Page 70 of Letting Go

"Hey," says Claire, scrambling on board, clutching an extra coat as Finn ties us to the dock. "Hey," she says again, searching my face when there's no response from Chloe.

Chloe's voice is a whisper. "Why are you here?"

I don’t think she's fully awake.

"I brought your coat." Claire straightens and speaks to Finn. "I called Mercy Emergency and said we'd be coming in with a possible head injury."

I press Chloe harder, tucking an arm around her.

But she pulls away, pushes down the blankets, and slips on the spare, puffy brown down jacket.

"No. No hospital." She zips the jacket up and sits straighter, but she lets me help her off the boat. She sways again, and this time Claire takes an arm. "I'm fine," Chloe says, then softens, "Really. Just getting my land legs."

Finn takes Claire's hand and they interlock fingers as Claire lets go of her sister's arm.

"You need to get checked out," I say. "You could be suffering from exposure—"

"I'm not. I was baking on that boat."

"You said the door hit you in the head. Twice."

She holds up a hand. "I'm fine. Besides, Mateus here patched me up. My knee doesn’t even hurt anymore."

Mateus, impassive, says nothing. He knows she should go directly to the ER. He also understands how to read people well enough to know not to argue with her.

Finn glances at me. "Just take her. We'll meet you after Raymond Clifton is done with his walking on coals finale this morning. The whole thing is supposed to be over at noon, and then there's an hour of book signing afterward."

Chloe suddenly stops on the wharf. "What did you say? Coals?" She seems to be making up her mind about something.

"It’s how he ends his shows … conferences. He gets them all to walk on hot coals. It's an old trick from—"

Chloe interrupts me with her hand and stands very still. "Reed's going to confront his brother today. Or kill him."

"What?" Finn drops Claire's hand

"Today. I just got what he said to me.

"What did he say?"

"Right before he left, he said something like, 'They'll be no more walking on fire or water."' She pauses. "'That's over as of today.'" She looks at me and Finn. "He means his brother. I thought he meant Bryce. But he means him. That's why he left. He said he had to keep people safe."

"Well, that's bat shit crazy, and exactly what he put in those emails."

Chloe is pale in the late morning light, but resolute.

"He said he'd be back at two this afternoon."

Finn presses numbers into his phone, blunting other sounds as he plugs one ear and raises his cell phone to the other for a quick call to Jackson or Nic. Probably Nic.

Two in the afternoon means Reed is going to strike the roof.

Soon.

Finn spins around and starts jogging to the car. "Claire, you go with Bryce and your sister. Mateus, you're with me. We'll swap cars."

Mateus? With a single shooter scenario? Possible chase on foot? No way. "Finn. Wait!"

Claire looks scared for the first time since we found Chloe's stuff in the bathroom. "Claire'll take Chloe to the ER and I can come—"