Chapter Thirty-four
Baxter
I’d expected it to be him, even if we were still playing the game where he didn’t speak, so when Asher’s cool, crisp tones came over the line, it was a surprise.
“Don’t meet him,” he said without preamble.
“Well, hello to you too,” I replied. “Asher,” I explained when Lake frowned.
“Where are you?”
I ignored the question. “I’m very flattered that you’ve started having visions about me. Does Calisto know? Is he with you? Or did you grant him the gift of sleep?”
“He’s with me.”
“Oh no. He’s going to be grumpy in the morning. Calisto’s a sweetheart. We both know that. But he does not cope well with a lack of sleep.”
“This is not a joke.”
“Trust me. I know that.”
“I’m not sure you do. I’m giving you a warning, and you’re treating it like I’m calling you to catch up. Do not go to the car park.”
Even though I’d already worked out that if it wasn’t here, it had to be there, the confirmation still made my heart stutter. “Why don’t you get to the point and tell me what you saw?”
“One of you will die.”
“One of us?” My fingers tightened around the phone. If Asher said Lake’s name, that would be the only thing that might dissuade me.
“It was hazy. You both look… similar. My visions don’t give a clear picture. You know that.”
Not Lake, then. I let out a breath, the air cold enough that it fogged. “I also know they can be changed. You remember the tower block, right? Of course, you do. You were there. You saw Calisto would die. Did he?”
“No, but—”
“Well, there you go. Much as you think you’re some god-like being…
” Unfair, but I’d apologize later. Maybe.
And if not, Asher had definitely had worse things said to him.
“You’re not. I appreciate the heads-up, but it won’t change anything.
I have to do this. He wants a face-to-face meeting, and he’s going to get it. Brother to brother.”
“You’re not thinking logically, Baxter.”
“Actually, that’s where you’re wrong. I am thinking logically. For the first time in a long while, I know exactly what needs to be done, and I’m doing it.”
“You’re not Calisto.”
“Thank God for that. Being nice to people all the time would wear on me.”
“I talked to Ben before I talked to you.”
“Of course you did.” I started walking, pulling Lake with me when he looked like he might not move. “I told him where to go.”
“I really wish you hadn’t done that.” I covered the phone and turned to Lake. “We have to be fast. Asher is trying to fuck everything up.”
Lake shot the wall a dirty look. “Easier said than done.”
“Practice makes perfect.” I uncovered the phone again. Asher was still talking, oblivious to the fact that I hadn’t been listening. “…if you won’t look after yourself, then someone needs to do it for you.”
“That’s sweet,” I said. It kind of was. Like Asher thought of himself as my brother-in-law. Minus the marriage. And the inconvenient detail that Calisto wasn’t my actual brother. “Listen, I have to go.”
“Wait for the police.”
“Of course.”
“Calisto wants to say something. I’m putting him on.”
I hung up.
No doubt Calisto’s intention was to slow me down. That, and layer on a little emotional manipulation. My phone immediately vibrated again as I switched it to silent. I didn’t check who was calling—knowing it would either be Calisto or Ben—before sliding it into my pocket.
“I’m guessing we’re not waiting for the police?” Lake asked.
I shook my head. “He’ll run, and I can’t risk that.”
The wall was easier the second time around, Lake having worked out a better technique that made him more of an active participant and less of a dead weight. Once we were in the car, I hit the accelerator, playing chicken with the speed limit. Thankfully, the roads were quiet at this hour.
“We should have some sort of weapon,” Lake said as we pulled up in front of the multistory car park.
“Like what?”
“I don’t know. A baseball bat or something.”
“Do you own one?”
“No.”
“Not many baseball bat shops open at this time of night.”
“A knife, then.”
“It’s an offense to carry a knife.”
“A branch. A plank of wood. A chain. Something…”
“I appreciate your creativity. It’s very… video-game coded.” I drew a breath in and let it out slowly. “Last chance to get out of the car.”
“You’re driving in there?”
“Yeah. Seems more sensible than walking.”
“He’ll see you coming. He’ll have the upper hand.”
I laughed. “He’s always had the upper hand. Nineteen years ago, he knew everything about me, and I knew nothing about him. This isn’t about having an advantage.”
“What is it about?”
“Truth. Motivation. The past. The future. Secrets. Lies.” I scanned the street. No sign of a police presence yet, marked car or otherwise. Ben wouldn’t come alone; he’d come in an official capacity, which took time. I tried again. “Get out of the car, Lake. You can wait here for Ben.”
“No.” He wrapped his fingers around the door panel, as if he thought I might try to drag him out. “You should have left while I was in the bathroom, if that’s what you wanted.”
“I thought about it,” I admitted.
“So why didn’t you?”
“Selfishness, maybe. It feels nice not to be alone.”
“You didn’t stop me from going into the graveyard.”
“I think I knew, deep down, he wouldn’t be there. It was always going to be here. It’s the only place we’ve ever met before—no matter how brief that meeting was, or how brutal his introduction.”
“He didn’t want to talk then. What makes you think he’ll talk now?”
It was a fair question. “I don’t know. I just feel it.” I eased the car forward, heading up the ramp. We hadn’t seen a single vehicle enter or leave while we’d been parked; the car park was as silent as the graveyard we’d just left.
At least there were no walls to climb. All I had to do was drive up and get out.
“I want to thank you,” I said as we reached the second floor. “For everything. For being there. For listening. For―”
“No.”
My gaze shot to him. “No?”
“You’re not giving me a final speech.”
“It’s not a final speech.”
“It sure sounds like one. Thank me later.”
I nodded. “Physically or verbally?”
“Both. Verbally. Then physically. Then verbally again.”
I smiled. “That’s an awful lot of gratitude. I’m not sure I’m that thankful.”
Instead of answering, Lake leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. I turned my head just enough for our lips to brush, careful not to take my eyes off the tarmac for long.
When he sat back, I suddenly had a thousand things I wanted to say with no time to say them.
“I know,” Lake said. “I feel the same.”
“You’re not supposed to be able to read minds.”
He shrugged. “Maybe it’s contagious.”
The fourth floor passed. One more.
“I’m glad we came here before,” I said. “Without that, I’m not sure I could do this.”
“You could,” he said. “You’re the bravest person I know.”
And then we were on the fifth floor. A painted warning loomed on the wall: NO VEHICLE ACCESS ABOVE THIS POINT.
The space was vast and almost empty, save for four cars.
Five, if you included mine. Did one of them belong to Owen?
There was no way to know for sure. All were unoccupied, as far as I could tell.
My phone vibrated again. I pulled it out, saw Ben’s name, and slid it into the glove compartment. Lake noticed, but said nothing.
We sat there. Silent. Breathing. Unmoving.
“Tell me about someone inspiring,” I said.
Lake exhaled heavily, as though even history had momentarily failed him. Then he straightened. “Have you heard of Harriet Tubman?”
I shook my head. “Who was she?”
“She was an American who escaped slavery in 1839 by crossing rivers in the dead of night and hiding in the forest. She made it north and earned her freedom.”
“Good for her.”
“I haven’t reached the inspiring part.”
“No?”
He shook his head. “She went back thirteen times to rescue others, including family and friends. She led men, women, and children through swamps, across frozen rivers, past armed patrols, and never lost a single person. Slavers posted rewards for her capture, but it didn’t stop her.
After the Civil War began, she led a military raid that freed over seven hundred enslaved people in a single night. ”
“That is inspiring,” I said, reaching for the door handle. “If Harriet Tubman could do all that, I think I can get out of a car and face my brother.”
“He might not be here.”
The faint note of hope in Lake’s voice was unmistakable.
“He will be.”