Page 94 of Talk Birdie to Me

The big problem? She didn’t actually know how to get Gary to make those sounds on command.

“He’s still stressed. This might take a while.”

James held up his phone in the hand not holding the gun. “I’ve got all afternoon and plenty of storage for recording. Now get him talking.”

“How do I know you won’t kill us once he does talk? I mean, aren’t you afraid I’ll tell the police about this? Not that I would. I don’t care about someone else’s money, and you’re probably right about Anthony cheating you out of what you were owed.”

She didn’t believe that for a second, but the part about not caring if he got away was true.

“I’ll be long gone before the cops come looking for me. You know firsthand how slow they are. What makes you think they’ll care about that bird this time?”

Geena bit her lip to keep quiet. Because it wasn’t just Gary he was threatening now. He’d kidnapped her and was holding her hostage. The police might have some interest in that.

But she really would let James go free if she knew she and Gary were safe. As things stood, she wasn’t convinced.

She looked around the room, searching for something, anything to help them both get out of this alive. But the room was bare except for the cage.

The cage.

Geena pointed at it. “I’m going to get something out of there. If I can get him down, I think I can get him to talk. He’ll feel safer with me, and you need him more relaxed.”

James narrowed his eyes at her. “Fine. But can we hurry this up? I said I have all afternoon, but I need to book a flight tonight for me and Chelsea.”

Geena still didn’t think Chelsea would be down for fleeing the country with him, but that wasn’t Geena’s bubble to burst.

As she walked toward the cage, a loud creak echoed from the other end of the house.

James aimed the gun at the closed bedroom door. “What was that?”

“Probably just the wind.” Geena pointed out the window. “Looks like another storm is rolling in.”

James didn’t look convinced, but he returned his attention to Geena near the cage. “Hurry up.”

She detached the single wooden perch and held it in the air. “I’m going to see if I can get him to climb onto this and put him on top of the cage. If he’s closer to me, he’ll be more likely to talk.”

It was a plausible lie. Now she just had to squash her fear and sell it.

She held the perch casually, while James considered her explanation. “Fine. Get on with it.”

Geena crept toward the door, hoping if that creak was what she thought it was, that Cody would wait long enough for her to get Gary safely on the other side of the room and away from the door.

She also hoped that if Cody did impulsively rush in, James wouldn’t shoot any of them. But that felt like too much of an ask.

Geena held the perch in front of Gary, gently tapping his feet to encourage him to step onto it. He tilted his head as he looked between her and the perch.

“Come on. It’s okay.”

Gary tapped at the wooden perch with one foot. Then, to her relief, he stepped onto it.

His weight was almost more than she could handle at that angle, but she used her second hand to help steady Gary and slowly carry him across the room.

She whispered, giving him praise and reassurance as they walked. She could only hope Gary trusted her as much as she needed him to.

She lifted the perch to place it in line with the top of the cage. Gary looked at her curiously.

“We’re all fucked!”

Geena hoped not.

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