scare, that one. I am sorry about hitting your friend. If Banderas knew I tried to attack him, I think he might kill me. He is evil. I am so grateful he doesn’t know what I did, but what do I do now?”
Skylar sat very still. She’d told her uncle this woman’s name. He would innocently mention it to Ian when they spoke. What would Ian do? “Svetlana, do you have anywhere you can go for a few nights?”
The panic was back in the woman’s eyes. “I must stay here in case Malina returns.”
“No, you must disappear for a while.” She gestured at the cell phone on the coffee table. “She can always call you, right?”
The worried frown softened a bit. “Yes, she can call.”
Skylar dug in her purse and came up with most of the euros she carried. “Take this, and get a room or pay a friend for space. Something. Leave now, tonight. Right now.”
Svetlana apparently grasped the urgency in Skylar’s voice and gathered a clean change of clothes from the basket on the floor, shoving them into a paper sack. She picked up her phone to call her friend, and Skylar stopped her. “Don’t tell anyone where you’re going. Just surprise your friend.”
Svetlana nodded, eyes solemn, dropping her phone into her coat pocket, but she refused to take money from Skylar. “Money is what Malina left me, but what good is money without my girl?”
Skylar called another cab, and the two women took it to Svetlana’s friend’s place on the outskirts of Traterg. “You will try to find what happened?” Svetlana asked as she got out of the cab. “Maybe you could ask your uncle. But don’t say my name, please.”
“Yes, I promise.” She was making lots of promises tonight. This was one she had no right to make as it had been broken before she even got here. But reflected in Svetlana’s voice was the same longing to know what was really going on that Skylar had heard in her aunt’s. “It may take a couple of days,” she added. “What was the name of the café Malina worked at? I take it Katerina is still there?”
“Yes, yes, for now. It’s called Pushki’s,” Svetlana said. She grabbed Skylar’s hands and squeezed them, then hurried into her friend’s house.
It was very late by now, well after two in the morning, and Skylar wasn’t sure what to do. If her suspicions about her uncle’s intentions were correct—that he had engaged someone to follow her—they might find the note she’d left in her room. She would bet money they would settle on Cole’s hotel as her likely escape.
But that’s exactly where she needed to go. She needed to talk to Aneta’s family to gather more information with which to get her uncle to open his eyes to his assistant’s escapades. And she needed Cole’s help to do that.
But she’d told him to back off. How did she go back on that a mere twelve hours later?
The night staff was sparse at the hotel, but someone eventually noticed Skylar lurking behind the plants and came to see if there was something wrong. She made up a story about a jealous boyfriend and heaven knows what else until the poor clerk took pity on her and allowed her to rent a room for the remainder of the night without formally registering. She paid in cash and went to her room, which wasn’t half as plush as Cole’s room.
She sat on the bed and wondered what she was doing there. When her uncle found out she’d left the way she did, his feelings would be hurt, and that wasn’t her goal. Maybe she should just go back to the house, try talking to him again, maybe borrow her aunt’s car and drive to see Aneta’s family by herself.
What had happened to her? Her whole life, she’d been the sunny girl who never seemed to have trouble with anything or anyone. She’d trusted everyone she knew and loved and thought she understood exactly who they were and what they wanted.
And now she felt as if she’d lost her way, that the map she’d been following had somehow been torn in half and she was missing the
Skylar sat very still. She’d told her uncle this woman’s name. He would innocently mention it to Ian when they spoke. What would Ian do? “Svetlana, do you have anywhere you can go for a few nights?”
The panic was back in the woman’s eyes. “I must stay here in case Malina returns.”
“No, you must disappear for a while.” She gestured at the cell phone on the coffee table. “She can always call you, right?”
The worried frown softened a bit. “Yes, she can call.”
Skylar dug in her purse and came up with most of the euros she carried. “Take this, and get a room or pay a friend for space. Something. Leave now, tonight. Right now.”
Svetlana apparently grasped the urgency in Skylar’s voice and gathered a clean change of clothes from the basket on the floor, shoving them into a paper sack. She picked up her phone to call her friend, and Skylar stopped her. “Don’t tell anyone where you’re going. Just surprise your friend.”
Svetlana nodded, eyes solemn, dropping her phone into her coat pocket, but she refused to take money from Skylar. “Money is what Malina left me, but what good is money without my girl?”
Skylar called another cab, and the two women took it to Svetlana’s friend’s place on the outskirts of Traterg. “You will try to find what happened?” Svetlana asked as she got out of the cab. “Maybe you could ask your uncle. But don’t say my name, please.”
“Yes, I promise.” She was making lots of promises tonight. This was one she had no right to make as it had been broken before she even got here. But reflected in Svetlana’s voice was the same longing to know what was really going on that Skylar had heard in her aunt’s. “It may take a couple of days,” she added. “What was the name of the café Malina worked at? I take it Katerina is still there?”
“Yes, yes, for now. It’s called Pushki’s,” Svetlana said. She grabbed Skylar’s hands and squeezed them, then hurried into her friend’s house.
It was very late by now, well after two in the morning, and Skylar wasn’t sure what to do. If her suspicions about her uncle’s intentions were correct—that he had engaged someone to follow her—they might find the note she’d left in her room. She would bet money they would settle on Cole’s hotel as her likely escape.
But that’s exactly where she needed to go. She needed to talk to Aneta’s family to gather more information with which to get her uncle to open his eyes to his assistant’s escapades. And she needed Cole’s help to do that.
But she’d told him to back off. How did she go back on that a mere twelve hours later?
The night staff was sparse at the hotel, but someone eventually noticed Skylar lurking behind the plants and came to see if there was something wrong. She made up a story about a jealous boyfriend and heaven knows what else until the poor clerk took pity on her and allowed her to rent a room for the remainder of the night without formally registering. She paid in cash and went to her room, which wasn’t half as plush as Cole’s room.
She sat on the bed and wondered what she was doing there. When her uncle found out she’d left the way she did, his feelings would be hurt, and that wasn’t her goal. Maybe she should just go back to the house, try talking to him again, maybe borrow her aunt’s car and drive to see Aneta’s family by herself.
What had happened to her? Her whole life, she’d been the sunny girl who never seemed to have trouble with anything or anyone. She’d trusted everyone she knew and loved and thought she understood exactly who they were and what they wanted.
And now she felt as if she’d lost her way, that the map she’d been following had somehow been torn in half and she was missing the
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