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“You were a real jerk to that guy,” she said, smiling.
“Are you kidding?” Ryan retorted, also grinning. “I could hear you yelling at him from the lobby. How do you think I knew where to find you?”
Jessie felt a strong urge to kiss him but fought it valiantly.
“Did anyone else seem interested?” she asked instead.
“You mean, could I tell if anyone had followed either of us? The answer is no. Of course, if they’re really good I might have missed them. But I don’t think I did.”
The elevator pinged and the doors opened. They stepped out into the long hallway and made their way to the main entrance of the firm Conway, French & Sykes, where Aaron Rose worked. When they got to the door, they exchanged an excited glance.
“This could be our guy,” Jessie whispered.
“Let’s hope so,” Ryan said. “I’d really rather our killer not be a department commander.”
“We can dream,” Jessie said, opening the door.
They walked up to the reception desk, where Jessie let Ryan do his thing. He was very good at it. He stood tall and square-shouldered in front of the harried girl hanging up the phone and flashed his badge as he spoke.
“I’m Detective Hernandez with the LAPD Homicide Special Section. This is Jessie Hunt. What’s your name?”
“I’m Kaylee, sir.”
“Hi, Kaylee,” he said, smiling warmly. “We need to speak to Aaron Rose about a pressing matter. Please take us to him.”
“Of course,” the receptionist said, trying to stay cool. “Just let me call him and let him know you’re here.”
“No thank you,” Ryan said firmly. “We’d like you to take us to him directly right now; no need to call.”
Kaylee looked torn between her typical instructions and her new ones. But Ryan’s forceful but polite demand won out pretty easily. She nodded and motioned for them to follow as she walked down the hall.
“Remember,” Ryan whispered to Jessie as walked, “we don’t have approval for any of this. So let’s not back him in a corner that makes him lash out and start making calls. If we’re not sure it’s him, we need to tread carefully.”
Jessie nodded in agreement. She’d already been through a variation of this with the Zellers, though she doubted that a corporate lawyer like Rose would be as amenable to helping as they were. If he was resistant to talking, it would be hard to pry details from him without creating some anxiety in the man. The question was how much was too much.
Kaylee arrived at Rose’s office door and knocked.
“Busy,” came a loud, nasally shout from inside.
“Open the door,” Ryan said quietly.
Kaylee nodded and then actually physically closed her eyes as she opened the door. In the far corner of the room, behind a large desk, was a balding man with an aggressive comb-over.
He stood up and Jessie realized he couldn’t have been more than about five foot five. His skin was pale in a way that suggested he didn’t get outside often. He wore a tucked-in dress shirt and tie and it was clear that he was in good shape, with a muscular, wiry frame. As proof of his workout devotion, an elliptical machine stood in the other corner of the room.
“What the hell, Kaylee?” he bellowed. “I said I was busy, goddammit!”
“I’m sorry Mr. Rose but these…”
“That’s okay, Kaylee,” Ryan interrupted. “You can go. We’ve got it from here.”
He stepped inside and shut the door behind Jessie after she entered.
“Who do you think you are?” Rose demanded, his eyes blazing.
“I think that I’m Detective Ryan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Police Department,” he replied calmly. “And I think this is Jessie Hunt, who is one of our top criminal profilers. I suggest you hang up the phone, Mr. Rose. We have a few questions for you.”
The lawyer did hang up but didn’t look much more chastened than before.
