6
Blue
Fuck!
I’m leaving Ian’s apartment more skeptical than I was when I got there. I went up there to make sure he wasn’t drivinghimselfinsane thinking about why Megan didn’t show up. I know how far down the rabbit hole he can fall, and I was supposed to prevent that from happening, but I didn’t know how far down the hole he already was.
I’m trying not to be as paranoid as he is.
I’ve known Kam for a while now, and he wouldn't kidnap Megan like Ian’s thinking. He’s not the kind of dude that would do some crazy shit like that. Paying Ian off is the furthest I can see him going; no problem is too big to solve with money for the filthy rich. He’s probably used to paying to have his problems disappear. But he wouldn’t do what Ian’s saying…. He couldn’t gothatfar.
But would he, though?
It cracks the mystery around Veronica’s call wide open, and Ian makes it all make sense. Of course, Megan would say she’s fine. Why wouldn’t she? Veronica noticed something about Kam that Megan couldn’t see, and it wasVeronicathat said it, the most unbiased of the three of them.
“Shit, shit, shit,” I hiss, kicking myself.
What did I miss that day?
Yeah, I thought his tone was tight, but given my role in all of this confusing shit, I could understand why he was surprised to see me. But thinking back, he was pretty aggressive, a little uneasy maybe…Things were tense between Kam and Megan.
I get to my car, and Ian’s words are ringing a hell of a lot louder the more I think about it. I didn’t want to see Kam in this light, but it’s starting to shine down on him pretty fucking bright right now.
I don’t want Ian to be right, but I can’t shake the feeling that he just might be onto something, and I can’t sit around and simmer on this. Megan’s brothers have already used the tricks I have up my sleeve to locate them, so it’d be a waste of time going behind them and doing it again.
I have another plan in mind.
My Challenger roars to life, and I pull out into traffic, heading towards Megan and Kam’s condo. It takes more time than I have patience for in this backed-up evening traffic, and my knuckles are white the entire way there. I’m surprised the steering wheel doesn’t look like an empty toothpaste tube by the time I finally get out of the car.
Getting inside is easy. I can pick most locks with the kit I keep hidden under my seat. I’m just glad this one isn’t automated. I’m inside within two minutes, which isn’t nearly enough time for nosy neighbors to peek out their blinds to gauge I’m breaking in.
Once inside, I shut the door behind me, closing myself in darkness.
I stand in front of the door for a second, already knowing what my plan of action is. Dig up anything that can tell me where they might be or for any signs that Kam was losing it. I have no clue what kind of signs those would be, but I figure I’ll know it when I see it.
The stack of mail on the credenza by the door catches my attention first. Still, I don’t find anything incriminating, just bills.
I go further into their cozy little living space; everything’s so neat and tidy. I make a mental note to leave it just like this as I pick up the neatly stacked pile of papers on the coffee table in front of the sectional. It’s all only bills that need to be paid. Setting those back down, I turn my attention to the entertainment center their giant TV sits on. Magazines lay stacked on one shelf, and books are lined up on the others, along with a few vases as decoration.
In my time going through people’s shit, I’ve learned that no place should be considered a stupid place to hide things, no matter how obvious. Some things hide in plain sight.
I get down on the floor and start searching each magazine and book they have, flapping through them just in case there’s something hidden inside. I go one by one, shaking them out, hoping anything helpful will drop out.
But as I go along, I come up with nothing. By the time I’m down to the last few books, I’m not expecting anything to be inside any of them. I even pick the vases up on the off chance there’s something hidden under the fake flowers.
As I reach for one, a little black box at the very back of the shelf underneath the TV catches my attention, barely even noticeable if it wasn’t being looked for. I stare at it for a moment, forgetting about the shit on the shelves, hoping this isn’t what I think it is.
But it’s exactly that. When I pull it off the wall it’s stuck to, I examine it, finding it has audio also. Glancing behind me, from where it was located, it had a clear view of the sectional on the back wall.
Okay. Maybe this isn’tthatbad. People put cameras in their houses all the time. They have one at the front door, which is understandable. One in the living room is reasonable if someone decides to break in through the window.
But there’s a sinking feeling inside of me growing. I hope this doesn’t go beyond Kam trying to protect his house. I look around for more, hoping with everything in me that the two I found are the only ones. They could be absolutely anywhere, lamps, light fixtures, wall chargers, clocks. The twenty-first century has made spying on anyone effortless.
I start with the lamps, searching each of them, relieved when I come up with nothing, but there are still so many more tiny appliances I need to check. I have to go find a few screwdrivers in order to take a few of them apart, and when I don’t find another one in the living room, I move on to the kitchen.
The smoke detector is the first place I check, an easy place to stick one without anyone noticing. The one in the kitchen would have the perfect view from above the island.
I turn the lights on in the kitchen, already looking up at it as I kick off my shoes before climbing on top of the island.