“I need to see her, Stu.” I jump out of my chair and grab my jacket.
“Stop.”
His word halts me.
“When I saw her at lunchtime, she said she was leaving work early to run errands on her way back to her friend’s house she’s staying at. You’ll never track her down. Just wait until she gets back.”
I swipe my cell phone up from where I threw it on the desk and dial her number. It goes straight to voicemail.
“Fuck,” I hiss, canceling the call before the voicemail kicks in.
“Look.” Stuart shoves the report he was reading into its file and stuffs it into his briefcase. “Let’s stop by and see Griffin. The three of us can really hammer out where we’re at and try to make some sense of what’s going on now that we all know what’s happened.”
“The first members’ meeting of the Reed Rape Club.” I grimace and Stuart arches a brow at me.
“I wouldn’t use that as your next campaign slogan,” he throws back with a smirk.
“No. It’s a crime. And it doesn’t even rhyme,” I mutter before catching his eye and letting my lips twitch.
That’s one thing I learned in therapy all those years ago. Look for reasons to smile, however small. My reason is a five-foot seven blonde who leaves a trail of pink glittery threads and the scent of coconut shampoo behind her. But she isn’t here. So all I have is a warped sense of humor about something serious.
I used to wonder as a kid why people made jokes about serious subjects. But now I know. It’s because they’d rather laugh than cry. And if you take control of how you view something, then you can choose how it affects you. To an extent, anyway. It’s hard as fuck to do when it’s something that’s trying to swallow you whole. I remember Griffin pulling me through some dark days. Pulling me through and out the other side to face another. Because as long as you don’t give up, then there will always be another side. Another day.
But there will never be another Harley. The knowledge that she has been going through all of this alone burns away at me.
It’s time to put a stop to it.
Stuart and I lock up and head uptown, toward The Songbird. I know if there’s a way to find out who is behind this, then Griffin and Stuart are the best men to help me. Between us, we know the whole of New York in some way or another.
There’s nowhere to hide in this city.
Despite the adrenaline surging through my blood like an out-of-control wildfire, and it being the perfect time to get stuck into it with Griffin and Stuart, all I can think of is one person.
My person.
And being with her.
Chapter thirty-two
Harley
Maria:Canyoutalk?
Me: Sure, what’s up?
My phone rings a second later.
“Hi.”
“Harley, something’s going on.” Maria’s voice is hushed, and a door closes in the background as though she’s moved into another room.
“What do you mean? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. But Reed and his campaign manager came over earlier. They disappeared into Griffin’s home office almost two hours ago and haven’t come out. I heard Reed. He sounded mad about something.”
My stomach drops to my feet. If they’re all together there, then surely that can only mean one thing.
He knows.