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Me: That’s cool. Maybe we can get some of the guys together. I’m sure Marcus and Tony would love to come, maybe even Bryce and Andrew if they’re available.

Jonesy: Well, today’s Friday, so it might be a good idea to see who can come on short notice. Can you reach out to them to find out? I can secure a table. BTW, what are you doing tomorrow?

It was strange that he asked me what I was doing tomorrow, since whenever I could, I liked working in my yard on Saturdays. For three years, he’d known that. And it was overdue for a good lawn mowing and some weeding in the flower beds.

Me: You know what I usually do on Saturdays.

I knew my response was passive-aggressive, but I’d sent it, and he’d read it. I noticed he hadn’t responded as quickly as before. Finally, I saw he was typing a response.

Jonesy: Oh yeah, sorry…you like to work in your yard. But I have a better idea. If you want to.

Me: Do tell.

Jonesy: What if we drove to Lake Tahoe and watched the crowning of Miss Nevada? I’d like to learn more about pageants since you seem to know more than I do.

Me: I don’t know any more about pageants than you do. I’m just doing a background check on a future contestant. But I think getting out of town and hitting a casino would be more fun than yard work tomorrow. (smiling emoji)

Jonesy: Great. Let’s talk about it tonight. You’re still coming over, right?

Me: Of course. I’ll be there around 7.

Jonesy: I’ll order a pizza and make a salad.

Me: Sounds good. (heart emoji)

I didn’t get a response, but I didn’t expect one. As I put my phone down, the clock showed three o’clock. I had nothing else scheduled for the day except paperwork, so I headed home. At least mowing the lawn meant it wouldn’t look like an overgrown jungle. That gave me plenty of time to shower and go over to Jonesy’s place later.

Thinking about it, maybe a change of scenery outside the city would do us good. I wasn’t sure if he thought we’d spend the night there, but hell, I was up for some hot hotel sex.

Then I thought about his handcuffs and wondered if he had made reservations for Saturday night.

7

JONESY

Lucy and Bradley Swenson arrived late in the morning to identify their daughter’s body at the city morgue. I made sure they came to see me first at the precinct so I could escort them. As exhausted and worn out as Lucy appeared, her husband’s demeanor was one of anger and shock amid his grief. I couldn’t blame him. I handled the task without Sean since it might be too overwhelming for the Swensons if both of us went.

Dr. Fleming expressed her condolences for their loss once we arrived and guided us into a private viewing room. The room was quiet and secluded. Gretchen was laid out on a table, with only her face and head visible.

As soon as the Swensons entered the room, Lucy burst into tears against her husband’s chest; the sight was overwhelming for her. Brad’s lips quivered, and he held his wife close as she leaned into him.

We remained silent for a few moments before Brad asked shakily, “Who could have done this to our little girl?” That question made Lucy’s cries even more heartbreaking as he hugged his wife tighter.

Throughout my years working homicide investigations, I’ve escorted many into the morgue for identification, but seeing emotionally grieving parents always made my throat tighten with empathy. I couldn’t imagine the pain they experienced. The range of emotions among survivors varied widely. Some completely broke down and dropped to the floor wailing, while others displayed complete indifference. I had been surprised a few times.

Brad turned to me. “Find this son of a bitch,” he gritted out, still holding his distraught wife.

“We’re working on it, sir. We’ll get to the bottom of what happened,” I replied sincerely. “Again, I’m sorry for your loss.” I hated making promises in those situations, telling them they would find closure, but I needed to see her murder case through to the end, and I intended to do just that.

After the viewing, Dr. Fleming talked with them about how to transport the body back to Nevada and the steps to make it happen. I listened patiently, having heard it all before, but I wanted to bring them back to the precinct with me and introduce them to Sean, if only to let them know we planned to see the investigation through.

After we’d returned to the precinct and met Sean, they thanked us and asked that we keep them informed of any progress. They planned to fly back to Boulder City as soon as they could have Gretchen transported home.

After they left, I needed to contact my boyfriend to take my mind off the heaviness of the day. I knew Craig was meeting a client in the afternoon, but he’d told me he planned to hit the gym with Bryce that morning, so I sent him a text to avoid bothering him with a call if he was busy. I was a little disheartened that he didn’t answer right away, but I understood my neediness wasn’t the most important thing. Not everything was about me.

As I thought about the Swensons and the Miss Nevada pageant, I came up with the idea of heading up to Lake Tahoe to see the crowning Saturday evening with him. It would give me a chance to experience an event like that, as I’d never witnessed a pageant, and it might give me ideas to help Onyx develop her look. We could also dig into the status of the missing contestant if we could find anyone to talk about it.

Sitting at my desk, I reflected on when I’d developed Onyx Storm, and my mind drifted to how I had adopted her persona. Introduced to makeup and dressed up by my sisters when I was a boy, I’d developed a fascination I never truly outgrew. As the allure of drag grew, and watching the success of RuPaul, I thought my singing voice might launch me further than lip-syncing. I’d done that too, but it wasn’t as fulfilling.