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“What have I told you?”
“I don’t think the new focus is going to keep me here, Stacia. As much as I want it to."
Her eyes went glossy and unfocused, zoning out as she stared at one of the buttons on his shirt.
“Anastacia?”
“Sorry, just thinking about my morning.”
“I don’t know if this solidness is gonna stay for another round, but I’m sure there’s still enough energy in the solar battery reserves if you want.” Mel leaned over and kissed her neck.
“Were you always this much of a flirt?” She pushed at him and lifted the files collected from Dominic. A light blush was now apparent over her cheeks and the bridge of her nose. “I meant after you disappeared. I went back to my apartment, which was trashed, by the way.”
“You went alone?” He bristled at the thought.
“Not really. I had a few spirits follow me. They were nice enough.”
He grumbled a quick “Now she’s made friends with Casper” under his breath as she plugged in the USB drive.When he looked at the screen, he caught something familiar. “Whoa, wait! Click on that.”
“What’s the matter?” she asked as he pointed to a small, customized icon that showed up on the drive's pop-up window.
“It’s the logo for the bar.”
Anastacia opened the file, and half a dozen agreements and contracts sprang up.
“Dominic had all of these?” Mel asked, perplexed.
“I'm not surprised, the man has his own research office. Jason met with Dominic seeking support for the bar and Dominic wanted to make sure it wasn't too big of a risk, so he's kept tabs on him. Dominic has everything Jason has done, business-wise, up to last week," she explained, skimming through the contracts until a file caught her attention. She frowned and clicked to open it, scrolling as she scanned it. "Mel, why did you sign a life insurance policy?"
“I signed a what now?” He read over her shoulder.
“A half-a-million-dollar life insurance policy.” She scrolled further, cursing under her breath. “You signed this the day you died.”
“Son of a bitch didn’t even wait for the ink to dry,” Mel growled. “How does this link to Knight?”
“Glad you asked.” She typed on the window’s search bar and video footage from behind the restaurant opened up in a new window. There, in picture-perfect clarity, were Knight and Jason in a heated conversation, both taking turns pointing to Dominic’s building.
Sammy appeared in the video, coming out the back door with trash bags in hand. Knight snatched Sammy by the back of his collar when the boy saw the detective and tried to run; pulling him back with an arm around his shoulder. Jason gestured wildly, mouth moving as if he was yelling but Knight kept his cool, handing Sammy something before releasing the young man. Sammy shook his head and bolted back into the restaurant. Jason passed Knight what looked like an envelope before Knight nodded and they went their separate ways.
"Why didn't Dominic bring this up after Sammy was killed?"
"A lawyer could argue Knight knew Sammy before the shooting, which he already admitted to. He could have been there to check up on the kid from one of the other times he talked with him. Dominic could have used it further down the line if Knight tried building a case against him."
“When was that taken?”
“A week before your murder when Jason was pitching the bar. According to Dominic, Knight was there the same day to go over a few case wrap-ups with Montgomery, and to check for any new jobs he may need some extra muscle for. I think Knight and Jason met that night, and Jason approached him to set up the hit. Sammy must have walked in on their conversation. Knight thought Sammy might want to make his first kill. Sammy just wanted to be a chef. He didn’t snitch on them, though. A big part of me wished he had.”
“That’s why I’m dead? Jason needed the money and Knight got a cut?”
“And now we put them behind bars.” She put her hand over the one he placed on her leg, weaving her fingers through his, squeezing gently. “I can't help thinking what might have happened between us if you hadn't died and we met again at the park or in Jackson Square or when you opened the bar. I'm not sure if we were ever meant to be together or feel the way we do, but I care about you so much. We're going to finish this because neither of those bastards should get away with murdering you."
“So, we need to puzzle this all together and bypass Knight in the process." Mel clapped his hands together, sarcasm dripping off his words. "Easy, right?"
"If only, but I have a few ideas." Her fingers flew over the keyboard and opened more documents before leaning over to open a few of the printed files.
"Good. I hope they don't take too long, then."
“And you're in a hurry because…?"
