Chapter 56 TOO MANY QUESTIONS
Chapter 56 TOO MANY QUESTIONS
“Look,” I said when they all kept staring at me silently. “We have one lead left. One. The guy is dead. Whatever he knew died with him unless we find something in that motel room.”
“And if the police are already there?” Jax asked.
“Then we leave.”
“What if we run into the actual killer?”
I shrugged. “Then we handle it and leave.”
“You say that now,” Jax said, his jaw tightening. “But I know you.”
I clenched my jaw, stubbornly. “I am going. If you don’t want to follow me, I’ll go alone.”
“What if someone recognizes you?” He asked, his voice almost angry.
Before I could answer, Kael leaned forward. “What if she doesn’t have to go?” He said, looking at the both of us. “What if someone else goes instead?”
The room went quiet, everyone turning to look at him.
I blinked. “What?”
Kyle shrugged. “The police saw both your faces.”
“They didn’t see mine,” Jax retorted instantly.
"Look at yourself, Jax," I argued, gesturing to his massive frame. "If anyone is watching that motel, you stick out like a very memorable neon sign. I kept my face down away from the bank cameras and the cops, but your build is unmistakable. You have to stay out of sight."
"She's right, Jax," Kael said, his expression entirely serious. "The cops might not have seen both of your faces at the bank, but you’ll still show up on the bank’s security cameras when they check. Which they will.”
He pointed at me. “You think you’re invisible, but you’re not. You walk loudly.”
I spread my hands, offended. “What does that mean?”
“You absolutely have a recognizable walk,” Mina replied, her voice amused. “You walk like you own every room you enter.”
Leo nodded too. “You just have swagger.”
I looked horrified. “I don’t swagger.”
“You so do,” Leo said.
I looked at Jax, and he nodded too.
Traitor.
“Okay,” Kael continued before I could argue further. “So she stays outside.”
“And who exactly is going in?” I asked.
Kyle grinned. “Mina and Leo.”
Leo nearly choked on the energy drink he was drinking. “What?”
“Mina is good at breaking into locks,” he continued, ignoring Leo’s protest.
Mina raised her coffee cup. “Damn right.”
“And Leo knows computers. So if Miller left a drive or a laptop, he can actually access it without tripping something."
"Why are you volunteering me for something I didn’t agree to do?” Leo whined, “I don’t want to walk into the lion's den."
The rest of us burst into laughter, diffusing the tension in the room.
Even Jax managed a faint, temporary smile.
I looked down at my hands, the reality of the situation clearing my head. They were right. I was going to begin working directly under Kanan Maddox very soon. And as much as I desperately needed to know whatever secrets the late detective might have in his room, I couldn't afford to compromise the contract I had worked so hard to secure.
"Fine," I conceded, exhaling a sharp breath. "But I am following you guys and waiting right outside in the van. If anything looks wrong, I’ll help."
Twenty minutes later, we pulled the van into a dark alleyway directly opposite the Riverside Motel.
The motel looked exactly how I imagined Detective Miller would live.
It wasn't a key-card establishment. It was a rundown cash-only joint, exactly the kind of hiding spot a disgraced, fired detective would choose.
The parking lot was mostly empty.
Mina and Leo slipped out of the side door, keeping their hoods pulled low. I adjusted my earpiece, the static clicking against my eardrum as I watched them approach the door to room 12.
Since it was an old tumbler lock, Mina was able to bypass it within ten seconds, the door clicking open quietly before they both vanished inside.
"Talk to me," I muttered into the mic, leaning low in the passenger seat. I had a baseball cap pulled down over my eyes, ducking my head into the shadows every single time a random car drove past the alley. "Do you see anything of interest?"
"Wow," Mina’s voice cracked through the earpiece, laced with heavy disgust. "The man was a pig. This place is an absolute pit, Si. There are stale takeout boxes, moldy pastries, and half-empty coffee cups everywhere."
"That is not what you are supposed to be focusing on, Mina," I hissed, my eyes scanning the motel parking lot. "Look for anything concerning the Cruz family or Maddox."
"Well, calm your titties and give us some actual time to check," Mina grumbled.
My pulse hammered against my ribs as silence settled over the line, each second feeling like an hour. I adjusted my cap again as a delivery truck rumbled past, my stomach twisting with a terrible, nagging impatience.
"Guys, come on," I prompted. "Nothing?"
"I found his laptop," Leo's voice broke in, his tone becoming focused and tense. "It wasn't even password-protected."
“Seriously?”
“Well, he was old.”
I shrugged. Fair.
"So, is there anything in it that’ll be of interest to us?" I asked, my fingers gripping the edge of the seat.
“Yeah, there’s an encrypted message thread from an unknown number.” He replied, and I could hear the sound of keyboard typing in the background. “Give me a moment to crack it.”
Then he let out a curse.
“What is it?” I asked, urgency bubbling in my chest. Even Jax looked like he was waiting to hear the discovery, too.
"The last message came through exactly a month ago," Leo explained, the rapid tapping of his keys audible over the wire. "The unknown sender literally told him he was free to come back into town now, as long as he kept his mouth shut."
I jolted in my seat, the breath catching in my throat. "Wait. He came back because someone gave him permission to return? Who?”
"Looks like it," Leo muttered. "I don’t know. I’ll need more time to look it up properly."
Before I could process the information, a sharp gasp cut through the earpiece.
"What the fuck?" Mina whispered, her voice shocked about something.
"Mina? What is it?" I demanded, my voice rising as panic flared in my gut. “Did you find something?”