She pulled the phone charger out of its socket and started to straighten the knotted cord. "I'd be lying if I said yes. For the second time in twenty-four hours, someone attempted to, what … ? Kill me?"
Six looked over at her and sighed. "It's cold comfort, sweetheart, but if they'd wanted you dead, they would have killed you last night. They had time before I got there, plus you said they told you they wanted you to go with them. Whatever they want with you, they want you alive to do it."
Her stomach roiled at the thought. "I'm not sure that makes me feel much better."
He grabbed for one of her hands and squeezed it. "Trust me. Being alive is the best fucking thing in the world. If you're alive, you can fight, you can think, you can even wait for someone to come get you," he said passionately. "You'll come back from anything they can put you through. But there is no coming back from dead. That's as final as it gets."
Louisa squeezed his hand tightly. Because there was so much feeling in the words, she was confident he spoke from experience.
"Do you mind if I make a call?" Louisa asked. "I'm gonna lose my nerve if I don't do this now."
"Sure," Six said, letting go of her hand, and she regretted it the moment his fingers slipped out of hers.
She picked up her phone and called Vasilii.
"Louisa. How are you?" he said in his usually pleasant tone. "What are you up to today?"
"Why didn't you call the police about the missing sample, Vasilii?"
There was a long, pregnant pause on the other end of the phone line, and finally Vasilii coughed gently. "Louisa. You know how important the lab's reputation is. We're still trying to-"
"Do you want to know what happened to me last night? Two men tried to break into my house and abduct me. And this morning, I was trailed by two men around my mom's neighborhood and back home."
"Dear Lord, Louisa. Are you okay?" The concern in his voice sounded genuine, leaving her confused.
"For now. Yes. But I told the police about the break-in at the lab. They were the ones who told me they had no record of it. Vasilii, I honestly think you put my life at risk, and Ivan's."
Six reached his hand across the seat and rubbed her thigh, his big hands gripping her gently. She placed her hand over his and interlocked their fingers.
"Wait. You think these things are connected," Vasilii said. "That seems like an awfully big conclusion. You are the only child of the extremely wealthy Isaiah North. There could be other motives. What did the police say?"
Rather than tell him, she decided to hold back. Since she was uncertain as to whether she could trust him or not, it didn't make sense to tell him more. "They're probably going to want to ask you some questions. About what happened. See any evidence you have collected in this internal search of yours."
"Louisa, I don't like the insinuation-"
"I need some time off," Louisa said quickly. She really didn't want to argue. She wanted some food, and a bed. Safety would be nice. "There are some things I need to take care of, and I just don't feel like I can-"
"I understand, Louisa. Take as much time as you need, then we'll talk. Are you safe? Do you have somewhere to stay?"
Six turned the car onto a side road and let go of her hand. He pulled a little past a driveway, then reversed into it, avoiding a white mailbox and two fence posts with a speed and accuracy that told her he'd done this a thousand times before.
"Yes, I do," she said. "Good-bye, Vasilii."
She ended the call and looked over at Six.
"Mi casa es tu casa," he said.
My house is your house.
It wasn't her home, but it was safe, and she was incredibly grateful. "Thank you for bringing me here," she said.
Louisa hopped down from the truck and got her first real look at the pretty yellow split-level house. It wasn't what she'd been expecting at all. For Six, she'd imagined something sleek and glossy. Lots of glass and chrome. However, the lushly landscaped gardens and pretty terra-cotta-tiled roof wouldn't have looked out of place on the front of a greeting card.
She grabbed her purse from the floor of the truck and closed the door.
"Let me give you a tour of the place," Six said as he stepped up behind her. He placed his hand on the small of her back, and she reminded herself of his behavior in the truck. Friendly, caring, but not … more. No matter how good it had felt to have his hand on her, they were just friends, and he was just being polite ushering her up the steps. Instead, she tried to focus on the basket-weave pattern of red bricks that led up to the front door. "It's a bit of a mess," Six said apologetically. "I had tenants in here for several years, and I only moved back in last week. So my shit is everywhere, which I already know you're going to hate."