Chapter 7 #2
The two booths were sandwiched in between a rack of feminine products, most of which looked like they’d expired in the nineties, and another rack containing a lot of circus peanuts and other crap candy no one wanted to buy.
“You’re sure?” Micah straightened slightly as he eyed the woman standing outside the passenger side of the station wagon.
The man tossed what looked like a roll of cash to her before turning back to the pump.
Ilena was wearing a ball cap, yoga pants and a plain sweatshirt. It was impossible to see her face through the dinginess of the window, but… “I recognize her rainbow-colored sneakers.” They were neon and would stand out anywhere.
When she started to stand, Micah covered Clover’s hand with his. “Wait.”
Her heart raced, the frantic urge to go to Ilena overwhelming. “Why? I’m going to talk to her, make sure she’s okay.”
Micah’s jaw tightened, but he nodded as she slid out of the booth. “If I give the signal, we leave.”
She wasn’t sure what the signal was, but nodded anyway. The little bell on the door jingled as Ilena stepped inside.
She made her way to the pick-up section of the restaurant. Her long, blonde hair was in a braid down her back, and if she hadn’t had those shoes on, Clover wasn’t sure she’d have recognized her. Her clothing was oversized and the ball cap was oversized as well.
Moving in what she hoped was a relaxed manner, she said, “Ilena?” Did she sound surprised to see her friend? God, she hoped so.
Ilena jumped slightly, and turned, blinked. “Clover?”
“Hey! It’s been too long. I tried calling you a few times when you first missed Pilates.”
“Oh, right… Ah, I changed numbers and lost all my contacts.” Her gaze darted to the door, body language nervous.
Clover didn’t see any bruises or outward signs of abuse, but it was hard to tell with her oversized clothing.
“Sorry about that. It’s good to see you though. ” Her tone said anything but that.
“You too.”
She turned when the person working the cash register set three giant brown bags of to-go food down. “Hold on,” she murmured to Clover and handed the man cash.
As she took her change, Clover cleared her throat. “I was just pumping gas and saw you but…I stopped by The Laughing Llama. They said you just quit. And then I saw you with that guy… Is everything okay?” She took a step closer, lowered her voice even more. “Do you need help?”
For a moment Ilena looked like she wanted to say yes, but then gave a tight smile.
“No, I’m good, but thank you. I got sick of that job.
Probably should have put in my notice.” She rolled her eyes, but it seemed forced.
Everything about her body language was tight right now.
“Anyway, it was good to see you. I’ll call you.
” She grabbed the cluster of bags and practically ran out of the store.
Clover wanted to follow her, but knew that would be a mistake given the man Ilena was with. So she stepped up to the counter. “Hey, does she come in here a lot?” she asked the bored-looking teenager leaning next to the cash register.
The guy was on his phone and didn’t bother glancing up. “Who wants to know?”
“Me. I’m literally asking.” Dumbass.
When the guy didn’t respond, she glanced around, then slid a twenty across the peeling red countertop. She had more cash but hoped this would be enough for the teen.
The guy’s hand snaked out faster than she’d expected.
He pocketed the bill without looking up.
“She’s in here every week ordering a shit ton of food.
Tried making small talk with her in the beginning but her boyfriend is a real tool.
” He shrugged. “She tipped me the first couple times until he yelled at her for it.” Now he looked up.
“I still give her extra desserts since she has to put up with that douche.”
That was concerning. “For how many weeks has this been going on?”
The guy finally looked up, his dark eyes narrowing slightly. “Why are you asking?”
Clover decided to mix lies with the truth, especially since this teenager seemed decent. She leaned in like she was telling him a secret. “I’m worried about her and so is her family. They hired me to find her, to see if she was being held against her will by her boyfriend.”
“You’re like a PI?”
“Yep.”
“Wow.” He looked impressed, but that lasted for about five seconds before his gaze strayed back to his phone. “Wish I could tell you more. I just know she comes in every three days, orders mostly the same food.”
“Thank you. That’s helpful.”
He lifted a shoulder and she took that as her cue to leave. When she walked back to the booth, Micah was gone.
She sat, ready to text him, but then he slid back into his seat. “Where’d you go?”
“Planted a tracker on the car,” he said quietly. Then he waited as the bell jingled.
A man in his sixties walked in and didn’t glance in their direction.
Micah continued. “Mosker was the one driving. He was on his phone when I planted it, didn’t even notice me.”
She hadn’t been able to see the guy’s face because of his ballcap so it was good to have a confirmation. “That’s awesome.”
Her stomach was in knots. Ilena was a shadow of the woman she’d known, the woman who’d helped her plan petty revenge against her ex. The woman who’d always been laughing… What had Mosker done to her?
No longer ready to go home, she stood. “Let’s follow them.”
Micah stood with her. “See, not all PI work is boring.”
True enough, especially since she was with him. “At least we know she’s alive,” Clover murmured as they stepped out into the chilly air.
Micah nodded, his gaze straying to the exit where the station wagon would have pulled out minutes ago.
And she wondered if he was thinking the same thing as her. Ilena was alive, but she was still in danger. Clearly. And Clover wasn’t going to let that stand. She’d been helpless against her abusive father growing up.
No way was she going to stand by and let her friend put up with abuse. If Ilena needed an escape, she was going to give her one.