Troubled Water » Outer Banks [JJ Maybank] BOOK TWO

V: Siren

siren
noun. a device that makes a loud, prolonged sound as a signal or warning
noun. each of a number of women or winged creatures whose singing lured unwary sailors on to rocks.

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Yesterday 11:51 PM

Not gonna make it tonight. Be there tmrw morning.

I hope this is Lee.
Delivered

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Lee woke up the next morning in a similar position to how she had found herself just two days ago: face pressed into Danny's carpet, drool pooling in the corner of her lips, eyes full of goop, and overall exhausted after a long night of restless sleep. She glanced at her phone, which was buzzing with a phone call—the reason she was awake at 7AM.

"Hello?" she answered drowsily, recognizing the area code as the Outer Banks but not putting much thought past that. Had she been more awake, she probably would have ignored the call—allowed it to go to voicemail and then listened to the recording, if one had been left (although the 18 unopened messages would have you believe otherwise).

"Is this Lee Carter?" the caller replied.

Lee frowned, sitting up straight and cracking her back as she noticed that Danny had already disappeared from his room. "Who's asking?"

"This is Maya from the Kildare County Court," the caller explained. Lee blinked quickly, standing up and looking for proper clothes to change into before realizing the officer couldn't see her. "Is this Lena Carter?"

Lee cleared her throat. "Yes. Uh, this is she." Lee looked at her reflection of Danny's computer monitor, grimacing as she spotted her hair, which was mussed up after another night of sleeping on the floor.

"I'm calling in relation to a subpoena that is being issued to you by an attorney in relation to the charges against John Booker Routledge in the death of Susan Peterkin."

Lee was frozen where she stood. "Uh..." was all that she could stutter out. Her blue eyes stared back at her, black, in the reflection.

"Are you aware of this subpoena, Miss Carter?"

"Um, sort of," Lee replied hesitantly, running a hand down her face and turning away from Danny's desk. "What's going on?"

"You are expected to report to the Kildare County Courthouse tomorrow morning at 10AM to testify in relation to the death of Susan Peterkin. Are you aware of this?"

Lee pressed her lips together. "No, I wasn't aware of that."

"I see. We mailed you a subpoena two weeks ago, did you not receive the notice?"

"No," Lee said, barely processing what the caller was saying anymore. She was being called to testify tomorrow?

"Okay, it's possible we have the wrong address on file for you. Do you still live on Packard Street?"

"No," Lee repeated. Her gaze drifted out the window of Danny's room, where sunlight was streaming in through his cracked blinds.

"Would you be able to give me the correct address so that we can send future notices to you?"

Lee mumbled off her new address in Charleston for the caller. They repeated it back once and then reminded Lee to be at the Courthouse tomorrow at 10AM in "proper attire." When Lee asked what that meant, they stated that it was business casual. There was no option stated to reschedule before the call was over and Lee was left standing like a statue in Danny's room, staring out his window to the street below, wondering if swimming to Mexico was a plausible escape from her responsibilities.