Reading Between the Lines (Shadowy Solutions Book 3) by Nicky James

Author:Nicky James [James, Nicky]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2025-03-06T00:00:00+00:00

17

Tallus

We didn’t return to the B&B right away. Diem insisted on driving around town to see if we could locate Chett or any of the other teens we’d seen that morning. Twice, he returned to the head of the trail to see if any vehicles occupied the gravel lot.

After an hour of pointless driving, he gave up. The sky was darkening when he announced, “We should locate Hope Street. Pull it up on Maps and navigate for me. We need to find Londyn and Loyal’s house so we aren’t scrambling in the morning.”

Considering we needed to sneak in and out of people’s backyards to see if they had a pool, the encroaching night helped.

“You should get a dog,” I announced as Diem followed my instructions.

“I don’t want a dog.”

“Why not? Dogs are cute and cuddly.”

“I don’t cuddle.”

“Don’t I know it. I still think you should get a dog. It would be good for you.”

“I don’t want a dog.”

“It’s better than a snake. Who’s taking care of Baby, by the way.”

“No one. She was fed two days before we left, and her terrarium has a fully automated system that reads and regulates her environment. She’s fine.”

“What if the power goes out?”

Diem darted a glance from the road to me and back, a deep frown marking a divot between his brows. “Why the fuck do you do that?”

“Do what?”

“We’re not going to lose power.”

“We’re experiencing unseasonable ice storms. Power outages are a thing.”

“Fuck me.” He jerked the steering wheel, lurching the Jeep onto the gravel shoulder of the road and skidding to a halt. Phone in hand, he scrolled and swiped through his contacts, selecting one.

“Who are you calling?”

He didn’t answer.

“Do you have friends I’m unaware of?”

Still, no answer.

The line must have connected because Diem snapped, “Has the power in the building gone out in the last few days?” A pause. “Just answer the fucking question… Yes, I’m a fucking tenant… Krause.” Jaw ticking, nostrils flaring, Diem listened to whoever was on the other end of the line. “I told you’d I’d have it next week… What email?” He squeezed his eyes close and looked like he wanted to unleash the fires of hell on whoever he was talking to. “Just tell me if we’ve lost power… Yeah, yeah, okay. Whatever. Fuck.”

He disconnected with a growl.

“That wasn’t very nice.”

Pointing the phone at me, he spat, “Don’t ever fucking do that.”

“What?”

“You know what. I don’t have time to worry about my fucking snake, and the last thing I needed was to call my fucking landlord.”

Diem didn’t explain, nor did he take us back onto the road. Instead, he did something on his phone—checked his email if the conversation I’d overheard told me anything. Whatever he found must not have been pleasant. He tossed the phone on the dash with a slurry of more curses.

Spinning tires and spitting gravel, he took us back onto the road and drove, scowl etched into every groove of his face. Remembering the overdue bills in the glove box

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