Just then there was a knock on the door. She looked up from the desk and froze. After a moment, another knock came—three hurried taps. Avery quickly gathered the photos from the floor, noticing that one had slid under the couch. She stuffed them back into the envelope and then reached beneath the couch to retrieve the last photo. Coincidentally, or perhaps an omen of the situation she had found herself in, when she reached under the couch to retrieve the photo, she also discovered her father’s postcard. The photo that had skidded under the couch was of Walt in his SUV, studying the cabin when he followed Avery out to Lake Placid.

She pushed away the worry about what it all might mean—that not only Walt Jenkins, but the United States government, knew everything about what she had painstakingly planned for the last year. Another knock came from the door. She stuffed the photo and the postcard into the manila envelope and dropped it on the desk. She checked her reflection in the mirror, frustrated that her red-rimmed eyes and bloated face revealed her vulnerability and would allow him to see that his actions had hurt her. Avery hated the feeling of weakness, but there was no way to hide it, and she wasn’t about to run from this confrontation. In fact, she longed for it. She walked over to the door and ripped it open.

Natalie Ratcliff stood in the hallway.

“Hi,” Natalie said. “Is this a bad time?”

Avery blinked a few times. “Uh, no.” She shook her head. “I wasn’t expecting to see you, that’s all.”

“Everything okay?”

Avery recognized the concern in Natalie’s voice. Where men may retreat in paranoia at the sight of a woman crying, women pounce on the opportunity to help.

“Working out some man-related crap, that’s all,” Avery said.

“Is there another kind?”

Avery forced a smile.

“Can I come in?” Natalie asked.

Avery nodded and moved to the side. Natalie walked past her.

“How did you know where I was staying?”

“Pulled some strings,” Natalie said.

“Meaning?”

“Meaning I needed to talk with you after how you left things the other day. And I didn’t want to wait for a call back, so I figured out where you were staying.”

“Fair enough.” Avery closed the door. “What’s on your mind?”

“You can’t do what you’re about to do.”

Avery opened the minifridge and pulled out a bottle of water, took a sip. “What am I about to do?”

Natalie took a deep breath and exhaled it audibly. “You think you know the whole story, but you don’t.”

“Oh, I’m sure I don’t know the half of it. But I’m pretty sure I figured out the most important part. Victoria is not dead, is she?”