Page 28 of Girl Long Gone

Keeping the car running, Connor stepped out of the car and reached his arm to where the mystery nestled under the wiper. His fingers brushed against silky strands of some kind, and he pulled gently to secure them. Wispy strands of dark curls floated away on the wind. Blood pounded in his ears. He fell back against the seat and stared at the lock of black hair in his palm.

Black, curly hair. Monica’s hair.

Evelyn stared at the computer screen nestled on her lap and studied the college records she’d uncovered. Gabriel had been a good student, focusing on business classes, but nothing jumped out at her as suspicious.

Of course, she couldn’t find anything that pointed to Gabriel as a freaking monster. She wasn’t a cop, she was a web designer. She might be good at research, but her research had never included trying to jam random pieces together to complete a puzzle she didn’t even have a picture of.

Lacey poked her head in the open door. “Abbie’s finally asleep. Wanna glass of wine?”

Evelyn blew out a long breath and closed her laptop, then tossed it on the bed beside her. “Wine sounds like heaven right now.”

Evelyn took her wine and a couple of grapes to the couch and slid off the cashmere throw from the back of it before settling into the corner. “I’m sorry I brought this into our lives. The last thing I’d ever want is for you or Abbie to get hurt.”

“I’ll slap you if you say something stupid like that again. You didn’t do anything wrong. You went to coffee with a guy you knew from high school because he wanted to talk to you about a job.” Lacey brought her glass to her mouth, but it couldn’t hide her smile. “Besides, it brought Detective Studly into your life, so it hasn’t been all bad.”

“I’m sure I’m the last thing on Connor’s mind right now. He’s practically jumping out of his skin with worry over his sister.”

“Did you find anything useful? You were on your computer all day.”

“Not really. Every school record, newspaper article, or casual mention on random sites spoke of a hard worker who stays out of the limelight and gives a lot of money to different charities.” She let her mind wander back to the ridiculous amount of mundane information she’d learned about Gabriel today. “The most interesting thing about him was that he has a minor in French Literature.”

“Why did you find that interesting? A lot of people get bullshit degrees they’ll never use.”

Evelyn shrugged. “Everything else about his life seems so groomed, every decision pointed him to a direction that kept his focus on his career and building an empire. Studying French Literature just seems so frivolous for a man like him.”

“True. But he came from money, and you know how rich people are. They like to come off as cultured. Maybe he thought it would be a good topic of conversation down the road. Help him build contacts.”

“Good point, but it still stood out to me. What about you? Did you get a chance to snoop around online?”

“Not much. Abbie was clingy today. I did check out my social media sites. Gabriel has accounts on most of them but hardly ever posts anything. I checked out his friends and followers. Not a lot of people I recognized, but nothing weird.” Lacey lifted her chin and gave a little smirk. “I also looked up Simon Thompson. He’s cute.”

“Cuter than Ben?” Evelyn held back the wink she wanted to throw Lacey’s way, focusing instead on Snowball’s soft purrs vibrating against her leg.

Lacey chuckled. “They’re both pretty cute, not like it matters. Good-looking guys are the last thing I need right now.”

Evelyn bit back the anger that always surged forward when Lacey’s eyes went blank, and her mouth dipped down in a sad frown. If she could find Abbie’s dad and beat the crap out of him, she would in a heartbeat. “Thinking about good-looking guys is exactly what you should do. Ben seems nice, and the two of you both acted pretty damn smitten when Connor and I got back from the police station last night.”

Lacey shrugged. “Having a man around was nice, but I don’t plan on getting used to it. I’d rather sit back and watch you squirm around Connor. I know your past makes you hesitant to take a chance on a guy, but he might be worth the risk.”

Evelyn bit the side of her mouth. She’d had the same thoughts about Connor but couldn’t quite convince herself to take the leap. Now wasn’t the right time. After Monica was found, she could sit down and really examine her feelings. Maybe then she could figure out what to do about Connor.

Ping.

“Hmmm,” Lacey hummed. “Is that him now? I bet his ears were burning.”

Evelyn grabbed her phone and glanced at the screen. A text came through, but it wasn’t from Connor.

Gabriel.

Hope you’re feeling better. Can you grab dinner tomorrow?

She swallowed the lump in her throat, and her sweat- slicked palms fumbled against the phone.

“Well?” Lacey pressed. “What does he want?”

“Nothing. Just checking in.” Evelyn’s throat tightened around the lie, and she hoped Lacey couldn’t hear her heart pounding from across the room.

She stared at the message, and her mind spun with possible scenarios. She’d told Connor she wouldn’t meet Gabriel, but that was before she’d poked around Gabriel’s background and come out with nothing. Connor was holding on by a thread, Lacey didn’t feel safe in their home, and Evelyn was tired of being in limbo. If she agreed to meet Gabriel, she could tell Connor about it tomorrow and make sure he was near. Nothing bad would happen. She was smart, and she’d be safe.