Alex came back, driving an SUV.
I walked out to the driveway and he handed me the keys. “Figured I might as well put that in my name, too. I just kicked in the other rental and got something with more room.”
“Perfect,” I said.
He held up the key cards. “Got the room, too. We can check in whenever she’s ready.”
Bella came outside. “I think I’ve got everything together.”
“You think you’ll be okay by yourself tonight for a little while?” I asked her. “I’m gonna need Alex to come with me.”
“To get Jackson?” she asked.
I nodded.
Uneasiness crept into her eyes, but she nodded. “I’ll be okay.”
“One other thing I forgot to ask you about,” I said. “Your car. I’d rather that you leave it.”
“I sorta need a car,” she said.
“We’ll get you another in San Diego.”
“Are you like made of money or something?” she asked.
“No,” I said. “But if you aren’t attached to it, we’ll get you another one there. Be easier than trying to get yours there. And then we can leave the rental at the hotel with you and drive yours tonight.”
“I don’t care. I just want Jackson.”
“Let’s load up then,” I said.
It took us half an hour to get all of their things in the SUV and then another twenty minutes to get to the hotel-Alex and Bella in the SUV, me following in her car. The room was on the ninth floor and looked out over the Gulf, the blue-green water stretching endlessly on the horizon.
“When we leave, you don’t answer the door for anyone,” I said. “Me or Alex, that’s it. And one of us will come up to get you when we get back. Keep your phone on. Don’t answer the room phone. If we call, we’ll call your cell. Alex is going to leave his gun with you. If anyone comes in here but us, you use it.”
The uneasiness grew in her eyes.
“Look, all of this is overkill,” I said. “No one but the two of us know you’re here. Once we get there, they won’t be going anywhere. The only ones coming to get you are gonna be us and Jackson.”
She bit her lip and nodded. “I hope so.”
I wanted to reassure her, but there was no point and I didn’t blame her. Until her son was back, she was going to be anxious.
“We should go,” I said to Alex.
He nodded and stood there awkwardly for a moment.
“I’ll meet you out in the hall,” I said.
I left the room and shut the door behind me. A minute later, Alex joined me in the hall.
“Thanks,” he said.
“Figured you might be able to reassure her more than me at this point,” I said.
“I dunno,” he said. “I guess. She’s scared.”
“She trusts you,” I said. “If you told her it’ll be okay, it’ll help.”
“I did.”
“Then we’re good. Think she could use the gun if she had to?”
He glanced at the door, then back at me. “Yeah. Think so.”
We took the elevator down to the parking garage and I drove Bella’s Accord out and onto the highway. I checked the mirrors carefully to make sure we didn’t have any unfriendly followers, but didn’t see anyone.
I parked the car in the cul-de-sac outside my place and told Alex to wait for me.
Stepping into the garage that had been my home for the past few months was a weird feeling. I knew it would be the last time I’d see it. It wasn’t a place I’d miss but yet I still felt attached to it. I knew every nook and cranny in the space, the product of too many sleepless nights. It would be odd to never see it again.
There were two guns on my bed, along with a note from Ike.
Noah, I got you three. One auto was all I could come up with. No charge and don’t argue. Be safe. Ike
The two handguns on the blanket were both HK-45s. There was no automatic weapon with them.
I smiled.
I grabbed the beat-up backpack off the nail on the wall and tossed in the few articles of clothing I owned. Everything else in the place was there when Ike had given me the key. I laid the guns in the backpack on top of the clothes, zipped it up and slung it over my shoulder.
I took a deep breath.
Several months before, I’d done the same thing. Packed up quickly and left a place I felt comfortable in. Now, I was doing it again. There was no going back.
I had no way of knowing if I was doing the right thing. It felt like so long since I’d had an internal compass, that innate sense that told me I was doing the right or wrong thing. I’d been drifting for too long, rudderless. I hadn’t made a real decision in-I couldn’t remember how long.
But now, I was making a decision.
I was just letting Liz’s voice guide me.