Chapter Nine
The Colorado looked quiet, but Liv knew it held hidden dangers. She’d read about the speed with which the river could flip
itself inside out in big rapids, swallowing boats and ill-prepared tourists like herself. While deaths on rafting trips were
rare, injuries were not. They could smash into rocks. Get battered by waves. Tumble into a two-story hole of water. She cinched
the bottom strap of her PFD tighter around her waist and tried to find something else to think about.
On the far side of the rafts, Charlie, PK, Devon, and Stefan were ignoring the river entirely. They were locked in intense
conversation, presumably about their missing CEO. They all wore their white hats tightly fitted, brims straight, like a gang
of golf caddies. They looked far from carefree.
“Your skin care cult,” Liv said. “They’re interesting.”
“I told you, it’s not a cult.”
Liv grazed a finger over the brim of her crystal-lined hat.
“Fine. They gave us swag. But you heard them. It’s a business.”
“How well do you know these people?” Liv asked her sister.
Mandy scrunched up her forehead. “I know what jobs they do. The siblings are at the top. Babette’s in charge. Charlie’s the
finance and operations guy. And Devon runs scientific research.”
“Research?”
“All Babette skin care products are plant-derived. Devon was a botanist at Oxford before her siblings convinced her to join the family business. She goes all over the world discovering rare plants to use in their products.”
“And Stefan? Charlie called him their partner. What does he do?”
“No clue. But Babette isn’t about its executives. It’s about transforming wild plants into healing magic.” Mandy rambled on
about Babette Botanique’s revolutionary serums that cured everything from eczema to chronic fatigue, but Liv kept her attention
on the group by the second raft. Stefan looked somber; Charlie and PK, nervous. Devon’s face was flushed, her eyes dark blades
as she spoke to the men. Maybe she was the one in charge now. Liv had a sudden vision of the tall scientist atop a tractor
in the , clear-cutting rainforest to gain access to an endangered plant whose roots she would grind into antiaging fairy
dust.
Liv didn’t particularly like these people, but she was intrigued by them. They were a puzzle she felt a growing itch to solve.
“Do you think they really want her to get here?” Liv said.
“Babette?” Mandy said. “Of course. This is her launch. And look at them—they’re lost without her.”
Liv wasn’t sure. Were they lost? Or were they jockeying for power in the absence of their dear leader?
“Charlie and Devon seemed quick to discount the idea that she might be in trouble,” Liv said. “Maybe they were just trying
to keep everyone calm in a tough situation. Or there’s some benefit to them having a couple of days down here without her.
Maybe life is easier when their glitter-bombing little sister isn’t around.”
Mandy flashed her an annoyed glance.
“I’m not talking about you,” Liv said quickly. “I’m glad we’re here. But could you imagine what it would be like if we worked
together? If we had to make strategic decisions every single day? If one of us was the boss of the other?”
“Could be a blast,” Mandy said.
It would be a nightmare. But Liv was smart enough not to voice that out loud.
“I’m just saying, it sounds challenging.
Especially with a CEO as powerful as your Babette.
The more I think about it, the more it seems possible that Charlie and Devon knew she wouldn’t be here.
They argued about it, but every time PK brought up the prospect of going back, they found a way to shut him down. ”
Liv could feel her sister’s eyes boring into her. Whoops. Only three hours ago she’d agreed to put away her working brain.
“I’m sorry. I promised I wouldn’t go all profiler on this trip.”
“No. This is important. What if Babette’s missing?”
“We’ve already established she’s missing.”
“But what if you’re right?” Mandy said. “What if she’s missing missing? What if Charlie and Devon engineered it, and now they’re pretending everything is okay so they can get what they
want?”
“Which is what?”
“No clue. Ooh!” Mandy opened her eyes wide. “What if they kidnapped her?”
“And stuffed her in a mule bag?”
“Okay, not that. But what if Charlie and Devon are hiding something, and PK can sense that, and now they’re freaking out?”
They squinted over at the other raft. If Charlie and Devon were working together, they were doing a good job concealing it.
It looked to Liv like a full-blown power struggle was underway, the waves of authority bouncing among Charlie, Devon, and
Stefan. PK was standing to the side, tightening his PFD and watching the others closely.
“I don’t think it’s easy to make someone disappear,” Liv said.
“Easier than you imagine,” Mandy muttered. “Just ask my last boyfriend.”
Liv considered the evidence: what she knew, not what her sister had invented. There was so little data available to her, and
all of it was subjective. Impressions. Emotions. They were as mutable as the river. “We might as well enjoy the trip. That’s
what we’re here for, right? And even if Babette is missing, we’re headed downriver. I don’t see what we can do about it.”
“We can’t do much,” Mandy said, waving dismissively at herself and the other guests fumbling into their life jackets. “But you
can.”
“I can what?”
“Do your special investigator thing. Find out what happened and where Babette really is.”
Was Mandy serious? Just a few hours ago on the hike down, she had demanded Liv put away anything that had even a whiff of
her professional life. And now here she was, asking her to trot it out again.
But Mandy was looking at her with expectation, hope even. Liv liked that look.
“Why does Babette matter so much to you?” Liv asked.
Before Mandy could answer, Thor strode over.
“You ladies ready to hit the water? Give me a look-see.” He reached out and tugged each of the straps on Liv’s PFD. She was
glad for the safety review but annoyed by his presumption, the ease with which he manipulated her body without asking.
When it was Mandy’s turn, she raised her arms and gave him a ballerina spin. “How big are these rapids?”
“Horn Creek’s around the corner. It’s a Grand Canyon class eight. At this water level maybe even a nine.”
Liv frowned. “I thought whitewater rapids were only rated one to six.”
“Everywhere else, that’s true. But the Grand plays by its own rules. Here, the ratings go up to ten.”
“Which means?”
“Big waves. Fast water.” The guide smiled and tweaked the cap on Mandy’s head. “Hold on to your hat.”