Chapter 22
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
During her stay at the motel, Dana had watched more TV than she had since her days as a teenager. She’d done it all—gone through the five channels multiple times, adjusted the antenna repeatedly, and tried to get interested in the local news. She halfheartedly watched game shows and reruns of old sitcoms. What had been a novelty at first quickly became tiresome. Right now she was so bored she would have welcomed exercising with Antonio. She’d even gladly do the aggravating battle ropes.
When she heard the sound of the lock release, every muscle in her body perked up at the thought that Ian had agreed to pay the ransom and she’d be going home soon. It’s about time.
The door only opened partially. Nolan stuck his head in the gap, tentatively, like he might be interrupting something important. Ha! He wasn’t interrupting anything at all. If anything, she’d never been so happy to see a man wearing a hideous ski mask in her entire life.
“Come on in,” she said, waving from her perch on the bed. “I could use some company.”
He said, “Sorry, but I’m not staying. I came to let you know I’m heading out.”
“For food?”
“No, I’m going home.”
This couldn’t be happening. The kidnapping wasn’t finished, was it? She got up and walked closer. “You’re kidding, right?”
“Nope.” His tone was regretful. “Your family needs more time to get the money together, so it’s going to be tomorrow. I have to leave. If you want to go with me, I’ll take you home.”
“They need more time? That’s nonsense.” She clicked off the TV and stood.
“The banks aren’t open on Sunday.”
“That doesn’t matter.”
“According to your family, it does. Seriously, I’ll gladly drive you back to your place.”
“If Ian cared, he’d pay today. He’d make it work.”
Nolan sighed wearily. “You said yourself you don’t have that kind of cash on hand at home.”
Dana didn’t need to be reminded of what she’d said. She was the one who said it, for crying out loud. “What I said was that I didn’t keep that kind of money at home. But I’m not the one who has to pay the ransom, am I?”
“Well, no...”
She started walking toward Nolan, ready to jab a finger in his chest to tell him how this was really going down, and barring that, she was ready to take him up on his offer to leave. She was almost to the door when he fell through the doorframe as if pushed, brushing against her and landing on the floor at her feet. He swore loudly, and the door slammed shut behind him.
Startled, Dana looked from Nolan to the door, trying to figure out what had happened. “Are you okay?”
Nolan jumped to his feet and tried the knob. When the door didn’t open, he slammed his fist against it, yelling, “This isn’t funny. Let me out of here!”
Then she knew. There’d been a falling-out between Nolan and the other two. Pete and Hunter. They’d turned on Nolan. Something similar had happened with the gang of criminals in the third Rebecca Cavanaugh book. It had been a key plot point, in fact, but in that story it was a matter of greed. She was willing to bet that this real-life falling-out had more to it than just money. She went back to sit on the bed, watching as Nolan kept hitting the door as if he could somehow break his way through. Eventually, he gave up and slid to a cross-legged position on the floor, holding his head in his hands. A defeated man.
Dana went to the fridge to get a bottle of water, then nudged Nolan with it. “Drink this, you’ll feel better,” she said.
Mutely, he took the bottle, unscrewed the cap, and took a long swig. “Thank you.” He put the cap back on. “It did help.” He leaned back against the door and let out a sigh.
In the adjacent room, the obnoxious music started up again. At least it wasn’t as loud as it had been before.
She asked, “So you want to tell me what happened?”
“Not particularly.”
“You and the boys had a disagreement, obviously. And it was about me.”
He shook his head. “No. It’s not your fault.”
Dana laughed. “I didn’t mean it was my fault. Of course it’s not my fault. Why would it be my fault ? But it’s something regarding the kidnapping situation. Let me guess.” She tapped her chin with her fingertips. “Money? They’re cutting you out of your share?”
“Nothing like that.” He waved a hand. “It’s hard to explain.”
“Okay, don’t tell me. Suit yourself.” She shrugged. The timing of their argument couldn’t have been worse. She had been about to ask him to get her some food. Mexican, if they had such a thing in the vicinity. He’d indicated earlier that the food options nearby were limited. Well, they’d have to suffer with the food supply in the room. “Are you hungry? I could make you a grilled cheese sandwich.”
Nolan sighed. “Okay.”
This was clearly the most unenthusiastic response to any offer she’d ever made, but it was still a positive. Dana went to the kitchenette and found a frying pan and all the ingredients, then set to work. She hadn’t made grilled cheese in years, but it came back to her. She waited until a few drops of water sizzled in the pan before beginning, and in a matter of minutes, she had two perfectly golden grilled cheese sandwiches. Putting them on two plates, she quickly cut up an apple and arranged the slices alongside them.
“Here you go!” she said, setting the plates on the table. “Perfection on a plate.”
Nolan slowly got to his feet and came to the table. “This is very nice of you, thank you.”
When they were seated opposite each other, she said, “Maybe they’re just making a point and will let you out soon.”
“I don’t think so.” He picked up the sandwich. “They’ve always been like this. Once they decide something, there’s no going back.”
“So you’ve known them a long time?”
Nolan nodded and took a bite.
“Families can be difficult.” When his sandwich froze in midair, she knew her words had landed correctly. “Let me guess. Brothers? Cousins?” If only she could see his expression under the ski mask. She tried something. “I already know your name, your eye color, and your height and build. Why don’t you just take the mask off? We might be stuck here a long time, and it can’t be comfortable.”
He took another sip from his water bottle, and when he was done, he met her eyes. If the eyes were the window to the soul, his soul was unhappy. He sucked in a deep breath, then reached up and pulled off the mask.
“There. That wasn’t so hard, was it?” Dana took a nibble on an apple slice. He was fairly good-looking, with prominent eyebrows framing his indigo eyes. His dark wavy hair was now in complete disarray. As if he could read her thoughts, he set the mask down on the table and quickly raked his fingers over the top of his head. She asked, “Feel better now?”
He nodded. “That thing was making me hot.”
“ Hot as in aroused or as in overly warm?”
For the first time she saw him smile, a grin that showed straight white teeth. “You’re a very attractive woman, but for the record, I was talking about temperature.” He took another bite and nodded in approval. “This is good. I wouldn’t have taken you for someone who cooks.”
“Believe me, I never cook. Not if I can help it.” She took a sip of water. “But in the early days, when Courtney and I shared an apartment, we used to trade off cooking duties. She’s pretty good, but I never got past grilled cheese and ramen noodles.”
“I have a question for you,” he said. “You don’t seem very anxious, considering. Is this some kind of publicity stunt?”
Dana frowned. “You think I’d want to be thrown in the trunk of a car and then locked up in a dingy motel room?” She held up her wrists. “I’m shocked that you’d think that.”
“I’m sorry. It was just a random thought.”
“Well,” she said with a shrug. “I guess I understand. I tend to do well in a crisis.”
He nodded. “I can see that.”
“As long as we’re clearing the air, do you have any other questions for me?”
“There is something I always wondered about you and Courtney...” He hesitated.
“Yes?”
“Are you a couple?”
“Romantically?” Dana laughed. “No, nothing like that. We’re just friends, but she’s the best friend anyone could ever have, believe me. I can only be me because of her.”
“What do you mean?”
Dana mulled it over in her mind for a moment before answering. “It was her idea to write the books in the first place, and honestly, she does most of the heavy lifting in that department, which leaves me free to do everything else. And she never complains. She’s happy to see me happy, which is a rare thing. Honestly, she’s so content. It would be a better world if more people were like Courtney.” She dabbed her mouth with her napkin. “So why did you think we were a couple?”
“I don’t know. You never married, and you don’t seem to...”
“Keep boyfriends for very long?” She grinned.
“Yeah?”
“That’s by design. People can start out being great, but eventually they annoy me. And men really annoy me, and then they sense how I feel and they lose interest. I’ve been told I’m a lot to handle.”
“And Courtney—is she seeing anyone?”
“That would be a no.” She sighed and shook her head. “Courtney doesn’t get out much. She’s kind of a homebody. I tried to get her to sign up for a dating app, but she wouldn’t do it.” Sometimes Dana would see the light on in Courtney’s apartment late at night and think it was a lonely sight. In the early days, Courtney would talk about getting married and having kids someday, but all those plans drifted away once the series took off.
Dana used to invite Courtney to go out with her in the evening, but after being turned down repeatedly, she’d given up. Courtney had explained her reasoning, saying, “The same things that energize you deplete me. I need to conserve my emotional energy for the books.” Courtney lived to help Dana write the Rebecca Cavanaugh novels. She’d sacrificed her life to make her friend a success. If Dana had been the type to feel guilty, that might have done it.
Luckily, Dana almost never felt guilty, which was good. She found it to be a draining, unproductive emotion.
They ate for a few minutes in silence until the music next door cranked up to a new level. When Dana made a face, Nolan got up from the table and pounded on the connecting wall. “It’s too loud, dammit!”
When there was no change, Dana said, “Let me try.” She joined him and yelled, “That’s enough! Turn it down.” Her shrill voice pierced through the sound. When nothing happened, she picked up the desk chair and slung it against the wall. The volume subsided, but she wasn’t done. Out of frustration, she screamed, “Stop it, stop it, stop it!” for good measure.
Nolan slammed his fist against the wall one more time. “Let me out of here!” The sound of Pete and Hunter laughing indicated that he wasn’t going to be released anytime soon.
After returning to the table, he said, “Those are two flawed human beings.”
“You think?”
As if just remembering something, he said, “Why did you assume we were related?”
“Did I?” One of Dana’s favorite things was playing coy. She did it just often enough to throw people off course. It was fun to see others try to dig their way out of a conversational pit.
“Before. You said something about families being difficult. And then you asked if they were my brothers or cousins.”
“Huh.” She tilted her head to one side as if in thought.
“Yes, you did say that.” He was grinning now as if he were in on the joke.
“So are they brothers or cousins?”
“Both.” He crumpled up his napkin and put it on the plate. “They’re brothers—twins, actually—and they’re my cousins. My only cousins. My closest relatives, really. My parents died when I was a kid, and my grandfather raised me. Pete and Hunter’s parents were sort of a mess, so the four of us banded together as a family. They’re on my mother’s side. My dad was from Australia, and I never knew any of his people. I connected with some of them online, but it’s not the same.”
Oh my, Dana thought, he’s turning out to be quite the chatterbox. Women often got a reputation for being talkative, but in her experience it was the men who grabbed hold of the conversational rope and wouldn’t let go. One question and she was hearing his whole life story. And this from a guy who could potentially be arrested for kidnapping. In theory, keeping quiet was in his best interest. Too late for that. “You’ve had some troubles in your life. I’m sorry,” she said, and made the kind of sympathetic face she hoped would end the discussion, but he didn’t seem to get the hint.
“I’ve always felt an obligation to Hunter and Pete. I have a small social circle—work friends, buddies from college, you know, the usual. Not a lot of friends, but enough. The twins don’t have anyone but each other. And they tend to screw up fairly often, and when that happens, who do they call? Me. Every single time.” From there he went on to explain how he got roped into helping this time around. A misunderstanding that he said could have happened to anyone. He was tricked. It seemed important to him that she understand that this wasn’t like Nolan, not at all. He wasn’t one to break the law, never even got a speeding ticket.
“You seem like a good guy,” Dana said, which was true. In a way, he reminded her of Courtney. The apologizing, the wanting to help others, the kindness. Drab people leading safe lives. All well and good, but nothing she was interested in.
Her perception of Nolan earlier had been completely wrong. Turned out that those indigo eyes were only sexy from behind a ski mask. What a disappointment.
When his talking reached her breaking point, she interrupted to say, “The rule of this room is that the guest does the dishes.” She pointed to the sink and the frying pan on the stove.
“Of course,” he said, rising to his feet and gathering up the dishes. “You cooked, so it’s only fair.”
Fair had nothing to do with it. She hadn’t washed a dish in fifteen years, and she wasn’t about to start now.