Whispered Shadows

Chapter Thirteen

Secrets in the Shadows

Noa

It is the next day, I wake up with a knot in my stomach. The first note is still here, as if keeping it close will somehow make Gia feel closer too. I don't know what to do next—there's no playbook for unraveling the truth about your sister's disappearance while being taunted by someone who seems to know more than you do.

The sound of Piper pawing at her food bowl snaps me out of my spiraling thoughts. I climb out of bed, scoop some kibble into her dish, and watch as she eats, her small body completely at ease.

If only I could feel like that—safe, grounded.

A knock at the door startles me. For a second, I freeze, my mind jumping to the worst-case scenario. But then I hear Ryder's familiar voice through the door, "Noa, it's me."

I exhale, relief washing over me, and open the door. He's standing there in his usual uniform of dark jeans and a leather jacket, his badge clipped to his belt. His green eyes sweep over me like he's assessing every inch for damage.

"You didn't answer your phone," he says, stepping inside without waiting for an invitation.

"I didn't hear it," I reply, shutting the door.

"You're supposed to keep it on you at all times," he says, his tone sharp. "What if something happened?"

"Good morning to you too, Ryder," I say, crossing my arms. "And for the record, nothing happened."

His jaw tightens, but he doesn't argue. Instead, he pulls out a folded piece of paper and sets it on the desk.

"What's that?" I ask.

"The note," he says. "I ran it through the database last night. No matches on the handwriting, but that doesn't mean much. Whoever this is, they're careful.

I sit down on the bed, staring at the note like it might start talking if I look hard enough. "So we're back to square one."

"Not exactly," Ryder says, leaning against the desk. "I've been digging through Gia's social media, her phone records, anything I could get my hands on. There's a pattern in the places she visited—one we didn't see before."

"What kind of pattern?" I ask out of curiosity

"She wasn't just hanging out," he says. "She was meeting someone. The same person, over and over, but always in different spots. The coffee shop, the lake, the studio—they were all part of it."

My heart sinks. "And you think whoever she was meeting has something to do with her disappearance?"

"It's a possibility," Ryder says. "But there's more."

He pulls out his phone and shows me a photo. It's grainy, probably taken from a security camera, but I can make out Gia sitting at a table in the coffee shop. Across from her is a man in a baseball cap, his face mostly obscured.

"Who is that?" I question, leaning closer.

"Don't know yet," Ryder admits. "But I've got facial recognition working on it. If we can figure out who he is, we might have a lead."

I stare at the photo, my chest tightening. Gia looks happy—her smile is easy, her posture relaxed. It's hard to reconcile this version of her with the secrets and lies we've been uncovering.

"I should've known," I whisper, more to myself than to Ryder. "I should've realized something was going on."

"You can't blame yourself," he says, his voice softer now. "Gia was good at hiding things. She didn't want you to worry."