Page 265 of Finding Us

That guy, Walt, from the coffee shop, walks in the small room where I’m waiting for my advisor.

“I was supposed to meet my advisor in here,” I tell him. “Did you reserve this room? Maybe I’m supposed to be in a different room.” I pick my backpack off the floor and get up from the chair.

“You’re in the right room. You’re not meeting with your advisor. That email was from me.” He stands in front of the door, blocking it. “Sit down, Jade.”

“I don’t understand.”

“I sent you that email so I could get you in a private place where we could talk.”

“Talk about what?” I slowly sit down, letting my backpack drop to the floor.

“You.”

“What about me?”

He looks at his phone and doesn’t answer.

“Who are you?” I ask, but again he doesn’t answer. “You’re not a consultant, are you? And you don’t work for the college.”

“Actually, Iama consultant.” He puts his phone away. “But I don’t work for the college.”

I start to panic, my heart racing. He doesn’t work for the college? So he lied to me? Why would he lie? Why would he lure me to this room? Does he know about Royce? Or the organization? Or maybe he’spartof the organization.

“What are we doing here?” I ask him.

“We’re going to have a little chat. And then we’ll decide what to do with you.”

What does that mean? What is he going to do to me? I search the room for another way out, but thereisno other way. He’s blocking the only exit.

“Who’s ‘we’?” I ask him.

“I work for someone. He’ll be here shortly.”

Shit! There’s another one? I was thinking I could probably escape from Walt, but I can’t get away fromtwomen. They’ll hold me down or tie my hands or—what if they take me somewhere?

My mind starts imagining all kinds of horrible scenarios just as my phone rings. I reach for my backpack to get it but Walt rushes over and grabs it, then blocks the door again.

“I need your full attention here, Jade.”

“Okay, you have my attention.” I say it as calmly as possible. I need to appear strong and unaffected by his scare tactics. “Go ahead. Say what you need to say.”

“This ends now. All of it. Your relationship with Garret. Your involvement with Grace Sinclair. The money. The car. The lifestyle. It all ends now.”

My heart’s thumping so hard I can hear it.

“What are you talking about? I don’t know what you—” I stop when I see the door behind him swing open.

I hear footsteps as the other man enters the room. He turns to shut the door. I can’t see his face, but I can see that he’s tall and thin and wearing a dark suit.

Walt steps aside and the other man walks up and stands in front of me.

“Hello, Jade.” He stares down at me, his eyes narrowed, his arms crossed over his chest.

I recognize this man. He’s from the organization. He’s a member.

I’ve never met him before.

But I know his name.

And I know who he is. I know exactly who he is.

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