Page 150 of Enigma: The Complete Collection
“My boot,” Hugo murmurs when my curious gaze takes in a hole halfway up. “Last door on the right.”
The hallway reeks of stale water and mold, but compared to downstairs, the space is spotlessly clean. Fear tears me in two when I enter the room at the end of the hallway. Understanding Megan’s obsession with Nick via pictures has nothing on seeing it firsthand. Every inch of her room, including the ceiling, is covered with photos of him. They range in dates from when his band was hardly known in its heydays at Mavericks, to pictures of him on a stage during a morning breakfast show a couple of weeks ago.
“How could you fathom the threat was to Jenni and Jasper? This room makes it pretty fucking obvious who the threat pertains to—”
“Not everything is black and white, Isaac. You need to look for the gray.” Isabelle floats across the room, whisking up her beautiful scent that lessens the fury burning me at the stake. I wish I could take away the moisture brimming in her eyes just as quickly. “Remember, they are safe and protected. She can’t hurt them anymore.”
Pain rises in my heart knowing I caused her tears when all she has done is support me. As I run my hand down her cheek, breathing a sigh of relief when I discover it’s dry, I nod. A smile tugs on her lips before she heads for a set of double doors in the far corner of the room. She wants this over as quickly as me, aware I need more than ten seconds to fix the mistakes I made.
When I join her at the side of the room, she grips a white door handle that’s only just visible between the posters of Nick’s band, Rise Up. The scent of bleach and disinfectant filters through my nostrils when she pushes the door open. Unlike Megan’s bedroom, the white walls of this room are untouched and immaculately clean.
As I step into the sanitary-smelling space, my eyes dart in all directions. There isn’t much to see. Other than a melamine table with a stainless-steel chair underneath it, the room is barren.
My jaw tenses when my eyes roam over the open textbooks on the desk. There's a range of articles and documents highlighted on how to complete an illegal cesarean. The images are so graphic, even with having a cast-iron stomach, I still feel squeamish.
“Don’t touch anything.”
Isabelle’s command freezes my hand halfway to a white sheet draped over the desk. When she raises it with a pen on my behalf, a knot twists in my stomach. Medical equipment that includes forceps, umbilical clamps, scissors, and a razor-sharp scalpel are stored inside a stainless-steel kidney-shaped bowl.
My nostrils flare when I drift my eyes to Hunter. He’s the most deserving of my wrath considering it was his job to unearth everything he could about Megan after she attacked Nick at my nightclub.
Hunter holds his hands out in front of his body, mindful I’m two seconds from snapping. “Nothing like this was in her hotel room, or inanyof the searches I completed.”
I clench my fists so fast, the air ripples.
“Megan doesn’t use a computer. Her cell phone is a burner, and she mainly relies on cash.” Isabelle places herself in the firing line by standing between Hunter and me. “Her books were borrowed from the library or purchased at flea markets.” She stares at me, begging for me to hear the truth in her words. “This isn’t Hunter’s fault, Isaac. Megan is unstable. She needs more help than any of us could have fathomed.”
The genuine remorse in her beautiful, rich eyes subdues my anger. I do believe her. I also trust her. While replenishing my lungs with oxygen, I study the space, contemplating my next move. Any decisions made while angry will most likely result in an irrational reaction, so I need to quell my fury to ensure I think sensibly.
After a few moments of pondering, I turn to face Brandon. “Give Hunter an hour to document everything in this room, then call in local authorities.” Isabelle looks at me with loving eyes as Brandon nods. “Hunter, I need you to hack every local CTV camera in Ravenshoe and two towns each side of it. If Megan gets within a foot of my town, I want to be the first to know.”
“Already done. After Hugo updated me on the situation last night, I knew you’d suggest it. I also updated Ryan. I kept the details vague, but he’s passing Megan’s photo onto his reputable officers,” Hunter informs me.
“Good.” My gaze shifts to Hugo. “Have your man sitting at Nick’s house switch with Peters. I need Peters on the first flight to New York.”
Hugo nods while pulling his dated cell out of his pocket.
“Get this wrapped up quickly and effectively. We don’t have any time to waste.”
While briskly strolling out of the room, I remove my untraceable cell from my pocket. I move to a room at the opposite end of the hall. Although I trust Isabelle, I can’t put her at risk of prosecution, so this call must take place in private.
After dialing a number I know by heart, I squash my phone to my ear. Henry answers on the very first ring. “Isaac, you haven’t rung me on this number in years. What do you need?”
“I need to call in that favor.”
Henry’s chuckle sounds down the line. “If my son can’t find a loophole for your fighter, I won’t be any more help.”
“It’s not for my fighter. There's a family situation I need your help with.”
After talking to Henry and my lawyer for thirty minutes, I re-enter Megan’s bedroom. Brandon is taking a call in the corner of the room, and Hunter is digitally categorizing the space.
“Where’s Isabelle?”
Hunter jumps off a step ladder in the middle of the room. It has a circular camera mounted on a tripod. It will record the area in 3D format.
“She and Hugo went to check on the outbuildings.”
Nodding, I pace to a cracked window that looks out at the overgrown fields below. Because of Hugo’s large size, it doesn’t take me long to spot him standing next to a black truck at the front of a wooden shed. The vehicle must be locked as he’s ramming a flat steel bar down the driver’s side window to jimmy the lock.
