The Lure of the Lie: A Modern Detective Anthology (*On Hold*)

6 Booked

"Your little prostitution ring is now tied to a murder," Parker said coolly, throwing a few crime scene photos down in front of Director Skip. The suspect glanced down at Cecily Adam's mangled body and paled.

"Wh-what are you talking about?" He asked, looking up at us with wide eyes.

"The clerk at the front desk told us that your company rented out the room that this girl fell from," I told him.

"Fell," he repeated. "So how do you get murder?"

"There were—"

"Why don't you let us do the investigating and you focus on doing the explaining," Parker cut me off. I closed my mouth and made a mental note. Right. No sharing what we know with the prime suspect. "So, here's how things are going to shake out, Skip. Either you tell me who booked some time with Cecily Adams that night or I book you on solicitation charges and you miss the rest of your little convention, spend up to six months in jail, and earn yourself a nice little fine. What's it gonna be?"

Skip glared at Parker for a moment before turning his attention to me. When I simply crossed my arms and didn't say a word, he sighed.

"Get a warrant," he said, enunciating each word.

"Alright then," Parker said, standing from his seat and gathering the file before turning and striding for the door. He paused in the threshold just long enough to speak to the officer who had opened it for him. "Book him, Dean."

The officer nodded and Skip shook his head as we left.

"What now?" I asked once we were out of the interrogation room and heading back down the hall.

"Now, I call in the warrant. And we wait," he said, frowning. "In the meantime, you hungry, Doc?"

As he asked, my stomach growled. I looked at my watch and found it was nearly six pm and I hadn't eaten all day.

"I'll take that as a yes," he replied, stopping in his office long enough to toss the file onto his desk. "Come on."

I followed him to the elevator and back down to the parking garage where we climbed back into the SUV and took off in the direction of the sports bar which had become our go to spot. On the way, he called in the warrant and I texted Kacey to check in on Remy. I was half starved by the time we took up our seats at the bar, as if noting my own hunger had intensified it. I was lost in the menu when Parker spoke again.

"Whoever was in that room with her killed her," he grumbled, his usual grumpiness returning after an unsuccessful interrogation. "That slimebag knows it too and he still won't give us a name."

"Businesses like those depend on secrecy. His clients wouldn't come to him, wouldn't request his services, if they thought he might hand their names over to the authorities at any time," I explained. "I think I'll get the nachos."

"Yeah, nachos are good," he answered, tossing down the menu without hardly glancing at it. I raised a brow but he rushed on. "You said girls in that industry get close, confide in one another, yeah?"

"In subcultures where one sex treats the other as property, there tends to be a bond of reliance between members of what is considered the weaker sex."

"So, yes?"

"Presumably."

"Then maybe some of her buddies know who she was meeting with that night. Maybe she let it slip where she was going. Maybe she even gave a name."

"I would," I said, waving for a waitress. "If I were going to meet someone new, I would always ask my colleagues what they knew of him first, to ascertain my own safety as well as avoid any unintentional risk. Yes, thank you, we'll have two orders of the nachos and two Heinekens. Thanks."

Parker raised a brow as the waitress smiled, took our menus, and left.

"What?" I asked.

"I thought we were sharing the nachos," he said.

"I'm hungry. Get your own."

He chuckled and we continued talking about the case throughout our dinner. Afterwards, he dropped me off at my apartment before heading to his own. He offered to come inside and "secure the perimeter" or just check up on Remy but I assured him I could handle it and he gave a curt nod and drive off without argument. So I took the elevator to my floor and then pushed my key into the lock. I stepped into my living room to find Remy and Kacey curled on the couch under blankets and with a bowl of popcorn between them.

"There she is," Kacey said with a smile as I hung my keys on the hook by the door and stepped out of my heels, padding across the soft carpet to join them. "Long day at work?"

"The longest," I groaned, picking up the bowl and holding it on my lap as I plopped down between them. "What are we watching?"

"My Big Fat Greek Wedding," Remy told me.

"Excellent," I said, kicking my feet up on the coffee table, intending to get lost in a great movie. But Kacey and Remy were exchanging grins above me so I sighed. "What?"

"How's Agent Parker?" Kacey asked, raising a brow.

"Agent Parker is just fine. He is a good coworker."

"A coworker who you buy lingerie with while on the clock."

Remy snorted.

"Uh huh," Kacey replied, though it was clear that she didn't believe me in the slightest. Then she stood, slipping out from under the blankets and sliding into her sneakers which had been deposited right next to the couch. "Listen, I have to get going. I've got an early morning. You'll call me if you need anything, Rem?"

"Promise," Remy told her with a smile.

Kacey blew us a kiss and then bounded for the door. We heard it close a minute later and I was already stealing the blanket she'd left behind when Remy nuzzled in and looked up at me.

"I'm really sorry, Mads," she said. "For what happened earlier."

"Don't be," I replied. "Oscar's the one who should be sorry. You were right to want to get away from him, Rem."

She nodded, turning back to the TV. Her smile faded a moment later.

"Rem?" I asked.

"Parker's really nice," she said suddenly. I just blinked at her.

"He's... he is?"

Was my best friend really calling my cranky partner nice?

"Yeah," she told me, smiling my way again. "The way he came with you to check on me. How he sent Oscar away and made sure I was alright."

"He's a federal agent, Remy. It's his job."

"Not like that. Not like... he was angry. When Oscar called you a whore, I thought he was going to rip him apart."

I frowned. It had taken me calling his name three times before he backed away from the guy. I remembered.

"Yeah, well, let's hope Oscar got the hint and won't come back," I said, shoving a mouthful of popcorn into my mouth. I felt Remy's eyes on me for a while but, when I turned to ask her why she was staring, she just turned back to the movie, still smiling.