50
With the envelope clenched in her fist, Waverly got to the stairwell and bounded down three at a time with Bristol no more than a heartbeat behind. With every step she expected a fist to lock into her hair and snap her neck back so hard that her body yanked out.
Two seconds went by.
No fist came.
Then more seconds passed.
She made it to street level and ran with every molecule of strength she could summons.
Her lungs burned.
Her muscles cried.
The streets were crowded. She weaved through pedestrians as best she could.
A cup of coffee flew out of a hand.
An elderly lady tumbled to the ground.
Bristol didn’t let up.
He stayed behind her.
He didn’t care that people were staring.
He didn’t care a damn.
A half block went by.
Waverly swung onto the tail end of a moving trolley, dangled dangerously then got a foot planted. A look back showed Bristol sprinting at full strength but dropping back.
He slammed one fist into the other.
Then he bent over, braced his hands on knees and sucked air.
Waverly checked the envelope to be sure the photos hadn’t dropped out.
They hadn’t.
They were all there.
She already knew what she had to do.
She had to find out who they were.
She also had to find out if they were still alive or met a strange death like Kava Every.
She shoved the envelope in her purse.
51
River drank coffee while Alexa Blank tended to tables, deciding whether he was angel or demon. It was several minutes before she swung by with an answer. “Let me see your driver’s license.”
“Why?”
“Just do it.”
He obliged.
She studied it and said, “Dayton River, like you said.” She handed it back. “Get your car and pick me up behind here in the alley in ten minutes. You see that other waitress over there?”
River nodded.
“I told her that if I end up dead, you’re the one who did it. I told her your name, Dayton River.”
“You won’t end up dead.”
“I can’t believe I’m doing this.”
Heading out of Denver they didn’t talk much. River concentrated on the rearview mirror, studying every car, looking for a killer behind a wheel. At the edge of the city he made several evasive turns. No one followed. The woman kept a sideways eye on him and had her body pressed against the door as far away as she could.
“Relax,” he said.
“How?”
“I’m not going to hurt you,” he said. “My assignment was to abduct you and not let you see my face. I would be contacted later and told whether I should kill you or let you go. My question is why?”
“I don’t know.”
River frowned.
“This is important,” he said. “Think.”
“I am thinking.”
“Do you have any enemies?”
“No.”
“Boyfriends?”
“No.”
“Did you see something you shouldn’t have?”
“No.”
“Do you know something you shouldn’t?”
“No.”
“Are you blackmailing someone?”
“No.”
“Did you steal something?”
“No.”
“Are you a mistress?”
“No, I’m a waitress,” she said. “That’s all I am, just a waitress.”
“That might be true but you’re a waitress who’s on someone’s radar screen.”
She stared out the windshield.
“According to you,” she said.
“Not according to me,” River said. “You are, trust me.”
“I am trusting you but it’s hard.”
River patted her hand.
“I know,” he said. “I wish I could say something encouraging. Unfortunately, it’s going to get harder before it gets easier.”
The city got smaller.
The country got bigger.
Black and white magpies appeared in the sky.
Rabbit brush grew in number and size.
“Where are we going?”
