“You okay?”May whispered from outside, her eyes wide.
“Yeah.”Amka helped May inside.The room tilted a little, or maybe that was just too much tequila.
They stood in a bedroom.She looked at bare walls, a new mattress on a low frame, and piles of laundry tossed across the floor.One dresser stood in the corner, missing a drawer and listing to the side like it had arthritis.
“This place sucks,” May said, looking around.“It stinks too.”
“Okay.Let’s start searching.”
May grabbed her arm.“Wait.Let’s make sure no one’s here.”
Amka moved slowly into the main room.A threadbare sofa sat under a window crusted with grime.Springs poked through one arm, the cushions collapsed in the center like it had been slept on more than sat in.An old box TV sat crooked on a warped stand, screen dusty, the kind that needed a slap to work.Beside it stood a bookshelf that was completely empty.Nothing sat on it but a cracked mug and a plastic comb.
“I think most of his stuff must have burned down in the fire,” she said.“He hasn’t collected anything else.Maybe he really is squirreling his money away to do something with it.”
The kitchen wasn’t much more than a corner.Dirty dishes were stacked high in the sink, most chipped.The counters were old laminate with the pattern worn off in patches.One cupboard was missing doors entirely, revealing a mess of mismatched mugs and canned beans.Two sad wooden chairs skirted an equally rundown table.Amka wrinkled her nose from the mildew and old food smell.No wonder Jarod wanted to move in with her.“I think he should burn this place down.”
“Yeah, with him in it,” May said grimly.
Amka giggled and then slapped a hand over her mouth.“Sorry.”
May turned and looked at her.“I’m just realizing that I should’ve been the voice of reason, considering you drank all night.”
Amka patted her arm.“You just wanted to help.Let’s search this place.”
“Like where?”
“I don’t know.Let’s tear the sofa apart.”
They did.They yanked the cushions loose and found nothing underneath but lint, a broken pen, and a handful of popcorn kernels.May flipped the whole frame, and Amka peered inside with a flashlight app, but found nothing but dust, a chewed-up receipt, and one sock.
They moved on.The dresser was mostly empty with just one drawer holding old T-shirts and a warped paperback wedged sideways.Amka leaned under the bed and brought out a bright lacy red bra.
May’s eyebrows rose.“I’m hoping that’s not yours.”
“No.Gross.”Amka threw it back under the old mattress.Jarod could sleep with whomever he wanted.She leaned down to see just more laundry, stiff with age.A cardboard box in the closet held a few receipts, an expired condom, and a cheap flashlight without batteries.Nothing digital.Nothing useful.
Amka’s stomach dipped.“His laptop isn’t here.”
“Are you sure he has a video?”
“Yes,” Amka said.“I’m absolutely positive.When he blackmailed me, he showed it to me on his phone.”
May dusted off her hands.“He must’ve taken his laptop and obviously his phone with him.”
How could Amka protect Flossy?“Maybe he’s already given that to somebody.Or it’s all digital on his phone.”
May exhaled.“We need to get our hands on his devices.”
“How are we going to do that?”Amka groaned.This was her only chance to search his place.
May shrugged.“I don’t know, but we can come up with a plan.”She paused.“If he could get injured somehow, you could bring him into my office.While I’m looking at him, you could go through his phone.And his computer.”
Amka hiccupped again.“Injured?What am I going to do?Hit him with my car?”
May looked at her.“Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do.”
“I’m not sure my doctor’s supposed to be recommending a hit and run.”
