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back door of one open, leaped in, and threw myself into the seat.
     
    "Davis Square," I said. The cab took off, heading to my brother's apartment in Somerville.
     
    I couldn't go home. I didn't want to be alone.
     

 
    Chapter 6
     
    "You think you're being followed?" said Dan, his hair all messed up. He wore a rumpled white T-shirt and gym shorts.
     
    "No," I said. "I know I'm being followed! I've seen the same guy three times now. Outside the restaurant that night. On the subway later. And tonight at the Pru Mall Food Court."
     
    "Uh-huh." Dan was a little bleary-eyed. He had been smoking weed, I could tell. "Why would somebody be following you?"
     
    "Because of this!"
     
    I took out the key and held it up. At that moment, Nikki came out of the bedroom wearing a tank top and another pair of gym shorts.
     
    Shit, I didn't know she was here.
     
    "I'm sorry," I said, suddenly embarrassed. I picked up my purse. "I don't mean to intrude on you guys. I'll go. It's just... I just... I mean..."
     
    "It's okay," Nikki said as she put her arm around me. "Put that down and sit."
     
    She took my purse out of my hand and put it on the coffee table. Then she eased me backward onto the love seat behind us.
     
    I felt a genuine warmth from her. It was a good feeling.
     
    "Dan, I'm going to head out," she said. "You and your sister need to talk."
     
    "No," I said as I put my hand on her arm. "Please stay." I meant it. I trust her.
     
    "Are you sure?"
     
    "Yes. Look, I'm sorry to interrupt you guys. I'm just really upset."
     
    "What is the key?" Dan said.
     
    I told them the entire story. Well, most of it anyway. H. The safe deposit box. The locket. Death at Sea. The money. Red Crew-Cut. The only part I left out were my odd visions of being on a sinking boat.
     
    Oddly, as I talked to them, I felt like I was breaching a trust with H.
     
    Trust? He's a complete stranger. What kind of trust can you have with somebody you don't even know?
     
    And yet I did.
     
    But I'm scared and I need help right now. That's why I have to tell Dan and Nikki all of this.
     
    "Dan, why don't you make us some dinner?" said Nikki.
     
    "Sure," Dan said and turned to the kitchen.
     
    "Can I get you some water?"
     
    "No," I said. "Dan has some Grey Goose, though. I think I want some of that."
     
    A couple of vodka drinks later, I was feeling more relaxed. We ate a delicious stir-fry dinner at Dan's round kitchen table.
     
    As we ate, something struck me about Nikki's shoulders in the tight tank-top. Her collarbone was wide and straight. Her shoulders were dainty, but square. Very small breasts. There was something almost misshapen about her, but not really. Hard to describe. Sexy, though, whatever it is. She caught me staring at her at one point and I took another sip of my drink.
     
    "I hate to have to say this, Kiri," Nikki said, "but I think your Horace Willoughby is a thief."
     
    The piece of chicken I was swallowing stuck in my throat. I sipped some water and it went down. Then I sipped some more Grey Goose.
     
    "A thief?" I said.
     
    "Yes, it's obvious. The hundred-thousand dollars is stolen money. He's hiding it. He thinks you're some sweet vulnerable girl who isn't going to say anything to anybody. He's using his charm on you to trick you into trusting him. He gave you the key so that nobody could steal it from him."
     
    "Shit, I hadn't thought of it that way. He's making me an accomplice."
     
    "That's right. Which is why you need to turn the key in to your boss. And I mean tomorrow."
     
    "But how do I explain how I have it? I'll be fired on the spot for possessing it."
     
    "Say you found it. It was lying on the floor. Even pretend you pick it up so the security cameras see you doing it. Then just turn it in and say, 'Hey, I just found this on the floor in the lobby.'"
     
    "Yeah, I could do that. Then it would be out of my hands."
     
    "That's right. You would be totally clean from that point forward. You didn't tell