I spotted his truck and Willa’s Jeep in the free-standing garage. Awesome. I’d get tag teamed.
That was a price I’d willingly pay for what I needed to do. I’d told Madden there were other ways to get to the email data we needed. Now came the part where I made good on that promise.
I parked in front of the house and slid out of the truck. Roy’s booming bark pulled my attention to the deck around the side. His whole body vibrated with the force of his wags, but he didn’t leave his post. I circled around to find Willa and Sawyer lounging in a pair of Adirondack chairs with drinks and a tray loaded with meats, cheeses, and crackers.
I gave Roy’s head a scruff and moved up to join them.
“Wondered if we’d end up seeing you today.” Sawyer lifted the bottle in his hand. “Beer?”
“Sure.”
He shoved out of his chair and went inside, leaving me with his bride, who eyed me with a mix of interest, speculation, and worry as she tapped one finger against the bowl of her wineglass.
I dropped into another chair. “What?” I knew what was coming, but I wouldn’t make it any easier on Willa than I would on one of my sisters.
“Sawyer had already told me you were looking into things with the missing grad student even before you showed up at the ferry company this morning, but how exactly did you end up working with Madden Reilly of all people?”
Lifting one shoulder in a shrug, I reached for a cracker and some cheese. “She asked for my help.”
Sawyer came out the door with a long-neck bottle, top already popped. “What interest has she got in all this?”
Reasonable question. One I’d prepared for.
“Apart from being friends with Astrid, this whole thing is triggering her about Gwen. She wants to make sure the case gets the attention it actually merits, rather than Carson’s bullshit acceptance of the too-convenient answer.”
“What answer is that?” Willa asked.
I explained Carson’s declaration this morning that the case was closed.
“Huh. Thought Madden was one of his biggest fans,” Sawyer observed.
I took a pull of the beer. “Apparently, the scales have fallen from her eyes. Now she’s starting to question everything about how he handled Gwen’s case.”
“Including you?” Willa raised a meaningful brow. “Sawyer mentioned she’d apologized.”
I inclined my head in acknowledgement. “To be fair, she did that before all this happened. It was awkward as hell, but after spending today with her… I think she really means it. Not saying we’re gonna end up besties or some shit, but we can both admit we’re different people now and put aside any differences in the name of finding Priya Shah.”
Sawyer narrowed his eyes. “And I’m guessing that brings us to why you’re actually here.”
Thank God. I wasn’t gonna get roasted over the coals further about this weird partnership with Madden. We could get down to business.
Over a half dozen more crackers and cheese, I explained everything we’d uncovered so far in our investigation.
“We’re at a dead end until we manage to talk to Sanders sober, and even then, I’m not sure how much help he’ll be. The next logical step is to verify whether the email actually came from Priya’s account. Neither Madden nor I have the channels we’d usually use for that.”
“Ah,” Sawyer nodded in understanding. “You need to get up with Dax.”
Dax Gregory was a friend of Sawyer’s. Former naval intelligence, before he retired, he’d run in a lot of the same circles Jace did now. These days, he was making bank doing God knew what in the private sector. Dax had been the one to uncover the link to who was after Willa after her grandparents died. He trafficked in information and wasn’t usually precious about how he got it, so long as it was being put to good use in helping people. I couldn’t think of anyone better for this.
“If we can. I know he’s sometimes taking jobs that pull him as off the map as Jace is these days, but if he’s around and can work whatever magic he usually pulls off, it could save a lot of time. And we’re all aware time is of the essence with a missing person’s case.”
“Then let’s see if we can get ahold of him.” Sawyer immediately fished out his phone and began tapping at the screen. “I’ll text him. If he’s available, he’ll call. I gave him your number.”
By the time we’d decimated the rest of the charcuterie board, and I’d polished off my beer, my phone vibrated. Unknown caller flashed on the screen.
“Hello?”
“Carrera. Didn’t expect to be hearing from you. You looking for more dirt on the brass you tried to take down?”
