The Prophet (Ryan Archer #2) by William Casey Moreton Read Free Book Online

this. But not in there.” She gestured at the theater. “I don’t want my boyfriend to see me with you.”
    “I think you might have heard the last of Stevie,” Archer said. He nodded at his truck. “Hop in.”

    * * *
    Archer parked at a burger joint and asked if she was hungry. She orders onion rings and a Diet Sprite. She opened five ketchup packets and squeezed the contents onto a paper napkin. She dipped a fat, greasy ring in the ketchup and bit off half. Headlights were coming on as daylight faded.
    Archer ordered a bottled water. The top was off the Land Cruiser. He propped his foot on the dash. The cold bottle was sweating on his shirt. Cory kept glancing at his muscles, and the way his biceps stretched the arms of his T-shirt. Archer watched cars come and go from the drive-in from behind his aviators.  
    “Thanks for the rings,” she said. “I was starving.”
    He glanced at her. She wore too much makeup. Scrape off half the makeup and work on the hair, and she could be a real knockout. She was trying too hard while trying to figure out her identity.  
    “How long have you known Tatum?” he asked.
    She pushed a napkin across her face. “Couple of years.”
    “How did you meet?”
    “We went to the same private school for a while,” she said. “Don’t anymore, but we still hang out some.”
    “Have you met her father?”
    Cory nodded. She glanced over and said, “It’s not that big of a deal. Half the people in this town are rich or famous or both. I’ve grown up around it and it’s just background noise. It’s not like some kid growing up on a farm and watching TV—kids around here understand that celebrities are just normal people with jobs and families.”
    “When was the last time you saw her?”
    She was mauling a thick ring and turned her eyes skyward, studying the clouds for an answer. “Earlier in the week. We hung out some. But she hasn’t answered her cell in a few days. She’s like that sometimes. She’ll kinda disappear, like she wants everybody to leave her alone. I think her dad’s life has traumatized her.”
    A black Mercedes with dark windows passed behind the Land Cruiser, whipped past the drive-thru and quickly exited. Archer noted it, watched it exit, and took a long swig from the water.  
    “Did you change schools, or did Tatum?”
    Cory took a hit off the Diet Sprite. “Tatum. She couldn’t deal with her helio, so her dad hired a tutor and let her stay home.”
    “You know about her heliophobia?”
    She shot him a look like he must be retarded. “Dude, I’m like her best friend in the world.”
    “Do all her friends know?”
    “Seriously doubt it. She’s totally embarrassed by it.”
    “Her parents are worried. They haven’t heard from her in days. Any idea where she might be?”
    She wiped crumbs from her fingers. “Tatum has run away a few times before. Maybe she did again.”
    “Maybe. Is that what you think?”
    “I don’t think anything. I don’t hear from her all the time, so this kind of stuff doesn’t worry me. So she runs away again, big deal. She’ll come back. Give it another day or two. She’ll start missing her room and her things and her swanky life. Her dad spoils her. He may not be around much, but he definitely spoils her. Must be rough.”
    Archer flipped down the visor and flashed the photos in front of her.
    “Recognize everyone?”
    Cory nodded. “Lucy, Liz, Mocha, and Danielle.”
    “Can you call them for me?”
    “What do you want with them?”
    “I need to find Tatum. You guys are her inner circle of friends, right?”
    She shrugged. “Yeah, I guess.”
    “Call them.”
    “What do I tell them?”
    “Tell them it’s an emergency. Tell them to meet you somewhere, ASAP.”
    “Where do you want to meet?”
    “That’s your call,” he said

    * * *
    Tatum was trying not to cry. It was a struggle. She had spent a long day in class and she was tired. The schedule they had put her on was erratic and she had lost track