“I’m busy.You know.Doin’ my job.”
Frowning, Atticus tried to rein in his temper.“This case takes precedence.”
“And you’ve got the whole team at your beck and call.Everyone but me.Sorry.I’m workin’ with Luca.”
Atticus was about to argue when Archer stepped out of the restaurant.Not wanting his partner to hear him go off on Slade, he decided to let it go.
“I’ll find someone else.Thanks.”
He didn’t wait for Slade to say anything before disconnecting.
Archer eyed him cautiously as he approached.“What’s goin’ on?”
Atticus relayed the information Charlie had given him, explaining that she wasn’t able to follow up, and neither could Slade.
“What about Evan?”
“I’m gonna try him next.”
“You care if I drive?”Archer asked.
Atticus palmed his keys, considering it.“Sure.Why the hell not?”
He tossed the keys to Archer as they made their way down the sidewalk toward the lot they’d parked in a couple of blocks over.By the time they got to the truck, he’d gotten a response from Evan letting him know that he and Becs would be glad to assist as soon as they were finished talking to Meredith and Decker.
“Hopefully they’ll find her and get her to talk.”Archer moved the seat back to accommodate his long legs.“And if not, we could always check out early, head back down, follow her ourselves.”
Yes, they could.They were in charge of the case, and since Brantley and Reese were currently tasked with finding and following Martin Calloway, there wasn’t much for them to do in the area.
Since their options were extremely limited, Atticus said, “Let’s go back to the hotel, review what we’ve got, and figure out a plan of action.”
“Sounds good to me.”
As Archer drove, Atticus stared out the window and thought about Slade.More specifically, his lack of respect when it came to his authority on this case.It shouldn’t matter that they were sharing a bed on occasion; Atticus deserved more than to be dismissed because Slade was in a mood.
Then again, did he expect anything less?
Becs had been surprised when Evan calledthat morning, asking if she would accompany him into the field.They hadn’t talked much lately.Not unless it pertained to work.As his analyst, she did her best to accommodate his needs while being mindful that her personal feelings for him had no bearing on her ability to work with him.
She had to give herself credit.She was doing well to pretend she didn’t have a dull ache in her chest where he was concerned.It was completely inappropriate for her to have fallen for him, but there was no denying it had happened.At the same time, she wasn’t willing to sacrifice her own needs for a fling, so she was keeping her distance even though it was killing her to do so.
She listened while Evan and Meredith exchanged questions and answers.Although they hadn’t gotten a straight answer about the photo Atticus had sent, Evan was chipping away at Meredith slowly.They now knew that she had left her husband and daughters because of Martin Calloway.According to her, he had threatened to tell her husband about her affair with her student, and she did not want to hurt him like that.It had been her only option.
Only problem was, she was lying.
Becs didn’t know how she knew that, but she did.
What she didn’t know was how to get Meredith to open up and tell the truth.It was the only way they could help.Not knowing Calloway’s motivation where Meredith was concerned kept them at a disadvantage.
“I told you, I don’t know,” Meredith repeated, sounding irritated.
Becs reached over and touched Evan’s arm.She felt his muscle tense beneath her fingertips, but he didn’t jerk his arm away.
“I think we should come back later,” she suggested.“Give Meredith some time to process.Maybe she can come up with more once she does.”
Evan’s dark brown eyes lacked sympathy, but he nodded.“Fine.”He looked at Meredith.“You two should get some food.We’ll check back in a couple of hours.”
“That would be good,” Meredith said, her arms wrapped around her middle as though she was holding herself together.
