Page 127 of Close Your Eyes and Count to 10

In the huge lake, there were islands. Windows from homes glowed like embers in the night. It was quiet, so quiet—just the boat engine and the water and the vast silent night. The sky was alive with starlight, and the water glimmered and danced all around them.

There was nothing.

They’d both ditched their phones in Falcão Island.

She’d texted her mother:I’m okay. I love you. Whatever you hear about us, it’s not true. Not the whole truth.

Then Maverick had taken it and dumped it with his in a garbage pail. Neither one of them had a device of any kind now.

The world and whatever consequences awaited them receded for a time. A deep calm came over her.

Finally, after about twenty minutes on the water, they came to a dark island,and Maverick pulled their boat up to its wooden dock and tied them off.

“What is this place?” she asked. With the engine quiet, there was no sound except the water slapping against the hull.

“You know, up here in the middle of nowhere, islands are pretty cheap.”

“Youboughtan island.”

“Yeah,” he said. “It’s an engagement gift. Don’t get too excited. It’s nothing much. The house needs a lot of work.”

Then he was down on one knee, and from his pocket he produced a small velvet box. Inside was the biggest diamond she’d ever seen.

“If not now, then when, Angeline?” he asked. “Will you marry me?”

She saidyes, and he slid the ring on her finger. It was a perfect glittering pink star. She didn’t imagine that they’d ever get married, not really. Because they were both probably going to prison at some point. So—why not?

He carried her over the threshold of a modest wood house that smelled a bit musty but was comfortably furnished with big couches and chairs and a decent kitchen—a pantry and refrigerator stocked with food. There were instructions about the water, and flushing the toilet, and the generator that would need to be kept gassed up. Too many trips into the marina could be a problem, she thought.

“It’s pretty rustic,” he said from the loft landing.

“It’s perfect.”

The master bedroom had a huge king bed, neatly made with enough pillows. There were clean towels in the bathroom, soap and shampoo.

“They’ll find us eventually,” she said.

“Or we’ll go back and try to put things right,” he said. “But not tonight.”

They made love and slept deeply.

In the morning the sunrise washed in the big bay window and the lake and the trees and the other islands. It was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen.

She made coffee. When Maverick woke up and joined her in the kitchen, she said, “Maverick, tell me everything.”

He released a big sigh, took a swallow of the coffee she’d poured him.

He told her about the night in Iceland with Chloe. About the pictures she took. How she started blackmailing him. How he started taking money from the business accounts to pay her. Small amounts at first, then more and more.

Finally, they’d struck a deal. She would come to the Haunted Hide and Seek Challenge, and he’d make sure she won. And that would be the end of it. She promised.

Then she disappeared.

After that he started getting threats online, via email. He felt like someone was following him, trying to kill him. He was scared all the time. He bought and learned to use a gun. He didn’t feel like he could tell anyone because he’d stolen so much money from Extreme. He was afraid the scrutiny might draw attention to all the other things he’d done wrong.

He kept stealing money, planning an escape. He bought this island with cash under an old company name. It wasn’t perfect. If they were looking, and they probably were, they’d eventually find him.

Then came the BoxOfficePlus offer, which he and Alex knew was a lifeline, a way out. But who was he without Extreme? What would Extreme become if they had to answer to a corporate overlord? He fought the deal, found reasons to turn down every offer. He held the majority shares. No one could take Extreme; he’d have to give it.

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