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“Missing woman?” I force myself to keep my voice calm and unbothered.
“Yeah.” Patterson sighs, taking the photos back and tucking them into his jacket. “She’s been missing for a few days now and this is the first major lead we’ve had.”
“I wish I could help you, but as you can see, we get hundreds—thousands, on a good weekend—coming and going in that place.”
“Seems like you bumped into her more than a few times, wouldn’t you say?”
I hide my irritation with a good-natured chuckle and shrug. “Her and dozens of other women that night alone. I’m sorry, Detective, but I don’t keep a ledger of names of every single person I brush elbows with.”
Patterson eyes me for a silent moment. “I’ll be honest, Mr. Zakrevsky: she’s my woman. My woman and the mother of my child, who she kidnapped in the middle of the night. I’m very concerned for both their safety.”
Of fucking course you are.“I thought you said this was a missing persons case? Not a kidnapping?”
“He better make it exceptionally clear which one we’re talking about.” Bambi’s voice carries across the foyer as she sashays into the room, every bit the lethal lawyer I pay her to be. “And Iknowhe’s not questioning you without me present.”
Patterson almost shoots her a glare, but I watch him catch himself and cough. “Of course not. As I said before, we’re just pursuing leads at the moment.” He glances at her, then turns his focus back on me. “My daughter, Willow, is the true missing person. She’s only five and I’m just worried sick about her. Her mother, Clara… she’s not stable. Never really has been, but what can I say? I fell head over heels. But she got hooked on the meds after giving birth and… well, I just can’t sleep knowing my baby girl is somewhere out there with a crazy drug addict.”
If there’s one type of man I can’t stand in this world, it’s liars.
If there’s two types, it’s liars and abusers.
Detective Patterson is both.
I know he can see my smile harden. “Sounds like you need the Narcotics division. I can’t help you.” I give him one final nod and turn to leave.
This interview is over.
And I need to walk away before I beat a police officer to death.
“She’s only five, Mr. Zakrevsky. She’s my whole world. I’ll do anything to get her back.”
What strikes me as interesting is how, now that I’m not looking right at him, the bullshit smells even stronger. He says all the right things, but there’s something about the way he says them that just doesn’t convince me he’s in this for Willow.
I’d place a good wager that he’s planning to use Willow as leverage. The fucking snake.
Like what you’re doing now, hm?pipes up the little devil’s advocate in my head.
I squash that thought back down the second it pops up. This is about Patterson, not me.
“You know what?” I snap my fingers and spin back around on my heel. “I just remembered. You’re right, we did bump into each other at the casino.”
Oh, I bumped into her, all right. Repeatedly. Until she screamed my name and came on my cock, you worthless piece of shit.
Patterson perks up. “Oh?”
I nod and glance at Bambi. “You remember, right? The one our concierge flagged us down for. He had some concerns for her safety.”
Bambi stares hard at me for only a second before she catches on. “Yes. I believe I recall something about injuries…?”
This makes Patterson pale just a smidge. “Injuries? She was injured?”
“Well, that’s what our concierge was concerned about. And, of course, we take safety and security at The Meridian very seriously.” I hold my hand out for one of the photos of Clara, but Patterson takes a step back.
“That’s okay, Mr. Zakrevsky, I?—”
“Got it.” Bambi smiles her professional smile, but I know that gleam in her eyes as she turns the tablet in her hands to show us actual footage of Clara speaking with one of our concierges, then Bambi herself. “Is this who you’re speaking about, Detective?”
Patterson clears his throat, wipes his nose, and nods. “Yeah. Yeah, that’s my Clara.”
