Deuce decided he had to do something. He needed to erase the porn part, make up some story about why he’d seen all this, and then tell it to the police. They’d go find the Camry, figure out who the girls were, and find whoever was driving that Dish van.
And he had to do it sooner rather than later.
He looked at his phone. He punched 911 but got no connection. No Service, the screen read. He’d have to go back to the other side of the creek before reception turned solid.
Deuce looked around, got his bearings, and set off toward the logging trail. It would be dark before he knew it, but he’d been walking around in these woods since he was four.
When the boy hit the logging road, a three-quarter moon was rising behind him. He broke into a jog and went up and over the rise.
Right where the trail got steep again, Deuce caught a glimpse of something dark, heavy, and long coming right at him.
He tried to duck, but it was too late.
A forearm smashed into the boy’s neck and clotheslined him. Deuce’s feet went out from beneath him, and his upper body, arms, and head whipsawed violently before crashing onto the logging road.
The boy felt bones break on impact, and he took a nasty crack to the head. He saw stars, and his limp fingers and arms flung wide. His iPhone sailed off into the woods, along with all the wind in his lungs.
For a second, maybe two, Deuce was dazed and saw only shadows and darkness. He heard nothing but the sound of his own choking and felt nothing but pain that seemed everywhere.
Then the boy heard a man’s voice right beside him. “There, now,” he said. “Where did you think you were going, young man?”
Part One
PLATINUM DAMAGES THE BRAIN
CHAPTER
1
I LOOKED IN my bedroom mirror and tried to tie the perfect necktie knot.
It was such a simple thing, a ritual I performed every day before work, and yet I couldn’t get it right.
“Here, Alex, let me help,” Bree said, sliding in beside me.
I let the tie hang and said, “Nerves.”
“Understandable,” Bree said, coming around in front of me and adjusting the lengths of the tie.
I have a good six inches on my wife, and I gazed down in wonder at how easily she tied the knot.
“Men can’t do that,” I said. “We have to stand behind a guy to do it.”
“Just a difference in perspective,” Bree said, snugging the knot up against my Adam’s apple and tugging down the starched collar. She hesitated, then looked up at me with wide, fearful eyes and said, “You’re ready now.”
I felt queasy. “You think?”
“I believe in you,” Bree said, getting up on her tiptoes and tilting her head back. “We all believe in you.”
I kissed her then, and hugged her tight.
“Love you,” I said.
“Forever and ever,” Bree said.
When we separated, she had shiny eyes.
“Game face, now,” I said, touching her chin. “Remember what Marley and Naomi told us.”