Page 74 of Call Back

Brady had gotten up while I was gone and stood in front of the coffee maker, pouring water into the machine. “I figured neither one of us was likely to go back to sleep after this.”

“True.”

He put the pot on the burner and turned it on. “Did you find the photos?”

“You’re not going to file a police report?”

He walked over to me and rested his hands on my shoulders. “Do you want me to file a police report?”

I shook my head slightly. “Uh . . . no, but isn’t that beside the point?”

“No. It’s exactly the point.” He bent at the knees so our eyes were level. “You were scared to tell me because you were afraid of what I’d do once I found out—create a report, bring lots of other cops into the investigation. Sure, I could do that, but what purpose would it serve?”

“What I know might help catch him.”

A soft smile lit up his face. “Maggie, I’m working Emily’s case. If you tell me what you know, I’ll use that information to help find the killer. Then no one else needs to know about your involvement, and you’re safe. But even better—you’ll know you can trust me.”

Except his reaction was having the opposite effect. Alarms were ringing in my head. First he’d concealed the real reason I was at the bar the night Walter Frey was murdered, and now this. I needed time to think.

“The photos?” he gently nudged.

I almost didn’t show him, but at this point, why continue to hide them? What kind of person would I be if I withheld information that could help find the killer?

I scrolled up to the first message and handed my phone to him. He sat at the kitchen table, and I lowered myself into the chair beside him. “I received the first one the night I came back. After Max’s murder.”

Welcome home, Magnolia. I’ve been waiting.

Brady looked up at me. “That’s creepy as shit, Maggie. Why didn’t you go to the police?”

“I didn’t remember anything at that point. I had no idea what he was talking about. I thought it could be a crazy stalker after the whole YouTube incident.”

“Let me see the next one.”

I took the phone and swiped the screen, showing him one after another, reliving each horrifying threat as I did so. In addition to the screenshots of the texts, I’d also taken pictures of the magnolia blossom left for me on Momma’s porch and the poor dead cat that had been left for us too.

Brady studied the screen for several seconds longer than necessary to read the messages. “You’ve communicated with him,” he finally said.

I realized I hadn’t told him that part. “Yes.”

His eyes lifted to mine. “Would you be willing to talk to him again?”

I froze and stared at Brady in horror. He might as well have asked me to light myself on fire.

“Just bear with me,” he said in a pleading tone. “He thinks you haven’t told anyone. We could set a trap for him.”

My mouth dropped open.

“Okay,” Brady said patiently. “I can tell you’re unnerved. We’ll revisit the idea later.”He grimaced. “Sorry. It must have been overwhelming for you to finally unburden a decade-old secret.”

I forced a tiny smile. “Yeah.”

He reached over and covered my hand on the table. “Look, I can see that me not taking an official report is bothering you. I can do it if you’d like. I’m just trying to make this easier for you. You’ve been through one traumatic experience after another. I’m just trying to protect you.”

I resisted the urge to stiffen my back. Everyone kept telling me they were doing things to protect me, but I was having trouble believing it. Besides, something told me I had to rely, first and foremost, on myself.

“Come here.” He set my phone on the table, then stood and tugged me up into his arms. I closed my eyes as I leaned my head on his shoulder, not sure whether to believe him or not. When he said it like that, it sounded perfectly reasonable. But it still felt wrong.

“What do you want to do?” he asked while I was still in his embrace. “How about we go over the benefits of either option?”

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