“You’re here because you think you have new evidence about Valerie?” she asked, nonplussed.
“Not new evidence. I think they’re connected. I shouldn’t have come here,” I mumbled, changing my mind about telling the truth. I couldn’t do it. Couldn’t rely on anyone but myself.
Kiara raised an eyebrow. “You came all the way here just for that? After I ran your plates, I looked into you. You seemed to have disappeared for the past five months. Your life was going great, until your sister died, and then you just up and left. Why? What are you running from?”
I snapped my mouth shut. This woman was asking questions I did not want to answer. How many other people knew about the search she had run? My heart raced as panic swamped me. I needed to leave Chicago. As soon as possible.
“This was a mistake. I have to go,” I rushed out as I stood up.
“Wait, please. I’m desperate for anything that could help with the search for Valerie. I’m sorry I came on so strong. But even the smallest thing could help.” Kiara stood, and her pleading look tore at the seams in my heart.
“I can’t stay. I need to leave—”
“Come to my house; we can talk. You already know where I live. Please, if you think you can help in any way. I can try to look into your mother’s case if you want.”
I thought about it. I had a feeling she wouldn’t leave me alone after this, and I didn’t need anyone else trying to track me down. Especially someone who had police backing them. I could go and talk to her without telling the truth.
“Okay, but only for a bit.” Fear coated my voice, but Kiara didn’t seem to notice.
She nodded. “Great, you can follow me back in your car if you want.”
I agreed, and we left the café. I had to think of what I could tell her to get her to stop asking questions. The whole truth wasn’t an option. It was too big a risk to get the police involved. I followed Kiara for twenty minutes until we arrived in front of the brick townhouse. I took my stun gun out of my bag and slid it into my hoodie pocket. Couldn’t be too careful. Meeting Kiara on the sidewalk, I followed her to the white front door.
I walked in after her and glanced around. Kiara obviously liked things organized. There was not a thing out of place in her living room. The carpet was a crisp white, the same shade as the walls. There was a large brown leather sectional couch that wrapped around a glass coffee table. A large flatscreen was mounted on the wall above the fireplace. The walls all had collages of picture frames showing happy faces. The only pop of color in the entire room came from the purple flowers sitting in a vase on the coffee table.
Kiara motioned to the couch, and I sat down, keeping a hand in my hoodie pocket with a tight grip on the stun gun. The feeling of unease that was creeping inside me was heightened. It felt surreal to be sitting on someone’s couch and about to have a conversation. In a nice house instead of a cheap motel. It had been so long since there had been any sort of normal in my life. Not that this was normal, but it was closer than anything in the past few months.
“Do you want anything to drink?” she asked before sitting down.
I shook my head. “No, thank you.”
“Okay, tell me why you think the two cases are connected.”
I opened my mouth and planned to say some random thing. Something that could be a lead, but knew it wouldn’t be helpful.
“Valerie is dead.”
It was hard to tell who was more shocked. I couldn’t believe what I’d blurted out. The plan was to lie and leave. But the fact that she was still searching for her girlfriend was gut-wrenching. I wanted to give her closure. The unknown of my mother’s fate for over twenty years had broken my dad. I didn’t want it to happen to Kiara too.
“Excuse me?” she asked, her voice shaking.
I started talking. Fast. Once I started, there was no stopping the words tumbling from my mouth. It had been held in for so long. Keeping this to myself had been so hard, and I’d had no idea how much I wanted to shed my secret until now.
I told her everything. About my mom. My sister. Jamie. What happened up north, and what I’d been doing since I got away. Kiara didn’t interrupt; she just sat there with wide eyes and an astonished stare. Tears started falling onto my cheeks as I spoke. About Alex and his family and the whole society. The Greek story and how it all originated. I pulled out the paper from the book and the research I had done. It had been at least an hour by the time I stopped talking, and by then, we were both crying.
Once I finished, we sat in silence. Kiara looked like she was trying to absorb everything. I didn’t know whether to feel relieved or petrified about what I’d shared. What if this was it? My undoing? I didn’t even know this woman, and regret seeped in. It was time to leave.
“I need to know. Did you tell anyone else about me when you looked into my life?”
Kiara shook her head. “No. I didn’t tell anyone. I did it on my own time. I wasn’t about to share that some young girl was following me around.”
I nodded. “Good. I need to leave—”
“Leave? No, you’re staying here.”
My eyes narrowed and I gripped the stun gun. I was tired of people controlling me. First Alex, then Niko, and now her. I was done.
“You can’t keep me here,” I snarled, leaping off the couch.
She opened her mouth in shock at how I was acting until understanding dawned on her face.
“Sage, wait. No, I wasn’t threatening you. I want you to stay so I can help you. Help keep you safe. Help bring those people to justice.”
I stared at her doubtfully. I had relied on myself for so long. Trusting another person seemed impossible.
“You believe me?”