“You made it out.” He kept his tone soft. “That’s what matters.”
Sheriff Sutherland returned a moment later. “Clear.”
Max nodded before looking back at Lyndee. “Where is Kenny?”
“I don’t know.” Her voice wavered, but she forced the words out. “We were at a different cabin, and I heard him leave. I was tied up, but I managed to get the ropes around my wrists free. Then I ran and ran and ran until I found this place.”
“And you don’t know where he was headed?” Sheriff Sutherland asked.
“No. I don’t. He left . . . with someone.”
Max’s brow tightened. “Someone?”
“Whoever it was, I didn’t see them.” She shook her head again. “I couldn’t. I was in the back room. I just heard Kenny talking to someone.”
Sheriff Sutherland stepped closer. “You didn’t see this person at all?”
“No, I could only hear things. Whoever he was talking to was pretty quiet. But he was definitely talking tosomeone. Then I heard the door open, an engine start. Then nothing.”
Max exchanged a quick look with Sheriff Sutherland before turning back to her.
“Did Kenny say anything before he left?” Sheriff Sutherland asked. “Anything that stood out?”
Lyndee hesitated, her brow furrowing as she searched her memory. “He was . . . off. He sounded agitated or something.”
Max’s gaze sharpened. “What do you mean?”
“I don’t know. He didn’t explain anything. But it felt like . . .” She trailed off, then shook her head. “Like he didn’t want to be working with whoever showed up.”
Max stilled as he considered her word choice. “Working with them?”
“He never said it like that,” she admitted. “It was just like . . . like he didn’t have a choice.”
Sheriff Sutherland’s expression hardened as he pulled out his phone. “We need Kenny’s cell phone unlocked. We need to read his messages and figure out who the accomplice is.”
Max nodded, his thoughts already racing ahead.
If Kenny wasn’t acting alone, that changed everything.
Hadley couldn’t stop staring at her computer screen. The words there refused to settle into anything that made sense.
The message couldn’t be true.
Or could it?
Her stomach twisted, not with nausea now—but with something even more painful.
Max.
The thought came unbidden, and this time she couldn’t push it aside as easily.
He’d hesitated when she asked about his past. She’d noticed that. She’d chosen not to press him for more details. She’d figured he’d tell her when he was ready.
She swallowed the lump in her throat and reached for the keyboard. If this was some kind of lie, she could prove it. If it wasn’t . . .
She didn’t let herself finish the thought.
She typed Max’s name into the search bar and hit Enter.
