She stands to join me next to the whiteboard. “Not really. Your stalker boy texted me a string of numbers. Then this message. She points to the words“The End is the Beginning.”
I examine each circled letter, following how she counted over from left to right, through the artist and song title. The chosen letter matches the number of spaces, based on the random string of numbers she wrote down. Dax sent this…?
“Your boy likes games.”
I take notice of where she erased the transposed message, then reordered the letters backward.
“The end is the beginning,” I whisper to myself. “What do you thinkUncle Nicholas Liemeans?”
Her shoulders raise and drop. “Beats me. I just wish that stalker of yours sent that to me instead of having me decode dumb riddles all night.”
I sit down at the table, this time with brain fuel, overlooking everything we’ve jammed within a small area. What does myuncle have to do with any of this? My uncle has been there for me over the past few years, more than anyone else. What would he lie about? New pieces with vague connections, now some far-fetched message about my uncle?
Feeling particularly brazen, I casually note, “Dax seems to have a rhyme and a reason for everything he does. Maybe he has to be careful. I’ve learned recently it’s very easy to be watched without your knowledge.”
Her painted finger taps on her chin. “I don’t think that’s a good excuse to make me jump through hoops when he could have simply…wait!”
I nonchalantly sip from the mug as her almond eyes widen.
“Did… did you just say Dax?!”
I lower the drink to the table, all the while pressing my lips firmly together, in an attempt to fight the grin that pulls at my mouth.
Her beautiful features contort… caught in a whirlwind of confusion, then realization, followed up with surprise.
“Holy Shit,” she proclaims. “I did not have Cindel getting more action than me on my bingo card.” Her head shakes, in advance of using a hair tie to pull back her short silvery bob. “Eamon’s Henchman… how did I miss that?!” Andrea appears absolutely drained, clearly fed up with not being any further ahead than where we were previously.
“Don’t beat yourself up, Nancy Drew, it’s not like you're my security detail or anything.”
Her face screws up for a brief second, before it slips away just as quickly. “Well even if I were, clearly you don’t need me when you have someone watching you twenty-four seven!” She waves into the empty room. “Hi, Dax, glad I finally have a face to the man fucking my best friend!”
My mouth drops over her blatant truth bomb.
“What?! Like I didn’t realize what you were doing after you were returning home looking well satisfied and actually happy?!”
Seriously, I bet she figured out where Carmen Sandiego was as a child!
Andrea now sits across from me at the modest table in our kitchen. She reaches across the surface and takes my hand in hers. “We’ll figure out all the rest of the stuff… I promise. Until then, you still need to be careful.”
She’s not wrong. Mairead is manic, while Eamon mentioned something about people wanting to hurt me! Clearly, I need to be more selective about who I surround myself with. Why is it that every time I see red flags, I think to myself,oooo… it looks like fun over there! I can’t just go along with everything. Dragging my only friend into this was a poor decision. What if she gets hurt?
I rub at my temples.
First, my ex-manager tries to blackmail me into some kind of sexual favor. Barf. Then, my free-spirited co-worker confronts me in an escape room, convinced my family and I are a bunch of murders?! Nothing connects. Initially, I thought it could have been Mairead who killed Creepy Craig, but now… I know better. It was Dax, without a doubt. I’ve witnessed firsthand what he’s capable of. Plus, the earbud down his throat? I mean… who else could it be? The memory of a blue contorted body in a trunk, flashes through my mind. There has been countless hazards lately, but I don’t fear him. He’s protective and has been watching over me for a while, although I wonder if it’s been longer than I realize… in some cases, I think he knows me better than I know myself.
It’s hard to believe that a little over a month ago, I was still working through Brodi’s disappearance. I actually convinced myself he’d come back to me. Now I find the notion hilarious.What a fool I was to think he loved me. I can see clearly now, that I was no more than a commodity, my thoughts never considered.
Dax communicates with me better than Brodi ever did and he can’t even fucking talk. If Brodi showed up today, I have choice words for him. Andrea never liked him. Always said, “he didn’t deserve me.” With my stalker, Dax I mean… he gives me his undivided attention, it makes me realize my roommate was right.
I straighten in my seat, gently squeezing my friend's hand back. “You’re right.” I meant this on so many levels, but I keep it simple. “We will figure this all out,” I reaffirm.
Over the next few hours, we go over everything that has happened as of late, making sure we don’t miss any details that should be added to the board.
My brother died three years ago… soooooo much time has passed. How were we supposed to find clues for a case that law enforcement declared as suicide?
Out of nowhere, I remember the cop who I have encountered twice in the past month. His name is something with a K. Kyle… no. Kevin, that’s not it… Kent! What’s so odd is, it’s not the first time I’ve heard that name. Like I should know the name from somewhere, but I’m not sure from where. Maybe I’ve seen it written down before? I wasn’t sure, but mentioning the strange exchange I saw between him and my uncle seems noteworthy.
“Remember the police officer who showed up to question me?”
