Page 34 of Caged

“Shall I preface every comment with whether or not I’m trying to insult you?”

“Fucking smart ass,” I mumbled.

“Better than being a dumb ass.” She turned, and cleared her throat to get my attention. I instantly regretted it when I made eye contact. The glint in her eye and the wicked smile on her lips was terrifying. “That was a general statement, a typical response to being called a smart ass, not a direct statement directed at you.”

“Thank you,” I said, hating that I couldn’t think of a snappy comeback. Much to my surprise, my bland thank you took the wind from her sails.

“Can you drive around back?” Maxwell asked.

Just like that we were back to business.

“Yeah. Was it just me, or did the interior of the laundromat seem too short?”

“I noticed, too, but didn’t see any doors. Did you?”

“No. I wish I could have seen more inside the office, but my line of sight wasn’t good.”

“Neither was mine,” she said.

Around the back, we spotted several cameras pointing at the back door of the cleaners.

“A back door with no door handle, surrounded by cameras.” I pondered out loud. “Nothing to see here, folks.”

Maxwell held her phone to her ear like she was on a call, but in reality, she was filming as we drove by.

“That was interesting,” I said, pulling out of the parking lot.

Maxwell finished typing before answering. “Very.”

“Do we need to work locally so we can pick up the clothes?”

“No, I’ll call later with an excuse and tell Adam I’ll pick them up tomorrow. I want go back to the office.”

“Your wish is my command, Wife.” I laughed.

“Sorry about dropping that on you. I know we agreed on being friends for the op,” she said. “Thanks for rolling with it.”

Why wouldn’t I? We had our differences, but we were still a team. At least for this assignment.

“No worries. I’m adaptable.” After a short pause, I asked, “Why’d you change it?”

“Parker gave me the creeps and I wanted to see how he’d react when I called you my husband.”

“He did his best to pretend I didn’t exist.”

“That he did,” she said. “We’ll use it to our advantage.”

I had no intention of letting Maxwell return alone to see Adam, a guy who gave off serious creepy stalker vibes. She might not like it, but I wouldn’t budge and risk something happening to her.

“You okay with me recording while we hash out what we saw? It’s faster and easier than typing.”

“That’s fine.” I made a mental note to be on my best behavior.

After setting her phone between us, she asked, “What’s your gut telling you? Start with the big picture.”

I organized my thoughts before answering. “The laundromat is a front for whatever business they’re running from the back.” Succinct.

“Agreed.” She tapped her finger on her leg. “The cleaners is too short for the space. Did you notice anything that hinted at a hidden room?”

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