He took it from me. ‘So what are we going to do tomorrow?’ His voice had regained its usual nonchalance. The moment had passed.
‘We still need to find a way of getting to Ford.’ I started towards the door. ‘But right now I have to call Katrina, she’ll be going mental. And I’d probably better change out of this outfit.’
His eyes traversed my body. ‘On the contrary, I reckon you should wear it again tomorrow. Not sure about the shoes, though.’
I tried to suppress a smile. ‘Do you want me to bring you some food?’
‘That’s OK, I ate earlier.’
I opened the door. ‘You should rest, and keep the ice on your eye. I’ll talk to you in the morning and we’ll come up with a plan.’
‘Sarah?’ he said, and I turned back to face him. ‘If you get bored tonight, feel free to come back for a chat.’
I gave him a quick smile and closed the door. I wouldn’t be coming back for a chat tonight. I had work to do, and there was no way he was going to be part of it. Not after what had just happened to him.
So I couldn’t tell him that I was going back to Le Chat Masqué.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
I hadn’t intended to go back alone. And listening in on Nick’s visit had made me even less keen. But after seeing what they’d done to him, I was angry, and I was determined to find some answers. Nick was in no state to help me, and I could hardly take him back there right after they’d beaten him up. I was going to find Ford and make him talk. Right after I’d showered and changed my clothes.
I found the narrow alley I’d been dragged out of last time. There were no streetlights and the alley was dark, crisscrossed with shadows that were darker still. For the first time since I’d closed the door on Nick, my stride faltered.
I tiptoed into the darkness, my nerves alive to the slightest movement or noise. I could barely see where I was going. Doubt crept into my mind and my steps slowed. I shouldn’t be here. Was this even the right alley? Maybe I should just turn around and go back. Forget about finding Ford.
A dark mountain loomed before me and I almost fainted before I realised it was just a dumpster. I paused beside it, breathing hard. Perhaps I could just hang out here for a while. Scope the place out before barging in there. I squatted down on my heels and waited.
Now that I was still, thoughts of Nick crowded in on me. I hadn’t had the chance to acknowledge my reaction to those thugs beating him up. Storming off after criminal and potentially murderous attackers was not the normal response of a journalist for her photographer. And it certainly wasn’t the normal response for someone you disliked. Anyone else in this situation would have locked herself in her hotel room and called the police. Anyone else would have called someone like John Harrington, who was pawing the ground for the chance to bust open this cartel. But the mere thought of Nick’s bruised and bloodied face caused an ache in my guts that just wouldn’t go away. There was only one thing that caused otherwise smart chicks to do dumb things, and—
I jumped as a door at the end of the alley swung open and a narrow rectangle of light stretched up to where I was crouching beside the dumpster. I shuffled back as a silhouette appeared in the doorway. My body went hot and cold all over as I recognised the blond man from last night.
He was talking to someone else who was hidden from view behind the door. I was just contemplating edging out of the alley before I was spotted when the other man stepped into the light. My breath caught in my throat.
It was Ford.
‘What time do we leave for Amsterdam?’ he asked.
‘I will be here to pick you up at first light,’ the blond man replied. ‘I can’t take you all the way to the warehouse, but Grady will meet you there.’
The blond man turned and walked straight towards me. My heart almost stopped. I must have been deep enough in shadow, because he strode straight past without seeing me. I held my breath until his footsteps had receded, then leapt up and started towards the door that Ford had just closed after disappearing back inside.
All rational thought had left me after seeing Ford talking to the blond guy. Some part of me had still been sure that he was innocent, but here he was, colluding with the same bastard who’d drugged me and put me on a train to Venice, then messed up Nick’s face. Now would have been the ideal time to beat a hasty retreat, especially considering the new information that he’d be in Amsterdam tomorrow. But all I could think about was punishing him for his lies.
I flung the door open and marched up the dimly lit hallway. It was empty. The door that separated me from the bar hummed with moody music from within. My stomach churned. It wasn’t too late. I could still turn around and get out of there. But the image of Nick’s battered face swam into my mind again, and I turned the doorknob.
I didn’t have time to take in my surroundings, because the first person I saw was Ford. He was leaning against the bar. His face, suffused with the reddish glow from the table lamps, had a ghoulish quality in the half-light. Shock flashed across his face as he recognised me. Then he leapt forward, grasped my arm and pulled me through another door opposite the bar.
The small room was devoid of furniture save for a lumpy couch along one wall. A naked light bulb glowed coldly from the ceiling, casting a dull light over Ford as he closed the door and turned back
