Aurora shrugged. She stopped her pacing to pick up a long silk scarf from the top of the dresser, balling it up in one fist. “We didn’t know it’d end up being useful too. It’s not like we’ve been planning this. But it’s come in pretty handy. No one would suspect sweet, limp-wristed Adrian of having anything to do with my disappearance.”
“So now you’ve got the cash,” Veronica said. “And as an added bonus, you got to throw your dad under the bus. Pretty cold, Aurora.”
The girl’s nostrils flared. “He got what was coming to him.”
“I think there’s about to be a lot of that going around,” Veronica said.
The girl dropped down on one knee in front of Veronica. Her smirk had turned to an agitated, angry sneer. “You don’t know anything about me. You don’t get to judge me.” She gripped a handful of Veronica’s hair and pulled her head up. Veronica cried out in pain, but the instant her mouth was open the girl shoved the scarf into it.
Veronica tried to whip her head away, to writhe out of Aurora’s grip, but the girl held on, pinning her down to the floor. Veronica’s scalp burned, and the silk scarf filled her dry mouth, stretching her cheeks uncomfortably wide.
Aurora met Veronica’s eyes. “Tanner treated me like the dumb little girl I was before he went straight. He never even stopped to think I could do something like this if I wanted to. But I spent the first seven years of my life as a prop in his small-time games. I was a perfect shill—cute as a button and eager to please. He had me return stolen dogs for reward money. Once he and Shep shaved my head and passed me off as a brave little cancer patient.” She snorted. “Jesus, for a while, when we were on the road, he’d have me sit alone at the rest stop or outside a gas station. Then if a certain kind of man talked to me or asked if I needed help, I’d scream bloody murder. Dad would come running and accuse the guy of attempted kidnapping. Nine times out of ten, the poor rube would get so freaked out he’d pay anything he had in his pocket to make the problem go away. And then, just because prison scared the shit out of him, he decided to go straight. He just decided it for both of us, like I didn’t get a vote. Then it was nine years of ‘Straighten up and fly right, Aurora,’ nine years of, ‘You’re going down a dangerous path, little missy.’ ” She was shaking—whether with fury or nerves, Veronica couldn’t tell. “So as annoying as Shep is, I was fucking ecstatic when he showed up with a plan. Of course, in his version, I was going to be a good girl and stay put in that scummy motel they had picked out for me. There wasn’t even cable TV in there! Instead I stayed right here, right where I wanted to be. I broke into the motel long enough for Dad to see me there and came right back here. Now they’ve both been caught, and it serves them right for underestimating me.”
Abruptly she let go of Veronica’s hair. Veronica’s head hit the carpet again, and for a moment she saw stars.
“Come on, Adrian, the timetable just got moved up.” Aurora was on her feet again. “We’ve got to get out of here.”
“What are we gonna do with her?”
“We’ll leave her here. Tied up and gagged. Someone will find her in a few days.”
The pressure on Veronica’s legs disappeared as Adrian stood up. He clenched his fists at his sides, his knuckles white. “That’s not gonna work and you know it. People know who she is. They’re gonna look for her, and if they find her before we’re gone …”
“Then what do you recommend?” she hissed.
He gave her a significant look. The girl went pale beneath her freckles.
“No way,” she whispered. “That’s crazy, Adrian. You think they’re gonna let us stay disappeared if we’ve killed someone?”
Veronica’s throat went tight. For a moment she felt like she was choking on the scarf. She moved her fingers, testing the bonds that held her. There was a little bit of slack, but it’d take some work to get out.
“We can’t risk her getting found.” Adrian gripped Aurora by either shoulder, a panicked, wild look in his eyes. “We’ve got to get rid of her.”
The two of them stared at each other in silence. On the floor Veronica tried to slow her breathing, to stay calm. She’d need both her breath and her energy if they decided they were out of options.
Then, cutting through the tense, anxious air, three quick knocks sounded at the door.
Veronica’s heart leapt.
Aurora and Adrian exchanged glances, eyes narrowed. Adrian nodded at Aurora and slipped out of the bedroom, shutting the door firmly behind him. Veronica listened to his footsteps trailing across the little apartment.
The door opened. Adrian’s voice was muffled through the wall, but the visitor’s voice came loud and clear.
“Hi, Mr. Marks. Sorry to disturb you, but I’m looking for my daughter.”
It was Keith.
Finally, Veronica thought. He’s here.