Page 44 of Blades of Ice

“I appreciate that, but you need to focus on the lodge.”

“Then you’ll check in?” Dakota asked softly.

“I will. I need to go, but I’ll call back soon.”

“We’re looking forward to it, Lydia. Love you,” Bas said.

“Love you too, Bas.” Lydia disconnected. She was reaching for her laptop when Dooley cursed a blue streak.

Chapter 18

Lydia stopped atthe entrance to the kitchen. “What’s wrong?”

Dooley was pulling his hair. He pointed to his computer where Carleigh’s face was on the screen. “Carleigh found something.”

“Hey, Cuz. Did you get through all your hundred texts and voicemails?”

“Yes. I video chatted with my parents and Locke, then I spoke to Dakota and Bas. Dakota didn’t like it when I told her I didn’t always have cell coverage, so she’s sending me a satellite phone. Anyway, what did you find?”

“Nikita, Harlow, and I were brainstorming. Nikita kept coming back to the Black Canary message. We’ve already established there were two characters with that name – mother and daughter. Add into that the baby bear’s porridge being just right. If the daughter and baby bear are one and the same, which daughter? Delaney was adamant that Beck search for them both. If she’s complicit in this mess, would she be losing her shit? Probably not. That leaves Chloe, and since she’s the youngest daughter, her being the baby in this scenario makes sense.”

“But what if the Canary is Amara? She’s in the wild? That could be a reference to where they’ve taken her.”

“True, but I did some deep diving into Chloe’s cell and satellite phones. The cell didn’t give us anything, but her satellite was where I struck pay dirt. She and Orson Murray spoke a few times.”

“Why would Chloe talk to Beck’s girlfriend’s father?”

Carleigh cleared her throat. “Did you say Beck’s girlfriend? What the hell, Cuz?”

Lydia strode to the fridge for something to drink, thankful someone had stocked it with beer. She pointed at one and raised her eyebrows at Dooley. He held up the energy drink he already had, so Lydia popped the top, tossed the cap into the garbage can, then sat down at the table. “Sorry, ex-girlfriend. They were dating when Amara was kicked out of BC. Heather wouldn’t leave Canada with Beck, and he wouldn’t stay. Also, Heather and Chloe went to high school together.” She took a long pull off the beer.

“What if Heather’s father found out what Boyd was planning, and he called Chloe to warn her?”

Dooley spoke up. “If that’s the case, maybe that’s what he was doing with the Empress. Instead of being missing, she’s in hiding.”

“And the Canary being in the wild could be code for she’s gone to ground,” Carleigh offered.

Lydia twirled the bottle on the table. “But why let her daughters believe she’s missing? If that was my mom, she’d never go this long without getting word to us somehow.”

“True, but maybe Amara has no way to get word out? Fuckin’ hell. This makes my brain hurt.”

It did the same to Lydia’s, and she wasn’t the one spending all her time at a computer. “It’s late, C. Get some sleep.”

“Eh, I’ll sleep when I’m dead. This is more important.”

“I’m serious. Brains function better when they’re not frazzled. Ask me how I know.”

“At least you had the mental fortitude to shoot flames at a grizzly.”

Dooley gasped. “You did what?”

“On that note, I’m going to share a secret with Dooley. I think he’s earned it.”

“Maybe not the flamethrower, yeah?”

Lydia chuckled, but her heart wasn’t in it. She wanted Beck. “Maybe. Talk to you soon.”

Dooley tapped a few keys, and the video connection ended. “Lucy,you got some ‘splaininto do.”

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