Chapter 2

The next morning I told Ethan the office had a last-minute project and I needed to travel for a few days.

He was buttoning his cuffs and didn't look up. "Where to?"

"Miami."

"How long?"

"Three or four days."

He turned and looked at me and smiled. "Stay safe."

I smiled back.

I had a noon flight.

I didn't go to Miami.

I went to Harlow, Montana.

The plane landed at two in the afternoon local time.

The air was dry and sharp and the sun hit me the moment I stepped outside.

The last photo Lily sent me was taken somewhere in this town.

The lake, the blue sky, white clouds. Her standing in front of a flower stall with her eyes crinkled shut.

I didn't stop to feel anything.

I went straight to the B&B where Lily had stayed.

I'd looked it up before I left. She'd sent me the location in a message before she flew out. A place called The Pineridge Lodge, right by the lake.

At the front desk I pulled out a photo of Lily and asked if they remembered her.

The woman shook her head.

"Her name is Lily Hart. She's from Chicago," I said.

The woman checked her computer and nodded. "We have a record. She stayed two nights, then she didn't check out and didn't extend. Her luggage is still in our storage."

My chest pulled tight.

Her luggage was still there.

And she was gone.

I steadied myself and asked the question I'd been dreading.

"About a month ago, was there a man from Chicago also staying here?"

I put Ethan's photo on the counter.

She looked at it and checked her screen.

Then she looked up, her expression uncertain.

"Yes. He stayed four nights."

Four nights.

Two more than Lily.

"What room?"

"203."

"And Lily Hart?"

"205."

Same floor.

One room between them.

I stood at that counter and felt the noise in my head build to a roar.

My first thought was the obvious one. That something was going on between them.

Lily and Ethan, staying in rooms next to each other in Harlow, Montana.

But the moment that thought came, something else pushed it back down.

No.

Lily hated Ethan.

Not the polite kind of dislike people hide behind small talk. The kind where she couldn't even bother to fake it.

Every time I brought Ethan to a group gathering, Lily went quiet.

Once, when she'd had too much to drink, she looked right at him and said, "Everly is perfect in every way. I have no idea what she's doing with you."

Ethan's face had gone rigid.

After that they barely saw each other.

These were not two people sneaking around together.

So why was he in the room next to hers?

What was he doing there?

I took a slow breath and looked at the woman behind the desk.

"I need to see your security footage from that period."

She hesitated. "I'd need to check with the manager."

"Please do."

"We may also need the police involved."

"My best friend is missing." I kept my voice flat, but my hands were shaking. "A month. No trace of her. This B&B may be the last place she was seen. Do you think your manager is going to say no?"

She looked at me for a moment.

Then she picked up the phone.