“I’ll go with you,” Doug piped up. “But it should just be the two of us. If something else is going on, it’ll look suspicious if we all show up at her apartment.”
I checked my watch and nodded. “If we leave now, we can get there by two in the morning.”
“Should we wait to leave? If she’s fine, she’s not going to appreciate us showing up in the middle of the night.”
“And if she’s in trouble, she won’t appreciate us waiting for a more convenient time,” I pointed out.
Doug went home to grab a bag and I did the same. I was just leaving my house when I noticed a car down the street. The lights were off and it appeared to be just sitting there, but there was someone inside. I got in my car and checked the mirror. I didn’t recognize the car and not many people in my neighborhood parked on the street. I backed out and headed for Doug’s house to pick him up. As soon as I pulled out, the lights on the other vehicle turned on and the car pulled out behind me. I took the long way to Doug’s house, turning down streets I normally wouldn’t go down, and every fucking time, that car followed me. I finally pulled into Doug’s driveway and shut the car off. He was already turning off the lights, so I raced up to his door and went in before he could step out.
“What are you doing? I’m ready.”
“There’s someone following me.”
“What are you talking about? That’s-”
“Listen,” I said urgently. “When I was leaving, there was a car parked down the street from me. As soon as I pulled out, it followed me. I turned down every fucking street I could to get here and it followed me all the way. It’s parked outside now.”
“Shit,” he said, running his hand over his beard. “What the fuck does that mean?”
“Who the fuck follows people?”
He shook his head. “If it was the FBI, wouldn’t they be more discreet about it?”
“Maybe they just don’t care if we know they’re following us.”
“What the fuck did Blake get herself into?”
I shook my head. I had no fucking idea, but there had to be a way to find her. I peeked out of the curtain to see a man getting out of his car and walking toward the house. “He’s coming this way.”
“Fuck,” Doug swore.
“What if we talk to them?”
“You want to do what?”
“Just hear me out. We’re obviously not going to say anything to him, but if we talk to him, maybe we can get some kind of idea about what’s going on here.”
“Yeah, but we don’t know if anything he says will be true. If Blake dropped off the face of the earth, it was for a reason.”
“If she couldn’t go to the FBI, it means that she couldn’t trust them,” I added. “Still, it’s a starting point. We literally don’t know anything, so we can’t give him anything. We keep our mouths shut and act shellshocked, no matter what he says. Don’t react no matter what he says.”
He nodded. We waited for another twenty seconds before the doorbell rang. I nodded to Doug and he moved for the door to answer it. I stepped back into the living room, and waited.
“Sir, I’m Agent Woodly. Can I come in for a moment?”
“What’s this about?”
“Is your sister Blake Collins?”
“Yes,” Doug answered.
“Sir, are you aware that your sister is missing?”
My heart hammered in my chest. God, I was really hoping that she wasn’t actually missing.
“We haven’t been able to reach her, but we thought she was on a job.”
“Do you mind if I step inside and talk with you?”
“Of course.”
The door opened and the man stepped inside. He flashed his badge at me, letting me know he was FBI. “I’m Agent Woodly, and you are?”
“Todd. Blake’s brother.”
“What do you mean, she’s missing?” Doug asked.
“Can we sit?” Agent Woodly pointed to the seats, but neither of us moved. He cleared his throat and got down to it. “You sister stole confidential documents from the FBI and has been avoiding us ever since.”
“Why would she do that?” I asked curiously.
“We believe that she’s trying to get revenge.”
“For what?”
He glanced between Doug and I and then loosened his tie. He was pretending to be nervous, but this was all an act to draw us in. I wasn’t stupid.
“She was fired a little over a week ago for disobeying direct orders. When she left the building, she took very sensitive information with her. If that information were to get out, it would be very dangerous for not only her, but many other American citizens.”
“That doesn’t sound like Blake,” Doug said. “She follows the law like it’s the Bible.”
“She’s been cited frequently lately for disobeying orders, going out of her jurisdiction for information…Her file shows that she’s been growing more erratic over the last year and half. Has there been anything going on with her that might have caused this change?”
“Not that I know of,” I said, as if I was deeply concerned by what he was saying. “We haven’t seen her in a while.”
“What about when you’re talking with her? Any indications that she’s been struggling?”
“Honestly, our conversations aren’t that long. We check in, but she’s usually pretty busy with work,” Doug sighed.
“Do you have any idea where she might go? Someplace that nobody would think to look for her?”
“I’m surprised she didn’t come to us. If there was something wrong, I would assume she would come here. So, if she’s not, then I really have no idea where she would go.”
The agent looked upset that we couldn’t give him anything and stood quickly. “If you hear anything from her, please contact me immediately. If she goes to the wrong people with the information she has, they could kill her.”
I nodded and took the card he offered. “We will.”
He left quickly after that. Once he pulled away, we waited by the
