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I laughed bitterly. “Yep. In retrospect, it wouldn’t surprise me if it was government employees who made up the stories to cover up any weird sounds coming from the building or keep anyone from trying to squat. It seems like it’s been abandoned for a while, but I can’t imagine they wantedanyoneto find out about it, no matter who they were.”
Eli nodded thoughtfully, taking another bite of his dinner. “That makes sense,” he decided, looking back at me. “And you said you didn’t come here for this project?”
“No.” I shook my head and grabbed another fry. “My first client, ever, is in the Silverstreak pack — Demi Smith. She called me because her sister went missing, and she said the police and the pack elders wouldn’t take her seriously.”
Eli’s brows furrowed. “Why not?”
I sighed. “Well, I guess her sister, Cyn, used to have an issue with drugs — but she went to rehab and was clean for the last six months.” Eli made a face, and I held up a finger. “Don’t judge her,” I warned. “All the information I could find about Cyn indicated she had stayed clean; she wasn’t just telling her family that. She was making future plans and wasn’t connected with the people she’d gotten into trouble with. She was even looking forward to the Moonmate ceremony.” I flashed him a wry smile. “But she disappeared without a trace.”
Eli tipped his head. “You keep saying, client…”
“Ah, yes.” I smiled a little more. “I’m a private detective. Do you want my business card?”
Eli snorted, something brightening in those handsome eyes. “And you said Demi went to the pack about her missing sister?”
My smile faded a little. “Yes. The police took her missing person report, but nothing seems to have been investigated. I actually visited the station, but the detective handling her case totally dismissed me, and the case clerk… indicated that she wasn’t taking things very seriously. So, Demi went to the pack elders, and nothing else happened.”
“Just the elders, not Remus?”
I paused for a moment, thinking back. “No. She specifically said pack elders. She didn’t say anything about the pack alpha. Maybe she assumed she’d get the same answer; I don’t know.”
“Ah. Well, it seems they aren’t telling Remus everything, then.” He sighed, leaning back. The chair creaked ominously, and his eyes widened; I couldn’t help but snicker.
“Look, at least it’s not a Motel 6,” I teased. Eli looked like the type of man used to staying in the Four Seasons Hotel. “I guess that’s possible. I don’t know. The only thing that doesn’t make sense to me is Ashley.”
Eli tipped his head to one side. “What do you mean?”
“As far as I can tell, all the other missing shifters were at-risk people — either they were using drugs, had previously used drugs, were experiencing homelessness, job insecurity…” I trailed off, grimacing. “They weren’t all from Silverstreak, but they’d all come to Texas for one reason or another. And I did find out that there was, apparently, a tainted batch of dope several months ago, and some people died from it, so many of these missing people are being written off as drug addicts who overdosed or used tainted drugs… and that’s that.” I frowned, looking down at the table. “It’s gross. People are just being written off.”
Eli sighed, and when I glanced up, he looked somber. Tired. “I had no idea. If they were from different packs, it makes more sense that it could be covered up. Their families would probably go to their alphas, not Remus.”
I nodded. “Ashley is different because she doesn’t fit into any of those categories. As far as I can tell, she wasn’t engaging in any high-risk activities. I mean, it’s possible she has nothing to do with the others and just… ran off because she didn’t want to go to college after all, but…” I shook my head. “I’m not writing her off until I have evidence.”
“Makes sense,” Eli agreed. “I— Iris, your nose is bleeding.”
“Oh, is it?” I hadn’t even noticed. I put down my dinner, putting one finger to my nose as I reached for a napkin. Sure enough, when I pulled my hand away, there was a bit of red spotting my skin. I wadded up some of the paper tissue and held it to my nose, raising a brow as he stared at me, wide-eyed. “What? You’ve never gotten a nosebleed before?”
“Are you okay?”
I gave him a funny look. “Yes? Probably just the air is bothering me. I haven’t been in Texas that long.” It wasn’t a big deal. “You were talking to Ashley’s family, right? Did they indicate any changes in her behavior or anything?”
Eli watched me a moment longer before shaking his head. “No. And I couldn’t find anything countering that in her social media, either.” His eyes shifted to the pile of folders I’d set on the floor so we could eat. “I don’t see how she fits into this.”
I shrugged. I hadn’t figured that part out, either. “I haven’t gone through all the files yet,” I admitted, motioning to the pile with my free hand. “There are dozens, and many of them seem not to have even been reported missing. A lot of these documents seem incomplete, with pieces missing, which slows me down even more. Plus, even I have to sleep sometimes.”
I was a werewolf, not a vampire.
“Do you think it was personal?” Eli asked after a moment.
I blinked. “What do you mean?”
“Well…” He leaned back, rubbing a hand over his well-kept stubble. “She was posting about finding someone special on social media. I was still looking into it, trying to determine if she was seeing someone. One of her friends thought she might have been. Do you think this person took her? Maybe he works for Project Night Moon or is being targeted by them for some reason?”
“Huh.” I frowned thoughtfully, rolling this new information around in my mind. “Wouldn’t it be too risky? Her family seemed quite well-off.”
Eli nodded slowly. “Both of her parents work at Silverstreak Motors. I believe they’d have the money to pay a ransom if one was asked for — but nothing has been sent to Ashley’s parents.”
I frowned. “Well… if she’s into this boy, who’s to say they aren’t working together? Maybe she’s trying to get the money for him — or them. It’s not like she could ask her parents for it with that kind of reason.”
