Chapter 13

Maggie and Noah exchangeda shocked glance.

"Where?" Noah asked.

"There's an old guy who regularly goes through public trash bins downtown looking for stuff he can use or sell. He found it in the garbage can on Main Street, just outside the animal shelter. The battery was removed, so it's pretty clear that it was intentionally tossed there."

"How strange," Maggie said.

"The old guy posted it for sale on a local social media marketplace, and a young hacker bought it," Hugo continued. "She was messing around with it and accessed the photos on it. Because of the news story, she immediately recognized Valentina's image in several of the pictures."

"What news story?" Maggie and Noah said together.

"Uh..." Hugo hesitated. "I thought you guys would have seen it already. I hate to have to be the one to break this to you both, but somehow the story got out about Valentina missing and..."

"And what?" Noah cried.

"Look, there's no need to get worked up about that right now," Hugo said reassuringly. "It's just typical media trying to stir up drama. What I want you to know is that the hacker did the right thing and turned the phone over to the police. Their IT specialist was able to retrieve Valentina's call history and text logs, which showed she had been contacting one specific number frequently, but it wasn't yours. The police suspect that the messages are in some sort of code. I'll keep you updated as they gather more information."

Noah thanked Hugo and they disconnected. He leaned back against the side of the car, looking dazed. "Now what?"

Maggie thought for a moment. "Well, since we don't have any other leads right now, maybe we should visit the place where the phone was tossed out. It might help you jog your memory."

Noah agreed and they all climbed back into the car. Noah started the engine and Maggie hit a button on the center console. She clapped her hands with delight as the convertible top opened smoothly, folding into a secured slot at the back of the car.

"How did you know how to do that?" Noah asked.

She gave him a sidelong look. "I might have done a little Googling about Porsches after I went to bed last night."

Noah laughed, and Maggie thrilled at the sound of it. She was pleased that in the midst of all the stress they were under, she could make him smile.

They headed back downtown, and Maggie pointed out a parking spot right in front of the animal shelter entrance.

"I dunno," Noah said. "It looks a little tight!"

"Trust me," Maggie said. "Just pull up alongside that car in front of it."

Noah did as she instructed, then looked at her. "I still don't think—"

He stopped speaking when Maggie reached her hand forward and tapped a button on the touchscreen. The car instantly began rolling backward and then angled smoothly into the parallel parking spot.

Noah closed his gaping mouth and turned to give her a look. "Google?"

"Yeah!" Maggie gushed. "It has a parking-assist system. Isn't that so cool?"

Noah rolled his eyes, but she could tell he was suppressing another grin.

"Okay, there's the animal shelter," Maggie said, pointing her finger toward it. "And there's the garbage can. Does anything around here seem familiar?"

Noah glanced up and down the sidewalk, then shook his head.

Although Boon had been calm and quiet, lying in relative comfort in the cramped back seat, he sat up now, pushing his long nose between the seats. His brown eyes were alert, and he began to whine.

"What is it, boy?" Noah asked, reaching to pet the dog's head in an attempt to soothe him. "What do you see?"

Maggie and Noah looked around at the string of small, local businesses lining the street. Since it was Sunday, most of them were closed. And being a distance from the popular tourist shops, there were only a few pedestrians around, but none of them were near the car.

"Why don't we get out and just stand here for a minute," Maggie said. "See if it sparks anything." Then she looked at Boon. "I promise we won't be long, buddy," Maggie added her own scratches behind one of Boon's ears, both of which were now pointed straight up again. "You know," she added. "He could easily jump out of the car here with the top down like this."

"I could put it back up."

"No!" Maggie responded so fast it made Noah laugh again.

"Okay, okay. How about this," he said, carefully looping the dog's leash around the interior front door grip. "That should keep him secure."

With a final pat on Boon's head, they both got out of the car and started walking toward the animal shelter and the garbage can beside it.

Suddenly, Maggie halted in her tracks. "Oh. My. Gosh," she said, pointing.

"What?" Noah followed the direction of her finger and saw that she was pointing at the newspaper stand in front of the building.

"I know, right?" Noah grinned. "Where else would you even see a real newspaper stand like this anymore? My Pops still loves to read what he calls a ‘real newspaper' every—"

"Not the stand," Maggie interrupted him. "The newspaper inside it!"

She fumbled in her purse and pulled out a credit card to swipe through the reader at the top, then opened the box to pull out a paper. She stepped several paces into the shadowed alley beside the building and unfolded it, quickly skimming the front page.

Noah came to stand behind her and looked over her shoulder.

The front page of the newspaper displayed a large photograph of Valentina beneath a bold headline, "Local Woman Missing After Date from Matches by Maggie."

"Oh no," Maggie groaned. She handed the newspaper to Noah and leaned back against the rough brick wall of the building, putting her hands over her face.

Noah began reading out loud. "One of Whispering Pines' newest local residents, Valentina Romano, is missing and presumed dead. She was last seen on a date with fellow Whispering Pines resident, Noah Riley. The date was arranged by local matchmaking service, Matches by Maggie." He looked up, sputtering. "What the heck! And where did they get these photographs of us!"

"What?" Maggie stepped away from the wall to look more closely at the article and saw small photographs of each of them included further down in the article. "I don't know. I feel sick."

Noah read on. "This is another huge issue for the startup dating service run by local resident Maggie Milena, who personally approves each of her clients. The company has lately been the subject of multiple negative reviews on social media." Noah looked up from the page. "Really?"

Maggie just lifted one shoulder in acknowledgment, trying not to cry.

He read on. "With regard to the missing woman, police found incriminating evidence in Ms. Romano's home, including a partially empty wine bottle laced with arsenic. So far, no charges have been brought against Mr. Riley, but the search for Ms. Romano's body is a top priority for the Whispering Pines Police Force."

Noah looked up again. "How did they get access to details about the crime scene? And seriously, why did they have to say ‘body' and ‘presumed dead' like that? They're literally trying to sensationalize it as a murder before anything has even been proven."

"And is it murder, Mr. Riley?" a low voice hissed.

Noah lowered the paper and they found themselves face to face with Nick and Johnny from the night before. The man named Nick stepped in close and pressed a long blade between Noah's ribs.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Ms. Milena," he said without looking at her. "I promise you, this time, I'll be much quicker with my knife than you are with your cell phone."

Maggie started to lower her cell phone just as the man named Johnny stepped forward and gripped her upper arm, just as he'd done the night before. He wasn't much taller than she was and she tried to shake him off, but his fingers were like an immovable vise, digging painfully into her flesh. There was a slight bulge beneath his shirt as he moved, letting Maggie know that he must still have the gun she'd noted at their last encounter.

She glanced quickly up and down the alley they were in. They were a decent distance from the sidewalk, and there were no passersby.

"Move!" Nick ordered, forcing Noah further back into the shadows of the alley.

Johnny dragged Maggie along with them. Maggie observed that Nick was still dressed in the same clothes from the night before. The collar of his shirt was open. She and Noah could more clearly see the tattoo on the side of his neck that they'd noticed in the photographs. It was a series of letters, "OMERTà," and she wondered what it meant.

"Answer my question, Mr. Riley," Nick said, his voice deceptively calm. "Is it murder?"

"No!" Noah said.

"Then where is Valentina?"

"Just like I told you last night. I don't know!" Noah said.

Maggie watched as Nick took a deep breath and then cocked his neck at a strange angle, making it crack, his cold blue eyes never wavering from Noah's face. "Who's paying you?"

"Nobody! What are you talking about?" Noah was clearly getting angry now.

"Did you really think you could mess with Papa Dom and get away with this?" Johnny asked, glaring at Noah.

"Who is Papa Dom?"

Nick continued to study Noah's face, saying nothing as several long moments ticked past. Then he smiled. But it was a smile that didn't touch his eyes. "You know what, Mr. Riley, I think I might actually believe you. I think it's possible that you really don't have any idea what I'm talking about."

"Good," Noah said. "Because I don't."

Nick raised his non-knife-wielding hand and Noah flinched. But Nick only slowly patted the side of Noah's face. "I'm even starting to think that you may just be an innocent bystander in all of this."

"Yes! That's me, an innocent bystander. So, can you please stop terrorizing us like this?"

This time Nick's smile did touch his eyes as he gave a short laugh. "A polite one, isn't he, Johnny?"

Johnny made a non-committal grunt.

"Unfortunately, after everything that's happened so far, letting you go free is not an option," Nick said in a light, casual tone, like he was discussing the weather. "You both know just a little too much now. And that's a risk the Partnership isn't willing to take." He shook his head. "We're going to have to remedy that."

Maggie saw Noah's Adam's apple bob as he swallowed.

"Hey!" came a sharp voice from the entrance to the alley. "What's going on there?"

Everyone looked to see two little old ladies marching toward them.

"Gretchen, please!" cried one of the women. She was trailing behind the first woman who strode purposefully toward the group. She stood barely five feet tall, but she was built like a small tank. Her short hair was dyed a flat brown color that had been teased and hair sprayed into an immovable helmet on her head.

"Pipe down, Margot," the woman called Gretchen snapped. She stopped a few feet from them. "What are you doing in this alley?"

"Nothing for you to concern yourself with, Grandma," Nick said. He'd already snatched the newspaper from Noah's hand to drape over his knife. "We're just having a friendly discussion."

Her small, dark eyes shifted from face to face and lingered on the way Johnny still held tightly to Maggie's arm.

"It don't look all that friendly to me," she remarked. "Why are you holding onto her arm like that?

Gretchen and her friend, Margot, were now side by side. While Gretchen exuded a tougher vibe, Margot looked more like a classic grandmother. She wore a flowy, floral-print dress over her plump frame and carried an oversized handbag. Her silver hair was twisted into a soft bun at the nape of her neck. Nervous fingers played at the delicate lace collar of her dress as she surveyed the group with wide, pale blue eyes.

"She looks scared, Gretchen," Margot whispered, but it echoed clearly in the small alleyway.

"She does." Gretchen took a step closer to Nick and Noah, this time focusing her attention on Noah. "Aren't you one of them Riley boys?"

"Yes, ma'am," Noah said. "But we're fine here, really. I think that you and your friend should—"

"Whatcha got under that newspaper?" This time Gretchen addressed Nick, ignoring Noah's attempt to get rid of her.

Nick's nostrils flared, and a wave of fear washed over Maggie. As scared as she was, she didn't want anything to happen to these innocent ladies.

"He just told you we're fine here," Nick said. "Now, beat it!"

Gretchen advanced another step closer. She was right beside Nick now.

"What is that? A knife?" Gretchen asked, and Maggie could see the point of the blade was slightly exposed, glinting from beneath the edge of the newspaper.

Nick rolled his eyes and dropped the paper. "Yeah, you old bag, it's a knife. I was just showing my friend Noah here how sharp it is."

Gretchen's beady eyes narrowed, then she and Margot exchanged a look.

Gretchen turned to squarely face Nick. "Why don't you show me how sharp it is?"

Maggie was appalled. What was this crazy lady doing?

Nick gave a loud snort of frustration through his nose and turned toward Gretchen. Stepping forward, he grabbed a handful of fabric at the neckline of her shirt, and with his other hand, he thrust the blade at her throat. "Sure, old lady, take a good look."

As Maggie watched, everything seemed to happen in the blink of an eye.

In a lightning fast move that belied the woman's advanced age, she watched Gretchen angle her body away from the blade. She grabbed hold of Nick's knife arm with her left hand and delivered a powerful strike to his throat with her right. She followed it up with a forceful knee to his groin, causing him to double over in pain. With precision, Gretchen twisted his knife arm, lifting it up and forcing his wrist forward until he released his grip on the knife. She quickly snatched it from his hand before delivering a swift kick to his face.

Nick howled in pain and blood streamed from his nose as he rose back to a standing position. But by now Gretchen had leapt back, the blade securely in her hand.

Suddenly Margot was in the game, whacking Johnny with her oversized purse like it was a baseball bat. "You. Let. Her. Go. Right. Now!" she panted between blows as Johnny staggered back with each impact.

In the pandemonium, Maggie was vaguely aware that she could hear Boon barking.

Then she heard a voice call out, "Hey, what's going on here?"

"Call 911!" she heard another voice cry out. "Someone's trying to mug those old ladies!"

Suddenly Boon stood at the alley entrance, barking loudly.

The gathered crowd rushed toward them as one with Boon leading the way, his leash trailing behind him. Without another word, Nick and Johnny bolted in the opposite direction, racing down the alley away from them.

"Get those men!" another voice shouted as the crowd and dog rushed past, chasing after the fleeing men.

Within seconds, Maggie, Noah, and the two women were left alone in the alley.

"What just happened?" Noah said.

"I'm pretty sure these ladies just saved our lives," Maggie said. She turned to face them. "Thank you so much!"

"Sure thing," Gretchen said. Then she waggled the large knife at her friend. "I told you them Krav Maga lessons I took at the senior center would come in handy one day."

"Oh, for heaven's sake, Gretchen! Please don't point that thing at me," Margot said, taking a step back. "Do you realize you could have been killed?"

Gretchen gave a small shrug. "But I wasn't. And what about you, beating up that guy with your handbag?"

Margot blushed. "Well, I couldn't just stand here and do nothing! That man was clearly hurting this poor girl." She looked at Maggie. "Are you all right, dear?"

"I'm fine now." Maggie laughed. "Seriously, the two of you were amazing! By the way, I'm Maggie."

"We're grateful you were here," Noah said. "But now I think we should get out of this alley."

Together, they all walked back up onto the sidewalk.

"I'm curious," Noah said, looking at Gretchen. "How did you know I was a Riley?"

Gretchen snorted. "Seriously, kid? Everybody in town knows that you and your equally hot brothers are J.P.'s grandsons. And now that your brothers are both hitched, you're the most eligible bachelor in town, even considering the fact that you're probably a murderer."

"Gretchen!" Margot cried out, looking appalled.

"Well, that's what the top story is about!" Gretchen waved the newspaper she'd picked up after Nick had dropped it in the alley. "By the way, mind if I keep this. That's why we stopped. I wanted to get a newspaper."

"Sure," Maggie shrugged. "It's not any news I want to read right now." She looked at Noah. "What do you think we should do now?"

Noah's shoulders slumped. "I suppose we should start by letting the police know we were attacked," he sighed. "Again."

He pulled out his cell phone and made the call. Within minutes, two officers arrived at the scene. After getting a statement from each of them, and securing the knife in an evidence bag, the officers made certain everyone was all right and then left.

"All right, Margot," Gretchen said. "Shake a leg! We're going to be late for the party."

"Oh my goodness!" Margot said. "In all the excitement, I forgot."

Maggie and Noah thanked them again, standing side by side, waving as the two women climbed into an ancient blue Impala and drove off.

Together, they walked slowly back toward the Porsche, and Maggie could feel the worry emanating from Noah like it was a tangible entity.

She nudged him with one shoulder. "You okay?"

"Me!" he sputtered. "I feel awful for ever getting you involved in this."

They were at the car now and he turned to face her. "Of all my FDFs, this is the absolute worst ever."

Maggie smiled ruefully. "It's not your fault, you know."

"Then why does it feel so much like it is? We still haven't found Valentina, and if those guys find her first, who knows what might happen to her."

"Noah, those guys are clearly a couple of very dangerous men, and it's equally clear that they were already involved with Valentina somehow."

"I just..." He ran a hand through his hair. "I'm out of ideas. I still don't remember anything from Friday night and I just don't know what to do next."

Maggie couldn't resist. She reached up to smooth back the dark curls he'd just messed up. He looked surprised, but not displeased. And she let her hand linger there for a few seconds longer than necessary before dropping her hand. Then she said, "I know what we need to do next."

"What?"

"Have you ever heard of the Pomodoro technique?"

Noah looked at her quizzically. "No."

"Well, it's a productivity technique I use when I'm working on something that requires a lot of time and concentration," Maggie said. "It's one that Jaime's husband Jack recommended to me. It's based on the theory that taking regular breaks to relax your mind ultimately helps you work more efficiently and effectively."

"You think we should take a break?"

"I know that seems counterintuitive right now, but maybe relaxing for a little while will help you remember something. Besides, we did promise Jaime that we'd go to her beach party which is happening right now."

Noah studied her for a moment, then he nodded. "Okay, let's do it. It's not like we have any new leads to follow anyway."

"Okay then," Maggie said. "Let's beach party!"

They turned toward the car and Noah reached to open her door for her. They both spotted Boon's water dish on the floor of the back seat at the same time and exchanged a look.

"Oh man! On top of everything else, I can't believe we lost Boon, too." Noah said sadly.

Woof!

They both turned around in surprise to find Boon trotting toward them, his leash trailing on the ground beside him. His tail wagged happily as he came to a halt beside them and dropped a scrap of dark fabric from his mouth onto the ground.

"Uhhh," Maggie said. "Do you think that's from...?"

Noah grinned. "Definitely looks like the fabric from Nick's pants to me. I guess we'll need to drop off one more piece of evidence at the police station before we join the party."