She blew out a breath. “I confronted him. I did it in the parking lot at Pura Vida so there would be people around and he couldn’t do something dangerous. I told him to remove the video or I was going to take him to court. It wasn’t an idle threat, either. The next day I went to see you.”

Leigh got up and peered through the curtains to check the parking lot. Still no Cooper. She crossed the room and fished a bottle of water from the cooler. Twisting the cap off, she looked at Vanessa.

“Why didn’t you tell me about this then?”

She looked down. “It’s hard to talk about. I wanted to start with something easier, so I asked about your rates and told you about the landlord thing.”

“That was bogus, you know.”

Vanessa nodded, not looking surprised. “Mason, right?”

“I’m still not sure. But your landlord doesn’t know anything about it, and neither does the law firm that supposedly sent you the letter.”

She shook her head. “As soon as I reengaged with Mason, everything went downhill. I was careful leaving work, always taking a different route home and checking to see if I was being followed to my new apartment, but I could never really be sure. And then Wednesday of last week, I knew I saw his car behind me at a stoplight. And something inside me just snapped. No matter what I did—I blocked him, I got a new number, I freaking moved—he was still tormenting me. I decided, screw it, that’s it. I’m getting a gun.”

Leigh closed her eyes and muttered a curse. Her hopes of getting Vanessa out of this mess were fading fast.

“I called up this guy I know—”

“Who?” Leigh asked.

“His name’s Jason.”

“Jason Mandrapilias.”

She looked startled. “How do you know him?”

“His name came up in the investigation. What happened?”

“He agreed to meet me on Sunday night out by Rustling Pines State Park. It was quick. I paid him the money, he gave me the gun, and it was done. A few minutes later, I pulled over to look at the pistol I’d just bought when this big black pickup came up behind me.”

Leigh’s blood chilled.

“As soon as it stopped, I knew it was him.”

“What did you do?”

“What else? I ran.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Leigh’s pulse pounded as she envisioned Vanessa, frightened and alone, out on that road.