Page 36 of Behind the Cascades
The guilt and anger have been crushing me. If I wasn't so focused on trying to find her, I'd be in a self-deprecating spiral of regret and shame. The anger I feel toward myself only rivals the anger I feel toward the man who put us in this situation. If I dwell on that, though, I'll end up finding a way to murder the bastard. My first priority has to be Charlie, and only Charlie. Dealing with him can wait until he's out of prison and it's easier to make him disappear.
Drew must have gotten lost in his own thoughts as well, because neither of us have said anything for a while. Both of us are folding and packing things away like we've done a hundred times before.
He breaks the silence first: "This isn't your fault, you know?"Except, it is.
My fingers freeze on the shirt I was folding. We haven't talked much about the events that led to Charlie running away or how either of us handled it before we knew. How he could think this isn't my fault is beyond me. I should have never left her. I should have trusted her. I should have killed him the second I saw how scared she was.
When I finally look at him, I see the indistinguishable pain and guilt I've been feeling for days reflecting on his face. The tiredness weighing on him makes him look years older than we are. I've been too focused on myself and Charlie to see how it's affecting her brother.
"Not your fault, either." I try to throw as much sincerity into my voice as I can. Drew has always had a tough exterior, hiding his emotions behind the ego he pretends to have. I've known him my entire life, though, and I know he only put on the mask to hide how devastated he was when he lost his parents.
"I fucked up. I'm all she has left, and I ignored her. If I'd been there, maybe she wouldn't have left."
I nod my head; he's not wrong, and I'm not about to lie to him to make him feel better. "Maybe, maybe not. Charlie's always been headstrong. If she wasn't comfortable staying, she wouldn't have. I'm the one who left her with that psycho in her room. I'll never forgive myself for that, but I can’t focus on that until we know she’s safe."
He looks away, taking a deep breath through his nose. You'd think we'd both be numb after all the shit we've done and seen over the last few years, but this hits differently. It's personal.
When he looks back, the corner of his lip turns up. "Alibi, and hide the body."
"Always, man." A humorless laugh shakes my chest. I haven't heard that in years, but we used to say it to Everett all the time. His dad was an abusive asshole and we made a pact that if he ever went after Odessa, he was dead. Thankfully, it never came to that and Odessa pretty much moved in with my mom after we graduated high school. I don't think Ev would have even joined the Army if she hadn't.
Three weeks later, not much has changed. Drew left for a training exercise this morning and we officially said our "see ya laters."
I wake up every day, hoping that today is the day that I find her. I've called everyone I know who knows Charlie and no one seems to know where she is or has talked to her in nearly two years. Well, everyone but my mom and Odessa. However, those two won't say a damn thing about where she is. They just keep telling me to be patient and wait until she calls. I don't want to wait another week to find out whether or not she's agreed to add me to her app, though. I need to see her. Face-to-face. I need to see that she's okay and beg her to forgive me.
She's hidden so well that even our reinforcement, Lincoln, is having a hard time finding her—and Lincoln canfind anyone. He was a great SEAL but he’s even more badass when it comes to computers and hacking into secure data. The whole team felt his loss when he was medevaced out, but the only thing we cared about was that he was alive. They were able to save his leg, but it did end his career early.
I was finally able to get a hold of him last week and explain to him what was going on. He told me he needed a few days to work on it, but he was confident that he'd be able to track her down. Meanwhile, I sat around in my empty condo, waiting for news.
It’s the day after Christmas when I finally get the call I’ve been waiting for.
"Carrington, I found her."
I throw my legs off the couch, sitting up. "You're fucking kidding."
A low chuckle comes through the phone. "Nope. You know anyone in Three Sisters, Oregon?"
"I've never even heard of that place."Why the hell would she be in Oregon of all places?
"I hadn't either, but that's where she is. Her flight from South Carolina was to Portland. I hacked the airport security footage. A white SUV picked her up with an Oregon license plate—541BEO. Oregon Database has that registered to Olivia Turner. I'll send you all the info I have on her."
"Holy shit." He fucking did it. He found Charlie, and she's not that far from me.
"Yep. When you see her, give her my props. She went almost 100% off the grid for almost two years. If she hadn't taken that flight, I don't know if I would've ever found her." It's a little reassuring that he even struggled to find her. I was starting to doubt my abilities.
"Thanks, man. I owe you one."
Hescoffs in the background. "You saved my life. This was the least I could do."
“Would do it again in a second. Glad you’re doing good, Linc. When all this is settled, we’re getting a beer together.”
Ending the call, I jump out of bed, shower, and then start packing my truck.
After I've been on the road for several hours, I call the business number Linc gave me.
A younger-sounding woman answers on the third ring, “Hello?”
“Mrs. Turner? This is Hayes Carrington. May I speak to Charlotte?”
