“How’s work?” Miguel said, tugging the knot of his striped tie loose like it was strangling him.
“Keeping me busy.” Rixey had met Miguel through the man’s nephew, who was one of Jeremy’s regulars. As a former cop and private investigator, Olivero had a lot of contacts in the law enforcement world, and he’d hooked Rixey up with the process serving gig nearly a year ago. Now the man had become something of a friend.
“How’s the back?” he said, firing through his usual list of catching-up questions.
“About as good as it’s gonna get, probably. But fine.” It was close enough to the truth, and griping about it just reminded Nick he wasn’t the man he used to be.
Miguel’s bushy eyebrows slashed down. “Bah. Still doing PT? Don’t let them docs throw you out before you’re ready.”
Rixey gave a small smile. “Don’t worry. I’m taking care of myself.”
“Y’better. How’s your brother?”
“He’s good. Got a good head on his shoulders. What’s new with you?” Nick asked, hoping to shift the focus away from the soup sandwich his life had become.
Miguel leaned back in his chair and laced his hands over the swell of his stomach with a satisfied smile. “My son’s making me a grandfather again.”
Rixey sat forward. “Congratulations. That’s great news.” He ignored the small ache that planted itself in his chest. As twisted up inside as the last year had left him, he wasn’t sure he’d ever have that for himself. And, if by some act of God he did, he’d never be able to see his father’s pride in becoming a grandfather.
“Yeah. Number three. Nothing new with me, though. Insurance fraud, adultery, tracking down deadbeats. You know how it is. Eh.” He gave an exaggerated shrug. “So, what is it you need help with?”
“A friend of mine’s in trouble. Her brother is missing. Took off or taken, we don’t know yet. But his house was tossed. Then, last night, someone broke into her place, too. Seems like someone’s looking for something. But she’s got no clue.”
Olivero’s whole face frowned. “Police doing anything?”
Nick shrugged. “Reports filed. Nothing stolen that we can tell. Got any thoughts on where and how to start tracking him down?”
Miguel rubbed his jaw. “Wonder if the police pulled any prints. Hmm. I’ll call my guy and see if I can get a copy of whatever they’ve gathered so far. Beyond that, start at the scene and work out. Interview neighbors, take the brother’s picture around, go to any frequent hangouts, check his credit card statements. How time sensitive is all this?”
Similar approach as the skip tracing Rixey sometimes did to serve papers, though that was predicated on the idea that the person disappeared himself, rather than being taken against his will. Either option seemed viable here until ruled out, but Rixey hoped for Becca’s sake that Charlie had just gotten a scare and gone to ground. “Moderate to high. Becca’s pretty upset, as you can imagine.”
“Becca’s the friend, I take it?” Mischief danced in Miguel’s brown eyes.
Chuffing out a laugh, Rixey shook his head. “Yes, she’s the friend.” Although maybe that was too strong a word. Only circumstance and a dead man had brought them together, so it was doubtful they’d be hanging when they got this mess sorted out. A boulder of pressure settled itself on his chest, but Rixey refused to examine that sense of constriction too closely. It had started when she’d asked about returning to her house, then gotten heavier when he’d had to leave her at the hospital unprotected.
“Let me talk to my contact at BPD. That’ll probably give us the best starting point.”
Nick nodded. “Thanks. One other thing. I wondered if I could borrow some equipment to sweep her house for electronic surveillance devices. I’m meeting a locksmith over there in about an hour, so I could kill two birds with one stone if I could borrow it this afternoon.”
Miguel steepled his fingers. “Where does she live?”
“A block off Patterson Park.”
“I’ll do ya one better,” Miguel said, sitting up and placing his arms on top of the desk blotter. “I’ll come with ya. I could use some fresh air. Two pair of hands can sweep a house faster than one.”
It was just like him to offer. “I’m gonna take you up on that.”
Miguel slapped his hands on the desk. “Good. We’re gonna make a full-blown PI out of you before it’s all said and done.” He winked, and Nick gave a rueful smile. Miguel had been after him about this for a few months, but he couldn’t help feeling like it was something else he’d fall into, rather than choosing it for himself.