Page 52 of Baited

“Shhh.” His palm gently kneaded the back of her neck, tension eased beneath his touch. “Don’t think like that. You alsocould have not found it at all. Let’s not get our hopes up though, okay? But this is a damn good clue.”

She took a deep, shaky breath. He was right. The note could very well be a dead end. She had to be prepared for that possibility.

“Why don’t you keep reading and I’ll order a pizza? Any preference?”

“Vegetarian is good for me, thanks.”

“Perfect.” He disappeared inside the house and she sat back down on the patio sofa. Her eyes that had felt grainy before were now wide. Her heart beat steadily against her breastbone as she read the entry that had gone with the slip of paper.

Now I’m getting a little freaked out. He wants to see me again? It’s possible this is the same person who sent the flowers, but I’m stumped. I’m debating on whether I should go to the police, but the note isn’t threatening, and it could very well be a harmless prank. If anything weird happens, I’m not taking any chances.

She exhaled and lowered the journal. So even Hanna hadn’t had any inclination or suspicions. That wasn’t very reassuring. They needed a name. She flipped through the next few entries, but nothing else came up. Please god, don’t let this be a dead end.

She made it through five more entries, and still nothing. Hope deflated in her chest like a popped balloon. Her throat tightened as grief bubbled up the back of her throat, its acidic taste threatened to gag her. Ethan’s gentle touch traced over her knee as she curled against him. He hadn’t touched his tablet since her last discovery.

She turned the page, and another note slid out and onto Ethan’s lap. Her breath sucked in and she whipped her head to meet his’s gaze.

“Don’t touch it.” He grabbed a napkin from beneath one of their glasses, and the plastic bag. Carefully, without touching it, he used both to open the fold.

“You’re ignoring me, Hanna. And I don’t like it. This is your last chance to meet me at the pier, tonight at nine p.m. Don’t be late.” Ethan read aloud.

Riley leaned forward to get a better look at the note. The writing was neat, with perfect spelling and punctuation.

“What’s the date of that entry?” He nodded to the journal.

The date was written at the top right-hand corner of the page. “June twenty-sixth,” she whispered. The words fell from her mouth with the weight of an anvil. Her fingers curled around the edges of the book. “She went missing on June twenty-eighth.”

“I think we have our guy.” His jaw worked beneath the light shadow that grew. Nausea swelled in her stomach. She set the book down and tunneled her hand through her hair, her elbow rested on her knee.

“This is awful, Ethan. How on earth are we going to tie the notes to anyone? Hanna didn’t even have a suspicion and if she did, she didn’t write it down.”

“There are still more entries, right?”

She nodded. “I remember noticing that the last few entries were written in the last week. That’s a lot for her.”

“There could still be information that we haven’t read yet.” His hand smoothed up and down her back. She swallowed and picked the book up again.

A car pulled into the driveway. “The pizza is here.” Ethan stood and greeted the delivery driver at the steps.

Riley picked up the book. There were two entries left. The first one told of where she had found the note, pressed to the windshield of her car after work. She turned to the final entry, dated the day before Hanna had disappeared.

I’m getting scared. I always feel like someone is watching me now and I jump at every sound, especially when I’m home alone. Last night, a blocked number called my phone. They didn’t speak, but sat on the line. I hung up. I’m going to go to the police station tomorrow, but I’m scared. Everyone in this town talks… what will he do if he finds out I went to the police?

It could literally be anyone. My mind keeps racing with possibilities, but all that’s doing is making me crazy. Brian, Riley’s ex-boyfriend, moved back recently. I ran into him the other day. He was polite, but this was the first time I had seen him in years. I feel like it’s someone I know, someone I see often. He seems so close to me all the time.

I forgot to tell Riley about this during our last phone call. We’re supposed to chat again on Sunday, so I will tell her then. Maybe she’ll be able to help me figure this out.

Riley closed her eyes. Tears welled behind her closed lids, but she blinked them back before they could spill. Not now. With the journal pressed tightly against her stomach, she followed Ethan into the house. The scent of cheesy pizza wafted to her nose and tingled her taste buds despite the pit of nausea that settled in her chest.

“I ordered a salad too, I hope you’re hungry.”

Riley forced a smile and accepted a plate from his outstretched hand. “Thanks, I’m starving.”

Ethan lifted a slice and set it on her plate. She added a helping of salad, and waited for Ethan to fill his plate. She sat at the table where two full glasses of water waited, and he slid in next to her. His body was so much bigger than hers. Heat radiated off him, and the urge to press her body to his vibrated through her.

“Find anything else in the other entries?” He took a big bite of pizza, and waited. The deep blues of his eyes watched her carefully. She lifted a shoulder, and blew on the warm cheese.

“She mentioned my ex-boyfriend Brian moving back into town. But nothing else about him other than that he was polite.”

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