Page 9 of Investigate Away
Not for the Trinket Killer case, but for what happened after.
What a shit show.
He pushed open the door to city hall and turned right. “Good morning, Isabelle. How are you? More importantly, how’s that little baby of yours?”
“She’s doing great, thanks for asking.” Isabelle glanced up from the computer screen and smiled like the proud new mommy she was. So young, only twenty-five, but she had a maturity about her, and he was damn glad she decided to keep working. Of course, he would have opened a daycare in city hall to keep her if that’s what it took.
“What are you reading this morning?” he asked.
“TheCreate the Dew Blob. The writer is so amazingly adorable. I love her and all her splendid advice.” Isabelle leaned forward. “On sex, and trust me, we need all the—”
“Too much information, Isabelle.” Jag waved his hands and laughed. Isabelle was always a breath of fresh air, but she often put too much out there. “Looks like we had a quiet night.” He redirected the conversation.
“A few speeding tickets, but I should warn you that you do have a visitor in your office,” Isabelle said quietly.
He leaned over the desk and glanced through the open door. Fuck. “Why didn’t you tell me I had company?”
“You didn’t ask,” Isabelle said.
“If anyone calls, take a number, and I’ll get back to them as soon as possible. Have we done a shift change?”
She nodded. “Jenna just replaced Bo.”
“Good to know. Interrupt if there are any emergencies.” He made his way into his office, shutting the door behind him. “What are you doing here, Callie?” He didn’t bother with the formalities as he set his extra-large travel mug on his desk along with his breakfast sandwich that he’d made at home. What an awesome little kitchen appliance. He could live on egg sandwiches.
“You haven’t changed, and I see you’re still using my gift,” she said.
“Actually, I tossed yours through the window of my old pickup and broke it. I bought a new one.”
“You like hurting me, don’t you?”
He laughed. “That’s rich coming from you. Seriously, Callie, the title for your book is a slap in the face.”
“It’s not the title I want, and I’m still fighting with the publisher.”
“Oh, really. And what do you think the name of the book should be?”
“The Trinket Killer, Still at Large.”
“That’s a shitty title,” he mumbled. Not that he liked the other much better, but the working title would sell books. That one people wouldn’t even use the paperback cover to wipe their ass with. “What aboutThe Trinket Killer, And How He Got Away With It.”
“That’s actually not bad. I’ll run it by the publisher.” She tucked her long blond hair behind her ears. It had to have grown a good two inches since the last time he’d seen her. Her dark-brown eyes had lost a bit of their sparkle, but they still had the same determination etched in the rich color.
“I was kidding. I’d prefer you not publish that rubbish at all. I’m sure the Seattle Police Department is giving you some blowback.”
She nodded. “There are some things they’ve forced me to take out, but this is a complicated case, and now that I’ve had a little time and space from it, I realize how much we both didn’t see things.”
“I don’t need to be reminded of that,” he said. “Now, seriously, why are you here?”
She held up her pad of paper and pen. “First, I want to interview you for the book. And second, I want you to investigate the Trinket Killer with me again.”
“Well, fuck. And here I thought you might be here to apologize for humiliating me in front of my family, your family, our friends. Hell, the fucking world when you tossed the engagement ring I bought you in my face and called me a murderer on national—”
She held up her hand. “I’m apologizing now.”
“I’m going to make this real easy for you. I have no comment on the Trinket Killer or my involvement in it. And if you want help, go to cold cases. I’m sure someone there has been assigned the case, and I’m sure they’d love some help, though you do have quite the reputation for being a bitch.”
She tilted her head and pursed her lips. “No thanks to you.”
