After an hour, Stryker said, “Parker has shown up on his days off. Check this out.”
She counted four different occasions where Parker spent part of his evening at the bar when April was working. He’d have a beer, sometimes two. He always paid. She seemed genuinely happy to see him. And he helped her clean up after the club closed.
“I requested a background check on him,” Emerson said. “I hope to have it back next week.”
Stryker hopped on a laptop, his fingers flying over the keyboard. “I’ll run one now. It takes a coupla hours.” He pulled out his phone.
“I’m having two waters delivered. You hungry?”
She shook her head. Stryker called someone upstairs. When he hung up, he headed for the stairs. “Where are you going?” Emerson asked, feeling the nerves resurfacing.
“To grab the drinks. I don’t allow staff down here.”
With a tremble in her hand, she forced herself to start the video again. When she heard Stryker climbing the stairs, she hurried over to the bottom of the steps.
“I’m right here,” he said as he ascended.
She waited until he was heading back down, two waters in hand, before she sat back down. “I am beyond embarrassed.”
He scooped her hands into his large one. “Your negative talk is hurting you. Applaud your wins and stop criticizing yourself. That’s Dr. Sharpe speak.”
“You sound exactly like Heather.” She released his strong and soothing grip to drink down some of the water. “How did you come to live with your aunt and uncle?”
Sadness flashed in his eyes. “Long story. Let’s get back to work.”
Since he didn’t want to talk about it, Emerson let it go. They turned back to the video and continued watching.
“This is crazy,” she said, breaking the long silence. “We’ve been staring at the screen for way too long.”
He dragged a laptop over and keyed in something. “Let me pull the members who were here the nights April worked over the two weeks prior to her death.”
The longer they worked, the more frustrated Emerson became. It was almost three in the morning and she couldn’t decipher a single pattern with the clientele.
“Parker’s background check is ready.” He clicked on the report and slid the laptop between them.
She rolled closer while they read the report. He’d been arrested for ignoring a restraining order on multiple occasions. According to the report, his longtime girlfriend had ended their relationship, but he wouldn’t stop calling, emailing, or dropping by. She’d moved to a different apartment, but he was relentless. He was arrested, tried, and convicted. He’d served his time and was out. It listed The Dungeon as his place of employment.
“Looks like we found our guy,” Stryker said.
“The me before I arrested you would have agreed, but just because he was arrested for stalking his ex doesn’t make him a killer. Is he here?”
“I’ll check.” Stryker called upstairs to the bar.
“Most everyone’s already gone for the night,” Stryker told her. “Including Parker.”
“What about Mavis?”
“She’s off for a few days.”
The longer she stared, the more she wanted to kiss him.Go for it. Kiss him. Despite how badly she wanted him, she needed to get out of the enclosed space. She’d pushed herself hard, bribing herself with an outlandish reward, but she was desperate for some fresh air. She stood and stretched.
“Where are you going?” he asked.
“Home. It’s after three.”
As he was shutting down, she said, “I’ll grab an Uber.”
“Like hell you will. I’ll drive you home.”
