Page 21 of Mine

A small bag of honey-roasted peanuts

One pack of cinnamon gum

A handful of old cinnamon gummies (the little red bear kind) clinging to the bottom. Stuck to those is a small, crumbled sticky note. The handwritten script is faded and barely legible. It reads: Money for lunch on the counter. You’ve got this. Love you. Signed, Mom. I slide this one into my pocket.

Next up, a tampon. I toss this to Cillian as if it were a ticking bomb. He scowls and swats it away like a gnat, sending it rolling down the aisle, landing next to her Louboutin. We don’t dare look back.

And finally, a smartphone, locked with a passcode, of course.

“Want me to go scan her face to unlock it?” Cillian asks.

“No. I told you to leave her alone.”

He stares at me.

I sniff.

“Well ...” Cillian clears his throat and refocuses on the driver’s license in his hand. “I’ve got a place to start my research.” He grabs his laptop. “I’ve got five hours. Plenty of time.”

“No, we’re not going back to New York. I’m not leaving this area until I get my wife’s body and then punish Carlos accordingly. I want you to figure out where he is, contact him, and tell him I’ll return Sabine as soon as he delivers Valerie’s body.”

“The address he sent the original email from has already been shut down, but I’ll find a contact. When do we kill him?”

“Let me figure that out.”

“Where are we going?”

“My little cabin in the woods.”

“You have a cabin? Where?”

“On the outskirts of Tahoe National Forest.”

“In Lake Tahoe?”

“North of it, but yes, around there.”

“A mansion in the woods, then. Good. I could use some fresh air.” He begins typing. “I’ll have something on her shortly. What are you going to do?”

I glance in the mirrored ceiling at the girl tied up in the back. “I’m going to have a drink.”

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