Liquid Smoke

FORTY-EIGHT

“Noah?” Carolina said, lowering the gun and looking at us like we’d lost our minds. “Carter? What are you doing?”

I got to my feet, the blood pulsing in my ears, and scanned the room. Everything looked fine.

“I’m not sure, Ms. B.,” Carter said, his gun still up. “Noah told me to meet him here. I followed him in.”

I kept my gun level, moving it back and forth. “You didn’t answer your phone.”

“I ran to the store,” she said, bewildered. “Noah, what is going on?”

I moved into the back of the house and checked the other rooms.

Was Keene screwing with me?

“He wasn’t here?” I asked when I came back out.

“Who?” Carolina asked, still looking at me like I was crazy.

“Keene.”

She blinked several times. “No. I was home all day. I ran to the store to get eggs. I haven’t seen him.”

“Did he call you?” I said, hearing the frustration in my voice. “No. There was nothing on the machine.”

Keene had made a point of mentioning Carolina at the airport. He wanted me to know he was watching me. She was so surprised to see me. Keene didn’t strike me as the type to tease. “Noah,” Carter said. “What’s going on? You’re freaking us out.” The room hollowed out again. My stomach dropped. Keene wasn’t the type to tease. You should’ve seen her.

He knew every move I was making. Every place I’d been. Every person I’d talked to.

He’d used Carolina’s name. He hadn’t used Liz’s. But he knew.