Page 46 of Go Under

A spark of hope came to Kate’s mind, a very dim one, but she’d hold onto any lifeline she could right now. “Would the city have those records?”

Darnell’s brow furrowed. Then the dim light flashed in his eyes. “Maybe. It’s possible. I’ll contact city hall’s twenty-four-hour law enforcement hotline and see if I can get that information.”

He dialed the number. Kate and Marcus waited, jaws clenched, shoulders bunched, while he worked his way through the automated system and eventually through a series of actual human beings. After nine minutes of eye-scratching frustration, he finally said, “Thank you. As fast as possible, please,” and hung up.

He met their eyes. “The phone number switch is likely a dead end, but they may be able to find the initial building permit from the city planner’s office. Those records are retained for the life of the building. These will be old records and might take some time to find, but they should still be there.”

“They understand that a life is on the line, right?” Kate asked. “They can’t just drag their feet.”

“They understand that. They’re not dragging their feet. But we’re digging up an unmarked grave, Kate. We can’t expect miracles.”

“Yes, we can,” she insisted. “We have to. I refuse to accept that luck only falls on Cox’s side.”

Marcus looked down at his feet, but he didn’t say anything. Darnell sighed, but he didn’t respond either.

So, the three of them settled in to wait. Kate looked through the window and hoped that the falling snow wouldn’t bury the answers they sought.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Fragments of memory passed through Nora Avery’s mind as she drove through the snow to the home of her final target. Tears streamed down her face. She wiped them away as quickly as they came. The snowfall was already impacting her vision. She couldn’t afford any more obfuscation. She couldn’t have a traffic accident on the night she closed the circle and completed her task.

But the memories refused to disappear.

***

“Danny? I don’t like those boys.”

“What, my friends? Ah, they’re good guys. They’re just intense.”

Nora frowned. “They keep saying they’re going to kill someone.”

Daniel fixed her with his trademark grin, the one that always made her feel warm and safe and loved. “That’s just a joke, rabbit. They ain’t gonna kill anyone.”

Nora kept frowning. She didn’t feel warm and safe knowing Danny was going out with those boys. “I’m going to tell Mom.”

Daniel’s smile vanished. “Hey, you don’t need to do that shit. I’ll be fine.”

“I’m going to tell her you said a bad word too.”

“Man, fuck—”

Daniel stopped and ran a hand through his hair. He looked at the ceiling, wearing an expression Nora had never seen before. It was a cold expression, frustrated, but cold. In that moment, Nora was a problem to deal with, not a loving sister to care for and receive care from.

“Look, Nora, we’re just gonna go out for a couple of hours.”

“And do what?”

“Boy stuff.”

Nora glared at him. “I’m eleven years old, Danny. I’m not a baby.”

Daniel stared pointedly at her. “You want to know exactly what we’re going to do with our girlfriends?”

“Eww!” Nora exclaimed. “No!”

She reacted with horror, but her body filled with overwhelming relief. Danny and his friends were just going to see some girls. She knew that sometimes Danny met up with Keisha van Zandt and they made out and ran their hands over each other. She’d peeked at them once when Danny told her to wait in the car and stopped by after picking her up from school. If that was all this was, then it made sense that he didn’t want Mom to know. Mom didn’t like Keisha.

But he wasn’t going to get hurt. That was what mattered.