She crossed the lot to her car, wrapping a cardigan slightly tighter around herself. The weather in Seattle was variable at this time of year, the temperature dropping as it moved firmly from summer into fall. She hadn’t realized it would be so cool after leaving her acting class. She was going to have to start bringing a jacket.
Suzanna felt a little uneasy as she reached her car, pausing rather than unlocking it right away. She had this strange feeling like someone was nearby, watching her – like she wasn’t alone… There was a chill running down her spine as she glanced around. She fumbled with the keys, thinking she’d better get inside quick in case there was someone -
“Suzanna!”
Suzanna’s head flew around, her hand going to her chest over her fluttering heart as she recognized the woman who had called her name. “Oh, Christ, Leilah! I almost had a heart attack!”
“Sorry!” Leilah said, putting her own hand over her mouth for a moment. “Sorry, I thought you’d seen me!”
Suzanna leaned against her car to try and get her breath back, shaking her head. “I didn’t. It’s a bit creepy here after everyone’s gone home, isn’t it?”
Leilah laughed. “Yes, you’re not wrong there. I’m glad I saw you. I knew your class finished not long ago, and I wanted to chat with you, but I didn’t catch you inside before you left.”
Suzanna nodded, feeling more composed now. “Yes, I was just filing my paperwork so I could get going. What was it you wanted?”
“Oh, it’s about the paperwork, actually,” Leilah said with a smile. She’d only started teaching at the community center a few weeks ago, and Suzanna had been going a lot longer than that. “I was just wondering if you knew what code to put down in the lesson type box?”
“There’s a guide in the teachers’ break room,” Suzanna said. Now that she had calmed down, she didn’t feel quite so annoyed about the interruption. It was nice, having Leilah come to her for help. “It’s hung up on the wall next to the noticeboard – a little laminated booklet, have you seen it?”
“Oh!” Leilah exclaimed, nodding and putting a hand to her forehead with a grin. “You know what? I’m such an idiot. They showed me that on my first day. I’d just totally forgotten about it.”
“Not to worry,” Suzanna said, smiling back. “You’ll get the hang of things. I know it’s a lot to take in, at first.”
“Thanks, Suzanna,” Leilah said. She shifted her yoga mat on her shoulder, gesturing to a car just a couple of rows away. “I’d better get going, too. I’ll see you next week, right?”
“Yes, I think we’re permanently scheduled around the same time now,” Suzanna said. “I’ll see you then!”
“Bye!” Leilah called over her shoulder. “And thanks again!”
Suzanna chuckled, shaking her head at the young teacher’s enthusiasm. Suzanna had felt the same way when she first started. Not that she hated her job now – she loved it. Teaching others how to act, using all her experience – and more importantly, for an actress in her thirties who hadn’t managed to get a big break, being employed. There was a lot to like about this gig.
She turned and unlocked her car, checking her phone quickly before she got inside. There were a few messages – mostly social media notifications, nothing particularly important. The sound of Leilah’s engine starting up roused her, and Suzanna got inside the car, slinging her purse onto the passenger seat.
She looked up; that was strange. Her rearview mirror wasn’t quite pointing in the right direction. Had she knocked it earlier, when she was getting out of the car? Suzanna shrugged to herself, reaching up to adjust it. She was staring right into it as she changed the angle, accidentally putting it too far down and giving herself a clear view of the back seat.
A view that made her blood run cold.
“What are you - ” she began, before he cut her off, lunging forward with the knife in his hand.
CHAPTER THREE
Laura rubbed her mouth with one hand, anxiously glancing around the bullpen. This wasn’t what she had expected.
But she hadn’t been thinking straight. Today was a day off for her, because of the case they had only just finished. And that meant it was a day off for her partner, Nate Lavoie, too. He wasn’t here. She couldn’t call on him for his help.
“Are you alright, Laura?”
Laura turned from her survey of the empty desks where she normally worked alongside Nate to see a fellow agent, Jones, watching her with his hands on his hips. The small, but determined, agent was a little older than her, and very much a family man. He was constantly asking after her daughter, Lacey, and talking about his own son, even though he knew full well Laura didn’t have custody. Or even visitation rights.
It was possible to suggest that Laura cared so much about saving Amy because the little blonde and blue-eyed girl reminded her of Lacey, but that would have been cruel. Laura didn’t wish abuse on anyone, and it was not only her moral duty but also her duty as an FBI agent to prevent it if she could. That was all this was, she told herself. She was doing her job.
And doing it well, because Agent Jones was an even better candidate than Nate for looking after a scared little girl.
“Come with me,” she told him, turning and not waiting to find out if he would agree. He didn’t have a choice, as far as she was concerned. As she called the elevator, she was grati
fied to see him pitching up beside her, wearing a puzzled expression.
“I need to you to watch someone for me,” Laura said. “A little girl.”