“Slow down,” Finn said, grabbing a distraught Macy by the shoulders and steadying her. “Tell me exactly what Matthews said.”
She took a deep breath and slowly released it. “Kat is missing. She was supposed to go to Key West but something came up. I think she and her friend had a fight or something, and they cancelled their trip.” She ran her hands over her hair. “Anyway, I told Kat she could stay at my place while I was gone. But her mother has been calling her cell and Kat hasn’t been answering. She finally went over to my apartment, talked the attendant on duty to open the door and Kat wasn’t there.”
Finn released the breath he’d been holding. Kat could be anywhere. Just because she hadn’t checked in with her mother didn’t mean it had something to do with the man who had threatened Macy. “Maybe she went to the Keys after all.”
Macy shook her head. “No. According to Jeremy her suitcase was at my apartment, packed with her warm weather clothes. And her purse was still inside my apartment.” Tears spilled over her cheeks. “Oh, God, Finn, do you think this has something to do with that horrible man who has been calling the show and sending me notes?”
“No, of course not.” At least he hoped not. The thought of some creep, some perverted lunatic, being in Macy’s apartment made him extremely uneasy. “I’m sure it’s all some big misunderstanding. Kat will turn up. You’ll see.”
She nodded, although Finn knew she didn’t believe him. Hell, he didn’t know if he believed that himself. He had to talk to Remington and Ryder.
“I need to make some calls. Let’s get you back to your villa.”
Finn walked into Macy’s bedroom and found her packing her suitcase. “What are you doing?”
Without a glance his way, she said, “I’m going home.” She went to the closet and pulled several dresses off hangers, brought them back to the bed to place in her bag. She folded each one carefully.
“Do you really think that’s a good idea?”
“Yes. I can’t hide down here forever. I need to go back and try to draw this guy out.”
“Are you out of your mind?” When she still didn’t look at him, he pressed a hand to her shoulder. “Macy, you’re safe here with me.”
Finally she looked up. “And what about Kat? What if she’s dead?”
Refusing to believe that, he shook his head. “The police will find her. You’ll see. She’s going to be fine.”
“No. I know she’s dead, and it’s all because of me.”
“Why would you say something like that?”
A tear spilled down her cheek. “Because I should have told her about the threats to me. I should never have let her stay at my apartment when a madman was trying to get to me.” She sat down on the bed and began to weep. “What kind of friend am I?”
“You don’t know that was what happened, Macy. Stop beating yourself up until we see what’s really going on.”
She jabbed a finger in the air. “What’s going on is that this lunatic wanted to kill me and he killed my friend instead.” She paused for a moment. “Oh my God, Finn, what if he thought it was me in that apartment and he killed her by mistake?”
“Stop it! We don’t know that Kat is dead.” He needed her to be calm. He couldn’t think when she was so worked up and crying. He hated seeing women cry.
“I know it. I know it with all my heart.” Then she covered her face with her hands and sobbed.
Finn sat down on the edge of the bed and tucked her close to his side. “Baby, I need you to calm down. I need your help figuring this thing out. I can’t be of any use to you if I can’t think straight. And I certainly can’t think straight while you’re so emotional. Do you think you can keep it together for a little while?”
She looked up and nodded, wiped at her tears.
“Good,” he said. “Tell me this. Who has access to your apartment?”
“I’m not sure.” She appeared to be thinking. “I had given Kat a key last year sometime. Jeremy Matthews and David Greenberg probably have keys, the cleaning people, my cook . . .” She shook her head. “I’m not sure who else.”
“What about the management company?”
“Of course, they have a key. For emergencies and to let any repairmen inside.”
“Does anyone keep a log of who goes in and out?”
“No. But there’s usually someone behind the desk who accepts packages or lets repairmen inside. They could have seen something. Someone.”
Finn knew there was a security camera in the lobby as well. He needed to take a look at the footage but in order to do that he had to go back to Chicago. He just didn’t want Macy going anywhere near that apartment until this asshole was behind bars. Especially if she was right and the guy had harmed or killed Kat. “I think we should go to Pennsylvania instead of Chicago. You can stay with Caroline for a few days. That way Ryder can keep an eye on you. And I’ll go back to Chicago and do some digging of my own.”
“No.” She grabbed onto his arm. “Finn, I want to go with you.”
“It’s not safe, baby.”
“But I—”
He brought a finger to her lips. “No buts. I won’t be able to relax until I get this guy.”
She studied his face for a moment. “Okay.”
“Good girl. Finish packing.”
He’d flown from Chicago to Atlanta and then to the Bahamas. Since he had booked last minute he’d had to take a middle seat on the plane. Sitting between two chatty women on the first flight had nearly sent him over the edge. He’d been ready to choke them both. The second flight was much quieter with the exception of the snoring man who had sat next to him.
Once they had landed he rented a car at the airport. It was the first time he had driven on the left side of the road. But it hadn’t freaked him out like he had thought it would. It was kind of fun actually. Not as much fun as it was going to be once he located Macy though. He couldn’t wait to see the expression on her face.
Couldn’t wait to punish her for what she had made him do. Although maybe instead of killing her immediately he would draw it out for a while. Torture her, make her apologize and then he would kill her.
He wondered if she had come down here alone. He should have asked Kat. He sure as hell hoped that one-eyed asshole wasn’t with her. Not that he was afraid of him. So what if he had a lot of muscles. He wasn’t stupid enough to believe that story about him being Macy’s cousin either. Jeremy Matthews had told him to give the guy whatever he asked for. That’s how he had known he was there to protect Macy. Well, she was going to need more than that dude to protect her from him. Because no matter what, he would find her and there was no way anyone could prove he was even there. Not with the disguise he had chosen. And certainly not with his cousin’s passport and credit card he’d borrowed. Well, actually he’d stolen them. His mother always said he looked exactly like his cousin, that everyone had a hard time telling them apart as children. So while he was pretending to be his cousin his real name would not show up as ever being in the Bahamas.
He laughed as he went around a bend and nearly collided with a Jeep coming in the opposite direction. He gave the driver the finger and kept going.
“I’m coming, Macy. I’m coming for you.”
Ryder and Caroline met Finn and Macy at the private air terminal outside Erie, Pennsylvania’s international airport. Finn watched as the two women hugged, cried, laughed and hugged some more. Ryder had done nothing more than thump him on the back, which was just fine with him. Guys didn’t do all that nonsense.
“We need to talk,” Ryder said. “Let’s get the girls home and then we can go over what Remington sent. He’s going to meet you in Chicago tomorrow morning. Dev Talwar is flying in this evening and will stay with me and the ladies until this thing is settled.”
Finn glanced at his phone but didn’t see any missed calls or messages from Remington or Talwar. Ryder must have guessed what was going through Finn’s head.
“I told the guys to check in with me since I knew you were flying today.”
Finn nodded. “I need to go talk to the pilot and confirm my flight for tonight. I’ll be right back.” He hated the idea of leaving Macy with Ryder and Caroline but he also knew that was the best place for her. He couldn’t shake things up in Chicago if she was there. And he planned on shaking things up until he found what he was looking for. Watch out, scumbag.
Macy and Finn rode in the back of John Ryder’s SUV. Finn slung a protective arm over her shoulder, obviously not caring what anyone thought. Macy kind of admired him for that. Plus he seemed to have forgiven her for lying to him about being married, which made her both admire and love him even more.
She smiled and nestled closer to him on the drive to Caroline’s house. Well she supposed it was John’s house too, now that they were married. Caroline seemed so happy. Pregnant and happy. Macy ran a hand over her own belly, wondering what it would feel like to have a baby growing inside her. Of course, there was no chance she was pregnant. She was on the pill.
Finn had started a discussion about that the other day, which made her wonder how he felt about having children as well. He’d never really said. Would he be a good father? Did he even know how to be a parent? Not that she knew much about it either. But at least she had come from a loving home. Good parents who had only wanted the best for her. Not from drug addicts who left their youngest child at a fast food restaurant. Had they been so high they had forgotten him there? Or had it been intentional? Either way she was never going to broach the subject with him again. She knew it had to be extremely painful for Finn to face those memories, let alone discuss them.
They came to a stop in front of Caroline’s stately brick home and John hit the garage door button. “Home sweet home,” he said. He and Caroline both laughed as if they shared some secret together.
Macy was feeling a tad jealous. Caroline seemed so normal. She was married, had a job she loved and a baby on the way. Had Macy not run off to LA after college this could have been her life as well. But no. She’d thought it would be fun to be in show biz. What had she been thinking?
Not one to dwell on regrets she tried to remain positive. She’d enjoyed helping people and she certainly had made a ton of money along the way. But then she thought about Kat. Poor Kat. If it weren’t for Macy, Kat would still be alive.
Finn must have sensed her mood change and gave her shoulder a tiny squeeze. “Keep it together, Macy,” he whispered. “Can you do that for me?”
She looked up into his face and nodded. “I can do that.” But could she?
Finn glanced at everything Ryder had printed out. The background checks on all the employees at the studio. The ones Luke Remington had been working on. Nothing jumped out at him but he would study them more closely on the plane.
“You got everything you need?” Ryder asked. “Because I have more firepower in the garage attic.”
“I’m good.” Plus he had a few guns stashed in Macy’s apartment in Chicago. It wasn’t as if he were taking on an entire army. Just one sick mother fucker. How many firearms would it take to put that bastard down if it came to that?
Ryder nodded then raised a brow. “Is Macy okay with staying here for a few days?”
“Probably not, although she says she is.” They’d already said their goodbyes and she’d headed off for a soak in the tub. “I should probably get going.” Yet he hesitated. It wasn’t like the plane was going to leave without him.
“What is it?” Ryder asked.
“About Macy . . .”
“Yeah. What about her?”
“I really like her. I mean, I like her a lot.” There. He had said it.
Ryder grinned. “As if I couldn’t tell. All through dinner you didn’t take your eyes off her.”
He chewed at his lip, trying to decide how to tell Ryder what he wanted him to know.
“C’mon, man. Spit it out. What aren’t you telling me?”
“I lied to her.”
Ryder blinked. “What do you mean you lied to her?”
Macy dried off after her bath and put on the pair of flannel pajamas Caroline had loaned her. She brushed her teeth while staring at her sad face in the mirror. Finn probably hadn’t even left yet and already she missed him. He’d made her promise to go straight to bed once she had bathed, but she couldn’t let him leave without telling him to be careful. Without telling him she loved him.
She opened the bathroom door as she shoved her arms into a robe and hurried down the hall. The guys were downstairs in the study. She could hear muffled voices from the top of the staircase. And as she got to the bottom of the stairs she could hear Finn and Ryder more clearly as she made her way toward them.
“What do you mean you lied to her?” Ryder said in a demanding voice.
“I made up this story that . . . she and I had slept together the night of your wedding.”
Had Finn just said what she thought he said? Her hand went to her throat. Heart pounding, Macy froze in place then crept toward the study door, careful not to make a sound.
“What do mean you made up a story? How did you get her to believe something so ridiculous? And why would you want her to believe that anyway?”
“It’s a long story.”
“I’ve got time.”
There was complete silence except for the sound of her noisy swallow.
Then Finn spoke again. “I didn’t like her when I first met her. She was all like nose up in the air. You know what I mean?”
Another long pause.
“Anyway, we were both drunk and ended up in her hotel room that night. She passed out before anything happened. But the next morning I let her believe something entirely different.
Macy was furious. She should bust in there right now and tell him so. But then the whipped cream scene came to mind and her pride kept her from doing anything but stand there and listen to Finn’s confession. What would John and Caroline think of her?
A tear sprang free and she swiped at it. She suddenly hated Finn. What a fool she had been. All this time he must have been laughing behind her back. Not wanting to hear anything more she tiptoed away and went up to the guestroom. She needed to get out of this house and far away from Finn.
“What the fuck, Finn! Why the hell would you let that bullshit story go on for so long? Not that I can understand why you would do something so rotten in the first place.” Ryder shook his head and Finn didn’t bother to defend himself. How could he?
“Here’s what you’re going to do. As soon as this guy is caught you’re going to tell Macy the truth.”
“Maybe I should tell her now, before I leave,” Finn said. He’d almost told that afternoon at the picnic site when Macy had finally confessed that she was never married. But then Jeremy had called and he had chickened out again.
“No. I can’t deal with two crying females at the same time. Caroline’s hormones are totally out of whack. Ever since she got pregnant she cries over anything and everything. Once she finds out what you did to her friend my life is going to be miserable.”
Finn had to agree. No sense upsetting Caroline right now. He was the asshole. He would be the one to deal with Macy when the time came.
Ryder got a bottle of scotch from the portable bar and poured them each two shots worth. “Here.” He shoved a glass at Finn. “You look like you could use this.”
Finn downed the warm liquid in one swallow. His nerves were on edge wondering how Macy was going to take the news once he told her what a prick he was. But he didn’t have time to worry about that right now. He had to get back to Chicago.
Dev Talwar showed up just as Finn was about to leave so he let the guy drive him back to the airport. But when they pulled into the private section he noticed the plane he and Macy had flown in on was gone.
“Where the fuck is my plane?”
Talwar shrugged. “Perhaps it is being serviced and fueled.”
Maybe, but Finn had an ugly feeling. He got out of the car but before shutting the door, he turned toward Talwar. “Wait here while I check things out.”
Finn walked inside the terminal building and went to the counter. “Daniel Finney,” he said to the man behind the counter who had been chewing a fingernail. “I came in on a private plane earlier and the pilot is supposed to take me to Chicago tonight. Any idea where my plane is?”
The man raised his brows. “I believe that plane just took off for Chicago. Like two minutes ago.” He pointed in the direction of the runway as if Finn could see it from inside the building.
“But how could he have just left? Without me?”
“I don’t know, but maybe it had something to do with Ms. Winthrop.”
“Ms. Winthrop?”
“Yes. She seemed to be in an awfully big hurry to get to Chicago.”
“Macy Winthrop was here?”
The guy nodded.
“She was on that plane when it took off?” Finn didn’t know what the hell was going on. He was thoroughly confused. Macy was at Ryder’s place, probably asleep by now. “Are you sure?”
The guy nodded again. “Pretty sure. Long dark hair, a real looker. Hell, I thought she looked better in sweatpants and no makeup than she does all made up on TV. Of course I like her either way.”
Finn didn’t have time to listen to this man as he jabbered on about Macy. He whipped out his cell and called Ryder. The minute his friend answered he barked at him. “Check Macy’s room!” When Ryder asked what was going on, Finn said, “Do it now!”
A few seconds later Ryder confirmed what Finn already knew. “She’s gone, Finn.”
Finn disconnected and swore so loud the man behind the counter moved back a step. “I need to get to Chicago. I need a pilot and a plane now!”
“I’m sorry, sir. I don’t have anyone to fly you at this hour. Tomorrow morning, once the office is open, someone should be able to charter something for you.”
“Tomorrow is too late! I need to get there tonight. Are there any commercial flights that you know of?”
The guy snickered. “In Erie? This late? Are you joking?”
Without bothering to respond Finn flew out the glass door and hurried toward Talwar’s car. Talwar lowered the window and started to speak but Finn cut him off. “Move over to the passenger seat.”
“I don’t understand.”
“What don’t you understand? English? Get out. I’m driving.”
“You do not like the way I drive?”
“Can you not hear, Talwar? Get the fuck out of the car, and let me drive before I blow your fucking head off!”
This time Talwar seemed to understand. He flung the driver’s door open and hurried to the other side of the car. “Where are we going?”
“Chicago.” Finn shoved the car into Rear and backed out of the parking spot before Talwar had even buckled up.
“I don’t understand. Ryder said I was supposed to stay in Orchard Falls to help keep an eye on Macy.” He fumbled with his seatbelt and was finally able to latch it.
“Yeah? Well, the plan changed. Hold on,” he ordered as he flew out of the lot, just missing another vehicle by a hair, and sped down Route 5.