“I can hook you up. Do you want me to get it now?”
Justin thought about the two cops that could be in there any second. “No, but grab it now, because the detectives are right on my ass on this one, and they aren’t happy we’re working it.”
He completely understood. “Want me to email it to you from home tonight?”
“That would be perfect.” Justin scribbled his email on a business card. “Thanks Lenny,” he stated. “I owe you.”
He watched his friend walk away. No, the man didn't owe him anything. Justin Littlemoon had saved his ass many times. If anything, this favor was a long time coming.
Now, he’d get the list and lay low to buy his friend time. If the cops wanted the information, then they’d have to get it the old fashioned way.
Waterboarding.
Julian and Tori had two more stops to make before heading back to the office. This first one, was to catch up with Suzie Ortiz, and then to take a leisurely stroll through the woods. Well, that’s what they planned on telling the cops if they were caught. Since dealing with the best friend should be less messy, they opted to handle it first.
Before heading into the gym, to talk to the woman, Julian sent his brother a text to meet them for lunch after the interview. He wanted to hear everything that he had learned that morning.
For now, they had almost nothing to lead them any further along on this case, and they really could use just about anything at that point.
After receiving a reply back from him, Julian and Tori headed into the building to talk to the missing woman’s friend. As each minute ticked by, Melissa Lagerfeld had less and less of a chance of survival.
Time was of the essence.
Inside, the music was upbeat and relatively loud. At the reception desk, they waited for Suzie Ortiz to find them. As she crossed the workout room, she was smiling, happily.
“Hi, I’m Suzie. You needed to speak to me?”
Tori took over with this one. It was obvious that the woman wasn’t aware that her best friend was missing. “We need to talk to you about Melissa Lagerfeld.”
The woman’s smile slowly slipped away. “What about? Did something happen to her?”
“She’s missing.”
“What do you mean she’s missing?”
The woman looked shocked.
“That can’t be true. We just went out for drinks Saturday night. She’s supposed to call me tonight to make plans for this weekend.”
“Have you heard from her since Saturday?”
She thought about it. “Come to think of it, no. Oh, my God! Is she seriously missing? Someone has to find her!”
Julian handed her his business card. “Her father hired us to do just that. We need to talk to you about your night out with Melissa.”
She began pacing. “I can’t believe this! What can I do?”
“You may be the last person who saw her. When she left the bar, where did she go?” Tori asked.
“She told us that she needed to get home. I shouldn’t have let her leave,” she whispered, as she began to sob.
“So, she went directly home?” Tori asked, pushing on with the questioning. They didn't have time to soothe the distraught woman, so she would just have to answer the questions as a sobbing mess.
Suzie shook her head. “I don’t know. I didn't check up on her at all. I’m a horrible friend!”
Julian just shrugged at his wife. He wasn’t jumping into this one. He didn't get women in general, and he certainly didn't understand them while they were lost in the throes of tears. He was used to his wife, and she wasn’t generally a blubbering mess.
“Can you think of anyone that may have wanted to hurt Melissa, Ms. Ortiz?” Tori asked, hopefully.
The woman simply stared at her and wept.
Tori was beginning to see that this was useless. “Suzie, you have our number, please call us if you think of anything.”
Together, they hustled out of there pretty fast.
Once outside, Julian was deep in thought. “How did we get to interview her before the cops?”
She shook her head. “I have no idea, Jules,” she answered honestly.
“Am I being paranoid?” he asked, holding her hand as they walked to the SUV.
Tori gave it a squeeze. “In our line of work, you need to be paranoid, or you can die.”
Yeah, she had a point.
Chapter Five
Wednesday Noon
They met up to grab something to eat and discuss their findings. Julian picked their favorite place to get some burgers and just chill for their meeting. Why not be relaxed as they were working? He prided himself on being a laid back kind of boss.
Sitting down at a table, Tori and he ordered their drinks and perused the menu. They’d been there a thousand times, but why not just check anyway. Maybe they added something new.
“How are you feeling?” he asked out of the blue.
Tori glanced up and lifted an eyebrow. “I’m good, but now I’m a little nervous about you asking me that question.”
Julian just shrugged. “I’m just asking my wife how she feels. That’s all.”
Tori placed her menu down and stared into his eyes. “What are you thinking about, Jules? You know you can tell me anything, and I won’t get upset.”
He thought about it. “Are we pregnant yet?”
“I love you.”
“That really didn't answer my question.”
She slid her chair closer. “Babe, you need to chill out. I only came off the shot a while ago. It takes the body time to adjust. The doctor told me it can take up to a year or more.”
“It’s just that,” he paused, “never mind.”
She took his hand in hers. “You can talk to me, Jules, because we’re a team. Don’t retreat from this. Just lay it out on the table, and we’ll talk it through. Isn’t that what you always tell me to do?”
“What if it’s me, Tori?”
The pain in his eyes hurt her heart. “Julian Trenton Littlemoon, it’s not either of us. It’s just that things like this take time, and you can’t rush nature.”
“I just want to give you a family.”
She touched his cheek with the palm of her hand. “You have given me one. I now have two sisters and two brothers, plus you’re sharing your mother with me. That’s an incredible gift to give someone, especially the mother part. Growing up without one was hard, and now I cherish having Clarissa in my life. You’ve given me a tribe, not just a family.”
He accepted the light kiss to the lips.
“If we can’t have kids, well, then that’s fate. I’m not worried about it,” she said, honestly. Picking up her iced tea, she smiled at him. “Really.”
There was no point telling him that she was scared shitless at the proposition of even becoming pregnant. What did a motherless Army brat know about birthing babies? She prayed her face stayed calm.
“Maybe we should have sex more often.”
He timed that one just right, because Tori started choking, and Justin showed up just at that moment.
“Yeah, the world needs you two fornicating a little more,” Justin teased, as he took his seat.
Julian slapped Tori on the back a few times. “Shut up, Justin,” he stated.
“Why are you two having more sex?”
Of course, he wasn’t going to let this one go.
Tori saw her husband flushing and came to his rescue. “We’re trying to start a family.”
“Ohhhh,” then he realized that this was probably not a topic to ride his brother over. “Hey, odds are in your favor. Look at the Littlemoon clan. Connor and Liana have popped out more kids than probably should be legal. Once you start, Tori, you’ll be having a litter.”
That cheered Julian up. “Thanks, Justin,” he said, offering him a fist bump.
Tori didn't look as enthused. “Uh, no litters. I’m not popping out twenty kids to beat the family record. Let Connor hold that one. If he and his wife want to end up in G
uinness, then let them have at it. I’m good with one.”
Julian looked at her with puppy eyes.
“Or two,” she amended.
Now he smiled, and all the ghosts in his eyes were vanquished by her words.
“So,” began Justin, “I hit up my hospital contact and he gave me some interesting information.”
“I’m ready,” stated Julian.
He told them about the screaming match that went down in front of everyone in the ER. Justin relayed it all, including the impressions that Lenny had shared.
“So, they have a big fight, where his ego is damaged, and the very next week Melissa goes missing?” Tori asked.
“Yep. It looks that way.”
She shook her head. “Well, if that doesn’t scream suspicious, I don’t know what does.”
Julian had to agree with his wife.
The waitress stopped at their table and took their order and when she walked away, Justin continued. “He also told me about a doctor she was warming a bed with too,” he added.
“Do we have a name?” Julian asked.
“Oh, we do, but there’s a little kink in that plan. It seems that Doctor Stewart, the Neurologist, left the city around two weeks ago. He took a job out in Chicago.”
“Shit,” muttered Julian.
“But, I did also manage to get us a work schedule. My buddy is emailing it to me tonight. You’ll have it by morning.”
Tori was glad to hear that. “To abduct someone, in the manner that Melissa was, the person was most likely close to her. He had to be to watching her movements. That work schedule might help up eliminate a few people from the suspect list.”
Julian laughed. “We have one person on that list. It’s Brock Edwards, and he only worked until nine at night.”
Tori knew that he was right. “This brings us to Detective Graves,” she said, glancing over at Justin. “I know you said you didn't want to use her, but how about we equally reciprocate?”
“What are you suggesting?” Justin asked.
“Well, she gave us information, how about you share what we have with her? Maybe if we have something that she doesn’t, Detective Graves will be more willing to trust us.”
He thought about it.
“Then you’re not using her. We’re partnering up, so to speak,” Julian added.
“I’m meeting her tonight at nine.”
Neither Littlemoon spoke. This was a mine field to navigate.
“I slipped her a note and wanted to thank her for helping us out.”
Julian wasn’t buying it. “And?”
Tori kicked him under the table.
“I need to know how she knew about me and why she’s doing this. Then, I’ll share information with her,” he stated. He still couldn’t explain why he found his thoughts continually drifting towards her. She was seriously becoming his obsession.
“Okay,” Julian stated. He could see his brother struggling with all of this and for him, it wasn’t his norm. Generally, Justin was the suave one when it came to women, and Julian had been the one who was destined to be a failure.
Fate had a sense of humor.
Tori touched his arm with her hand and had his attention. “You can do this, Marine.”
What choice did he have? His heart was saying one thing, while his brain was trying to rationalize the rest.
Either way, Justin knew one thing to be certain.
He was screwed.
* * *
There was tension in the air, and unfortunately, it had nothing to do with the missing woman. Detective Graves was getting a little bit irritated with her partner and his silly vendetta.
Now, as if they had time, he was sitting at his desk and doing searches on the Littlemoons. It was like he actually believed that they were up to something.
Really?
Sometimes, she wondered how the man got through his day.
“I’m telling you that they’re too clean.”
Again, she suppressed a sigh. “Tom, maybe they really just want to solve this and find the girl. There are people out there that care about things like this.”
“Oh, she’s probably dead. We both know that it’s more than likely that the killer took her and disposed of her body. It’s only a matter of time.”
She knew that wasn’t true.
Vivian had seen it.
“That’s a pretty pessimistic attitude to have regarding all this, Tom, especially since it’s our job to find her alive.”
He glanced up at her. “You’ve only been doing this a few years. When you get to the ten year mark, come preach at me then. Ninety five percent of the cases I’ve worked didn't end well. I’m not getting my hopes up.”
There was no point stressing it. You couldn’t teach an old dog new tricks, and Tom was an ancient hound. “What did you find on them?” It wasn’t like she needed to know. Her gut and one of her dreams told her everything, at least about Justin Littlemoon.
“The woman has the most impressive background out of all of them. She was, at one time, in the Army and also worked with the FBI. I just can’t figure out why she’d leave that to come here and play private investigator.”
Vivian had a pretty good idea. “Maybe she was sick of the rules and bureaucracy. By going private she can be her own boss and play it her way.”
He wasn’t quite sure that he was buying it. “Yeah, well, her husband technically owns the business. He was at one time a deputy in a small sheriff’s department. He owns a house on a reservation about two hours away.”
“Okay, she didn't want to be away from the man she loved and started working with him.”
“You’re something, kid. Do you believe in unicorns and pots of gold too?” he asked, snidely.
She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, because I’m not suspicious of everything in life, it’s all about me. You’re on a witch hunt because the woman schooled you on the scene.”
Detective Lester ignored her, much like he always did. “The last Littlemoon is right out of the service. He was a Marine.”
She interjected, “Once a Marine, always a Marine.”
“Yeah, whatever. It says he did a few tours in the Middle East. He owns a house on the same reservation as his brother and that’s about it.”
“Okay, so they’re brothers and went into business together. How is this any different than if they opened a dry cleaner?”
“They’re in my damn way, and we all know that businesses like this are like defense attorneys. They’re all ambulance chasers, looking for the glory. I don’t doubt that they’ll be trying to make it big after this. It’s all about the money.”
“Again, let’s go back to the previously mentioned witch hunt. Here’s more proof.”
He shrugged. “I want them out of my way. They’re going to stall this case and that’s going to get that woman killed.”
“Wait, you just told me you thought she was dead.”
“Yeah, so? It’s neither here or there, partner. Man, you have a lot to learn.”
Vivian tried to not lose her temper.
“I hate pretend cops.” He dropped the papers into the trash can. It was a dead end. All three Littlemoons were squeaky clean.
“Two of the three were cops at one time,” she reminded him.
“Yeah, well maybe I just hate self-entitled people who think the government owes them.”
Her mouth dropped open that he even went there with their ethnicity. Vivian wasn’t going to say another word. It was blatantly obvious that the man had issues with their race, and that was the reason he was riding them. He was bigoted and not afraid to spew his venom all over the place. As far as Vivian was concerned, this conversation was officially over.
“Why all the questions?” he asked, suspiciously.
It was her turn to shrug nonchalantly. “I just like to know what we’re dealing with, that’s all.”
Yeah, she needed to take care of one thing.
Pulling up Littlemoon Investigations on her phone, she h
eaded away from her desk to make a call.
Meeting at Tony’s wasn’t going to happen. If her partner got wind of it, he’d ride her about it. They were going to have to do this meeting in private.
After leaving the message with the receptionist, she headed back into work. In her pocket was a private zip drive.
She needed to download everything that they had.
It was official and her mind was made up.
Vivian was going to do whatever it took to help the Littlemoons find that girl. It was obvious that her partner didn’t give a rat’s ass about the case.
He was too busy stroking his ego and worried about being shown up by the private investigators.
It was time to step in and take control of this spiraling mess. If she didn't, her conscience wouldn’t let her forget about it.
They couldn’t access the property from the driveway, since the detectives had stationed a cop there to watch the place. So, that meant they really were going to take a scenic walk through the woods.
A romantic stroll, if you will, just Julian and the love of his life.
Oh, and his brother too.
He knew that it would have been easier to track the trail from the main site out, but since this wrench was in the works, they would have to work backwards.
Julian wasn’t worried. He trusted his tracking skills. They were just going to have to go in the same way that the abductor had and hope for the best.
Parking not far from the side of the road, where Julian believed there was the best access point, he led them to the entrance of the trees. “Stay behind me,” he stated to his wife.
She shook her head, but managed to say nothing. Tori wanted to remind him that of the three of them, she was the only one carrying a sidearm. If someone came at them, Julian would be in her way, and that could be a problem.
“I can hear you thinking, Tori,” he stated as he glanced over his shoulder at her.
Now, she did start laughing.
“Just humor me. I’m not making you stand behind me because of danger. It’s so I can see the trail.”
Blood Red Rage (LIttlemoon Investigations Book 1) Page 9