Carla Neggers - Cold Pursuit

Nora hadn’t told the Whittakers, who’d arrived in Black Falls a couple of days ago, about Alex. She didn’t plan to tell them, either. Alex had met them on a trip to Vermont last October. He’d been a regular guest at the Camerons’ lodge for several years and came up one weekend while her mom was on a business trip. He and the Whittakers had hit it off, and they’d invited him to stay with them and to bring his fiancée and her daughter. Nora fell in love with Black Falls. She came up twice after that with Alex and her mother. Then the Whittakers insisted she bring her father one weekend. Just the two of them. He was reluctant at first, but Nora talked him into it. They’d had such a great time together. She’d fantasized about all of them coming to Vermont one day-her, her dad, her mom, Alex. She thought Lowell and Vivian understood.

If only, though, she hadn’t told them she and her father were heading north in April to look at colleges. They’d immediately invited them to stay at their place in Black Falls. If they hadn’t-if they’d just stayed in another town-he never would have met Melanie Kendall.

It’s my fault he met that bitch.

“Nora.”

She jumped, but stifled a scream when she saw it was Devin on the stone walk in front of the guesthouse. She straightened, sniffled back her tears. “Devin, what are you doing here? You startled me.”

“Sorry.” He looked almost forlorn. “I just want to talk.”

“There’s nothing to talk about. Really.”

A pair of mallards floated in a small man-made pond behind him. The banks of the pond were planted with weeping willows and rhododendrons. Everything about the estate was beautifully done, carefully planned. As much as she wanted her own apartment, Nora loved being there, having her own space and being surrounded by wilderness. She’d hated living in a dorm.

Devin nodded to her pack. “Are you going somewhere?”

“Maybe. I don’t know. I wanted to see how all the stuff I’ve been collecting since the class I took with Elijah would fit into my backpack.”

“Looks heavy.”

“I can manage.”

“Nora, what’s going on?”

There was no irritation or frustration in his tone. Obviously he didn’t know about Alex, and she couldn’t bring herself to repeat out loud what her father had told her.

“I have terrible news, Nora. Alex has been killed…”

It wasn’t a mistake. Her dad wouldn’t have called her unless he was positive.

Alex was dead.

My mom’s a widow.

Devin took an audible breath. “Nora…please. Talk to me.”

She wanted to believe in him. Until that morning, she had. She’d never met anyone steadier or more reliable than Devin. People in Black Falls didn’t understand that about him. They thought he was just a dumb, screwed-up kid from a bad family.

Nora didn’t want to be the one to prove them right.

She let her pack lean against her knee. “You stole money from me, Devin.”

He didn’t respond. He looked hurt, and that made her want to cry even more.

“If you needed money, you could have asked me.” All the starch had gone out of her. “I’d never refuse you. Even if I don’t have much to spare-”

“I didn’t steal from you.”

Even now, reeling, frightened, confused, Nora wanted to find a way it couldn’t have been him. Devin was her best friend in Black Falls. He understood how she felt about her father’s odious fiancée and didn’t tell her she was just jealous. Something was off about Melanie. Nora couldn’t pinpoint what it was, but she didn’t like her, didn’t trust her and was convinced the feeling was mutual on Melanie’s part. She’d gotten Devin to help her. They’d essentially been doing their own background check on Melanie-something Nora’s father probably should have done himself.

“Nora, are you running from me?”

She shook her head. “I don’t care about the money.” Her voice was hoarse, barely a whisper. She gave a fake little smile. “I just need some space to clear my head.”

She hoisted up her pack. It was expensive and brand-new-it even smelled new. Her mother had actually loved the idea of her taking a wilderness-skills class and told Nora to put the backpack on her credit card. Elijah had a simple beat-up pack he’d had for years. He’d probably taken it on hundreds of hikes. It wasn’t an army-issue pack-Nora knew that much. They’d all talked behind his back in class about what he must have done as a soldier. Supposedly he could speak the different languages of Afghanistan and knew the culture, the people, as well as how to handle himself in a firefight.

Elijah’s class had consisted of her and six other students just as green and eager and stupid as she was. She was the youngest, though. That had made her feel a little less self-conscious. The women in the class all thought Elijah was sexy. Nora did, too, but thinking that way made her feel disloyal to Devin, even if they were just friends. Elijah was a total stud and very serious about the information he was giving, but it was so obvious to Nora that she and her classmates were nothing like the soldiers he was used to in the military. But he was so thorough, and that was a good thing. Otherwise she’d have tossed a sundress or something equally useless into her pack, because she was so crazed she couldn’t think.

“Nora,” Devin said, his voice tortured. “Come on-”

“I have to go.”

She shivered as if she were already on Cameron Mountain. She’d left her cell phone in the kitchen because it was a way for someone to track her.

And she didn’t want to be tracked. Every instinct she had told her to get up on the mountain and disappear, even if it violated the basic tenets of safe hiking. Don’t hike alone. Leave her route with someone. Tell someone how long she expected to be gone. Nora didn’t care. She didn’t want anyone to find her unless she wanted to be found-unless she knew exactly who was looking for her and why. She’d been planning this trip for days. She’d meant to ask Devin to go with her-but forget that now. She wanted to get away from everyone.

Devin took another step toward her. “Did your dad find out you were snooping into Melanie’s background?”

“No, I don’t think so. And I’m not that concerned if he does. He should have checked her out himself. He’s too trusting.”

“Are they on their way up here? Is that why you’re doing this?”

“No, they’re not on their way. Devin, please.” Her head was still spinning, and she didn’t want to start crying in front of him. “I just-Devin, the money…” She hadn’t wanted to get into it with him. He’d come to the café knowing something was wrong, and she’d refused to talk to him. She blinked back tears now and hoisted her pack onto one shoulder. Devin was right-it was heavy. “I’m missing a hundred dollars,” she said.

“And you think I stole it?”

She looked away.

“Was it in your wallet?”

“My kitchen.” She nodded back toward the front door of the guesthouse. It was divided into two side-by-side apartments-she’d had her pick and chosen the one with the better view of the pond and surrounding hills, so gorgeous when the leaves were turning. She’d never been afraid there. Not once, until today. “I keep a hundred dollars in cash for emergencies, and it’s gone.”

“Where? A drawer, the freezer?”

“Under a pot of parsley in the window. I check it every morning. I checked it yesterday morning, and it was there. I checked it this morning, and it was gone.”

“There’s no sign anyone broke in?”

“No. I worked late yesterday, then went on a bike ride.”

“You don’t lock your doors,” Devin said. “Anyone could have walked in.”

“I don’t want to discuss it.”