Dani didn’t say anything as she walked past her and Harper turned, following her progress until Dani closed the bathroom door. She stared at the door long after it was closed, then turned away, heading to the minibar to see what overpriced treats it held. She contemplated room service and a bottle of wine, but she wanted something stronger than that. A tiny bottle caught her eye. Scotch. She ignored the price as she snatched it up. She twisted off the cap and took a sip, savoring the taste before swallowing. It seemed to clear her head somewhat and ease the throbbing ache in her cheek.

She gathered her dirty clothes, then remembered the locket she’d taken from Dani. She pulled it out of the pocket of her jeans and held it in her hand. The engraving on the back was faded—My Love. She felt a lump form in her throat. She and Jan had those same words engraved on the rings they’d exchanged. She folded her hand up, hiding the locket from her gaze. Jan’s ring was buried with her. Harper’s ring…she’d ripped it off in a fit of fury—and tears—one night when Jan’s ghost had been sharing a bottle of whiskey with her.

After a few seconds, she opened her palm again. She wondered if Dani kept a photo inside and thought briefly of opening it to see, but decided she wouldn’t invade her privacy. Instead, she laid it carefully on the dresser. Obviously it was something Dani cherished.

She turned the lights out, leaving on only the lamp, then she took the tiny bottle of scotch and sat down in the comfy, oversized chair. She stretched her legs out with a tired sigh. She should be formulating some sort of plan. She should be doing something, but she was too drained to contemplate anything. She hadn’t told Dani but she’d turned her phone to vibrate. It had buzzed in her pocket more times than she could count. A quick glance had told her Mize and Reid had tried to reach her, both leaving messages. She hadn’t bothered listening to either. She turned her phone off and pulled out the SIM card, just to be safe. The first thing they would do to find her was track her phone. She didn’t need to listen to the messages anyway. Mize would be threatening her, demanding to know where she was, demanding that she come in. Reid would be issuing a warning about Mize and his anger.

And she simply didn’t care.