Carmen
"All right," Ashton said, rubbing his temples, fresh off the phone. "Neither would talk, saying 'I don't have the authority to ask them those questions,' so we have a problem."
I turned from my endless search for the warehouse to him, sighing. "That's happened a few times. I don't know how you deal with it, but I always get permission and go and demand information from the person."
He nodded. "Let me guess; you want me to find the addresses?"
I nodded. "Be fast, Fray."
"Will do, James."
I'm honestly surprised I haven't torn his throat out yet, or him throw a snide comment my way. This is good; this insane case will be over soon. Hopefully.
-
"Got it!" Ashton yelled, making a fist pump in the air. "I've got the two addresses."
"Great!" I sighed, trying to seem excited. "Took you long enough. Let's go on a field trip."
"Sounds fun. Which should we go to first?"
"Probably Liam's wife," I said. "She might have more information since they live together and has known Liam for longer than Nina has known Niall."
Ashton nodded. "I like it. So, your car?"
I nodded, and we headed to the parking garage after sending a message to Harry, saying we were leaving.
"So, Carmen, I was wondering if after this case is over we could-"
"No, Ashton." I rolled my eyes. "No dates; I don't do that kind of thing."
Ashton shrugged. "Can't blame a guy for trying."
"You can when he's tried thousands of times." I snapped back. I calmed myself and looked back at him, curious. "Why don't you move on from me? Find another girl, who will actually date you?"
Ashton sighed, and stared off into the distance, farther down the garage. "You can't really move on from a person if you can't stop thinking about them."
I looked down to my feet, watching as the moved the opposite that his did. I would give him a chance, but... I don't do dating. Not after what happened.
"Well, here we are," I said as we came to my car. I unlocked the door and climbed in, him following suit on the opposite side.
-
"What room is the Payne residence?" I asked the desk manager at the nice, expensive apartment building.
"Reason?" He said.
I silently held up a badge, along with Ashton. "We have our reasons. Don't worry, they aren't criminals. We just have some questions, and I promise your business will be fine."
The man scrambled to find the room on his computer, frantically searching. "Third floor, room 3C." He said, eyes as wide as saucers.
"Perfect." I smiled. "Thank you."
I walked to the elevators, Ashton hot on my heels. "So what will we ask her?" He said.
"I've got it covered. Only ask questions you feel should be answered, Fray."
"Got it, James."
The elevator rose for a few seconds, and slowly shuddered to a stop. The door dinged and slid open, revealing a nice hallway and doors. We walked down the hall, searching for room 3C.
"Here it is," Ashton said, waiting for me to give him the go-ahead. "Shall I knock?"
"Yeah, but first I need you to do something for me." I said.
"What?"
"Stop saying shall!" I groaned, and he knocked, chuckling.
"Never in a million years," He murmured as we heard steps inside.
"Uh, Hello," A woman in her later twenties asked from the other side of the doorway. Her hair was falling loosely and messily at her shoulders, her eyes red and tired. She had bags under her eyes, and her belly was swollen, as if halfway through a pregnancy. "Who are you?" She asked hesitantly.
"Hi ma'am, we're here to ask you a few questions about your husband." Ashton says, and I dug out my badge and showed her.
"You're the boy from the phone, aren't you?" May said, gesturing us inside. Ashton nodded. "I'm sorry about that, honey. I was having a bad morning and I wasn't in the mood to talk about Liam at the time. I'm May, by the way." She said, sticking out her hand to me.
I took it and shook it. "I'm Carmen James, and this is Ashton Fray."
She shook Ashton's hand. "Nice to meet you. Would you like something to eat, drink?"
We shook our heads. "We just need to ask a few questions; we have a lot of work to do so we can find your husband as soon as possible." I said, taking a seat on her couch. Ashton sat beside me, and May sat across from us on another chair.
"What would you like to know?"
"Well, first, did Liam seem... well, different, before his disappearance?" I said.
She shook her head. "He was just the supportive man I had always known and loved. He just went to work and.... never came back."
"Did he say something to you about men named Niall, Louis, or Zayn?" Ashton said.
She hesitated. "You know, he told me a few months ago that Niall was a great guy to work with, as was Louis, and that Zayn was a ruthless and dangerous criminal, at the time of the case."
"What case, Ma'am?" I said.
"Stop calling me ma'am. I'm May. Anyways, the one he solved with Niall and Louis. Finding Zayn."
"Have you heard about a warehouse?" I asked.
She shook her head.
"May, do you know anything specific about some of the gangs here in the city?" Ashton said.
Her eyes widened. Maybe this will be something. "Well, uh, yes. That was one of the reasons Liam was so eager to go after Zayn, was because he was a part of a gang that, well, did something. He used to murmur things about "I have to help his sister." I don't know who the guy or the girl is, but maybe Niall or Louis. And that Zayn's gang is one of the most dangerous in the city. That's all I know about gangs here."
"That's perfect, May." I said. "We might come back, but I think you just gave us some great information."
"Good," She sighed. "I'm glad I could help."
I stood up to leave with Ashton, but May stood and grabbed my forearm, her eyes glassy and red. "Please find my husband. Please, we need him. The both of us," She looked fondly down at her stomach. "Please find my husband." She said, tears starting to fill her eyes.
"Don't worry, May," Ashton said. "We will."
