Authors: Tina Folsom
“I thought you might have gone to sleep.”
She shook her blond locks. “I can’t sleep. Too much has happened.”
“I know. Come, I want to talk to you.” He pointed to the Chesterfield couch in one corner of the office.
Lilo sat down, and he followed her. “I want to know more about this Ronny. We need to find him.”
“I’ve told the police everything I know.”
“Tell me again. Maybe there was something you missed. Every detail is important.” Blake sat on the edge of the couch and turned sideways, his elbows resting on his knees, leaning toward her. “Tell me everything Hannah told you about him.”
Lilo sighed. “It started maybe six to eight months ago. She didn’t tell me at first, maybe because she knew I wouldn’t approve of him.”
“Why?”
“Hannah is too good. She’s the kind of person who picks up strays, because she pities them, and then ends up a penniless cat lady.”
Involuntarily, Blake had to smile. “She always thinks the best of people.”
“Unfortunately,” Lilo agreed. “But it never ends well. I knew Ronny was a loser from the moment she told me about him.”
“A loser? In what way?”
She huffed. “Well, for starters, he was
in between
jobs.” She made air quotes around the words to emphasize her disdain. “I don’t think you can be in between jobs, when you’ve never had a real job.”
“So how did he make money?”
Lilo shrugged. “Hell knows. Sponging off girlfriends?”
“You think he used Hannah?”
“Probably. Or he did something illegal. She always made excuses for him when I asked why he hadn’t gotten a job.”
“What kind of excuses?”
“That he couldn’t work the hours they wanted him to work. That there weren’t that many jobs that would let him work the nightshift.” She threw up her hands. “I mean, who wants to work the nightshift if they don’t have to? Particularly if your girlfriend works during the day. That makes no sense at all.”
“Hmm.” Blake pretended to think about that, as he’d already guessed the reason why Ronny wanted to work the nightshift. “Did Hannah ever mention how she and Ronny met?”
“Through her job somehow.”
“You sure?”
“I think he was a customer, and they got to talking one day.”
This was the break he’d been looking for. Excitedly, he pulled his cell phone from his pocket. While dialing, he said to Lilo, “If he was a customer, Vüber will have his information. He would have had to sign up for an account.”
Lilo’s face brightened with hope. She reached for his hand and squeezed it. “Oh, I hope you’re right.”
The call was answered. “It’s Finn, what’s up?”
“Finn, it’s Blake. Can you please go through Vüber’s customer records and find anybody with the name of Ron, or Ronny, or Ronald. Cross-reference anybody you find with the fares Hannah Bergdorf accepted in the last eight months. Can you do that for me?”
“When do you need it by?”
“ASAP.”
“Give me about an hour and a half.”
“Thanks. Call me as soon as you have something.”
“No prob.”
Blake disconnected the phone. “We should know more in a couple of hours.”
Lilo shook her head, disbelief coloring her features. “I’m amazed at all the things your company can do. I mean, you seem to have more resources than the police. And you work a lot faster than they do.”
He grinned. “Don’t tell them or they’ll get envious.”
She hesitated, studying him for a long moment. “What you’re doing… it’s legal, isn’t it?”
“Of course it’s legal. The customer records belong to the company. We decide what to do with them, particularly when it means protecting one of our employees. So don’t worry about it.”
“Hey, I’m in,” Eddie interrupted.
Blake jumped up and rushed to Eddie’s side. “Let’s see. Go to her emails.”
Lilo walked to Eddie’s other side and looked over his shoulder, too, while he scrolled through Hannah’s inbox, scanning the emails. For fifteen minutes they all silently perused her messages, but there was nothing that gave any clue as to Hannah’s whereabouts or what she had wanted to speak to Lilo about so urgently.
“Nothing,” Blake said, frustrated. He ran a hand through his hair. “How about her calendar?”
Eddie navigated to her online calendar. A second later, he looked up, surprised. “Not a single entry.”
“Hannah was paranoid that her computer would crash and she’d lose all her appointment info.” Lilo met Eddie’s look. “She always wrote them on paper. She kept a diary.”
Blake nodded. “We need to find it.” He rounded the desk. “Eddie, can you go through whatever else is on the computer? And the tablet, too. Files, browsing history, etcetera, while I go over to Hannah’s flat and search for her diary?”
“Sure thing, just be quick about it.” He looked at his wristwatch. “I’ve gotta be back at the office in a couple of hours.”
“No worries. I won’t be long. And keep an eye on the boys while I’m gone, will you?”
Blake was about to storm out, when he heard footsteps behind him. He looked over his shoulder. Lilo was following him.
“I’ll be able to find it faster than you. I know Hannah’s taste. I know what her diary would look like.”
“Then describe it for me.”
She crossed her arms over her chest, drawing his eyes to those tempting curves. “I’m coming with you.”
“Damn it, Lilo. What if that intruder comes back while we’re there?”
“In that case it’s even more important that you don’t go alone.”
He did a double take. “Are you trying to imply that
you
’d be protecting
me
?”
From behind him, he heard Eddie chuckle. Without taking his eyes off Lilo, he growled, “Not funny, Eddie.”
Yeah, it was so not funny that this woman was getting under his skin with such ease.
Or that he was allowing it.
And possibly even enjoying it.
10
Lilo felt the air sizzle between them when they were back in the car, heading for Hannah’s apartment. Blake was clearly not used to a woman ignoring his orders.
“I’m not ungrateful, you know,” she started.
He didn’t take his eyes off the road. “I didn’t say you were.”
She scoffed. “You didn’t have to.”
“I’m just trying to protect you. It’s bad enough that Hannah has disappeared. How can I find her, how can I function normally, if I have to worry about you too?
For a moment she was speechless. Blake would find it hard to function if he had to worry about
her
? Instinctively she shook her head. That was impossible. It would imply that he cared. About her. When he didn’t even know her.
“What?” he barked.
She looked at his profile, and she finally understood. “I’m sorry.”
“Sorry for what?”
“You’re as stressed out about this whole thing as I am, and I’m only causing you more grief.” She stared out the side window and watched the lights whizz past it. “You’re used to doing all this without somebody interfering. You don’t need my help to find Hannah.” She sniffled. “It’s just… I want to help. I want to know that I’m doing something to find my friend. I owe her that.” Her voice cracked. Damn it! She wasn’t gonna cry, not now when she’d tried to be so brave all night.
A warm hand clasping hers made her whip her head in Blake’s direction. She found him looking at her, his gaze kind and understanding.
“We both want the same thing: to find Hannah.” He smiled. “And I do need your help. If you hadn’t mentioned that Ronny was a Vüber client, we wouldn’t have any leads.”
He released her hand, making her realize how much the innocent touch had comforted her.
“And you’re right: I’m not used to having my orders ignored. By anyone.” He smirked. “Not just women.”
“Or teenagers?” she teased, his words having put her at ease again.
He grimaced. “Particularly teenagers.”
Once in the apartment, it didn’t take long to find what they were looking for. Lilo pulled a datebook from a shelf. It had a thick, cushioned cover decorated with dried flowers. “Here it is.”
“Let’s see.” Blake reached for it, and together they turned to the week of Hannah’s disappearance. “She abbreviates a lot.”
Lilo nodded. “She’s done that since we were kids.” She pointed to an entry the day before her disappearance. “She took Frankenfurter to the vet here. There’s a telephone number.”
Blake saved it in his cell phone. “I’ll call the clinic as soon as they open in the morning and find out whether Hannah kept the appointment.”
“Maybe Frankenfurter had to stay there overnight. That would explain why he isn’t anywhere to be found.”
“Maybe.” But the doubt in Blake’s voice was audible.
Apart from a few reminders to pay bills, there weren’t many entries for the week in question. The weeks before showed a dentist appointment, a note to fire the dog walker, several movie dates, presumably with Ronny, a hair appointment, and a visit to check out a gym.
“Nothing out of the ordinary,” Blake said, sounding disappointed. “Let’s take it with us, just in case.”
Lilo slipped the book into her purse just as Blake’s phone rang.
He answered it immediately. “What have you got?”
He listened for a few seconds, then said, “Text me his address. And his photo, too. Thanks, Finn!” He pressed the
end
button. “There was only one man named Ronald who got rides from Hannah.” His cell phone pinged, indicating the arrival of a text message. Blake pointed to the display. “And now we have his address and what he looks like.”
Lilo tapped on the photo to enlarge it. “That’s not the man who broke in.” She shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. Maybe he sent a friend. Or maybe the two events aren’t connected after all. Let’s not waste any time. Let’s go to his house. Now,” she demanded, already heading for the door.
Blake caught up with her. “We’re not going without backup. We don’t know what we’re dealing with. He might not be alone.”
“Good idea. Let’s call the police.” She pulled Donnelly’s card from her pocket. He’d handed it to her, telling her to call his direct line if anything else came up.
“No. If the police show up, he’ll run. Besides, they have no probable cause to act. We’ll check it out ourselves first.” He dialed a number on his phone. “I’ll get somebody from the company to help us.”
“But if he’s dangerous, the police are much better equipped to—”
Blake lifted his hand to stop her. “Hey, Wes, I need your help. Can you meet me out in the Excelsior?” He paused for a moment. “Yes, now. I’ll text you the address. And, Wes, we don’t wanna wake anybody up and alert them to our arrival. Bring your bag of tricks, just in case.” He disconnected the call.
“What bag of tricks?” Lilo asked, curious.
“The usual equipment any bodyguard has. Plus, a few extras. In case the guy gives us any trouble.”
“You mean stuff to tie him up with? Or are you talking about something to… make him tell us where Hannah is?”
He took her elbow and ushered her out of the apartment. “We’re not the CIA.”
“Could’ve fooled me, considering all the resources you have at your disposal,” she shot back.
She’d never encountered a law enforcement agency or private security firm that worked as seamlessly and efficiently as the company that employed Blake. And she’d researched the field thoroughly for her mystery series. So why, if Scanguards was so good at what they did, had she never heard of them?
~ ~ ~
Wesley, Scanguards’ resident witch, was already waiting for them, when Blake pulled up in his Aston Martin. Wes had parked his black BMW a block away from Ronny’s house. The license plate, WTW—Wesley, The Witch—was hard to miss.
Blake parked behind Wes and killed the engine.
“I would tell you to stay in the car, but I’m guessing you’d ignore me.” He glanced at Lilo whose hand was already on the door handle.
She stopped in mid-motion, and met his eyes. From somewhere, light reflected in them, and for a moment he was mesmerized by her cornflower-blue irises. They should signify innocence, but in Lilo they accentuated her mysteriousness. She’d told him a lot by her actions, her willingness to fly halfway across the country to look for Hannah, her determination to put herself in harm’s way if only it would bring her a step closer to her friend. He admired that in a person. And even more so in a human who didn’t even know what she was up against.
But he knew: whatever the reason for Hannah’s disappearance, the evidence was mounting that a vampire was behind it. The fact that Ronny was a Vüber client confirmed that he was a vampire, because only vampires were allowed to sign up for the service. So if Hannah was dating a vampire, and had disappeared three days ago, why had her loving boyfriend not reached out to Scanguards? It was an open secret in the vampire community that Scanguards dealt with any vampire-related crimes. Ronny would have been assured discretion and wouldn’t have had to hide who or what he was.
“Thank you…”
Lilo’s voice pulled him from his reverie. Their gazes locked.
“…for everything you’re doing for Hannah. Without you, I don’t know what I’d be doing.”
He felt himself move closer, drawn to her soft voice and tender gaze.
“She’s very lucky to have a colleague like you,” Lilo continued. “Somebody who’s watching out for her.” She lifted her hand as if to touch him.
A knock at the window made Lilo pull her hand back and Blake twist his head.
Wesley stood on the driver’s side, his head tilted to the side, his eyes rolling.
Quickly, Blake opened the door and got out.
“If you wanted an audience for your make-out session, you should have told me in advance. I would have brought popcorn.”
“That was not a—”
He left the sentence unfinished when Lilo appeared next to him.
“Lilo, this is Wesley. He also works for Scanguards.”
They shook hands.
“Hi, Wesley. Sorry to drag you out here,” Lilo apologized.
Wes jerked his thumb at Blake. “I’m used to it from him.” He shifted his gaze. “So, what’s this about?”