching the baggie off the table, I go to the kitchen table where my laptop rests. While it starts up, I open the bag and dump the cards onto the table.
Sam labeled them all based on where he found them. It’s a surprise he didn’t look at the ones from the bedroom—because there are two, which is crazy since the room isn’t big. He said he felt weird watching it, in case he saw me naked. It’s bad enough one person may have seen it. He didn’t want to invade my privacy like that, too. I can respect that and I certainly appreciate it.
I don’t think it matters which card I grab—they’re both from the bedroom, either should be fine. So I pick one at random and stick it into my computer.
A folder opens with a ton of files, each labeled by date. I find the one I’m looking for and click on it. I realize the time runs from 12:00 am to 11:59 pm, so I close out of it and go to the next day.
The view is across from the bed, right where a painting was hanging on the wall. I stared at the painting all the time. It was abstract—blue, silver, and black. It was interesting, and I could never quite tell how it made me feel.
I fast forward, and the moment someone else steps into the frame, I set it back to regular speed.
My heart pounds a little harder and I have to force air into my lungs… my chest is tight, and heavy, because as I look at the man in the video, as I look at Shadow, I just know.
It’s him.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Jaxon
Sometimes the most obvious answer is the hardest one to come up with.
It took me too long to figure out that the answer to my problems is a private investigator.
I’d considered going to my father again, even contemplated begging, but I knew it would get me nowhere. He’s a stubborn motherfucker.
