Aimee Laine - Little White Lies

“Stuart.” Sheila took a few breaths. “That meeting tonight was part of the assignment. He was meant to brief the Director, but he never showed.” Her voice hitched. “I tried to get it moved to after, but our Director worried it had gotten too personal. He wanted to make sure Wyatt could handle it.”

“What do you mean he didn’t show? He showed up here at quarter after ten,” Stuart said.

“The meeting was set for six. His car registered in the garage at five thirty, but he never entered the building. At seven, we got a hold of all the security tape and registered visitors. We’ve spent the last two hours checking all the logs-wait… he showed up there?”

“Yeah. If you’re so worried, have you called his cell?”

“Repeatedly. He’s not answering. We had to get Superior-level clearance to break in his files, which took another hour. I found your name there and a Cael Aldridge.”

Damn FBI clearances. “Give me the code.”

Sheila rattled off a set of numbers which told Stuart she spoke nothing but the truth.

“Then we’re fine, right? He’s been here and gone.”

“Well, whose car did he take, then?” Her tone turned relaxed. “We just need to note it in the files.”

“His car. No… wait… he mumbled something about an FBI issue.”

“No!” Sheila cried in a panicked again. “No, that’s not possible.”

“Why not?”

“No cars have been loaned today, and his is still in the garage!”

In the confines of the van, within the shadows of the buildings across from the park, James adjusted microphones, and Cael worked to secure wireless transmitters; the preparation routine came with ease. Maggie leaned into the seat back, eyes closed.

When James’s cell vibrated a few times, he answered with simple grace. “James Henry.”

“This is Stuart.”

“Hey, have you-” they started at the same time.

“Go ahead.” James continued to make his changes.

“Have you heard from Wyatt or Charley? Or Lily?”

“No, we expect them any minute.” He cocked the phone against his shoulder so he could continue to work.

“I don’t think they’re going to show,” Stuart said.

“What d’you mean? Wait, let me put you on speaker.” James pressed a button and motioned to Cael who patted Maggie’s legs. “Okay, go ahead.”

Cael turned his attention to the call, and Maggie dropped her feet from the workbench along the side of the van, her nap over.

“Wyatt’s assistant just called me in a panic. He didn’t make his six o’clock meeting. Pulled into the garage on time but never entered the building. He showed up here at ten fifteen and left with Charley and Lily, but that was nearly an hour ago. I’ve called his cell several times, and he hasn’t answered. I tried Charley’s and Lily’s, too. Nothing.”

“They could have hit traffic or something,” Cael said.

“Sheila said his car is still in the garage. Something is wrong.”

“Which one did Charley and Lily get into, then?” James asked.

“I have no idea,” Stuart said. “I didn’t see it, or him, for that matter. He said he texted you, James… right before they left.”

James flipped to the phone’s display. “Nope, no texts.” He laid it back down on the workbench.

“Where are they?” Cael said.

“Would Charley or Lily have gotten into a different car?” Stuart asked.

“If they’d been convinced Wyatt borrowed it. Wait,” Cael said. “What color is Wyatt’s car?”

“Blue,” Maggie said. “It was parked by mine all day.”

“And he’d want a darker car to blend in with the surroundings, right?” James said.

“Yeah,” Stuart said, “but that doesn’t feel right. He wouldn’t have left his car at the office. He also didn’t say he was going to switch. The man is nothing if not meticulous. You saw him fret over every last detail. He would have had that in his plans.”

“He could have changed his mind.” Maggie shrugged.

“He could have, but then he’d have had to go clear to the other side of town to get it. So, I don’t think so,” Stuart said.

“I don’t either,” Cael said.

“Have any of the officers caught up with you guys?” Stuart asked.

“No,” James said. “And that worries me.”

“Me, too,” Cael said. “I thought they were supposed to check in at eleven, but we’ve had no movement whatsoever since we took our spot.”

“It’s eleven fifteen now,” Maggie said. “What if all this was a setup to get us, at least some of us, out of the house? Or to get Wyatt or Charley away from us?” She sat up straighter in her chair.

“Cael? Call Detective Bland. Get his whereabouts,” James said.

Cael turned, phone in hand.

“I think she might be right. If that’s the case, where are they?” Stuart said still on the phone.

“No clue, but we’ve probably just lost an hour and played right into their hands. If they’ve been gone that long, that is,” James said.

Cael closed the lid on his phone, laid it on the table. “Detective Bland isn’t on duty tonight.” Cael’s hands ball into fists. “And there is no known arrangement for officers to be at this location either.”

“Oh, boy,” James said. “None of this makes sense.”

“Yeah, it does,” Maggie said. “Wyatt’s been planning this with him since the beginning, right? Actually, you’ve all done everything with Detective Bland. Haven’t you?” She cocked her head to the side, leaned forward. On one hand, she ticked off her fingers as she elaborated. “Bland was the one on site when you got back from Montreal, right? He was tagged with each phone call, each new piece of information you guys got. He was notified when Chase was found. Like good little chickies, you kept him completely in the loop.”

“She’s right about Bland,” Stuart said. “Could he have been a part of this somehow?”

“I have a theory.” Maggie twirled a lock of her hair around her finger.

“Go ahead.” James waited for her to elaborate.

“I’m all ears,” Stuart said from the phone’s speaker.

Maggie leaned forward and clasped her hands. “What if Wyatt has changed sides? Maybe he needs to get back at Charley?”

The phone jumped with the intensity of Stuart’s response. “Get back at Charley? Are you mad? Wyatt would never do something like that. You don’t know anything about him. He’s honest and dependable-more than any guy I know.”

“But you don’t really, do you? You’ve been out of his life for a number of years? He could have set this whole thing up. Win her over, push her to the edge, then yank it out from under her. She all but did that to him. A little payback, perhaps?”

James sliced the air with his hand, shutting Maggie down. She knew the back story but didn’t have the current issue of Charley and Wyatt magazine like James, Cael and even Stuart did. “It’s that love-does-crazy-stuff thing, but I don’t think Wyatt had anything to do with this. No matter what, I think we need to turn tail and head home. In the meantime, we need to try to reach Charley and Lily-”

“They aren’t answering.” Cael jumped in. “Tried ’em both.”

“And we need to find the house Chase was in,” James said. “It’s across the river-”

“I know the river and the bridge,” Cael said.

“But who knows how many houses it could be?” James said.

“Chase knows,” Maggie said. “And I have another theory.”

“I don’t want to hear it.” Stuart hung up.

When Wyatt said his cell phone wouldn’t power on, Charley offered him hers, their fingers tickling as she passed it to him. When her phone’s signal died in mid-conversation with Detective Bland, Lily passed hers over.