“We need to talk to everybody we can find that knows Martin and find out what we can about him. He was chosen for this game for a reason; we need to find out why. We also need to know his basic details. Where he lives, his family, romantic partners, friends, hobbies, where he brings his cat to be groomed. Anything we can think of that might give us more insight into him. We need to know why Catch Me chose him and what he wants me to do.”
“That’s easy enough, but most of it will probably have to wait until morning. We can ask around the hospital and put in some basic searches, but it’s late. You need to get some rest,” Sam says.
“No,” I tell him. “You know how this works. Time is already ticking. The longer I wait, the more likely it is that someone else gets turned into a clue.”
“Or he decides he’s done playing and ready to go straight to the end,” Dean says.
I nod. Catch Me won’t make me chase him forever. Eventually, he’s going to either tire of the game, or we’ll get to the end of it. Either way, if I don’t figure it out, I lose.
“You need to go home,” Sam says.
“Right before I passed out, I was talking to Dean about what he found in the hospital in Feathered Nest. I need to know.”
“Emma, you need a break,” Dean says.
“Exactly,” Sam agrees.
“Then you’re coming home with me,” I tell him. “I need to know what’s in those files.”
Chapter Five
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Sam asks as we pull up in front of my house. “We could go to a hotel for the night.”
“Why would I want to go to a hotel? This is my house,” I point out.
“That you haven’t been to in months. And after everything that’s happened… “
“This is where I want to be,” I insist. “I know all of you are afraid for me and think I should be, too, and I appreciate it. But I can’t live my entire life afraid. That’s what they want. At least Catch Me does.”
“And your uncle?” he asks. “He’s the one who’s been creeping around here and your house in Sherwood. He sent you the necklace and planted the other one for you to find.”
I shake my head, staring at the house. “I know. But that’s the point. He’s been following me around, but as far as we know, he’s never done anything to try to hurt me. If he wanted to, he could have.”
“How about Greg? He sure as hell hurt him.”
I let out a breath.
“I know. There’s something behind that. It wasn’t random, and it didn’t happen quickly. Greg was with him for two years. He took him for a reason, and he tossed him out for a reason. The way he did, it was just as purposeful. Greg was wrapped in plastic with pictures, just like the cold case Eric found.”
“The man Doc Murray,” Sam says.
“With the Murdock label in his clothes. That can’t be a coincidence. It’s too many things linked together. My father’s brother took Greg because of his connection to me. That’s obvious. But why? And why keep him for two years? And why throw him away like a piece of trash? It all means something, and I have to figure out why.”
“But you’re not afraid of him.”
It’s not a question but a statement. An acknowledgement of what I’m feeling. I’m not entirely sure if it’s accurate. I don’t really feel fear. It’s not that I’m afraid of my uncle or what he is capable of. But I also can’t deny the uncomfortable feelings rolling down my spine when I think about him. I’ve gone my entire life not knowing about this man. I don’t understand it. When we were on the train and Sam was questioning me about my father, drawing out of me why I didn’t believe he could be capable of the horrors we were witnessing, I told him the reason I knew he didn’t do any of it was he had never lied to me.
Is that true anymore? One thing I’ve relied on since I was a child was my trust in my father. I’ve always believed in him and known he was honest with me. It didn’t mean he would always give me all the details about where he was going or why we needed to leave, but he told me what he could. For the first time in my life, I feel like he lied to me. And it wasn’t just one lie. It was systematic… continuous. Every day I didn’t know I have an uncle was him lying to me. And it wasn’t just him. It was my mother, my grandparents. They all kept that from me. But why?
“I can’t be afraid of him. My mind can’t take the fear anymore. I want to know why I never knew about him and what it is about me that fascinates him so much. Let him come. If he wants me, let him find me.”
“Could it be your father?” Sam asks.
“What do you mean?”
“This is his brother. Could he be following you to try to get to your dad?”
“I don’t think so. He didn’t start showing up until years after my father disappeared. And he would have noticed my father hasn’t been around. If he was after him, all it would have taken was a quick internet search, and he would have known. It’s not exactly a secret that my father is listed as a missing person, and I highly doubt he’s on some sort of righteousness quest to find out what happened to his long-lost brother. There’s a reason I was never told about him, and I need to know that reason,” I tell him.
Blinding headlights slice through the back window as Dean’s car pulls up behind us. I
