Undertow (The UnderCity Chronicles) Read Online Free PDF Page A

find her.”
    Reggie shook his head in disgust, obviously offended by the very name of the police captain. Jack’s expression remained neutral. He dished the eggs onto a slab of bread, covered it with another and took a bite. “I warned her what might happen if she went down there. I’m not responsible for her stupidity. You neither.”
    Lindsay’s mouth went dry. What had happened to that kind, adventurous boy? For the first year after he’d left, they’d fired postcards and letters back and forth, Lindsay marking down a different address every time as Jack and his father moved so much. They kept it up for five years with phone calls on their respective birthdays. They’d even talked about her flying to London after her graduation from design school. Then the accident had happened, and she’d known that her old life was over. She didn’t call on his birthday, left a couple of postcards unanswered, and after the sale of her family home, she herself changed addresses. No, she couldn’t blame Jack for losing touch. It was she that had shut the door. She had changed. Only—only she hadn’t expected him to.
    “Look, Jack, I know I’m the one who dropped the connection with you. I can see my showing up here today isn’t what you wanted. And I know you’re not responsible for my sister. But I need your help. The police don’t have the men to search for Seline, and none of the private investigators I’ve contacted will take the case.”
    “Can’t spend the cash if you’re dead,” Reggie interjected grimly.
    Lindsay ignored the comment, took a step towards Jack. “I can pay you well for your time. I can hire a search party for you to lead. Anything you need. Anything at all.”
    Jack laughed, a dry, derisive sound. “Didn’t you hear Reggie? I value my life more than money, too.”
    Irritation spurred by disappointment shot through her. She swept her arm around the barren place. “Looks to me as if you don’t value either.”
    Reggie let out a low whistling breath, as if his favorite boxer had got a blow to the midsection. For a long moment, Lindsay and Jack glared at each other, then without breaking eye contact, Jack spoke fast and clipped. “A search party wouldn’t be any use unless it was huge, and you’re never going to get enough experienced people underground to make it worthwhile. I spent twenty-three months under this city. I know what I’m talking about when it comes to the tunnels, and odds are excellent your niece is dead. The chances of finding her remains are slim to none, and very good that you’re going to get yourself killed looking for them. You need to face the truth.”
    Lindsay felt her stomach twist, and it took a huge effort to keep her voice firm. “I’m not a bimbo, Jack. I know damn well she’s probably dead. But if there’s a one percent chance that she’s still alive then I need to try. I’ve done my best to get help over the past week, and you’re my last option. If you won’t go then my only choice is to go down there myself.”
    Reggie looked aggrieved. “Then you’ll die.”
    “We all do. Better that it be for the right reason,” Lindsay snapped.
    Jack shook his head. “Reggie’s right. No sense getting yourself killed, too. There are people who need you alive.” His eyes skimmed over her. “Like the shops on Fifth Avenue.”
    It was a calculated dig, and Lindsay struggled to keep her temper in check. With as much grace as could pass through her clenched jaw, she asked, “Do you know anyone who would help me, then?”
    “No. And if I did, I wouldn’t tell you.”
    “Because?”
    “Because you’d go to them, sucker them with your money or your looks, and they’d go down and that’s the last we’d ever hear of them.” Jack finished his egg sandwich in two more bites and one swallow and sent the plate clattering into the sink. He rounded on her again.
    “People like you have no idea what’s living under their feet. Not even the street homeless