“I thought I’d see how things were going.” He entered the room with easy confidence, his expression neutral, professional. Helpful.
Too helpful?
The thought hit her harder than she expected.
She replayed the night in her mind—the fire alarm, the chaos, the crowd. Andi realized, with a slow tightening in her chest, that she hadn’t seen Ben then.
Not at dinner.
Not outside.
Not when they’d come back in.
The realization settled uncomfortably.
Could he be involved?
Duke watched Andi as Ben entered the room.
He noted the shift in her posture. The way her attention locked on the man.
Duke had seen that look before. It was the look Andi got when a theory was forming, when doubt began carving its way into certainty.
Andi didn’t waste time. “Where were you during the fire alarm?”
“Getting dinner. The diner down the road.” Ben glanced between them. “Why?”
Andi held his gaze, unmoving.
Duke immediately understood what she was thinking.
“What’s going on?” Ben crossed his arms, his eyes narrowing. “Why are you asking me this?”
“Rupert is missing,” Duke told him.
Ben’s expression changed, concern wiping away any trace of irritation. “Missing how?”
“His door was left open,” Andi said. “The cameras are down.”
“You think something happened to him?” Ben’s gaze volleyed between them. “That the same person who took those women took Rupert?”
“That’s our theory,” Andi said. “He’s nowhere to be found, and he’s not answering his phone.”
“That’s not like Rupert . . .” Ben frowned.
“We think he’s in danger,” Duke finished.
His eyebrows shot up as the implications seemed to hit him. “Wait . . . you don’t think I had something to do with this, do you? I can show you my receipt from the restaurant if you want. But I have no idea where he is.”
Duke and Andi exchanged a glance.
Ben reached into his pocket and produced a slip of paper. “My receipt. Check the time.”
Duke took it from him and scanned the text. “He’s telling the truth. He was at the restaurant.”
Relief seemed to ease the tension in the room—but only for a moment.
Because if Ben wasn’t guilty, they still needed to figure out who was.
