Bloody Claws (Camren) Book 3

Chapter 28

I was sitting behind my desk at Cabello's Investigations, waiting for Skyler to arrive for our scheduled appointment. It was almost five o'clock. Dinah was with me, perched in a silly inverted mushroom-shaped chair that she'd insisted on bringing into my office. She flipped through a magazine, the pages hissing as she exhaled a deep breath and flicked the corners.

"If you tear that magazine, Dinah, Stein will have a fit," I said.

When I'd been staking out Karin's work, Dinah had gone with me, keeping me company. A stake out is an atrociously boring and dull thing to do with one's time, which is why I didn't mind the company.

Earlier this afternoon she'd cornered me in Lauren's kitchen and asked to come to work with me. I agreed, although I blame a lot of that on the fact that she'd asked me before I'd had any caffeine whatsoever. The other thing I blame it on is that Dinah, for some reason, has a way of making me feel like an ass for saying no, without even saying, "Mila, you're being an ass." She just looks at me and I feel it.

June buzzed my desk to let me know that Skyler had arrived fifteen minutes early.

"Go ahead and send her up," I said, releasing the button when I was done speaking.

I'd left the door to my office wide-open and Skyler appeared a few seconds later, wearing a plum-colored long-sleeved shirt with a pair of faded denim jeans.

"Hi, Camila."

"Good afternoon, Skyler."

She stopped in front of my desk, burying her hands in the pockets of her jeans. "So?" she asked.

I'd spent the last week working on her case, trying to figure out if her girlfriend was cheating or not. As I said, Dinah had accompanied me when I'd gone to Al's Diner to watch Karin Sherman. I'd parked away from the diner, obviously, finding a spot in the shadows that the Tiburon wouldn't be noticeable in. Having a black car comes in handy.

"She's not cheating," I said, pulling Skyler's file out of my drawer with copies of the photographs I'd taken. Yes, at times in my line of work I feel like nothing more than a glorified stalker, but I'm good at it and there's a certain thrill to watching people unaware, when they're at ease with themselves, with no walls or guards.

To be completely honest, if you've ever watched someone who doesn't know they're being watched (and no, it's not creepy, unless you're hiding outside their window at night), it can be disgusting. Hell, just on my way into work I'd stopped at a red light at an intersection and the guy in the car next to us was going to town chewing on his ink pen, after sticking it in his ear. Yep, we've come so far as a species.

I handed the photographs to Skyler, who took her time going through them.

I knew for sure that Karin Sherman wasn't cheating on her. Each night that she'd worked late, Dinah and I sat in the car, listening to music, chatting, and watching Karin sweep, mop, and wipe down tables.

The other reason I knew for certain, was that the last time we'd staked the place out, Karin had left early for "lunch," and we'd followed her to a jewelry store several blocks away from the diner.

It was Dinah's idea to go inside, creative that she is. I may not have gone inside if she hadn't egged me on. We stepped out of the car and Dinah put her arm around my waist, briefly giving me the rundown of the role she was going to play and the story she'd be telling. She distracted the sales clerk, talking about how we were looking for an engagement ring for our upcoming commitment ceremony and making it sound sweet and convincing. I daresay she should have gone into theater.

While Dinah played her role and gave a marvelous performance, I was busy listening to Karin Sherman talking to another employee on the other side of the room. When the woman asked what kind of ring she was looking for, Karin explained that she'd been putting in as many hours as she could at work and wasn't too concerned with price. She mentioned Skyler's name when she told the older woman that she planned to propose on Christmas Eve.