I put the address into my phone’s GPS. “He lives near the castle ruins,” I mutter, looking at my phone. “Is that right? Is he with his parents?”
“Er, no,” Fran says, looking away. “But yes, that’s the correct address.”
“He lives on his own?” She takes a step back when I nearly bellow at her.
“Jesus, Leith, I didn’t hook ‘em up. For the love of God,” she mutters. “Aye, that’s his address. He lives in a flat with flatmates.” She clears her throat. “He’s, eh, in college. Or, he was…”
What?
“Was?”
“Think he may’ve graduated…”
We’ll deal with this later. The most important thing right now is finding Paisley.
My phone rings, but I’m disappointed to see it’s only Islan.
“Have you found her?” she asks, and I regret my earlier toughness. I know how deeply she loves Paisley and how concerned she is about her wellbeing.
“Not yet, but we have a lead. I promise you, we’ll find her.”
I shouldn’t have made that promise, I know it as soon as I hang up the phone.
We went searching for Tavish when he went missing. We never brought him home.
I hang up the phone. Fran follows in her own car as we head to the address on the map. Cairstina looks out the window, as we drive in silence.
“And what will you do if you find her there?” Mac asks, scowling. “We try to keep things under the radar, Leith, you know that.”
“Och, aye, I know it,” I tell him. “Won’t bloody well march in and tear her away from her boyfriend, though I’ll be bloody tempted. I just fucking hope she’s even there.”
Mac nods. “Aye. Me, too.”
“Where’s the damn house?” I ask, shaking my head. “GPS says we should be there by now.”
“Christ, it isn’t on the map,” Tate says, shaking his head. “What the hell are we going to do now?”
I wish I could ask Cairstina’s opinion. It’s hard not being able to have a real conversation with her. I wonder what it is she’s thinking, what’s in the mind of hers. You take regular conversation for granted, sometimes, until you want a proper talk, I suppose.
God, the way she looks at me…
The way she melted into me, as if she belonged there, how she fits so perfectly in my arms when I hold her…
The way her beautiful eyes say everything her lips can’t…
Suddenly, Cairstina smacks my leg. It startles me so much, I jerk the wheel and the car skids. I look sharply to her, and she’s pointing out a window, shaking her fist to get my attention.
“Think she sees something,” Mac says with a snicker.
“Shut it.”
There’s nowhere else on this road for miles, so I slow down and look to where she’s pointing. I don’t see anything, though, but when the car comes to a full stop, she yanks on the handle to the car door and shoves it open.
“Hey! What the bloody hell are you doing?” I ask, leaving the car myself and chasing after her. There’s nothing but snow-covered grass that leads to trees. Back in the day, this must’ve been a sheep pasture or something like it, but now it’s a blank canvas as far as I can see. “Cairstina! Wait!”
But she doesn’t listen. She’s smaller than I am, and lithe, so she runs quickly through the snow. Bloody hell, how is she running so fast in those goddamn heels? I nearly trip over them. She’s kicked them off? My God, is she crazy?
Then I see what she sees. There’s a dirt road here, hidden among the trees.
“Cairstina, you’ll catch yer fuckin’ death of cold,” I scold, but still she goes on, pointing. I nearly chuckle. “Aye, I see it, too. It isn’t a wee figment of your imagination.”
I look over my shoulder and the others are far behind. Tate shouts, but we can’t hear him from where we are.
“You’re crazy, woman,” I tell her when I reach her, reaching for her hand. I look at the address and name. This is it. Down this road’s a string of houses nearly hidden in the trees and dark, each one mankier than the first. Paisley, what are you doing?
I hear voices inside, but can’t make out any that I recognize, and not the one I hope to hear.
Is she even here? I look for a bell but find none, so I give a good, sharp rap. The voices inside cease, but footsteps approach.
“Who’s there?”
“We’re looking for Paisley.”
Silence, then the sound of a doorknob turning. Someone opens it, but keeps it latched. I can’t see them through the darkness.
“And who the feck are you?”
I stand up to my full height, ready to knock his fucking teeth in. “Her brother.”
“She went home. And you should, too.” The door slams in my face.
Well, then. Seems he doesn’t know who her family is, and that’s a good thing. Unfortunately, he soon will.