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I shake my head, and sink into the armchair, careful not to aggravate the bruising up my side. “I don’t know. Someone from the station? Supposedly whoever it is will magically know.”
“You pissed anyone off lately?” Brooke asks Trent.
“Plenty of people.” He clamps his hand down over her knee. “That’s why I have you to protect me.”
“You two.” I rub my cheek, flinching when I get too close to the bruise. Their banter just reminds me of Riker.
“But based on the MO they’re relying on an emotional reaction from their target.”
“Your island boy toy?” Brooke asks and I glare at Trent.
“What? I had some explaining to do after your little phone call, so you can’t fault me for telling her.”
Oh, I guarantee even if not for that phone call, he would have given her all the details. And which one of them came up with island boy toy? “Do you have to call him that?”
They both shift and glance at each other. Brooke’s trying to stifle a grin, but not quite succeeding. Trent presses his lips together. “That’d be Rose.”
“What the—” I throw my hands in the air. At the beginning of the week, I’d been sitting on an island musing over my lack of people to call and vent about my bank accounts, and they were all back here chatting about me anyway.
“James is my partner, and Rose is his fiancée. That’s pretty well fair game. And I told you, it was a slow week, we didn’t have much else to gossip about.”
I nod, gritting my teeth. “Remind me about that Monday morning when I put together your new case lists. At any rate, my accounts were hackedthe nighthe arrived. We had literally shared a ten-minute conversation—if that.”
“So, we’re looking at Beckett,” Trent says. “You said your account was hacked Monday. Two days later the tap room manager said there were payroll issues and she needed to talk to him. He mysteriously went off the grid at the same time, which we all know, Beckett doesn’t do.”
“We haven’t spoken in almost two months.”
“You were together for almost two years.”
“I know,” I breathe. “I know. Did anyone ever hear from him?”
“No updates since we talked Wednesday, but it’s not going to be easy digging up dirt on him. He’s made quite a reputation between his businesses and community service.”
Brooke clicks her tongue, crossing her arms over her chest and sinking back in the couch. “Which, I should point out, makes him the most suspicious.”
I’m not sure if she’s trying to be helpful or snarky. Not even my snark-meter works on her.
I sink back in my chair, laying my head against the back. Then, Spiegel jumps on top of me, licking my face, and stepping on all the bruises in the process. “Ow,” I grunt, trying to get her to calm down again. “Sit, lay, something.”
Finally she lays across my lap, her tail beating against the arm of the chair.
“So, what? He made a deal with the wrong person and it went bad?”
“Or someone isn’t too happy with his efforts to revitalize the town,” Brooke says. “It does make things inconvenient when legit businesses threaten your supply and demand… Speaking as aformercriminal.”
Chapter Twelve
Riker
While I’m getting ready for work Monday morning, I laugh to myself when Harper’s name pops up on my phone, assuming it’s Kenzie calling to tell me her mom overslept again, but when I tap the green button, Harper appears on the screen.
“Hey, what’s up?” I say.
She shrugs. “I can’t call to ask if you enjoyed your vacation?”
“It was good.”
She purses her lips, staring at me for a long moment with unblinking eyes.
