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“Is it true?”
Brook tensed upon hearing the tension in the man’s voice. His tone was thick with emotion, and it was also low enough that his question hadn’t garnered the attention of the patrons. She studied his face, noticing enough similarities between him and Carissa Norman to make the connection.
Carissa’s father must have recognized Brook from the press briefing that she and Otto had given the other morning. She wasn’t sure why Mr. Norman hadn’t returned her call, but they couldn’t very well discuss such a delicate topic in front of members of the press.
“Mr. Norman, I’ve attempted to call you and your wife several times,” Brook replied in the same level of tenor. The last thing she needed at the moment was to have a member of the press recognize him. “Why don’t we go upstairs and speak privately? I’m sure you’ve noticed that this place is crawling with reporters, and—”
“Is it true?” Gus Norman asked with anguish. “Was my daughter a victim of a serial killer?”
“I believe that to be the case, but we have no evidence to support that theory at the moment,” Brook responded, believing the only way to get Mr. Norman to see reason was to answer him honestly. “I would really like to discuss your daughter’s disappearance in private, Mr. Norman. My team and I have rented some rooms on the second level. Why don’t we—”
“Brook? Could we please talk in private?” Dominic asked as impatience had gotten the best of him. “Erika left here all upset, and she wouldn’t even stop to talk to me. Well, she did, but only long enough to say it was all my fault that she was no longer a liaison between your firm and the park rangers. I know that you have an issue with my profession, but I wanted to explain that—”
“Not now, Dominic.”
“Erika didn’t do anything wrong, though.” Dominic shifted apprehensively from side to side. “What took place between us was—”
“Dominic, now is not the time.” Brook had turned toward him and steeled her tone to the point where he couldn’t misinterpret her words. The last thing that she needed was for Dominic to identify Gus Norman. “Please return to your table, and I’ll be over there to discuss the situation in a few moments.”
Dominic appeared to want to debate the issue. Fortunately, he made the right decision and turned around without saying another word. As Jace and another friend waited for Dominic to return to their table, Brook focused on Gus Norman.
“Please, Mr. Norman, let’s go upstairs and speak about this in private. We’ll talk over some coffee, and I’ll explain why my team and I believe your daughter’s disappearance is related to our case,” Brook said softly so that only he could hear her. “A colleague of mine is inside the third room. Go on up, and I’ll grab another mug.”
Gus Norman could only nod, and it was evident that not a day had passed in five years that this man hadn’t grieved for his daughter. His anguish reminded Brook of the families who had lost their daughters to Jacob’s sick and twisted conduct. The press had covered the cause of death in Luna Breen’s case, which meant that Gus now understood the agony that his daughter had almost certainly suffered in the hours before her death.
Brook pulled out her cell phone and quickly dialed Bit. He answered on the first ring.
“Gus Norman showed up at the bar. I just sent him upstairs, so shut off the monitor and close my laptop.”
“Will do, Boss.”
“I need to speak with Dominic, but I won’t be too long.” Brook had to press her finger against her left ear so that she could finish her conversation. “It would be best not to discuss what is taking place tonight with Theo and Riggs.”
“I hear you, Boss. I’ll make sure…hey, Little T is calling in. Let me take this before Mr. Norman knocks on the door.”
“Thanks, Bit.”
Brook disconnected the call and slid her cell phone into the back pocket of her jeans. It hadn’t escaped her notice that Dominic had been monitoring her every move. Seeing as she didn’t want him barging in the room upstairs, it was best that she handle the situation now.
“Who was that?” Dominic asked with curiosity as she advanced toward him.
“Dominic, my team and I are very busy at the moment,” Brook replied, purposefully ignoring his question. She brushed passed him. There was no need for the other two men to hear what she had to say, and she continued to walk for maybe ten feet until there was nowhere else to go. “As for Erika, there is more to the situation than what you’ve theorized, and I don’t have to give my reasons as to why I removed Ms. Ashton from this case.”
“You don’t need to give your reasons, because it’s obvious that you don’t trust me.” Dominic had his back to the heart of the bar, so he couldn’t see the reactions that he’d garnered from his raised voice. “You believe that Erika was going to feed me information or some shit like that, right? She wouldn’t do that, and I respect Riggs’ position enough not to ask.”
“Are you done?”
Dominic must have expected more of a response from Brook due to the way he raised an eyebrow and raised a hand in exasperation. By this point, the reporters weren’t sure where to put their focus. Gus Norman had stopped at the bottom of the staircase on the other side of the bar, but he made no attempt to ascend them. He was undoubtedly curious about Dominic and how he fit into the murder investigation. Well, he wasn’t the only one, but those remaining members of the press also wanted to know the same of Mr. Norman.
“Look, I didn’t mean to make things worse,” Dominic said ruefully after clearing his throat. He’d also lowered his voice after realizing the attention that he’d drawn to them. Movement above the banister upstairs revealed that Bit had opened the door. He could now be seen standing next to the wooden railing. “I’m sorry if I…”
Dominic continued to issue an apology, but someone else had caught Brook’s attention when she’d taken her gaze off Bit. A male subject sitting at the table within her line of sight had crossed his ankle over his knee, revealing the tread on the bottom of his hiking boot. It just so happened to have a small rock lodged in the edge of the worn tread line.
“…should ask Riggs. Where is he tonight, anyway?”
Brook raised her gaze from the rock to meet the leveled stare of the unsub.
Chapter Twenty-Three
