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“I didn’t ask him. The girls in back said that she didn’t work there anymore. And they were really weird about it, too.”
Trevor took in a slow draw of air, clearly trying to wrap his head around everything that I was telling him.
“What a mess.”
I glanced over my shoulder as I drove, half expecting to see a sleek luxury car trailing us. But there was nothing.
“I’m meeting this guy tomorrow. For lunch.”
Trevor’s eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head.
“What?Did he offer to take you to Applebee’s for two-for-one apps and you couldn’t resist?”
“Don’t be a smartass,” I said. “You know as well as I do that if we want to get more information on Kat, I’m going to have to take some risks.”
“I get it, I do. But hanging out with Mob guys is a pretty damn extreme example of a risk.” He sighed again, and I could tell by his wooziness and slightly slurred speech that he’d likely had one Bud too many, not to mention the whiskey we started the night off with.
“He gave me his name, and I’m going to do my research. Trust me—I’m not going to sit down with some guy I know nothing about without having all the information I can get at my disposal.”
“Research isn’t going to protect you, Claire.” He paused, shaking his head. “We both want to get Kat back. But… maybe this is a matter we should leave to the cops.”
“No. No way. I’ve worked with enough cops to know how this is going to go down. They’re going to drag their feet and not have any urgency getting into it. When they finally do, they’re going to find out that the Mob’s involved, and that Kat’s a sex worker.”
“So?”
“So I’ve heard the things cops say about strippers and prostitutes. They’re trash to them, less than human almost. They talk about sex workers like anything bad that happens to them is their fault. They picked that lifestyle, right? According to some, they’ve already made their choice.”
“That can’t be right. Come on, it’s 2022, there’s not that kind of stigma anymore.”
“You’d think so, but you’d be wrong. I’m telling you, if we want to find Kat, we’re going to have to do it ourselves.”
Trevor said nothing for several long moments.
“OK, fine. But I want to be looped in at all times, alright?”
“Of course. We’re in this together.”
“And I’d really,reallylike it if I had some way of keeping track of you while you’re at lunch tomorrow. I don’t want to be hovering over your shoulder, but all the same, if you’re going to be one-on-one with a fucking Mob guy, I want to know you’re safe.”
“That’s a good idea. I’ll install that Life360 tracking app on my phone.”
Trevor pursed his lips.
“Please stay safe, Claire. I want Kat back as badly as you do, but the last thing I want is for you to get hurt in the process.”
I reached over and took Trevor’s hand.
“I promise.”
Already my mind was on the lunch tomorrow. I had no idea who this Tommy guy was, but I was for damn sure going to find out.
Chapter 10
Claire
Itook a quick shower once I was back at my downtown condo. Pussycats had made me feel all kinds of gross, the sort of way that only a rinse would sort out.
Once that was done, I was in front of my computer, a glass of wine close at hand. My condo was on the fifteenth floor of one of the newer buildings downtown, the tall windows giving me a sweeping view of the city that I loved. The lights were off in my place, the only illumination coming from the crackling fire in the fireplace behind me and the MacBook in front of me.
