Page 58 of Forbidden Whispers

Noah launched into an explanation of finding the Porsche in Valentina’s parking lot after Hugo and the police had left them and about how all the paperwork stated that the car was his.

“So, this Porsche is actually in your name?” Hugo sounded incredulous.

“Yes,” Noah said. “The police have checked it out already, and everything seems to show that it really is mine. But, again, I have no memory of buying it, Hugo.”

“Strange,” Hugo said, sounding thoughtful. “Well, I have some other news to share with you besides the discovery of your car. Can you take the phone off speaker? I want to make certain passersby can’t hear the rest of what I want to say.”

Noah did as Hugo asked, and then scooted closer to Maggie so they could both lean in to hear. She smelled like warm vanilla and sunshine and he inhaled deeply, nearly forgetting he had the phone in his hand until Hugo began speaking again.

“I’m technically not allowed to share all of this with you, so what I’m about to tell you is officially off the record, okay?”

“Okay,” Maggie and Noah said together.

“Needless to say, a potential murder in Whispering Pines is a big deal. So, naturally, the police are putting all hands on deck to get to the bottom of this missing woman. As a result, they’re moving a lot faster than normal when it comes to getting back results from the lab, like the arsenic in the wine I told you about.”

Noah sighed.

“But they’ve learned more. Even though the wine bottle had enough arsenic in it that just a few sips would have been enough to kill someone, there were no traces of it in either of the wine glasses that were on the table.”

“That’s good, right?” Noah said.

“Well, it certainly doesn’t hurt,” Hugo replied, then continued. “And about your car, Noah, they found it abandoned on a back road outside of town. The police have thoroughly examined it. Any fingerprints inside and out have been wiped clean, including yours, which is strange. And there was no evidence that anyone else may have driven it.”

Noah shook his head, and Maggie placed a hand on his shoulder. But he couldn’t even appreciate her gentle touch. “Please tell me there was no dead body in my trunk, Hugo?” he said in a low voice.

“No dead body,” Hugo said. “And another positive for you is that they’ve uncovered new evidence that’s leading them to consider other suspects in Valentina Romano’s disappearance.”

“Like what?”

“They were able to obtain a print from the knife your alleyway attacker used. The knife belongs to a man named Nicola Verilla, also known as ‘Nick the Knife.’”

“Nick the...what?” Noah exclaimed.

“Apparently, Verilla is the number two man for the Detroit Partnership crime family,” he paused for effect. “As in, the mafia.”

Once again, Noah and Maggie exchanged shocked looks.

“But why would the...er,” Noah looked around furtively to make certain nobody was nearby, but still whispered the next part of his question, “family be coming after me? Or Valentina?”

“They haven’t figured out a connection yet, but they’re working on it. I just knew you’d want to know.”

“I do! Thank you, Hugo!”

“One more thing before I let you go,” Hugo said. “They don’t have any further reason to hold your car, so I pulled a few strings and they’re releasing it. You can come pick it up.”

Noah thanked Hugo again and disconnected.

Maggie threw herself back onto the blanket and Noah followed suit, both of them staring up at the twilight sky. It was painted in streaks of pale pink and blue as the sun sank closer to the waterline, making its way toward sunset.

“I can’t believe this,” Maggie said. “First it was just Valentina, then arsenic in the wine, and now the mafia?”

“And don’t forget my erased memory,” Noah said.

She turned her face toward him. “This is all so much bigger than we ever realized.”

“It really is,” Noah replied. He sat up then, his eyes fixed on the horizon. The weight of everything that had transpired hung heavy in the air between them.

A moment later, he felt Maggie lay her hand gently on top of his, a silent gesture of support. “We’ll figure this out, Noah,” she said. “Together.”

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