The room was spinning and Cara was beginning to fuss, but I couldn’t breathe.
“Katy? Are you there? Did you hear all of that?”
“I’m here… I just…wow. I can’t believe it.”
“Believe it,” he said. “We’re going to get justice for your friends. And for everyone else these people have wronged. And it’s all because of you.”
I smiled through my tears, feeling my heart fill with the first bit of true hope and joy I’d been able to feel in so long.
“So, what’s next?” I asked, sniffling. “What do we do?”
“We wait. I need you to stay by the phone until I get the warrant to search the island, and then I’ll call you with the location for the chopper. Your husband is more than welcome to come with you. You’ll be under police protection the entire time, totally safe, but I understand this won’t be easy and I want you to have whatever support you need.”
“Thank you.”
“Okay, sit tight, Katy. I’ll be in touch soon.” With that, the call ended and I stared at the screen in complete and utter disbelief.
I hadn’t given up, and it had worked.
I was going back.
Please. Please. Please.
Chapter Thirty-Two
A week later, I was in a police helicopter, Detective Armbruster on one side and Ned on the other.
He’d filled me in on the plan. That detectives were tracking down the four co-owners of the island to bring them in for questioning. He told me how the warrant had given them permission to search every bit of the island, that they’d bring in cadaver dogs and search every square inch, not just for my friends, but for anything else nefarious that might be there.
He told me how the man who’d found me, a Tom from Savannah, Georgia, was going to be identifying Jessica as the woman who’d stolen from him and, if I could identify her as well, they believed she could have charges brought against her for both crimes, if not more.
But first, all they needed was for me to confirm that this island was the island. I gripped Ned’s hand tightly, my stomach in knots as we flew over the ocean. I tried not to look down, tried not to think about the last time I’d made this journey—albeit by sea, not air.
When I laid eyes on the island, seeing the aerial view for the first time, I gasped. I saw the falls from there, the cliff where Harry had died. I saw the top of the cliff house, an entire side of it previously unknown to me, that hadn’t been built into the cliff and looked like an actual house. On the far side, there were four small boat slips with matching boats in them, and farther down, there was a landing strip for what must’ve been a private plane or jet, though neither was there.
There had been so much on the island that we had no idea about, confined to our small campsite on the beach.
If we’d explored more, could we have found the plane or the boats? Could we have escaped or radioed for help? The questions haunted me. Why didn’t we try harder?
The helicopter began to descend, ready to land on a clear patch of beach as it threw sand up everywhere, creating a funnel cloud of sugary-white. I heard the engine cut off, and we waited for the two others to land before our door was thrown open. The detective climbed out first, holding out his hand for me to come with him. I did, Ned following closely behind me.
I tried to hold back the tears, my upper lip curling as I walked along the sand. I nodded, telling him this was it without the words I couldn’t seem to muster. Police were swarming now. I saw another helicopter flying across the island, headed for the house. We walked along the sandy shores, and I saw that James’s body had indeed been removed, all signs of its existence wiped clear. Our campsite was gone, too. All traces of the home we’d built had been removed.
“House is clear,” I heard a voice say over a radio. I needed to take them to Harry’s grave. To tell them where James’s body had been when we left. There was so much I needed to do, but all I wanted was to stare at the water, to feel the sand between my toes, to have a final goodbye to my friends and—
I stopped short, my breath catching.
Please. Please. Please.
I tried to make sense of what I was seeing. The detective had seen it, too. Him, too. A flash of skin beyond the trees. The detective reached for his gun, but I shook my head.
“No,” I said, my voice barely a whisper. Time stood still as I watched him emerge from beyond the trees, brilliant dark hair, bare tanned chest. He walked with a limp, but the wound had healed.
He made it. Somehow, some way, he actually made it.
He squinted, his hand over his eyes, and I watched the recognition flood his face. I looked back at my husband, an uncertain yet somehow knowing look in his eyes, then forward at the man I believed had given his life for me. Noah looked dumbstruck for a moment, then crossed his arms over his chest, a smug grin growing on his face. I saw the tears glinting in his eyes even from where I stood.
“Do you know him?” Detective Armbruster asked, his gun still at the ready.
“I do,” I whispered, tears filling my own eyes. “It’s Noah… He’s alive.”
I didn’t know how it was possible. In fact, I was sure it was impossible. But it was true. All that mattered was that it was true.
Now, as I look back on that day, I know that Harry had been wrong about one thing during our stay. The berries he’d told Ava were poison hadn’t been, or at least hadn’t been enough to kill Noah. I now know the story of how he floated back to the shore after our captors’ plane had taken off, how, by some miracle, his wound healed and he managed to make a shelter near the waterfall. How he’d waited a year for someone, anyone, to find him. I know that he spent every day thinking of me. Loving me. Expecting and hoping I’d return for him someday. Or, at the very least, hoping I’d have a good life because of him.
But back then, that day, I didn’t know any of that. Except that I had a choice to make, and I was ready to make it. It was the same choice that Noah had given me in nearly that same spot a year ago. Him or me? This time, I didn’t have to think. I didn’t have to weigh my options. Finally, I knew what I wanted. I looked back toward Ned just once, an apology in my eyes.
And then, barreling toward Noah as fast as my legs would carry me in the burning hot sand, I chose.
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Acknowledgments
If I were stuck on an island, it would be this group of loving, brilliant, and patient individuals I would want stuck there with me. (Sorry, not sorry, friends!) I owe them all my thanks.
First and foremost, to my amazing husband and beautiful little girl—thank you for loving me and believing in me every step of the way. No one sees the ins and outs of this process like you two and I’m so grateful to have you by my side as we navigate this twisted, amazing journey.
To my friend, Emerald O’Brien—thank you for being my biggest cheerleader and sounding board. I don’t know what publishing a book looked like before you came into my life and I never want to go back to those days. I’m forever thankful for your insights, encouragement, and unwavering support.
To my immensely talented editor, Sarah West—I’m always grateful to ha
ve you on my team, but with this book in particular, you were nothing short of a godsend. Thank you for working so hard to improve every story I bring you and for never batting an eye at my wild schedule.
To the proofreading team at My Brother’s Editor—I’m so grateful to work with your powerhouse team! Thank you for polishing each book until it shines and for always giving me that final boost of encouragement before it reaches readers.
To my #KMod Squad—yep, I’m taking all of y’all on the island, deal with it. Seriously though, I’m so humbled and honored by your support every single day. Thank you for cheering on each new release, for loving my characters and their stories as much as I do, for the reviews, the tags on social media, the recommendations to friends, the emails, the comments, and for being the best fans in the world.
To my agent, Carly Watters—thank you for being a champion for my books and for me. Thank you for believing in their potential and helping me to reach new heights and achieve my dreams.
To Katy Corbeil and Jessica Laguna—readers who won a chance to be written as characters in this book. Thank you for trusting me. I had so much fun writing you both into this world and I hope you loved your characters!
Last but certainly not least, to you—thank you for reading this story. I spent many long nights creating this world, these characters, and their suspenseful and, at times, heartbreaking story. During those long writing sessions, I’d often think about what my readers would feel during certain parts or about certain characters. What they’d take away from certain moments. Who they’d hate. Who they’d love. If they’d feel anger, hurt, or betrayal right along with these characters. I thought of you, Dear Reader, and what your journey would be with Katy and the others. No matter how you ended up feeling—whether you loved or hated it—I offer you my sincerest thanks for supporting my art and my career. If you look close enough at each of my stories, there’s always a lesson that can be found. I think with this one, the lesson was this: I, like Noah’s Lola, believe we are stronger together. I’m so thankful you decided to take this trip with me.
About the Author
Kiersten Modglin is an Amazon Top 30 bestselling author of award-winning psychological suspense novels and a member of International Thriller Writers. Kiersten lives in Nashville, Tennessee with her husband, daughter, and their two Boston Terriers: Cedric and Georgie. She is best known for her unpredictable suspense and her readers have dubbed her 'The Queen of Twists.' A Netflix addict, Shonda Rhimes super-fan, psychology fanatic, and indoor enthusiast, Kiersten enjoys rainy days spent with her nose in a book.
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Also by Kiersten Modglin
STANDALONE NOVELS
Becoming Mrs. Abbott
The List
The Missing Piece
Playing Jenna
The Beginning After
The Better Choice
The Good Neighbors
The Lucky Ones
I Said Yes
The Mother-in-Law
The Dream Job
The Liar’s Wife
My Husband’s Secret
The Perfect Getaway
The Arrangement
The Roommate
Just Married
THE MESSES SERIES
The Cleaner (The Messes, #1)
The Healer (The Messes, #2)
The Liar (The Messes, #3)
The Prisoner (The Messes, #4)
NOVELLAS
The Long Route: A Lover’s Landing Novella
The Stranger in the Woods: A Crimson Falls Novella
THE LOCKE INDUSTRIES SERIES
The Nanny’s Secret
The Missing Page 23
