“Eddie did it,” she says softly. “All this time we thought it was a mechanical failure.”
“I never thought it was a mechanical failure.” I pull her to me as we walk, holding my arm around her torso. “It’s why I hated letting you be up there without me. I checked that fucking thing twice the night it broke. I knew someone had tampered with it.”
A shiver moves across her shoulders, and I hug her closer. We continue a ways in silence until Roland’s house is in view. Before we climb the steps, she turns to me, studying my face.
“Do you know what he means by a secret Internet?” Her brow is furrowed, and I nod.
“Have you ever heard of the dark web?”
Her lips part, and I can see the wheels turning behind her eyes. “Molly’s mentioned the dark web before. It is like a secret Internet!”
“I’ve only used it to…” My lips press together, and I glance down. “Well, to track Molly. It’s how she finds her targets. They use it to make transactions no one can trace.?
??
“Transactions… Like for prostitution? Drugs?”
“Exactly, and they pay with digital money like Bitcoin. It’s anonymous and very dangerous.”
“I don’t understand.” Her hand is on my arm, and I cover it with mine.
“You don’t really need to understand it. Just know it exists, and it sounds like that’s where Gavin is storing the videos.”
“If it’s anonymous, how will you find it?”
I look up at the house we’re standing beside. “I’m not an expert in this stuff. I’ve only dabbled in it, downloaded a few Tor browsers and poked around, followed Molly. Her user ID was DollBaby.”
Lara winces, but she’s doing her best to keep up. “And a Tor browser is…?”
“A web browser. It’s how you access the deep web and the dark web.”
Just then the front door opens, and we both jump as if we’ve been caught doing something illegal. Lara’s hand clasps mine hard, but she relaxes when Evie steps out carrying our little girl.
“I thought I heard your voice!” She scampers over to Lara and hugs her.
Jillian reaches for her mother, and Lara pulls her into her arms. “When did you get here?”
“Just a few minutes ago. Roland said you’re going to sing with him tonight.”
Lara’s eyes fly to mine. “I don’t know if we have time anymore—”
“Sure we do,” I interrupt. Jilly sits up straight in her mothers arms, and I put my hand on her back. “You’ve been practicing. I love to hear you sing.”
“But what about…?” Worried blue eyes meet mine, and I give her what I hope is a reassuring smile.
“We’ve got time for tonight.”
“I can’t wait!” Evie bounces on her toes. “I’ll bring Jilly and stay until she gets restless, then we can come back here and put her to bed. Don’t worry about a thing.”
“Oh. I wasn’t… I mean, I didn’t mean…”
“What’s this?” Evie takes her hand off Jilly’s back, admiring the new ring.
Now Lara’s smiling, seeming shy. “Isn’t it beautiful? It’s my engagement ring.”
“Engagement!” Her friend shrieks, and the baby fusses.
I reach for my daughter. “Let me have her so you can talk.”