“Like your skinny ass could feed anyone but one of Mum’s cats,” her brother snorted. Duarte chuckled along, and Kiki shot them both a stern look.
“Show him the picture, Morgan. See if a name pops,” Duarte said, cutting Kiki off before she could reply to her twin. “They’re sending out the wagons in a bit. Con will want him out of the way and safe before they start tearing this place apart.”
Forest nodded, and Kiki brought her phone out, showing him the picture Connor or Kane sent to her. Shock grabbed his throat, and he couldn’t breathe. It took a second for him to choke in some air, and he coughed, unable to get out the surprise of seeing someone he knew—a familiar someone—lying still and motionless. They’d taken care to only show him the guy’s face, but the speckled blood across his mouth and his graying skin told Forest the man was very dead.
It was too close to home. Death seemed to be circling him, and he couldn’t seem to run away fast enough—far enough for it not to touch him with its steely cold hands. Numbly, Forest opened his mouth to tell Kiki he knew the man, but his stomach rebelled, and he doubled over, puking out the oatmeal and sweet black tea Connor’d forced on him before they left the hospital.
“Take that away, Kiki,” Brigid admonished softly.
“Do you know who it is, son? Does he look familiar?” Duarte cut in, crouching next to him. Forest nodded and swallowed the thick saliva coating his tongue.
“Darcy. Darcy… Martin. We use him sometimes—at the Sound. Used to. He started using too much and missing gigs.” Forest took the open water bottle Riley shoved at him, then drank. “Tried to give him another chance, but he ripped a few of the guys off. Emptied their wallets when we were having a session, so I banned him.”
“When was this? The theft?” Kiki asked softly, scribbling down notes in a tablet. “Recent?”
“Four… five days ago? One of the guys—shit, Marcus… um, he’s a singer for Tweaked Possum… he wanted Darcy to sit in on the session. He was bringing in his own musicians, so it wasn’t like Darcy was on my rolls. Marcus was the one who caught him going through the band’s stuff. I told Darcy not to come back and struck him off the list. Wasn’t going to use him even if the band brought him in.” Forest tried standing up, but the world went wonky on him, and he staggered back. Riley caught him, then handed him over to Brigid. “I don’t know why he’d come back here. He pissed a hell of a lot of people off.”
“Did he have a key to your place?” Duarte asked. “Is there any reason he’d have come here to get back at you?”
“The shooting took place before or after you kicked him out the first time?” Kiki interrupted.
“Before,” Forest replied. “And no, he didn’t have a key. We weren’t even friends. He’s an… was an asshole. Abusive. I had to tell him to not swear at the coffee shop staff when he went in to get something to drink. The Amp gives anyone working the Sound free coffee and shit on the days they’re needed. I don’t know why Frank even let him sit in on anything. He’d come by and beg for work but then fuck it up or wouldn’t learn the tracks.”
“How many people use standins?” Kiki filled a page and flipped over to a new one. “Was this Marcus guy the only one? Could Darcy have been trying to get back at you somehow?”
“I don’t think he’d want to get back at me. He’s lazy, barely did the minimum, you know? Hell, it’s not like we were a huge source of cash for him. I don’t think we used him a lot to begin with,” he said, sighing. “Lots of people use studio guys, especially if they’re doing their own stuff. I drum for a shit ton of people. It’s cheaper to use studio musicians than it is to hire your own crew. The Sound’s got packages set up—for stuff like that. It’s how I pay the bills.”
Kiki’s pen flew across the page. “What sessions do you have planned? Could Darcy have wanted to talk you into letting him play?”
He shook his head, instantly regretting it when a storm of sick threw lightning-flash warnings across his eyes. “Shit, I’ve got to get the calendar. Check what I’ve got going on.”
“Do you have an assistant?” Duarte cocked his head.