Megan’s voice emanated from the speaker. “Dude. You still there?”
He shook his head, dislodging the preverbal cobwebs. “Yeah. Just barely.”
“Well, wake up. Those strange bits of data—I connected them.”
“What?” David leaned his chest across the table and brought himself as close as possible to the phone speaker.
Brandon ambled in and ran his hand over his head.
David jerked his head toward the phone and mouthedMegan.His partner nodded and fell into a seat beside him.
“You heard me, genius.”
“Megs, I’m exhausted. Spell it out for me.” He blinked. He needed more caffeine.
“Your Roberts is tied to the website of the ick and famous. He’s not the owner but a big contributor.”
“How’s Zoey’s text connected?”
“I matched the picture from her phone to a picture on the website. Not sure who’s who in the creep yearbook, but they tie together somehow. I’m guessing Jimmy uploaded her picture for unsavory reasons.”
He clenched his fist. “That’s just great. Zoey’s picture is out there for any child predator to see.”
“Sorry, David.” Empathy oozed through the line.
Brandon shifted in his seat. “Can you remove the photo?”
“Not a good idea.”
David straightened and smacked his hand on the tabletop. “Why not?”
Rick and Sandy startled awake and stared at him.
A heavy sigh over the phone met his ears. “Because we’d tip them off, and they’d shut it down and move on.”
“Oh yeah, there is that.” David rubbed his gritty eyes. “I just don’t like Zoey’s picture out there for every disgusting excuse for a human to ogle.”
“Then get back to work, find the bad guys, and arrest them.” Megan’s matter-of-fact tone would have brought a smile to David’s face if frustration hadn’t taken over.
“We’re trying, Megs. Thanks for the help. Let us know if you find anything else.”
“Will do.” A click, then silence lingered in the room.
Sandy unwrapped the scrunchy from her hair and smoothed out her locks. She gathered the strands and redid her ponytail. “All right, boys. Let’s get busy. Brandon—any more coffee out there? Rick—check out the webpage and see if you can turn up anything new. David—you and I will hunt down known associates of Jimmy Roberts.”
David raised an eyebrow, glanced at Brandon, then back at Sandy.
She tilted her head and pinched her lips together.
“Why did I get coffee duty?” Brandon huffed.
She rolled her eyes in dramatic fashion. “Because you’re the only one who can make it drinkable. Duh.”
“True.” Brandon chuckled. “I’m on it.”
David locked his gaze on her. “And when did you become queen?”
“Since you’re too tired to think straight.” Sandy’s tone softened. The woman wasn’t wrong. Brain function was at a premium right now.
