He shrugged. “You know Jade, it’s hard to say. She saw Zoë last weekend. She called on Saturday morning to ask if she could rather come on Sunday? Then you and I were out, so Sarah saw her.”
“I remember.”
Something occurred to me. “I wonder if Jade noticed Zoë being excited about going away for the weekend, and for once, not minding seeing me. Maybe even looking forward to it. That might have upset her idea of the two of you getting together again.”
“But that is all Zoë’s doing?”
“I’m not so sure. I think Jade was using Zoë to manipulate you into considering the idea of you three being a family.”
“Even now, when we’re engaged?”
“Especially now,” I said, darkly. “She has to ensure we don’t get married and ruin everything. Perhaps she feared that Zoë was weakening in her hatred of me, and this drove her to take Zoë.”
“Jesus!”
“But she won’t hurt her, Jade loves Zoë!” I reminded him.
Will’s phone rang.
He jumped up. “It’s Mac!”
I watched him on the phone with Jade’s brother and saw his face register more shock.
“What is it?”
“Apparently, Jade was fired from her job weeks ago. She’s been without work and hanging around the house, drinking and watching TV. Mac says he was worried about her, but she kept saying she had a plan.”
He stared at me, aghast. “Do you think this was her plan? Kidnapping Zoë?”
It was a horrible thought.
“He says she had no money, so I don’t know where she would go?”
“What about their old family mansion?”
“The place outside Boston?”
“Zoë told me about it. She said Jade talked about it all the time. Obsessing over it, more like, from the sounds of it. She told me about the rabbits in the woods. That’s where I got the idea of the bunny for her from.”
“Mac said the place was derelict?”
“Call him, find out the exact address!”
“He’s not picking up!” Will said, trying Mac’s number again and again.
“Ok, let’s just drive there,” I said.
“But we don’t know where we’re going!”
“We’ll figure it out along the way,” I said, sure I was right. “You were there once before, right?”
“Yeah, but I was a student and probably high,” he sounded guilty.
“It doesn’t matter,” I said carefully. “When we get around the general area, we can ask around, people will know the family, surely?”
“I think you’re right,” Will said.
We grabbed our coats and his car keys and got his car from the garage.