“I will,” he said, in an effort to calm her down, yet, at the same time, he stared at the house, taking in the lifestyle she was living versus what he had. “How come you’ve left me in that tiny little hovel, while you’re living in this great big mansion?” he asked. “You know what I’ve been through.”
“I also know that you got caught,” she said. “Getting caught a second time will be the end of even that little hovel, so remember that,” she said and hung up on him.
He’d been visibly shaking when he managed to escape the house in Richmond, but now he was deeply shaken inside. Because he had no doubt that she meant what she said. If he got caught again, he would be dead to her. She was the only person in this life that he’d ever been able to count on. But she’d always made it clear, after he got caught the first time, that, if he ever did it again, that was it.
And now today, he’d actually pushed the line to the point that may have set things into motion that could result in him getting caught. He shook his head, started the engine, took a photo of her house, and, with that done, he drove toward his own home.
Having already called in the theft of his vehicle, he decided to park it a few blocks away, then took a rag and quickly wiped it down. Nothing incriminating was inside; he’d always made sure of that. But he left it unlocked, just parked off to the side, so somebody could find it and hopefully return it to him. Then he got out and walked back home again. Inside, he was quaking. He had a sense of something crumbling, his world breaking apart around him.
Once inside, he locked the door, warmed up a slice of cold pizza, and sat down in front of the TV. Even his China Doll would have been a welcome comfort right now, but he didn’t have even that. He turned on the news and watched, hoping nothing would be reported.
And then, just when he felt like he was safe, a breaking news story came on, saying a missing five-year-old girl had been found.
With that, his throat closed. And tears came to his eyes. He’d been so close. She’d been right there, where he could have just grabbed her. He shouldn’t have run. He should have waited until that cop had left. He could have just taken that little girl, and she would be here with him right now. He closed in on himself and started to bawl, the sense of hopeless loneliness overtaking him once again.
Chapter 22
Tuesday, Wee Hours of the Morning
Kate didn’t knowwhat had gotten into Simon’s head to think that this was a good idea. The fact that he’d brought her Chinese food, when she was desperately hungry, just added to it. The fact that he was so comfortable here, even though her place was such a dump compared to his incredible penthouse, only added to her sense of unease. “You’re crazy.”
“So are you,” he said.
And they both continued to eat in silence. When she finally had the first level of her massive hunger appeased, she settled back and said, “I just would have had some toast.”
“And white bread presumably, which has no nutrition, no protein, no good fats,” he said. “You can’t function on that.”
“I’ve been functioning on that for a lot of years,” she said.
“But, if you ate better,” he said, “you’d function better.”
“Maybe,” she said, “or maybe I just won’t get used to this kind of food because I can’t afford it.”
He stopped, looked up at her, and asked, “Do they pay you that badly?”
She just smiled.
“Of course you won’t tell me anyway, will you?”
“No, I won’t,” she said. “Why the hell would I?”
He shrugged and said, “Well, it’s a good thing I brought this tonight then, isn’t it? There should be enough leftovers for you for a few days. So can you tell me what you found?”
“No,” she said briskly. She got up, marched over to the sink, and filled a glass of water. “That I cannot do.”
“You already told me that you found a little girl,” he said.
She turned to lean back against the counter, looked at him, and smiled. “Yes, but she’s not the only one who has been on our radar today.”
“Ouch,” he said, staring at her in shock. “Does that mean this is going on all around us?”
Her grim face turned to him with a nod. “Unfortunately, yes. But if you came here to get information from me,” she said, “I can’t tell you anything.”
“Fine,” he said. Then he picked up one of the other dishes in front of him and served more food. “Still hungry?”
“I am stuffed,” she said, “and so are you.”
He motioned at her plate and said, “You want to try some of this?”