Jaci’s alarm went off at three o’clock on Sunday morning. She batted at it with one hand, hitting the snooze button on her phone and pulling the pillow back over her head. Why on earth would she be waking up so early on a Sunday? She didn’t run anymore, and there was no school today anyway. She closed her eyes, letting the heaviness of sleep pull on her forehead, lulling her back into her dreams.

And then she remembered. She was flying to Switzerland today. Jaci hopped out of bed so fast she had to grab the bedpost for support. She took several deep breaths to calm her heart. Today—no, tomorrow—when the plane landed in Switzerland, she would see her father.

Her phone dinged as she brushed her teeth.

You up? Amanda asked.

Yes, Jaci responded. She leaned over the sink and spit, then shoved her toothbrush and any remaining toiletry items into her carry-on bag.

On our way, came Amanda’s response.

Jaci took a deep breath and brushed her hands on her jeans. Go-time. She grabbed her bags and went downstairs to wait for Amanda’s dad.

She wasn’t surprised to find her mother sitting on the couch, reading a magazine as if she always got up at three to read.

“Mom. You didn’t have to wake up for me.”

Still in her pajamas and her eyes puffy from lack of sleep, Mrs. Rivera stood up and wrapped her arms around Jaci. She gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. “I wouldn’t let you leave without saying goodbye, mija.”

Jaci squeezed her mother’s forearms, wishing she could tell her she would be seeing her father soon. Her mother no longer wore her wedding ring, but Jaci knew her heart would always belong to her father. Maybe there was a chance they could fix things. Maybe her father could come home. She thought of the papers Detective Hamilton had given her and felt a flicker of hope.

And then she shoved the thought off. It wasn’t possible. He would never denounce what he did, and the government would never sanction his actions.

Nor would her mother.

Headlights swung over the living room through the windows outside, and Jaci shouldered her carry-on while gripping the suitcase handle at the same time. “That’s Amanda’s dad.” She bobbed on her feet anxiously, wincing at the tightness in her ankle. But it was so much better than a week ago.

Her mom took her suitcase from her. “I’ll walk you out.”

Jaci allowed her, and together they went out the door. “Give Cesar a hug for me,” Jaci said.

Mr. Murphy had already opened the back door of the car and popped the trunk. “Hi, Marcela,” he said, giving Jaci’s mom a quick hug. “How have you been?”

“We’ve been all right.” Mrs. Rivera handed Jaci’s suitcase to him and wrapped her arms around herself while he tossed it in the trunk. “Please take care of them. It makes me very nervous, you know, after everything they’ve been through . . .”

Mr. Murphy nodded. “I know. I’ll keep them safe.”

“Thank you for doing this. I know it means a lot to Jaci.”

Jaci gave her mom one more hug and then hopped into the back. She expected Amanda to be in the passenger seat, but she was in the back as well. She had her head leaning against the headrest, eyes closed and her mouth open as she slept.

Jaci elbowed her. “Hey. Wake up.”

Amanda swallowed, closing her mouth but not opening her eyes. “I’m awake.”

Mr. Murphy slid into the driver’s seat and turned the car around, driving back out of the long gravel driveway. “Are you ready for this, girls?”

“Yep,” Amanda said with about as much enthusiasm as Cesar when told to do his chores.

“So ready,” Jaci said, sitting on her hands to keep them still.

The drive to the airport reminded Jaci of the last time she had been there, saying goodbye to Ricky. Why did she have to be a senior in high school? If she were older, they could make different choices, they could begin a life together. If that was what he wanted, anyway.

She pulled out her phone and sent him a quick text. On my way to the airport.

She didn’t expect a response; after all, it wasn’t even four o’clock in the morning yet. But she might be on a plane when he woke up, and she wanted him to know she was thinking of him.

They arrived at the airport half an hour later. There was no sign of the sun on the horizon, darkness still lingering over the parking lot. Though she knew her tiredness and jet lag would catch up with her later, right now all Jaci felt was anticipation.

“If you girls will grab your carry-ons, I’ll get the suitcases,” Mr. Murphy said. In the light of the street lamps, Jaci could see the stubble on his face and the worry lines around his eyes. “Amanda, don’t go in without me.”

“We’re just getting out of the cold, Dad,” Amanda said.

The morning was chilly, but Jaci hadn’t noticed until that moment. Now she stepped closer to Amanda. She had warm winter clothes in her luggage, but nothing except the sweater she wore for the plane trip.

“Fine, go into the airport. Wait for me right inside the doors.”

The girls hurried inside. Only then did Jaci turn to Amanda and ask, “Has he been more paranoid than usual? I don’t remember him ever acting so worried.”

Amanda rolled her eyes. “Suffice it to say it might not be as easy to sneak you away as we had hoped. Ever since the ‘incident,’” she made air quotes when she said the word, “he’s been keeping a very close eye on me. I think he’s trying to make up for the past two years.”

“Now?” Jaci sighed. “Great timing.”

Amanda’s parents had divorced after the kidnapping. Amanda’s mother had wanted her to come to California and live with her, but Amanda had chosen to stay in Idaho, even though her father had been unemployed and struggling with depression. After everything they’d been through, she and Jaci couldn’t bear to be parted.

Eventually they would have to be. Next year for college. A whole drawer full of acceptance letters waited for Jaci to read through and pick one back home. What if her grades tanked because of this? Would the colleges still accept her?

“I have to be able to see my father,” Jaci said. “That’s the whole point of this trip.”

“No worries, we’ll figure it out. Even if you just go with him. We’ll make sure it happens.”

“That would go over real well. My mom would think I’d been kidnapped again.”

Amanda shot her a look. “Don’t let yourself get kidnapped.”

Because they both knew it was an actual possibility.

In no time at all they had passed through security and were sitting at the gate, a full hour before the flight boarded. Amanda yawned loudly.

“I knew we got up too early.”

Her dad fell into a chair beside them, running a hand through his curly brown hair before sticking a baseball cap on. “Better early than late. If we missed our flight, there wouldn’t be another one for two more days.”

Amanda didn’t comment, just closed her eyes.

Which left Jaci with no one to talk to for the next hour. She pulled out her phone and scrolled through social media, though she had never been very active on any of her accounts. She considered reading the book that was due for English, but it would possibly be more boring than sitting here doing nothing.

Instead, she pulled out her laptop. She opened up the thumb drive still installed on her computer and hesitated. Did she really want to start down this path? She already knew how the story ended. Would it bring her more pain or release to watch it unfold?

Taking a deep breath, she clicked the oldest file labeled “set up.”

As instructed, I found Jaci Rivera’s house. I went during my lunch break. I knocked on the door just to make sure no one was home, and then I installed the surveillance cameras by the garage and the front porch. I licensed the software under my name but I am emailing the site to you with my username and password.

Chills ran down Jaci’s spine. Before she had ever spoken a word to Joey, he had already set up a network to spy on her. Revulsion and disgust twisted around in her empty stomach so angrily that she thought she might be sick.

She wanted to close the computer, not read anymore. But she couldn’t. She lifted her eyes to the screen and forced herself to keep reading.

Tomorrow I will watch her at school and familiarize myself with her schedule and where her locker is. I will send my next report then.

Now Jaci closed the computer. She pressed the palm of her hand against her forehead. Self-preservation, loyalty to his brother, whatever. There was no excuse for what Joey had done. He had targeted her because somebody told him too. He might have told himself his actions weren’t nefarious, but deep down he had to know the truth. He wasn’t in Jaci’s advanced class for nothing.

She couldn’t take anymore right now. Like Amanda, she laid her head back and closed her eyes.

Mr. Murphy woke Jaci and Amanda when the plane began to board.

“You’ll get the chance to rest when we reach Denver. We have a two-hour layover there.”

And another two-hour layover in Chicago. They wouldn’t reach Switzerland until the next day. Jaci stifled a yawn. She was all about being an early riser, but three a.m. was too early.

Six hours later when they finally boarded their connecting flight to Switzerland, all she felt was anxiety and hope. Her heart pattered at the base of her throat, and she tried to hold her foot still as the plane started its descent into Zürich.

Detective Hamilton told her he would get in touch with her father and let him know she was using the plane tickets but that she would be with Amanda and Mr. Murphy. Would her dad show up at the airport to greet her? She doubted it, though she couldn’t help hoping he would. He couldn’t take her with him. Mr. Murphy would call her mother, and if her mother freaked, INTERPOL could ambush them before they made it out of the airport. How did he intend to contact her, then? Her cell phone had no international service and was mostly useless without Wi-Fi right now. Detective Hamilton had probably given him their hotel information. Would he try to sneak over as a pizza delivery boy?

They stood in line to get through customs and then made their way to the baggage claim. Jaci rested her hands on her carry-on luggage, physically exhausted but mentally alert.

Someone tapped her on the shoulder. Jaci swiveled, expecting to see Amanda. Instead a woman with short blond hair and minimal makeup stood there.

“Miss? This is for you.” She handed an envelope to Jaci and walked away.

Jaci took it and turned it over. Written on the back was one sentence: Girls bathroom third stall toilet paper dispenser.