no body no crime

trust no one

I made it to Elijah's place thirty minutes later. I checked my watch. It was already 9:45. Just over 38 hours left.

I took a deep breath and rapped my knuckles on the door. I waited a moment, but received no reply. Glancing to the side, I confirmed the car from the security footage sitting in the driveway. He was home, just ignoring me.

I knocked again. Growing frustrated, I looked up and found a security camera. I addressed it directly. "Come on man, please open up! It's important!"

I banged my fist on the door a few times. I was about to give up when I heard the click of a latch being undone.

The door opened a crack. A sliver of a man's face appeared, his visible eye dark and his eyebrow furrowed. "Who are you?" he demanded.

"My name is Jo. I need... I need to talk to you about Adelina."

His eye widened. Before he could shut the door, I stuck my foot in the frame.

"Please. I'm desperate, dude."

He eyed me curiously. "Who sent you?"

I glanced over my shoulder. "Dmitri... something. I don't really know. I just met him and now if I didn't do this for him he will make me disappear in ways I wouldn't love to discover."

Elijah's body went rigid at the name. Slowly, he pulled the door open. "Hurry."

I rushed through the doorway and he closed it behind me, securing the lock once more.

I took a long look around the condo. It wasn't much; a living room led into a kitchen, and past that, an open door displaying a bedroom. I couldn't be sure from this distance, but a glint of black steel laid on the bed.

I followed Elijah into the tiny kitchen, sitting across from him at the table.

"You were the last person to speak with her," I started. "Please, tell me everything you know."

Elijah remained quiet for a long time. "You don't know her, do you?" he finally asked.

I bit my lip. "No. But I need to find her."

"Or Dmitri will kill you," he muttered.

I bristled at the words. "How do you know her?"

"I was part of the Mafia. I'm not anymore."

I realized he wasn't offering a further explanation. "And the other day at the cafe?"

Elijah folded his hands together, leaning forward. "Addie said she discovered something. Something worth killing over."

I sucked in a sharp breath.

"She told me to stay away. That she didn't know how it would end. But it was dangerous, Jo. She got herself into something... that even she can't handle."

"You don't know what?" I pressed. Elijah shook his head. "What can you tell me about her?" I asked instead.

He sighed, bringing a hand to his head, the pale window light streaking across his dark skin. "She's good. The best. She herself is dangerous, and normally I wouldn't be concerned. She can take care of herself."

I nodded slowly. I knew nothing about this woman. In reality, she might've killed me the moment I walked through the door to whatever cell she was being kept in. She's a spy for the Italian Mafia.

She's dangerous.

"Where did she go when she left the cafe?" I asked, picking at my fingernails.

"She said she was staying at a hotel. Embassy Suites, the one by Times Square."

"I know it. She went there after?"

"Yeah. After that, I don't know."

I pushed my chair back, the wooden legs scratching against the floor. "Thank you for your help."

Elijah nodded and walked me to the door. Before I could leave, his hand grabbed my arm.

"You said Dmitri sent you?" His eyes changed again. He's afraid.

"Yeah."

"Don't trust him, Jo. Don't trust any of them. Okay? Trust no one."

"Okay."

He let me go. "Try not to die out there."

I shot him a thin smile. "I'll try."

Back on the sidewalk, I googled the hotel's address. Within minutes, I was on my way.