Page 4 of Letting Go

"Listen," Finn says, "I know you think that for some weird, territorial reason I don't want you seeing Chloe. I don’t care. You're a grown-ass man. You do what you want."

I shake my head. "Man, I don't know where this is coming from, but I'm not going to jeopardize our relationship, my working relationship with you, or your relationship with Claire by trying to see Chloe."

"That's what I'm saying. You misunderstand. You just need to keep," now he slams down the second sash, "an eye on her."

This is not where I thought the conversation was going.

"What's going on?"

Folding his arms, he leans against his desk. "That’s just it, I don’t know. But stay close." He shakes his head as if grappling with something. "You know? Forget it. Never mind. You've got the Raymond Clifton detail."

If there's one thing I've learned about Finn, you don't let him second guess himself. The guy is eerily right about gut instincts. His own and others.

"Finn. What were you going to say?"

Finn presses his hands down on the oak tabletop, glances at the floor and then looks up at me. His face registers nothing but concern and then he makes a decision. He's going to read me into whatever those gut feelings are telling him.

"Okay. Something's not right with her. When she first started working for me, she made a hard deal. No paperwork, no taxes, no paper trail. She didn't want to do any of it."

I start to object. Finn is all business; he knows the law and there's no way in hell he'd agree to pay anyone under the table.

Holding up a finger he cuts me off: "I know. I know. But I wanted Claire to have some peace with Chloe coming back, so I agreed. She explained she pays her taxes, when she makes enough to pay them." He pauses and folds his arms across his chest. "She was clear. That was the deal. But I've been reading her ever since. She's scared. Terrified of someone or something. And her behavior is erratic."

"That doesn’t make any sense."

"I know it's hard, but she's still in hiding. Her behavior is textbook. Someone is after her."

"Why?"

"I don’t know." He runs a hand through his hair. "Chloe's definitely laying low. You know how it's done. She doesn’t do anything at the same time. She's learned somewhere to vary her routine so there's no routine. Her days off are always different. I think she wants it that way so she's harder to track."

"Doesn’t prove anything."

His glance at me is dark. "Noting she does is on a regular schedule. Not errands, not her days off. She never leaves the inn at the same time. Listen to me. Everything she does is so organized, so efficient. It doesn’t fit."

Finn pauses, sighs, and starts in with more examples.

"Two days ago, I helped her carry in a load of groceries. I found a little book on her seat. It was open and the detective in me couldn't help but take a look. I didn't talk to Claire about this, but Chloe had her whole schedule carefully mapped out for the next month, about where she was going to be and at what time, and none of her daily routines were the same. She doesn't use credit cards, pays for things only in cash. I'm telling you, she's trying hard not to be tracked."

A gnawing ache starts deep in my stomach.

He just keeps talking. "Whenever we go out together she always pays in cash—even little stuff. Like last week, we went for ice cream. The three of us. We wanted to treat her and she was like nope I got it, I got it, but it was cash."

"The Inn?"

He raises an eyebrow. "For that, she uses the business card in my name. It's her personal stuff that's all cash. I pay her in cash and I know she doesn’t have a bank account." He pauses again. "Bryce, Chloe is literally off the map. She even has a PO box in Portland, not here, where she could walk to it."

"She drives to Portland for mail?"

He shakes his head. "I convinced her to forward it here for a while. But I'm telling you, something's up with her."

"She's not histrionic or hysterical."

"No. And she did agree to do an interview with Thomaston High about being a chef." He paused again. "But you know, I had to push Chloe to do it, and then she made the girl promise the interview would only be in print. At the school—no online version."

"She doesn't want a digital footprint."

"Exactly. That's why I believe there's a threat."