Key Lime Pie (38 page)

“Where are we going?” she asked.

“You’ll know soon enough,” Monty said, speeding up even more. “I’m afraid you’ve made me late.”

“You work with Megan’s husband, don’t you?” Sadie said. “You knew Joe—Hugo—was trying to help her get found, and you were sent to stop that from happening.”

Monty nodded. “I’ve been tracking Hugo for two days, trying to figure out what he was up to. You managed to fill in many of the blank spaces for me.”

Sadie was sick to realize she’d given him the answers he needed. “What happened to Liliana?”

“She wore out her welcome.”

“And Megan took her place.”

“Quite well, as I hear it,” he answered. “Megan wanted to be someone else, and Alex wanted a new Liliana. Hugo was supposed to be watching out for Liliana while she was here in Miami—Alex has to be careful about keeping his distance—but something was off, which is why I got involved.”

Sadie reviewed the things Hugo had said about Megan being safer than she’d ever been, about her knowing what happened to the real Liliana, and how he knew he’d be found eventually, but wanted to live the rest of his life with a clear conscience. “Who is Hugo to Alex?” Sadie said. “His brother?”

“Very good,” Monty said. “Alex gave him everything he needed to have a successful life, and Hugo turned his nose up at it one time too many.”

Hugo had said Liliana’s family had killed her. Had he been a part of it? Had it haunted him ever since? They came up on a construction sign, and Sadie hoped Monty would keep speeding like he was—maybe he’d catch the attention of a police officer. Monty saw the sign, too, however, and slowed down to meet the new speed limit.

“The police have all the pieces,” Sadie said, watching the first orange barrels show up on the side of the road. “They’ll figure it out.”

“But they won’t find me, will they? You didn’t tell them anything about me.” He turned to her and smiled. “Thanks for that, by the way.” He adjusted his position in his seat.

“Megan knows what Alex is, doesn’t she? She knows what he does?”

“Megan?” he repeated, lifting his eyebrows. “You mean Liliana.”

“I mean
Megan,
” Sadie said sharply. “Liliana is dead, which is exactly where Megan will end up.”

“I wouldn’t count on that,” Monty said. “Megan’s proved herself quite . . . malleable. Alex likes that.”

“She’s hungry for the security Alex can give her,” Sadie whispered, feeling the pieces come together. Megan was willing to accept who he was and what he did—though Sadie wasn’t sure what those things were exactly, other than that they were illegal—because he could give her the security she wanted so much. It bothered Sadie to be able to make sense of that.

“I told Alex not to let her come to Miami,” Monty said. “It was too risky for her to come back to where it all started. He wouldn’t listen to me, but now he wants her back. Alex believes she’d be difficult to replace.”

That meant Megan was the one who wanted to come to Miami for treatment. Perhaps Alex didn’t have as strong a hold on her as Sadie feared. Yet Megan
had
left the hospital. “And her babies?” Sadie asked. “Aren’t Alex’s babies hard to replace?”

“Alex already has children,” Monty said casually. “And Megan can have more if she wants to. Life is full of hard lessons.”

Sadie clenched her eyes closed, wishing she could get those words out of her head. The flippancy was disgusting. She couldn’t imagine that Megan was so cavalier about her unborn sons. Sadie had seen the tenderness; she’d felt Megan’s fear for them.

“Where is she?” Sadie asked.

“Funny you should ask that,” Monty said. The car started slowing, and Sadie looked ahead to see a truck stop several yards off the side of the road. If he stopped, this could be her chance. She carefully surveyed the area, thick with woods that hadn’t been manually cleared. She could run into the woods, find somewhere to hide. If only she had her phone! Would she even have reception, though? It seemed so remote.

A minute later, he pulled into the parking lot and drove past rows of semitrucks, past the café and food mart, and around the back of the building. The lot was fenced along the perimeter, and the building blocked the back corner from view. Unless an employee came out the back doors to have a smoke or take out the trash, no one would see them. Monty stopped behind a loading dock and pulled his phone from his pocket.

Sadie’s hand inched toward the door handle.

“I’m the only one who can control the locks,” Monty said casually, putting the phone to his ear. He held up a finger, indicating for her to wait a minute, then placed the gun on his thigh. He raised an eyebrow as though issuing her a challenge.

“I’m here,” he said into the phone. He clicked his phone shut without saying anything else and put it back in his pocket. He reached across her and opened the glove compartment. He pulled out half a roll of duct tape and dropped it in her lap, keeping his other hand on the gun.

“Tape up your hands,” he said.

“No,” Sadie said, folding her arms over her chest.

Monty looked at her for a moment and then glanced out the window behind her and smiled. Sadie wanted to see what he was looking at, but didn’t dare take her eyes off of him long enough to do so. She heard the click of the locks a moment before the car’s back door opened. She looked to see who was there.

Her mouth dropped open as Megan slid into the backseat, her hand on her belly as she relaxed against the seat and took deep breaths, causing her belly to rise and fall. She was dressed in maternity denim shorts, leather sandals, a white billowing shirt, and a light blue, cotton jacket. Her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes were frantic. How had she gotten here?

Monty barely allowed Megan time to pull the door closed before he picked up the gun and pointed it at her head. Megan inhaled sharply, and her eyes went wide. Monty looked at Sadie and nodded toward the duct tape. “Tape up your hands.”

Sadie looked from him to Megan. Her face had paled, and her eyes darted around the car as though wondering what she’d just gotten herself into. Sadie had no choice and pulled the tape back with a zip. She wrapped it around one wrist, then wriggled around in order to wrap it around both wrists, her palms touching. She had to use her chest to brace the roll of tape and use her teeth to move it, always waiting for him to help her, but he didn’t. She tried to keep it loose, but couldn’t make it work; she couldn’t pull the tape without tension.

When she’d done three awkward turns, Monty finally set the gun down and grabbed the roll, finishing three more turns before ripping off the end.

“Good girl,” he said. He returned the duct tape to the glove box and then turned to look at Megan. “Give me your phone.”

Megan hurried to obey, digging in her purse for the phone, when Monty snatched the whole purse from her, causing her to gasp in surprise before pulling back against the seat.

Monty tucked the gun in the waistband of his pants. Holding the straps of Megan’s purse in one fist, he reached his other hand for the door handle. “I need to make a call.” He gave both of them a challenging look.

Megan nodded quickly, looking terrified. Sadie looked away when Monty turned his eyes to her, hoping it hurt him somehow to be snubbed by her. But she watched as he tucked Megan’s purse under his arm and pulled his phone from his pocket. He popped the trunk, dialed a number, and then pushed opened the driver’s door while putting the phone to his ear. Sadie watched him intently. He was leaving her alone with Megan?

When Monty caught her watching, he moved the phone from his mouth and stared her down. “I won’t be far away,” he said. “And I’m not nearly as nice as Hugo was.”

Sadie looked at her taped-up hands and pretended she hadn’t heard him as she tried to come up with any possible option of escape.

He moved the phone back in place. “Yeah, it’s me. I’ve got her and—” He shut the door and plunged the inside of the car into silence.

At least for the moment.

Sadie was sure that this crisis had sharpened her senses, honed in her thoughts, and she tried to take confidence in the fact that she’d been in situations that looked bleak and hopeless—she’d even had her hands locked together before—and she’d managed to get out alive. However, she couldn’t deny that this situation was different from anything she’d faced before. She was in an unfamiliar location, with no way to contact anyone who might be able to help her. But she couldn’t afford to linger too long on those thoughts. Instead, she took a deep breath and gathered her courage together, saying a silent prayer before she exhaled slowly.

Feeling centered, Sadie looked out the window at Monty, then down at her hands taped together, the ends of her fingers red from the lack of circulation. She didn’t dare look over the seat to make eye contact with Megan; Monty was watching them while he talked on the phone a few feet away from the taxi. Instead, she dropped her chin and turned her head away from him so that he couldn’t see her mouth.

“Do you have any idea what you are doing, sweetheart?” Sadie said, keeping her tone light and maternal.

Megan didn’t answer.

Sadie took a breath and continued. “You don’t have to do this,” she said quietly. “There are other options.”

Seconds ticked by, and Sadie had almost given up on having any communication when Megan spoke. “You can’t understand.”

“I understand that you chose a new life and feel like you have to live it now, no matter what, but you don’t. There are so many people who love you, Megan, so many people who would do anything to see that you and your babies are cared for. I know your father, and I’ve met Tia and Larry and Max.” She left out Layla. “They can help you—I can help you.”

Megan was quiet for a few seconds. When she spoke her voice was sad and certain. “Every single person in my life before I left was better off after I was gone.”

Did she really believe that?
Sadie thought to herself. A quick review of what she’d learned about Megan’s life up until she disappeared helped Sadie see things from Megan’s perspective. A disabled mother who couldn’t love her and a distracted father who she couldn’t trust. Larry and Tia loved her, certainly, but they were Layla’s caretakers first. And they’d been part of sending Megan away. Even if leaving was what Megan had wanted—asked for—wouldn’t it still be painful to know they were willing to let her go?

“You got the short end of several sticks,” Sadie said, still looking forward with her head turned away from Monty. “I can’t argue with you on that, and it’s certainly not fair that you were at the mercy of your parents’ tragedies and poor choices.” She chose her next words carefully. “But you’re a grown woman now and have already proven your ability to start again, create a new life. None of us can choose our past, but we have the future ahead of us every single day. And you do have people here who love you, miss you, and want to be a part of your life again.”

“Those are very pretty words,” Megan said, “but they aren’t realistic. I was only able to come to the hospital with strict instructions on what to do if anything happened. When the hospital freaked out about you, I had no choice but to leave.”

Sadie closed her eyes, stung by the accusation. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to cause you problems, but going back is not the solution.”

“I don’t have a choice,” Megan said.

“And you’re willing to put your unborn sons on the altar of that belief?” Sadie said, aching at the thought that Megan would even consider it. “Carlos is already in trouble, and you’ve got three and a half months left. Monty just held a gun to your head. You’re not safe there.”

She heard a sniffle. “I have to go back.”

She was as stubborn as her father! Sadie took a breath and looked out the driver’s window to see that Monty was heading for the back of the car. Watching carefully, she saw the trunk lift—blocking her from his view. She took the opportunity to turn in her seat and make eye contact with the scared woman in the backseat. “Do you
want
to go back?”

Megan’s eyes filled with tears. “It doesn’t matter,” she said in an emotional whisper. “I have to. People would . . . suffer if I didn’t.”

Sadie felt tears rising in her eyes as well. “Hugo’s already dead,” she said, causing Megan to jolt.

“What?” Megan asked, her face both pale and scared.

“He was trying to help you, trying to get you found without putting himself in the crosshairs, but it didn’t work. He knew it wasn’t safe for you to be with Alex—and he died trying to keep you from going back. Doesn’t that mean something? If he thought you could live apart from that life, then isn’t there a chance you can?” She paused for a breath. “Your father is in Florida right now and has a lot of making up to do, Larry and Tia love you so much and would do anything—have done anything—they can to help you.” Never mind that they were both likely going to jail—she’d bring that up later. “And you should know better than anyone how much power a parent can have in the lives of their children.” She looked down at Megan’s belly before raising her eyes to meet Megan’s once again. “Do you really think you won’t be haunted by this choice for the rest of your life?”