Page 36 of Unburied

Vivi could only imagine. She focused once more on Tyler. “Have you spoken with him?”

“I can’t.”

The way he said it both piqued Vivi's curiosity and filled her with a sense of dread, but Mason spoke up before she could voice her questions.

“Why not?” Mason asked. “Were you not able to contact him?”

Tyler stared up at Vivi. “I’ve looked everywhere, followed every lead but there’s absolutely no record of him anywhere.”

Vivi exchanged a quick glance with Mason as she let that sink in. “You think he’s dead?”

Tyler shook his head, looking serious. “I think he was murdered.”

CHAPTER

TWENTY

Mason steered into a parking spot alongside the hotel and turned to Vivi, who was in the process of unbuckling her seat belt.

“I go first. Stay behind me and to the left,” he instructed.

She threw a bewildered look his way. “Seriously? You think he’s going to attack me or something?”

Mason thought the guy was either completely full of crap or out of his mind. But if Vivi wanted to give him a shot, then that’s what they were going to do. It didn’t mean he was going to be happy about it or slack off. He had no idea what the guy’s agenda was. This whole thing could be some kind of trap, and he refused to put Vivi in danger.

The guy had been casing the house; who knew what he would have done if they weren’t there? Mason’s bike was in the garage next to Vivi’s car, so it looked like no one was home. If she’d been there alone… Christ, he couldn’t fathom. Fury surged through his veins.

“I never joke about your safety. Despite what he told us earlier, we don’t know anything about him,” he said firmly.

That was another issue he planned to rectify soon. As soon as they got to Vantage in the morning, he would have Vivi run background checks on both Tyler and whoever this Russ guy was.

Vivi stared at him for a second, then finally nodded. “All right, you win.”

Mason smirked. “I like that you say that like you have a choice.”

One dark brow lifted. “You’re such a jerk.”

He winked at her as he settled his hand on her thigh and squeezed. “Bet your pretty behind. Now, let’s get this over with so we can get back to bed.”

After Tyler had dropped that last bomb—that he assumed Russ, his father, was dead—he insisted they come to the hotel so he could prove it. Mason had no idea what they were going to find inside, and a huge part of him didn’t really care. If the guy had knocked up his fifteen-year-old stepdaughter, he probably deserved whatever had happened to him.

So, here they were, a little after midnight. Mason didn't trust this guy as far as he could throw him, and he was more than a little cranky about the whole situation. Vivi seemed intent on listening to his explanation though, and he owed it to her to at least give him half an hour of their time.

His Smith & Wesson was warm and familiar at his lower back, and though Vivi had given him a sharp look when he tucked it into his waistband, he didn't care. He never went anywhere without it, and he wasn't going to start now. Besides, he wasn't entirely convinced that this guy wasn't mentally unbalanced.

Mason made his way around the car and opened the door for her. He wasn’t about to drag her around on his bike in the middle of the night, so they’d opted to take her car instead. Once she was on her feet, he locked up again and tucked her partially behind his body as they made their way toward the seedy hotel. Tyler must've seen them coming, because he flung the door open seconds later. The inside of the room was lit up like a beacon, which seemed to be a good omen at least.

Mason still wasn't exactly sure what they were doing here in the middle of the night. All he knew was that when Vivi got an idea in her head, it was almost impossible to get her to veer from her course. He’d tried to tell her no fewer than a dozen times on the way over that they could do this tomorrow—or, you know, never—but she’d insisted they at least check out what he had to say.

Keeping his eyes forward, he directed his voice over his shoulder, just loud enough that Vivi could hear him. “You owe me for this.”

She slipped her hand into his and gave it a little squeeze. He stepped into the hotel room first, still shielding Vivi with his body as he turned to Tyler. “Show us what you've got.”

Tyler closed and locked the door, then strode across the room to a small table in the corner that doubled as a desk. Mason was momentarily stupefied by the number of post-its and newspaper clippings stuck to the wall around it.

“I've been going through everything I can think of,” Tyler started. “The last address listed for Russ was in Orlando.”

Mason nodded, playing along. “Not the worst choice.” It was close enough that he could come back and visit if he wanted, but far enough away to start fresh. “So I'm assuming he wasn't at home when you went to visit him?”