Page 54 of Ghost Among Lies

Nyx leaned against the door with a smirk on her face. "I knew I would eventually. Although, I have to give you credit. You lasted much longer than I expected. I was giving you forty-five minutes before you cracked. You almost tripled that."

"Thanks. I think." Nyx was making my head hurt. I now knew why I preferred to work alone. I wouldn't make it a week with someone like Nyx. I wasn't sure how her team did it. Anita clearly had more patience than I gave her credit for.

I practically sighed in relief when Nyx's phone finally beeped.

"It's go time. Remember the plan. You keep Sasha busy while I deal with the couple from hell."

I rolled my eyes. This was the tenth time she reminded me of my role. "I know. You don't have to keep reminding me."

"Maybe I just like to hear myself talk."

Now, that I could believe.

The Robinsons’ house wasn't nearly as grand as the Astors’. There were no guards or a large gate keeping the rest of the world out. It was, however, three thousand square feet of stone and large glass windows in a nice suburban neighborhood. If the community didn't have an HOA, I would be surprised. It would seem like the kind of neighborhood that would.

The lawns were immaculate. Nothing was out of place, and there was no evidence kids lived in the area. It was the kind of place where people called the police because of noise complaints rather than real crimes.

"Let's get this over with. The neighborhood is creeping me the hell out. No one should live this perfectly."

That was something we could agree on.

I stood off to the side of the door while Nyx knocked. It was late enough in the evening that visitors weren't common, so it was no surprise when Mr. Robinson cursed on his way to the door. His situational awareness sucked, and he didn't check before ripping the door open.

Bad for him. Good for us.

"Who the…" Nyx didn't let him finish. She shoved him back through the door and pounced like a lion. I stepped out of the way and gave Nyx the space to work while I went in search of Sasha.

I found the little girl and Mrs. Robinson hiding in the tub behind the shower curtain. "Please," Mrs. Robinson begged while holding Sasha close to her chest. "Please don't hurt us."

"I'm not here to hurt the child. You, on the other hand, aren't so lucky. That's what happens when you agree to keep a little girl away from her mother."

The color drained from her face when the reality of her situation hit.

"Marco!" Nyx sang from somewhere farther down the hall.

"Polo," I hollered back.

Two seconds later, Nyx joined us in the bathroom. "Well, hello there, pretty girl. I know someone who's going to be very happy to see you."

Nyx plucked the little girl out of Mrs. Robinson's arms and handed her to me. I didn't know the first thing about holding a child, but Sasha didn't seem to care. She shoved her chubby thumb into her mouth and snuggled in.

"Well, look at that. She likes you." Nyx smirked. "Now go pack her a bag while I get to work." I moved around Nyx and headed down the hall until I came across a room covered top to bottom in pink.

Sasha couldn't be more than three years old, and I didn't know what it said about her life that she didn't get upset around a strange person. I wanted to hope she had a decent life despite being separated from her mother.

I found a suitcase in the closet and filled it with clothes and anything else I thought she might need. There was one ratty-looking blanket and turtle that looked like they had seen better days. I scooped them up and added them to the collection. Something told me they were her favorite.

"You almost done?"

Nyx startled me enough to drop the suitcase back on the bed. I whipped around and hissed, "Next time, make a noise or something."

She shrugged. "I did. It's not my fault you were too absorbed to pay attention." She wiggled her fingers. "Now give me Sasha so I can get out of here, and you can do what you do best."

Sasha whimpered a couple of times before Nyx managed to bounce her back to sleep. With the little girl in one arm and the suitcase in the other hand, I followed Nyx through the house. I was glad to see Nyx was smart enough to keep the mess out of sight in case the little girl woke up.

I waited until Nyx got Sasha settled, and they drove off, before I let myself settle into work mode. I found Mr. Robinson in the kitchen with over a dozen stab wounds over his chest and stomach. I shook my head and sighed. I don't know why I thought Nyx would make this easy on me.

I pushed the thought out of my mind and got to work. With any luck, I would be done long before Sloane got back, and I could spend some time getting to know Benny while we waited for her.