The short guy goes over to grab Shawn’s backpack, ripping it off her shoulder. She falls back against Tech. I struggle to get free, but the tall guy holds me firm. I dart my eyes to Noa, tortured by how scared she looks. Both for us, and her brother. Up until now, she had no idea the detectives who talked to her were likely murderers.
The short guy tears through the backpack, tossing aside Shawn’s candy and various cords and charger. He finds the journal and holds it up to the other guy. “Bingo,” he says. “This looks promising.” He looks at Tech. “A little note from your uncle?”
“How did you know about him?” Tech asks, surprised.
“AboutGabe?” the man asks, tucking the journal under his arm. “Seems in his last days he’d tried to message someone at the Augustus Resort. Said he had proof about the Starline Hotel. Well,” the guy laughs. “Any stories like that are directed to our security team. Then Mr. Mancini handles them as he sees fit.”
I wonder how many people have been killed in connection with that damn hotel. Florence, Felix, the reporter—how many more? How many has my father dealt with personally?
“Well, there you go,” Tech says, pointing at the journal. “We didn’t even have time to read it. So whatever’s in there, it’s yours now.”
“That’s generous of you,” the short guy says. “But… I mean, how likely are you to keep your mouths shut?” He motions to me. “Matthews’s own kid couldn’t stay out of it. Doubtful a bunch of Chasers will keep their word.”
The guy reaches into his waistband, but before he can pull out a gun, I draw back against his friend and kick the short guy as hard as I can in the back. The force of it launches him hard onto the dock—the journal landing on the planks next to him. As he moans in pain, the tall guy’s grip loosens, and I quickly pull away.
Immediately, Shawn rushes over to scoop up the journal and her backpack as Noa runs past her to untie the boat from the dock. Tech and I grab the taller guy, two on one, and toss him over the side into the water.
“Come on,” Noa calls, waving us forward.
We run for it, and once we’re all on board, I quickly start the boat engine and throttle it. I tell the others to stay down—just in case the men take another shot at us—as the boat tears away from the dock. And when it feels like a safe enough distance, I look back to see if they’re following us. I don’t see any lights heading in our direction. Luckily, we got a good head start.
With our adrenaline pumping, we head back to Cape Hope, knowing we’ll have to figure out what to do next. They’re onto us now, and it’s only a matter of time before they come straight for us.
Shawn looks back, watching for the two men. “What if they catch up to us?” she asks, swinging around to face us.
“I have an idea,” Tech says, taking out his phone. He dials and brings the phone to his ear. “Yes,” he says, after a moment. “I’d like to report a potential piracy. Yes, the men are armed.” He then goes on to describethe men and their boat. When he turns back around a few minutes later, he shrugs. “It’s good to have the coast guard on speed dial,” he tells us. “That should keep them busy answering questions for a while.”
When we arrive back at Paradise Beach, we dock my boat and meet next to the Surf Shack to talk, the world around us dark and quiet while the resort shines brightly above us on the hill.
“We need proof,” Tech says, pacing in the sand. “Indisputable proof that doesn’t rely on word of mouth. On top of that, we need to know who else is on the Mancini payroll. It’s the only way to figure out who we can trust.”
“How do we do that?” I ask. “Trust me—he keeps his secrets locked up tight.”
“Is there any way to get a peek at his files?” he asks me. “Any software you could use?”
Now, that’s an interesting idea. “Possibly,” I say, thinking on it. I wince. “But I would need access to his computer first. Any ideas on how to break into Alessandro Mancini’s office?” I laugh, but I see them considering the options. “I’m joking,” I clarify. “Even if I could get through my father’s security protocols, I’m banned from the resort.”
“Actually, I might have something,” Shawn says, tilting her head. “Tomorrow night is the Augustus Annual Gala. Nina’s working the event, and I think I can get us into the resort. All of the guests will be in the ballroom. Everyone. We can use that time to get into Mancini’s office.”
“Even if you got us into the party,” Tech says, “how would we access his private office?”
Noa holds up her hand, like she has an idea. “What about Matteo?” she says. “He’s been trying to talk to me… maybe we let that happen.”
I scrunch up my face, but the others join in.
“You can go with him to the gala,” Shawn says, but Noa quickly shakes her head.
“He would never,” she says. “That’s too public for him to be seen with a Chaser. But, Shawn, if you can get him outside on the terrace, I could try to talk with him there.”
I’ll admit, I absolutely hate this idea, but that doesn’t mean I think Noa is wrong. Matteo should be able to get into his father’s office without arousing too much suspicion. Now… if he’d actually want to help us do that is another question.
“What are you going to say to him?” I ask Noa. “Considering what I know about him, which is all terrible, by the way…” The others nod. “How are you going to convince him to go against his own father?”
She thinks about it for a moment, and then she shrugs like it’s the only answer. “I’ll tell the truth,” she says. “I’ll tell him that his dad might have been behind what happened to Felix, and that we need to find out for sure. Matteo may suck, but he did actually love his cousin.”
We sit with that for a moment. We could try to lie to Matteo, manipulate him into letting us into the office. But right now, this is life-or-death. The worst thing in the world would be to trust the wrong person, but… when I saw Matteo’s eyes in the lobby, when my father was choking me, there was something there. A flash of understanding. The knowledge that we’ve both been raised by monsters.
“It’s worth a try,” I say. “I just need Matteo to get me to that computer. I’ll figure out the rest. But there’s no way they’re going to let me in the front door. My father has a lot of sway, and right now, he’s branded me as worthless.”
