Page 107 of Trust No One

“Taken her where?” His voice dropped, calm, laser focused.

Relief surged through me—unexpected but undeniable. “I don’t know. He took one of my calls and told me not to worry. He’s removed his ankle monitor.”

Ken’s jaw clicked. “Favorite places. Where would he take Molly? Somewhere familiar.”

“Maria mentioned a rental cabin near Tyler Lake. The family loved it.”

“It’s high season—a lot of those cabins are rented now.”

“This cabin is small. No running water. Solar power. Off-the-grid vacations. Maria said the cabin was cheap and dirty.”

“Isolated?”

“Yes. Hard to reach with a five-year-old.”

“If not the cabin, where else?”

“There’s a small hotel on Route 60 a few miles beyond the park entrance. Maria said he went there when they fought.”

Ken’s full attention was on me now—the same way it had been after the attack. “He’d need a credit card for a hotel room.”

“They’d know him. They’d take his cash.”

“Judson will have a BOLO out on Gabe by now. Matter of time before Gabe is found.”

“He’s not thinking long term,” I said. “And Molly is going to be hungry, and she’ll be tired.”

“I heard he had a girlfriend,” Ken said.

I bristled. “He does—did.”

“Could he be with her?”

“Maybe.”

“What’s her name?” he asked.

“Amy Stocker.”

“She worked for you in high school.”

“She did. Now she’s a local real estate agent.”

He typed on his phone. “Would he hide out with Amy or default to the cabin?”

“A girlfriend would ask questions. Her neighbors would notice a boyfriend and child. He knows the cabin. A crying child wouldn’t be noticed.”

“The cabin it is. I’ll go now.”

I found the rental listing on my phone and texted the contact to him. “I’m coming with you.”

A frown crossed his face as he studied the images of an old cabin ready to fall in on itself. “Okay. I’ll drive.”

I slid into the front passenger seat. Behind the wheel, his broad shoulders and presence filled the space, overwhelming the interior. He’d always been a force. And whenever I wavered, I’d clung to his solidness. He was so sure about what he wanted.

Then I’d realized he’d used my dependence to keep me close, when I wasn’t central to his life.

Ken wasn’t evil. Indulgent and selfish, yes. Our common bonds fractured. No happy endings with Ken.