Mountain Secrets by Elizabeth Goddard (good books to read for teens txt) 📕

her into the dimly lit garage where the car was stored along with ten others that must belong to the people in the apartment complex.

Isabel got into the passenger seat. She breathed in one final prayer and then her gaze rested on Jason as he buckled himself in behind the wheel.

“Let’s do this,” she said even as the fear squeezed tight around her chest.

SEVENTEEN

“Surveillance is actually very boring,” said Jason. They’d stopped for coffee at an all-night kiosk before parking outside the trailer court where Nick’s aunt lived. “A lot of sitting and waiting.”

Isabel took a sip of her steaming beverage and tilted her head toward the ceiling. “I just hope this works.” She tugged on the collar of her shirt.

Her voice was tempered with anxiety. He didn’t blame her. If there was some place he thought he could hide her where she would be safe from all this, he would have taken her there in a heartbeat.

There was only one entrance to the court and they’d spotted Nick’s truck outside the trailer when they’d circled through. If Nick left, it would be easy enough to tail him.

“Sometimes the waiting can be more nerve-racking than the tailing,” Jason said.

“Did you always want to be a detective?”

“I kind of fell into it. My father was in law enforcement. I made it through the academy but hated all the paperwork once they put me on the force.” He took a sip of his coffee. “How about you? You can’t tell me you played property manager with your dolls when you were little.”

She laughed. “No, I did what every little girl did. Put a wedding dress on the doll and pretended she married the boy doll, moved into their town house with the cool plastic furniture and lived happily ever after.”

“I know some people find happily-ever-after. I’ve seen it at church. Looking at them from the outside, anyway.”

“You’re a pessimist about true love?”

“It’s just I saw my father torn to pieces by his belief in happily-ever-after. I saw the way a woman could destroy a good man.”

“It works both ways, Jason. Men shred women too.” Her words were drenched in pain.

“Sorry. I’m sure Nick was no picnic.”

She shook her head. “I was very young and very naive. I thought when a man said he loved you, he didn’t have ulterior motives.” She turned her head and stared out the window and then glanced in his direction.

It felt as though a wall had gone up between them. Like there was something going unsaid. The kiss had meant so much to him, but he wouldn’t risk her life so they could be together. He didn’t want to send her any more mixed messages.

She took another sip of coffee. “I had this big hole in my heart because of my childhood that really only God could fill. But when I was a teenager, I thought having a boyfriend would make it better.”

“You’ve overcome so much, Isabel.” He couldn’t help but admire the woman sitting beside him. The only thing that meant more to him than the kiss was their prayer together.

A soft smile graced her face. Then she turned to watch through the windshield. “I’ve been thinking. That woman who met Nick at the recreation area. I recognize the uniform shirt she wore. It’s for Happy Homes, a maid service. Sun and Ski uses them for cleaning jobs sometimes.”

“Interesting. What do you suppose she was giving him?” Jason said.

“Well, I don’t think it was a sentimental card or a grocery list. They were meeting in an out-of-the-way place.” Isabel continued to stare straight ahead.

“It would have to be something you couldn’t send in a text or you didn’t want a record of. Maybe cash or instructions,” he said. Something about the clandestine meeting place suggested the maid might be connected to Nick’s illegal activities.

They’d been sitting and waiting for over an hour. What if this didn’t work? They could hide out at Fred’s for a few days. But Jason didn’t want to put his friend at risk after he’d been so kind.

Isabel sat up a little straighter. “Headlights.”

He leaned to see better through the glass. The lights were high enough to be a truck. It had to be close to midnight. Whoever was leaving at this time was up to no good.

They were parked off to the side of the trailer-court entrance behind the sign that gave its name. Their headlights were off.

The truck rumbled by without stopping.

“It’s him, all right.” Jason placed his fingers on the key but didn’t turn it.

Nick’s taillights were still visible. The turn signal on the truck blinked. Jason started the car and turned onto the road.

With little to no traffic, and as hypervigilant as Nick was, tailing was going to be tricky.

Jason rolled down the road and turned where Nick had turned. Nick was headed back toward town. That was good. A greater possibility of other cars. Late-night revelers on their way home.

Jason stayed back, grateful that the road into town was straight. One other car got between them before they entered the city limits. Once in town, he was able to take some side streets and still track Nick. The truck stayed on the main street of Silver Strike, went all the way through town and then exited on the other side. They passed a car dealership with dark windows and drove a little way out to the country.

Jason pulled off the road onto a shoulder.

“What are you doing? We’ll lose him.”

“We’re the only car out here. I don’t want him to get suspicious. There are only three or four places he could turn off out this way. Some businesses, a few homes, I think.”

They waited in silence. The snowfall had intensified since they’d left the trailer park. After a few minutes, Jason pulled back out onto the road. They passed a home set back from the road. No black truck was parked by it. They drove by a meat-processing business where no cars were parked.

Isabel wiggled in