“How did you know it wasn’t me?Not many can tell us apart.”At least none at first glance for those who knew the two of them.
“At first, I couldn’t.Not until I kissed you—well, her.It didn’t feel the same.When I pulled back, I noticed her hair and dress were different, and her nose.”
Andrea reached up and touched her nose.They had different noses?She had no idea.She’d just assumed as identical twins, everything was the same.
“Yours is prettier,” Jack assured her and gave her a wink, making her blush.
“Thanks, anyway, after I got off the phone, you were gone, and she asked me about you.”
“Like what?”
“What you did, how long you’ve lived there.Apparently, I said something to set her alarm off because she said we had to leave that minute, and you were after her.”
Jack sat back, his face deep in thought.“She must have realized after too many base attacks, eventually we would be on to her.Keep going,” he encouraged when Andrea stopped talking.
“I told her I was done running, and I didn’t believe her.That was until I saw the bag from the boutique.”
Jack winced at the mention of the boutique.“I had meant to force a confession from you, but then I realized you had a twin and knew it wasn’t you I was after but her, so I had to change my plan.”
“How did you know about the boutique?”
“When I went through your house, I found the number on the burner phone.I tracked it to the boutique, so I checked it out.I thought it might be—” He stopped himself as if what he’d thought was something bad.“It doesn’t matter what I thought it was.I used the bag to entrap you.”
“You thought I was Holly, so you thought it was some kind of base of operation, didn’t you?”
“That or a WITSEC operation.”
“It is, or at least a safehouse.They told me if I was ever compromised, I could go there and use a code word, and they’d help.”Andrea didn’t remember the code word anymore since it had been so long, but she kept her emergency bag and the burner phone with the number in it just in case she ever had to run.Only when it came time to run, she had forgotten it.
“That was my guess after looking around.”
“What did you hope to gain by breaking into a WITSEC building?”It wasn’t like they were just going to tell Jack all about her.
“Intel on you.When I thought you were Holly, I wanted to know why they would protect a criminal.”
“When in fact they were protecting her sister,” Andrea finished for him.“Anyway, when I realized she was right, that’s when the car showed up, and we ran.We stopped after so many blocks, I don’t remember how many because I couldn’t breathe, and I made her tell me what was going on.She admitted Carlos hadn’t hit her, but she’d double-crossed him, and he had been chasing her for a while.Since no one knew of my existence, she thought she could hide with me.She said she’d made arrangements to get out of town in three days.Well, two now.I didn’t ask where or how.You know the rest.”
It wasn’t a whole lot to help him solve this case.Holly had been their only lead, and now she was gone along with all of her secrets.
“So what now?”she asked.Now that he had everything he needed, was he going to take her to WITSEC or dump her on the curb and wish her the best of luck?Or would he let her help?
“First, we need to get you some clothes, and I need my laptop, then we’ll try to figure out what’s on the drive.”Jack headed into the kitchen when he realized his coffee cup was empty.Andrea followed him.
“Someone’s popular,” he commented as he poured a new cup.
“What?”
“Your phone has been buzzing like crazy.”
Now that he mentioned it, she had heard an insistent buzzing.She’d just assumed it was his phone.“I don’t have my phone, I lef—” Andrea looked at the phone on the counter.“That’s not my phone; it’s Holly’s.”She had forgotten she’d taken it from her when she’d planned to call 9-1-1.
“Your sister’s phone?”Jack asked, sounding excited as he came around the counter.
“Yeah.”
Jack picked it up.“It’s locked.Any chance you can open it?”
Andrea doubted it, but she was willing to try.She took it from him and tapped the black screen.She expected a pin code or finger print identification lock.Instead, it was facial recognition.She held it up to see her whole face, and it opened.There were dozens of text messages.She tapped the icon to read them.There was no name listed on who sent them.It was listed as restricted.
