Elizabeth didn’t say a single word to me the entire way down in the elevator, nor while we walked back through the lobby of Paulina’s apartment building and out the revolving doors.
But I knew what was coming. This was the calm before the storm. Hurricane Lizzie. Sure enough, the moment we hit the sidewalk…
“What the hell was that?” she asked, throwing her arms up in the air. “I mean, for crying out loud, what the hell was it?”
“Can I explain?”
“No. I don’t want to hear it. I know what it’s going to be. You’re going to give me some fancy-pants explanation that sounds a lot smarter than it really is.”
“Did you really just say fancy pants?”
“Shut up, I’m serious,” she said. “You rope me into this thing and then you go ahead and do that. Why? Why did you let her off the hook?”
“That’s not what I did.”
“That’s exactly what you did. She would’ve told us more, and instead you just thanked her for her time.”
“That’s called keeping her on the hook. We’re going to need that girl’s help, which means we need her on our side, trusting us.”
“What’s with all this we stuff?” she said, air quotes around the we. “That was you in there, acting on your own. And as for me, I already told you I haven’t made up my mind yet on getting involved.”
I looked at her, my best sideways glare. Really? Don’t even pretend you’re not hooked, Lizzie. I saw you in there. This case is so in your wheelhouse.
Only she wasn’t looking back at me. I followed her eyeline. It was laser focused on the side view mirror of a Ford Escort parked along the curb. Something had caught her attention. “What is it?” I asked.
“My six,” she said. “Right shoulder. The guy on the phone.”
I glanced over her right shoulder, spotting the guy. “I see him,” I said. “What about him?”
“He’s talking on the phone, right?”
“Yeah?”
“So how come he’s not talking? He hasn’t said a word since we’ve been out here.”
I glanced again at the guy. He was standing about twenty yards away. Long brown overcoat, phone to his ear. Maybe he was just listening to whoever was on the other end of the line. That would explain why his lips weren’t moving. But it didn’t account for his eyes.
For a split second they locked on to mine. He didn’t flinch. He didn’t panic. But how quickly he looked away was enough of a tell.
“Well, what do you know? We’re being watched,” I said.
“Or at least one of us is.”
That made more sense. “Any reason why it’s you?” I asked.
“Maybe,” she said. “What about you? Your past has a funny way of never letting go.”
“You’ve noticed that, huh?”
Elizabeth gave another look at the side view mirror on the Ford Escort. “He’s still there. What do you want to do?”
“Two options,” I said. “One, separate and see which of us he follows. That would be smart and sensible.”
“What’s the second option?”
“This,” I said.