AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"You'remad," she said, pouting.
"I'm not mad," I said through clenched teeth.
"You sound mad."
"Oh my God, what did you do?" I took a deep breath. "I'm not mad. I just need you to tell me what you've done."
"I looked up Facinelli."
I frowned. "Mom's old doctor? Why?"
"Well, I overheard you and Micah talking. And like you said, the blood tests were different, and you know that your dad gave her something. I was trying to be helpful. I figured if we could talk to him, he'd remember her case and tell us something."
Of all the reckless things to do.
Relax, she’s trying to help.
I forced myself to take deep breaths. "Okay, what did you find?"
"That's just the thing…"
"What did you find, Gwenyth?" The use of her full name made her stand ramrod straight.
Her eyes went wide. "There is something distinctly very hot about you using my full name, but also wholly terrifying."
"Sweetheart, just tell me."
"He's presumed dead."
"What?"
"When he left New York, he said that he was off to Switzerland to spend time with his grandchildren, right? Except when we checked with his daughter, he wrote to her that he was making a stop in Rome first for a little holiday. And he’d join them after. They got a couple of postcards, then nothing. Italian authorities have no records of him leaving Italy. And Swiss authorities have no record of him entering Switzerland."
This was bad. Very, very bad. “So he might still be in New York,” I said.
She chewed her bottom lip. “I don’t think so. I think he’s dead.”
So much for keeping her shielded. “What makes you think he's dead?"
"When I couldn't find him, I started looking for facial recognition matches but still got nothing. Until I searched in obituaries and death records."
"Fucking hell."
"Exactly. There was a John Doe found in the East River. No identification. No one came looking for him. There was a small write-up with a tiny little image, and my software found him."
"Someone murdered him?"
"Looks like it."
My gut twisted. "Fuck."
"Yeah, it's not good. I mean, you don't think it was your Dad, do you?"
I pinched the bridge of my nose. "I don't know. Is there anything else?”
She winced again. "Okay, don't be mad."
I was going to strangle her. I was actively trying to protect her, and here she was putting herself in harm's way.
