heart squeezed hard in her chest. And the police had treated him like one of the terrorists who’d gunned down innocent men and women.
Grace found a cell phone in a side pouch and touched the power button. Nothing happened. The screen wasn’t cracked, but the battery might be dead. On the outside of the bag, embroidered on a strip of camouflage, was the name O’Neill in bold green letters.
Grace would call the local police station and see what she could find out about the mysterious Mr. O’Neill. For now, all she could do was head home. She’d have to call and reschedule her interview when she wasn’t bruised and dirty from having lain on the ground, crushed beneath a man who’d proven to be a hero.
Slipping one of the rucksack’s straps over her shoulder, she headed for the metro station and caught the train out of the city to Alexandria where she shared an apartment with her roommate from college. Once on the train, she pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and searched through the recent calls for the one she’d taken to schedule the interview.
Once she found it, she dialed, lifted the device to her ear and covered her other ear.
“Halverson Enterprises, Margaret speaking,” a woman’s voice came on the line.
“This is Grace Lawrence. I was supposed to interview with Mrs. Halverson today.”
“Oh, yes. I was just about to call and advise you Mrs. Halverson will not be available today. She has been regrettably detained.”
“Oh,” Grace said. “Okay.”
“I’ve been asked to reschedule your interview for tomorrow morning at 8:30 a.m. Mrs. Halverson will see you then.”
“Thank you. I look forward to meeting her.”
“Wait,” Margaret laughed. “You called me. Was there something I could help you with?”
“Oh, thank you but... I was just calling to confirm the interview,” Grace said. Margaret didn’t need to know Grace had called to say she couldn’t make her scheduled appointment.
Grace ended the call and released a sigh. At least she hadn’t blown her chances by being a no-show.
By the time Grace stepped off the train at her stop, the shock of the day had set in. Her knees shook as she walked the few blocks to her apartment complex, and she fumbled with her keys before she could open the front door.
Once inside, she set the rucksack on the floor, kicked off her heels, collapsed on the couch in the living room and dug her cell phone out of her purse.
A text message displayed across the screen.
Leaving work on time tonight. What’s for supper?
The message was from early that morning. Grace had just noticed it. She snorted out a laugh, the sound catching on a sob. What a day. Her roommate, Riley Lansing, wouldn’t believe what had happened to her. Grace would have to wait until Riley arrived at the apartment before she could tell her about it.
In the meantime, Grace needed to find out where O’Neill was and arrange to get his rucksack back to him.
She spent the next hour calling police stations, trying to locate the man, but with no luck. After hitting one brick wall after the other, she set her cell phone aside and wandered into the kitchen, looking for something to eat.
A glance at the clock on the stove made her frown.
Riley had said she’d be leaving work on time, which would have been over an hour ago.
Grace abandoned the refrigerator and retrieved her cell phone from the coffee table in the living room. She texted Riley.
Did you stop at the store?
She waited for Riley’s response. When it didn’t come, she tried again.
Hello? I thought you’d be home by now.
Grace shrugged and headed for the kitchen again. Perhaps Riley had stopped at a store with lousy reception, or her cell phone was buried at the bottom of her purse, or she’d turned off the sound. Riley wasn’t one to say she’d be home on time and then take a lot longer, without calling.
A bad feeling washed over Grace. She tried to shrug it off as residual nerves from the earlier attack in DC. But the longer she waited for Riley, the more worried she became.
Since Grace had moved in, she and Riley were the other’s support system. Grace’s parents had been an older couple when Grace was born and had since passed away. Riley’s folks were on a world cruise and not scheduled to be back for another twenty days.
Grace called Riley’s number and listened to it ring six times before it went to her voice mail. She called again and the voice mail picked up immediately.
She left a message. “Riley, call me. I’m worried about you.”
By midnight she was past being worried and beginning to become frantic. She called the police and reported her roommate as missing.
“How long has she been missing?” the dispatcher asked.
“At least five hours. She’s never late. She texted me this morning, saying she’d leave work on time tonight. Leaving work on time means she would have left more than five and a half hours ago.”
“Could she have stopped at a friend’s house?” the dispatcher asked.
“Not without calling to tell me,” Grace said.
“Where is her last known location?” the woman on the other end of the line asked.
“She was leaving work at Quest Aerospace Alliance.” Grace gave the address and waited.
“We’ll have a unit check it out. If you hear from her, please let us know to call off the search.”
“Thank you.”
The dispatcher ended the call.
The simple act of reporting her friend as missing did nothing to allay Grace’s fears. She couldn’t stay in the apartment, waiting. She had to go out and look for herself. If the police found her in the meantime, they would contact her on her cell phone. She’d have it with her.
Grace scribbled a note to Riley and left it on the counter. If Riley came home while Grace was out, she was to call her immediately.
Grace shrugged into her jacket, grabbed her purse, slipped the Taser Riley had gifted her at Christmas inside the front pocket and left the apartment, heading...
Hell, she didn’t even know which way to go.
Squaring her shoulders, she walked through the dark streets to the train station, her gaze searching the shadows for potential threats. When she reached the metro stop, she climbed aboard the train headed toward Quest Aerospace Alliance. She’d start there and work her way backward, praying she’d find Riley at a bar or hanging out with a friend.
Deep down, Grace knew she wouldn’t. She was Riley’s friend and they didn’t have anyone else they hung out with.
