Yeah, right.
I shake my head as I turn my truck toward the freeway.
Allora is a hell of a lot more than a client. At the very least, we’ve become friends. That kiss this morning tells me there’s more to it than that. But how much more? A short-term affair that will end once the job is over? Friends with benefits? My gut tells me she won’t be happy with something like that.
Or is she just looking for a one-time event that will prove that she still has control of both her body and her sexuality?
I’d be down for that if she framed it that way, but Rage interrupted us before we could get into the nitty-gritty. Of course, if he hadn’t, we might be naked in my bed right now and there wouldn’t have been any nitty-gritty. Not of the conversation kind anyway.
Instead of overthinking, I call Daniil.
The best cure for distractions is work.
“You on the way?” he asks by way of greeting.
“Yeah. She’s with Rage, they’re a few minutes ahead of me but I’m going to make a few stops, make sure I don’t have a tail.”
“Okay.”
“Any news?”
“Actually, Silver is on his way for a meeting. They’ve done some digging and we want to share intel.”
“Silver?” I ask with a laugh.
“He told me to call him Silver. What am I supposed to say? It’s a dumb name and I’d rather call you Theodore?”
We both laugh at the thought of saying something like that to him.
“Do we have any intel?” I ask after a moment.
He sighs. “Not really. Is there a trafficking ring? Yes. Teenagers and women in their early twenties have been disappearing for the last five years. There are at least fifteen missing persons reports. The thing is, Allora doesn’t fit the profile. She’s older than the others and has a support system. Every other one of the alleged victims was either an illegal immigrant, a sex worker, or homeless. There’s definitely something different about Allora’s kidnapping.”
“Like they targeted her specifically instead of just grabbing convenient sex workers or homeless people.”
“Right. Don’t get me wrong, they must do a little recon, making sure they’re taking women who won’t be missed much. A few homeless people saying the teenager in the blue tent hasn’t been home for a few days isn’t going to be a priority for the cops.”
“But think about it, Dan—no one looked for Allora for two whole days. They would have eventually, but they had her for forty-eight hours and no one noticed because she’s a busy adult with a career and no partner.”
“Right. Still, that’s fishy to me. Did they really spend that much time watching her? Knowing no one would miss her for at least a few days? And looking for the opportunity to grab her on the street where anyone could have seen? I don’t know, this whole thing bothers me.”
“And they already figured out who I am,” I add. “So, if they don’t know she’s with me, they at least suspect.”
“Which begs the question, how do they know who you are? Just from your face?”
“You mean you think they have someone on the inside, a cop?”
“What else could it be? That guy wouldn’t have had time to get your license plate as he was speeding away from you, would he?”
“I don’t know,” I admit, “but something about this rubs me the wrong way.”
“Agreed.”
“All right, I’ll be there in about ninety minutes. We can talk then.”
“See you then.”
We disconnect and I stare out at the road.
