Page 13 of Caged

“If it’s okay, I’d like to see her room,” I said.

He hesitated but then said, “Of course.”

“Mr. Darling, Meg has some paperwork for you to fill out. I’ll walk you down,” John said as he stood.

“Is that it?” Darling asked.

“For now, we’ll be down in a minute,” I answered.

Meg met Darling outside the door and escorted him downstairs.

“What do you think, Jay?” John asked.

“There’s something he’s not telling us, but I don’t think he knows where Wendy is, or the identity of Mr. R,” Jay answered.

I nodded my agreement. “My gut says Mr. R gave her a phone for private contact.”

“My gut agrees,” John said. “Go to Fort Worth and check out Wendy’s room before he changes his mind.”

Jaden closed his laptop and rested his heavily inked arms on the table. He looked like he wanted to say something, but I answered before he could.

“Yes, sir.”

“Take Jay with you.” He turned to Jay. “You’re not a PI yet, so it’s Maxwell’s case, but I think it’s a good one to start honing your skills.”

“Yes, sir.” He didn’t sound any happier than I felt knowing we’d be working the case together. His cold stare confirmed my suspicions.

I didn’t know if he was upset because he didn’t like working with me personally, or because he had to learn from a woman.

I didn’t really care. As long as he didn’t do anything to get in my way or fuck things up, I could deal with his shitty attitude.

God knows, I’ve dealt with worse.

“I’m driving,” Jay said as we walked out the door to the secured lot in the back.

“That’s fine.” I could give him that small victory if it soothed his ego.

He turned to me as if surprised, then marched towards his truck. Of course, it was huge and black. I would’ve been shocked to see him driving anything else. The four-door,extra-wide truck had a lock box in the bed and tinted windows.

He entered the address on his navigation system and shoved the truck in gear.

“When we get there, I’ll ask Darling to take us directly to Wendy’s room. I’d like for you to lag behind and-”

He cut me off. “Look for clues. Thanks, but I know how to do my job.”

An exasperated sigh wouldn’t help, so I held it back and forced myself to respond calmly.

“I know that Sheppard. But I’d like for us to be on the same page, and to do that successfully, we need a game plan.” So, calmly, but not entirely without snark.

I waited for a smartass remark but he shocked me by dipping his head once in acknowledgement.

“I think he’ll feel more comfortable talking to me when you’re not around, so give us a few minutes before you come in.” People, especially men, tended to underestimate me. Which worked in my favor. It was amazing how often they’d let important details slip because they’d let their guard down.

“Can you do that?” I asked when he didn’t answer.

“Yes, Maxwell, I can do that.” His answer was so heavy with snark it was practically a third person.

“Don’t go anywhere not on the direct path to Wendy’s room.”

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