“Okay.” I don’t have the heart to tell him that a full-strength tablet probably won’t make a dent. I’ve been taking something to sleep since I was twelve years old to chase away the nightmares. I haven’t had one in years, but they are habit-forming, and I don’t want to think how long I’d have to go without sleep to kick the routine.
“Do you want a shirt?”
I flash him a little smile. “I thought I’d sleep nude.”
Case coughs, bringing his eyes up to meet mine. “We’d prefer you didn’t, in case we have to make a getaway in the middle of the night.”
I frown, jutting my bottom lip out. “Party pooper.”
* * *
I wake up to deep voices downstairs. I left the door cracked open, so it takes nothing for me to stand near the opening undetected to listen to what they say.
“You didn’t trigger the driveway sensors. I wonder if they are busted?” Porter says.
“I left the truck a half a mile down the road on the edge of the field of view of the southeast camera.” That’s Lee’s voice.
“You’re just out of view, because you didn’t trigger that camera sensor either.”
“We should test all of them tomorrow, just in case.”
“So, nothing?” Case asks, his voice groggy.
“Nope. I drove around looking for that fucking van, and then I took a very obvious drive up and down the flattest and longest dirt road I could find. After sunset, I sat there for two hours. I pulled all her electronics out and let them broadcast for a couple of hours before sticking her phone with everything else back in the box. Then I went through all of her stuff looking for a tracker or something out of the ordinary, finding nothing. I’m not confident about the train case, so I left it behind.”
I hear a big thud as something heavy hits the wood floor. “Here are most of her clothes and some of her girl stuff.”
Porter laughs. “Girl stuff?”
“Man, I don’t know what half of this shit is. It looks like she has six bottles of the same thing.” I hear them moving around, and it is so unlike me to hide in the shadows. I’m dying to go downstairs. This is way more of a Leti move than mine. But, I’m hoping to catch a few minutes of uncensored truth. “What do we have to eat? I’m starving.”
“There’s a bowl of green chili chicken and rice in the microwave for you.”
“Fantastic.” I hear the buttons on the microwave pushed. “Have we heard from the other team yet?”
“No,” Case says, his voice becoming louder, as if he is standing at the base of the stairs and looking up at my door. I hold my breath in response. “But I suspect we will any minute now.”
“Where is our client?”
“Upstairs asleep. We gave her a sleep aid. So, I’m hoping she’s out cold.”
The microwave door opens and closes, and I hear Lee say around a big bite of food, his voice muffled. “Sleep aide, huh?”
“Yeah. One of mine,” Porter says.
“Yours would be the best ones to give her.” There’s a full minute of silence, making me itch to open the door.
“What aren’t you telling me?” Lee finally says at the same time an empty bowl and fork clinks in the sink.
“Ms. Krushner asks a lot of questions,” Case says.
“Yes, I know,” Lee grumbles.
“She’s smart—instinctual and perceptive,” Porter sighs. “Very little escapes her attention.”
“And?” Lee’s voice is getting deeper, but louder, which I suspect means he’s angry. “Spit it the fuck out.”
“She guessed our living situation, and we didn’t deny it,” Case mutters under his breath, so I barely catch it.