Page 18 of Silent Target

Kitchen.

Living room.

Hallway.

Every corner.

Every doorway.

Every shadow.

I check upstairs, the attic, and finally the basement.

The shelving unit covering the old tunnel hasn’t moved. Dust lies undisturbed across the floor.

Only then do I return to the SUV.

Evie unlocks the door as I approach.

“Clear?” she asks.

“For now.”

“That isn’t the same thing.”

“No.”

She steps out.

I stay half a pace ahead as we cross the street.

Not because I think she’s helpless.

Because Graves has already tried to kill her once tonight.

He won’t get a second chance.

Inside, I lock the door and engage the secondary alarm.

Evie studies the old furniture and narrow staircase. There are no pictures, decorations, or personal belongings.

“This is where you bring people who are in danger?”

“It’s where I bring people I don’t want found.”

“That’s somehow less comforting.”

I check the street through the curtains.

Empty.

Too empty.

When I turn, Evie is standing beside the kitchen table with the recorder in her hand.

“You need to tell me everything,” I say.

Her expression changes.