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I watch as she stands there for a while. Then a guy walks up to her in a dark hoodie. His face is hidden, but they talk for a few minutes and then head across the street. From there, I lose them and have to jump around until I find a good view of the motel. Unfortunately, I don’t get much more because they go inside together, his hand at the small of her back, and disappear.

As far as I know, that’s the last picture of her alive.

This is depressing as fuck, but I copy the appropriate clips and send them to Daniil. I don’t know if a picture of a guy whose face is covered is helpful, but now I’ll start searching for him. When I saw Rage earlier, he said he saw a guy in a hoodie who disappeared when they made eye contact. If it’s the same guy, then I’m pretty sure we have her killer.

Not that we know his name or where to find him but we might be prepared if he tries again. Daniil is going to send in some of the guys to hang around the area every night for a few weeks, see if we can find patterns or men that look suspicious. They’ll also provide another layer of protection for the girls.

Silver and a few of his men are coming up here for lunch today to discuss a plan of action to protect the girls, and I’m not sure whether or not I’ll be there. Sometimes they invite me in, other times they don’t. Which is fine with me. The guys in the club make me uncomfortable, other than Metal. He’s such a nice guy, it’s heartbreaking to see what he’s going through.

“Tell us everything!” Allora and Courtney come into my office and make me jump.

“Jesus H. Christ!” I mutter, hand on my heart. “You two have to stop sneaking up on me.”

“Here, have baby cuddles. That’ll make you feel better.” Courtney hands me the baby, and I’m momentarily mesmerized. She’s a beautiful little thing, with white-blond hair that sticks up, bright green eyes, and rosy, red cheeks.

I nestle her into my chest and sigh happily.

Babies are magical.

It reminds me of how badly I want one.

And that Rage volunteered to help me make it happen.

“Now tell us everything!”

“Well, sadly, our evening was interrupted by Ginger’s death,” I say quietly. “So there’s nothing much to tell. Except…he’s a great kisser.”

“You kissed!” Allora claps her hands lightly so as not to startle Celeste, who seems to be drifting off.

“We did. And he’s promised me a make-up date but who knows when that will be.” I pretend to give Courtney the side eye. “Your husband keeps him busy!”

“I’ll do my best to intervene when I can,” she says solemnly.

“Hey, make sure he doesn’t start calling my man instead!” Allora warns sternly. “I may not be ready for a baby, but I have other needs that require his attention.”

“What needs are those?” The quiet male voice behind us makes all three of us jump but Allora just laughs as she turns to Grim.

“You’re very well aware of my needs,” she says sweetly. “But why are you eavesdropping?”

“I was coming to invite you all to lunch. I can’t help that all you ladies ever talk about is sex.”

Courtney sticks her tongue out at her brother. “We talk about more than sex. It’s just that sex is a much more fun conversation than what happened to those girls recently.”

His expression sobers. “That’s for sure. Anyway, lunch is served. Allora, your dad is here.”

Allora nods. “Yeah, I’ll be right there.”

Grim kisses her lightly and then leaves the room. We’re all quiet for a beat.

“How come you only want details about my sex life?” I demand. “Like, I want to hear all about what goes on with that beast of a man!”

Allora laughs. “I’ll tell you anything you want to know. He’s virile and sexy and extremely attuned to my needs. I’ve never had such a voracious or attentive lover.”

“Same.” Courtney grins. “Dan’s a little on the kinky side but nothing over the top. He’s really into watching other people do it and having them watch us but we decided that wasn’t appropriate in our current situation, so when I’m ready to get back on the horse, so to speak, we’ll probably go to Club Inferno when we want to get our freak on.”

“Isn’t that in Vegas?” I ask.

She nods. “Yeah. Like I said, he’s not over-the-top. He’s perfectly happy fucking me up against a wall or bent over a counter.”