Chapter 21

Alejandro’s POV

Mira froze, her eyes scanning my face like she was trying to read between every line. “What do you mean?”

I inhaled slowly, memories from last night crashing back in flashes. “I don’t even know if it’s right that I’m thinking this way, but I saw someone familiar walk into her hotel room after I left.”

“Someone familiar?” she pressed, anxiety creeping into her voice. “Just tell me already, Dro.”

I hesitated, then motioned for her to lean closer across the table. Lowering my voice, I whispered the name.

Her eyes widened instantly, her head shaking in denial. “But why?”

I leaned back against the cold metal chair. “Beats me,” I muttered. “But I need you to keep an eye on him for me. At least while I’m still stuck here.”

The last thing I wanted was to suspect my friend. Ace and I had known each other for most of our lives. But I saw him with my own two eyes. I wasn’t drunk. The rain had been pounding hard enough to blur my vision a little as I struggled with my car door, but I was far from wasted.

I hadn’t thought much of it at the time.

Now it refused to leave my head.

What was Ace doing there? Especially when I knew there was no possible connection between him and Rina. They moved in completely different circles.

I wanted to confront him. I wanted to tell him I saw him slip into her room and rush out looking like he’d seen a ghost while I sat in my car watching. But that would be reckless. It would sound like I was accusing him outright.

And I wasn’t ready to do that.

That’s why I needed Mira to look into it. I didn’t even know what I was hoping to prove. Maybe I just wanted to be wrong. I hoped whatever she found wouldn’t feed the suspicion growing at the back of my mind.

“Dro, you can’t accuse Ace just because you saw him leave her room,” she said firmly. “Besides, you were drunk. You came home and could barely stand straight. It might have been someone else.”

A small smile curved on my lips. I knew I was about to ruin my own act, but if she was going to help me, she needed the truth.

“I pretended to be drunk, Mira. Last night I was as sober as I’ve ever been.”

The color drained from her face. “But…”

“I know,” I cut in gently, already aware of what she was implying. “But now’s not the time to unpack that.”

The door suddenly opened, making her flinch. An officer stepped in, and Ace stood right behind him.

“Time’s up, Miss Martinez,” the officer announced.

Mira stood, smoothing down her dress. She walked over to me, crouched slightly, and whispered, “I’ll follow Ace around, see if I can find anything. But after that, I’m done working for you. You’re too much trouble.”

The blood drained from my own face as she walked out. Her words echoed in my head. Done working for me? What the hell did that mean?

I forced myself to breathe and let out a quiet chuckle. She was joking. She had to be. She couldn’t just quit. Not when I couldn’t go a single night without thinking about her. I hadn’t even won the bet yet.

Mira Martinez doesn’t get to walk away from me.

“Let me speak to him for a minute,” Ace said to the officer before taking a seat opposite me.

I studied him carefully. I’d known this man since high school. We’d survived exams, bar fights, bad investments, and worse girlfriends. I couldn’t think of one solid reason why he would hurt anyone. Unless it had something to do with…

“What did you tell her, bro?” Ace asked sharply.

“Nothing much,” I replied calmly.

He leaned forward, lowering his voice. “Be honest with me, Dro. Did you do it? It’s just us in here.”

I examined his face. Then I remembered how shaken he’d looked that night coming out of Rina’s room. The memory hit me hard.

“Just admit it to me,” he insisted. “You killed her, didn’t you?”

My eyes shifted slightly and landed on his collar. A small black device was clipped near the seam. A microphone.

Interesting.

I kept my expression neutral. It almost felt like he was baiting me, trying to drag a confession out of me for something I didn’t do.

Why?

I laughed. Loud and sharp. His brows pulled together immediately.

“Of course I didn’t kill her, Ace,” I said evenly. “I may be a lot of things, but I’m not a murderer. You should know that better than anyone.”

It was almost impressive how quickly a best friend’s face could harden when you denied what they wanted to hear.

“Okay,” he said slowly. “But remember, I’m your best friend. If you suddenly recall anything, tell me. You were drunk that night.”

I leaned back, keeping the smile in place. “Funny you say that. I think I do remember something.”

His eyes sharpened. “Yeah?”

“I remember seeing another man leave her hotel room.”

Ace shifted in his seat. A cough escaped him, awkward and forced. “And?”

I pinched my brows together and closed my eyes as if concentrating. I let the silence stretch, then snapped my fingers lightly.

“I know he was tall,” I said thoughtfully. “But his face is blurry now.”

As the words left my mouth, he exhaled deeply. The kind of breath someone lets out when they don’t realize they’ve been holding it.

That told me enough.

A few minutes later, he stood and left. Shortly after, I was escorted back to my cell.

You’d think a golden boy like me would get some special treatment. Apparently not in this miserable town.

I rested my head against the cold bars while two men nearby argued over something completely pointless. Judging by their uneven faces, they looked like distant cousins of Humpty Dumpty. The argument was definitely going to end in a fight.

I needed to get out of here before I suffocated. The stench alone was criminal. I’m convinced no one in this building has ever met deodorant. Officers included.

For my own sanity, I chose to believe there had to be an explanation for why I saw Ace walk out of a room that later became a murder scene.

I won’t falsely accuse him. He’s my best friend.

But I can’t ignore what I saw either.

All I can do now is hope Mira is better at playing detective than she is at playing with her toys.