“So nothing at all then?” Reid asked again, desperate for a lead of any kind.
“Nope, nothing.”
“Did they get along with each other?” Russ asked.
She shifted her attention to him. “Mostly. There was one point when the one whose picture you showed me shoved the other guy, but then they seemed to get over it.”
“Anything else you can tell us about them?” Reid asked.
“One of them smelled like gasoline.”
Russ held up his phone hand. “Not this one, though.”
She shook her head. “The other one.”
Reid nodded at the nearest camera. “I see you have electronic surveillance. Can we see the footage from that time?”
She rested her hands on the bar. “That’s above my pay grade. You’ll have to talk to a manager.”
“Can you get him or her for us?” Russ asked.
“Him and yes.” She strode away, her steps quick and sure to a phone behind the bar to make a call. She listened and frowned, then returned. “He’s meeting with someone right now. You can wait to talk to him, but he said there was no point. He said you’ll need a warrant for the video. Get him one and you can have it. No warrant. No video.”
Reid glanced at Russ, trying to ask nonverbally if it was worth demanding to see the manager.
Russ stood and planted his hands on the bar. “This manager have a name and does he work again tomorrow?”
“Guy Fletcher.” She moved back a few paces. “We both come in at six.”
“You have a day manager?” Reid asked, hoping he could locate someone who could get the warrant as fast as possible.
She nodded. “Patrick—Pat—Vogel.”
“Tell them both we’ll return with a warrant, and we expect to talk to one of them evenifthey’re busy.” Gone was Russ’s Mr. Nice Guy routine, and the woman flinched.
Russ laid his card on the bar. “Thanks for your help.”
He stormed out of the bar. To prove a point that he wasn’t happy with the manager? Maybe, or maybe he was acting. Either way, Reid and Devan had to book it to keep up.
Russ flexed his fingers a few times and peered at Devan. “She tell you anything she didn’t tell us?”
“No, but I didn’t probe after she told me Fowler had been here. Figured you’d want to do that and didn’t want to give her time to fabricate a story if she needed one.”
Reid felt like a proud dad over his employee’s sound thinking.
“You’re right about that.” Russ frowned. “I should probably have demanded to see the guy, but what good would it have done? Just make him mad and that won’t make him cooperate.”
“Trust me, I get it.” Reid met his brother’s gaze. “Been there too many times in my career not to. You think you can get the warrant for the video?”
“I can talk to Gleason but it’s not likely he’ll comply. Still no probable cause at this point.”
Reid expected as much. “Then the key now is to find someone to request a warrant so we can come back and slap it into that manager’s hand.”
Reid parked in the lot of the rundown Creek Water Motel. He’d made call after call from the hospital and had struck out on getting any warrants. He was tired of not having any leads or cooperation from the officials. Tired of sitting around. Doing nothing. Not moving ahead.
So he was taking things into his own hands for once. Moving forward. He had Micha to keep an eye on Megan and Ella, freeing Reid to act.
He cut the engine and turned his attention to the unsavory-looking property. The poorly lit area held shadows in every corner and space. Places where Fowler could retreat and take a stand if he had a mind to. Still, Colin would’ve likely made Fowler if he’d shown up.
