Private Affair(90)

“Sounds like it’s the best we’ve got,” Shane agreed.

“But what if we’re wrong?” Max asked, arguing against his own conclusions because he knew that if he made a mistake, he was risking Olivia’s life.

“Maybe we should call the cops,” Shane said.

The statement firmed Max’s resolve. “Unfortunately, given the way things have played out, that’s more dangerous for Olivia. The more people involved, the more chance she gets killed in a ham-handed rescue attempt. We’re only calling the boys in blue if she’s not at the cabin.”

He glanced at Shane, then opened the glove compartment and took out the medical kit they always carried. Pawing through the contents, he found what he was looking for and opened a small bottle.

“You think taking an amphetamine is a good idea in your condition?”

“That’s what they’re here for,” Max said. “For when we need them.”

Reaching in the backseat, he grabbed a bottle of water, unscrewed the top, and took the pill.





Chapter 27


Olivia pressed her back against the wall, thankful that the chain gave her some room.

Raising her head, she looked at Troy. She’d seen him at the reunion   meeting, and he had looked pretty normal. Apparently he had the ability to seem nonthreatening. Now she saw from his eyes that he was losing it. Silently she cursed herself for not seeing that before, but there had been a lot of people at the meeting, and she’d had to pay attention to all of them.

“You’re studying me,” he said.

“No.”

“Don’t lie to me.”

She should talk to him, but should she mention the murders? Maybe that was a bad idea, under the circumstances. But then, she’d already talked about Claire.

He was the one who brought up the subject.

“You should have stayed in New York. But you came down here because Angela was murdered, didn’t you?”

“Yes.”

“She was your best friend.”

“Yes.”

“But she wasn’t all that good a friend,” he said with an edge in his voice, and she knew he was waiting for her to ask what he meant.

“Why?” she managed to ask.

“You thought the two of you were raped up here.”

“Yes.”

“But, see, it was only you. She wanted to fuck me. Then she helped hold you down.”

Olivia gasped. “No.”

“She was very cooperative. And I’ll bet the two of you comforted each other afterward. And assured each other that it was better not to tell anyone.”

“Yes,” Olivia breathed. He was making her see the past in terms she didn’t want to admit. But was he telling her the real truth? What if Angela had agreed to make love with Troy because she’d had no alternative? And had she really helped hold Olivia down? There was no way of knowing for sure. And even if Troy thought he was telling the truth, he might not be remembering it the way it had happened.

He began speaking again, and she focused on every word.

“Back then I made sure she was going to keep you quiet. But when I saw that notice about the reunion  , I was afraid she was going to fess up to you if you came down for the big weekend. So I had to get rid of her.”

Olivia had gone cold all over.

“I never let anyone stand in my way,” he said. “Like Patrick. He was blackmailing me, you know. And I kind of let him do it because I liked him.” Troy laughed. “But it got to be too much, and I finally said—fuck this.”

She pressed her back more firmly against the wall, her mind racing as she tried to think how she was going to get out of this. Troy had killed a lot of people, and she was going to be next, if she didn’t figure out how to stop him.

“Of course, there were all the people at the party that night. You know, the one at Brian’s. He’s on my list too. Now. What happens, I think, is that people make a pact to keep quiet. Then after years pass, they think it’s okay to talk. Like the ones who were still there when we went down to Baltimore. Claire. And Craig Pendergast. And of course, it’s the same with the people who came up here. Everybody kept quiet about the rapes. But I’ll bet you and Angela were going to talk about it. Victim to victim.”

He’d said Angela wasn’t really raped. Which was it? She thought it was better not to ask.

Instead, she said, “You’ve figured everything out.”

“Don’t try to patronize me.”

“Why didn’t you go after Brian?” she heard herself ask.

“Because I thought he was too much of a pussy to cause me any trouble. Now I think I was wrong, with his talking to you and Lyon and all. He’s next on my list. Of course, Tommy was more of an immediate problem, but I took care of him already.”