“And by interrogations, you mean...” Lori trailed off, looking uncertain. Her voice dropped to a horrified whisper. “Torture?”
“No, absolutely not,” Mitch assured her quickly. “Marcus is an expert at getting information from people without them even realizing they’re being interrogated. It’s about building rapport, establishing trust, and asking the right questions in the right way. Making people want to tell you things.”
“You mean manipulation, lies, and misleading people.” Even though her eyes flashed with momentary disgust, Lori seemed to relax a bit. “I figured you must have done something like that. The way you handle yourself, the way you think about these situations. It’s not just natural instinct.”
“No,” Mitch agreed. “It’s training and experience.”
“I do feel bad for what we’re doing to Sally, though,” Lori said, her voice dropping even lower. “Even if she is behind this, manipulating her this way feels wrong.”
Mitch reached across the table and took her hand. “I know. I feel bad about it, too. But it’s necessary. As I said, Marcus is the best interrogator I know. If Sally is involved in this, if she’s the one who hired Elias Dane to threaten you, then we need to know. And we need to know quickly, before someone else gets hurt.”
“Interrogating. There’s that word again.” Lori’s eyes narrowed accusingly. “Are you sure there is no torture involved?”
“No, no,” Mitch said quickly, squeezing her hand. “That’s not what this is. There are different ways of interrogating people, Lori. Most of them have nothing to do with physical coercion. In fact, the most effective interrogations are the ones where the subject doesn’t even realize they’re being questioned.”
“Like psyops?” Lori asked.
“It’s called social engineering,” Mitch explained. “You create a scenario where the person feels comfortable, feels attracted to you, wants to please you. You build a connection. And then, in the course of what feels like natural conversation, you ask questions and observe reactions. People reveal more than they realize when they think they’re just having a friendly chat with someone they’re interested in.”
“Seducing the information from her,” Lori guessed, her tone somewhere between understanding and distaste.
“Yes,” Mitch admitted, feeling like a heel. “That’s basically what Marcus is doing. He’s incredibly good at it. He can read people, know exactly what they want to hear, what will make them trust him. And Sally... well, Sally responds to charm and attention from attractive, successful men.”
“I know,” Lori said softly. “But it still doesn’t feel right. Even if she hired that man to watch me, even if she’s jealous andwants me gone, there’s something sad about it. About using her loneliness and her feelings against her.”
Mitch nodded. He understood what Lori was saying. But he also knew what was at stake.
“Lori, I would do anything to ensure you, Tessa, Piper, and Ryan were safe,” he said, his voice intense. “And until we know otherwise, Sally could be the number one threat to that safety. I need to protect my family. I need to protect you and Tessa.”
“I know,” Lori said, her thumb rubbing small circles on the back of his hand. “I understand why we’re doing this. I just wish there was another way.”
Mitch took a sip of his iced tea, his throat suddenly dry. “Sally has a rather violent past,” he said carefully.
“Yes, you mentioned that,” Lori said. “She was the main suspect in her late ex-husband’s murder case.” She leaned forward, their hands still entwined on the table. “But she was exonerated. The evidence cleared her.”
“Lori, you saw that file,” Mitch reminded her. “That was a very shady verdict. The autopsy report changed. The investigation was suddenly shut down. She walked away with millions from the Lane family. None of that sits right with me.”
“I know,” Lori said, and he could see the conflict in her eyes. She was a good person, always wanting to see the best in others. “But she may not even be the one we’re looking for. We could be doing all of this to an innocent woman.”
“Lori...” Mitch moved his chair a little closer to hers and lowered his voice even more. “You didn’t see everything about Sally. There’s more in her past that Marcus found.”
Lori’s brows rose. “Oh?”
“When she was in high school, in her final year, she got expelled,” Mitch told her.
“Why?” Lori asked, her expression curious now rather than conflicted.
“She badly injured another girl,” Mitch said. “Put her in the hospital. The official report said Sally showed ‘uncontrollable rage’ during the incident. The girl ended up with a severe head injury. She was unconscious when teachers found them in the bathroom. Sally was standing over her with blood on her hands.”
Lori’s face had gone pale. “Did she... was she charged?”
“The families settled it quietly,” Mitch said. “Sally was expelled but no criminal charges were filed. The other girl’s family was paid off. Sound familiar?”
Before Lori could respond, Marcus’s voice came through their earpieces, crisp and clear.
“Excuse me, I’m so sorry. I wasn’t watching where I was going.”
That was the signal. Marcus had made contact.
