Rupert made small, distressed noises every few seconds, the kind someone might make when trying not to hyperventilate into a paper bag. Mariella crossed her arms. Simmy clutched her phone. Matthew looked like he was considering opening his laptop again to work.
Finally, Ranger reappeared. “It’s clear. It was your room, Andi.”
She crossed her arms. She’d thought it was, but without getting closer she hadn’t been certain. “Idefinitelyclosed the door.”
“Maybe housekeeping came in and forgot to latch it,” Simmy suggested.
Andi knew it was a possibility, but it felt unlikely. “The doors are heavy. They usually swing closed and latch on their own.”
Before they could talk more, the elevator dinged.
Duke strode down the hallway toward them. Sweat dampened his hair. His breathing was controlled, but his shoulders were coiled with tension.
Andi’s heart slammed into her chest. “Duke! Are you hurt?”
“No.” He brushed off her concern. “I caught Colin.”
“And?” Andi pushed.
Duke glanced around. “Maybe we should have this conversation in private.”
“After we change hotels,” Andi added. “This one is no longer safe. I’ll explain more later.”
“Change hotels?” Rupert’s voice cracked. “Do you haveany ideawhat that will do to my logistics? The car service! The merchandise delivery! The gluten-free snack baskets?—”
“Rupert . . .” Duke’s single word, calm but edged, silenced Rupert instantly.
“Fine. I’ll take care of it. You guys get your things.” Rupert swallowed loudly, then pulled out his phone and began stabbing at the screen while muttering about hotel contracts, blackout curtains, and hypoallergenic pillows.
When Rupert was gone, Duke turned to his team. “That guy had a lot of nerve showing up here.”
Mariella’s hands went to her hips. “Do you think Colin had something to do with this?”
“I’m not ruling him out,” Duke said. “He’s skittish. Admitted he’d been following Gina. I don’t trust the guy.”
“What did Colin tell you?” Ranger asked.
Duke’s jaw flexed. “He said he saw someone in a van in the parking garage the night Gina disappeared.”
“I don’t like the sound of that,” Mariella murmured.
“But he left before anything happened because he was afraid Gina was going to chew him out for being late. She was in her car, he said, so he thought she was safe.”
“But she wasn’t . . .” Matthew frowned.
“No, she wasn’t.” Duke’s gaze darkened.
“So what’s next?” Mariella asked.
Andi and Duke exchanged a look.
Then Andi turned toward the group. “First, we change hotels—just to be on the safe side. Then tomorrow, we see what kind of answers we can find.”
CHAPTER
EIGHT
Gina’s teethchattered hard enough to ache.
