Page 65 of Rush

No funny business.

No cops.

He supposed two out of three wasn’t bad.

When Linc pulled into the empty parking lot, he noticed the absence of headlights behind him and figured the police had already found a place to park and wait. Even if the cops didn’t have eyes, Linc reminded himself not to worry. The money was wired, a transistor strategically placed within one of the bundles of cash. Linc had opened the bag himself, searched for it, and upon not finding it was satisfied the kidnappers would never guess it was there. Knowing all that, he pulled into the alley with confidence that the police had everything under control.

The passage was narrow, but not so much so he worried about scratching the rental. There were two dumpsters in the alley, one with the lid down and one with the lid up. He wasn’t supposed to leave the car so assumed the dumpster with its lid up was the one he was to use.

Pulling up as close to the bin as possible, he applied the brake, peering into the shadows while he rolled down the window. The sour stench of spoiled milk wafted into the interior of the car as Linc tossed the bag in the trash and quickly closed the window. He drove slowly down the rest of the alley to the exit, keeping a lookout for any loiterers but not seeing a soul.

His part was done. All that was left was the hard part—drive back home and thenwait.

Wait for the moment Sophie was back in his arms.

Chapter Twenty-four

Nora pulled out her phone and checked the time. Only five minutes had passed since Linc had left. Time was moving at a snail’s pace. She rubbed her forehead, her headache starting to come back. Getting up, she went to the kitchen for more Tylenol before it got any worse.

She ran into the attractive woman in the expensive looking skirt suit, who she’d seen talking with Linc earlier. She stood with a hip to the counter talking on the phone. “No, Jerry, I said check yourin-boxfor the contract, not the mailbox.”

Nora opened the cabinet and took out the bottle of painkillers, popping the lid and shaking three into her palm, all the while trying not to eavesdrop, but it was hard in the otherwise quiet room.

“I don’t care what time it is. You need to sign it tonight or the deal is off.”

Nora silently closed the cabinet door and got a bottle of water from the fridge.

“Yes, email it back. Goodbye, Jerry.” The woman disconnected the call and Nora swore she heard her mumbleidiotunder her breath.

Curiosity getting the better of her, instead of leaving the kitchen, Nora approached the woman. She was even more beautiful up close, with a sophisticated elegance that Nora could never hope to achieve.

“Hello, I’m Nora,” she said, holding out a hand. “I’m guessing you’re Liz, Linc’s manager.”

She took Nora’s hand in a firm grip, a small knowing smile curving her lips the only confirmation of her identity. Then as if being thoroughly inspected, the woman’s head tilted to the side, the diamond in her ear catching the light and nearly blinding Nora with its glare.

After a long moment when the woman still hadn’t said anything, Nora inquired, “You’ve known Linc longer than me, how did he seem to you?” While Liz and Linc had barely touched, their conversation had been intimate. They were very close in some way, and given Linc’s track record, Nora could take a wild guess how.

That brief thought must’ve shown on Nora’s face as Liz replied, “Steady, but even though I’ve known him longer, I’m just his manager.” She gave Nora a knowing smile. “And only his manager. I think you know him far better than I do by now.” Then she surprised Nora by saying, “I hope you aren’t blaming yourself for what happened today. That man would have gotten ahold of Sophie one way or another.” Liz was obviously as blunt as she was beautiful.

Nora swallowed and looked down at her toes. “I realize that.”

“Do you?”

Nora flinched at Liz’s harsh tone and snapped. “Well, even if I didn’t, you’d now be the last person I’d admit it to.”

A genuine smile transformed Liz’s features from sharp into something softer. “I knew I was going to like you.” She glanced at her phone. “Linc should be nearing the drop-off point soon. Shall we go eavesdrop on the police?”

Nora’s stomach dropped and she felt like she was about to throw up and it didn’t have anything to do with her head injury.If the police didn’t get Sophie back safely… No, she wouldn’t finish that thought. Sophie would be okay. She had to be.

Nora expected a lot more chaos when she walked back into the living room but the opposite was true. The remaining officers, both uniformed and tech crew, barely spoke while gathered around the radio listening for updates.

Suddenly, their sporadic chatter stopped altogether when the radio squawked to life and a male voice came over the line, which Nora assumed belonged to one of the detectives, saying the money had been dropped and Linc was on his way back. So far, no suspects had approached the alley.

Time slowed as they waited, Nora growing more and more anxious, until they finally heard, “Possible suspect approaching on foot, crossing 15thfrom the CozySleep motel and entering the parking lot. Looks to be Caucasian male, early-to-mid sixties.”

“That sounds like the man who took Sophie,” Nora blurted without thinking.

One of the officers nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

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