Detective Crofton is satisfied but Detective West is less starstruck and has another question. “What time did Miss Porter arrive and depart from your home that night?”
“I picked her up after I left the practice facility, which would have been around five. She stayed pretty late since we haven’t seen each other in a while. Her and my wife got into a bottle of wine sometime around nine or ten, I guess?” He lets out a loud laugh. “And then, of course, they had to break out the karaoke machine. Lord, those two think they can sing.”
Locked up tight.
Detective Crofton says, “Thank you. We’ve got everything we need. We appreciate your cooperation.”
“Sure, anytime,” Tyron says.
Detective Crofton hands the phone back to me and I look at Tyron on the screen. “Thanks for clearing that up.”
He laughs. “No problem. You’re coming by for dinner since you’re in town, right? You won’t believe how big Jayden has gotten.”
“Of course! I’ll call you when I leave here and we’ll make a plan.”
I end the call and turn my attention to the detectives.
They are looking at me, then they look at each other, sharing a silent communication.
Detective West closes her notebook. “I think that covers everything we have for today. If we have any further questions for Miss Porter, we’ll be in touch.”
It only takes a few seconds for them to pack their belongings and leave the meeting room.
Rachel and I are still sitting across from each other.
“You didn’t know who Lucca Marino was when she first showed up with James at the Derby party,” she says.
I shake my head. “If you remember correctly, I mentioned he showed up with a woman. I didn’t comment on whether or not I knew her.”
This is why I tell the truth as often as I can.
Rachel gets up from her chair and smooths down her skirt. “Well, this seems like it’s all wrapped up in a neat little bow.”
I shrug. “I’m just relieved it’s over.” It’s not over. Not for me. While I’ve dealt with one of the threats against me, it’s the other one that poses the greatest danger.
She grabs her briefcase and heads toward the door but doesn’t open it. “Yes, me too. I’d hate to think you had anything to do with that woman’s death.”
Looking right at her, I say, “If there’s one thing you can believe to be true, Lucca Marino was the woman in the room with her that day.”
We watch each other for a few seconds, then she slips out of the room without another word.
While Rachel gets to walk away from here without a thought, I’m facing a different situation. My departure won’t be as smooth as my arrival.
I pull the new clean phone from my bag and call Devon once I’m out in the hall.
“I’m clear with the police,” I say, as soon as it connects.
“Good,” he says. “Now let’s handle the other problem.”
“Ryan was here when I arrived. I need him gone. Can you help with that?”
I can hear the familiar clicking sound that means he’s hammering away on his keyboard. “What’s he wearing today?”
The image of him forms in my head. “Jeans. Blue Oxford button-down.”
“Okay, I’ll call the hotel security and report him for suspicious behavior. It won’t stick for long but should probably give you enough time to get out of the building. Switch to the Bluetooth earpiece. I want to be on the line with you.”
I dig the small flesh-colored ear bud that Devon designed out of my bag and sync it to the phone. I pull my hair out of the ponytail and slide the earpiece inside my right ear. It matches my skin tone and having it hidden behind the curtain of my hair should make it hard to spot.
I shove the phone in my back pocket and head out into the hall. The fact that Devon has insisted I keep this line open when I’m walking into the lion’s den hits me hard. He’s making himself vulnerable right now for me.
“In case I can’t say it later, thank you for everything. Thank you for being my friend.”
He clears his throat. “We’re not doing that shit right now. Head in the game. Just start walking if you need to. It’s never too late to bail.”
I push the metal bar at the end of the hall that leads to the stairwell. The concrete room is damp and dark and my voice echoes off the walls. “I’m headed down.”
When I get to the lobby level, I push open the door slowly and peek out just in time to see two uniformed hotel security guards approach Ryan. They move closer to him, saying words I can’t hear while he glances around the big area. They motion to him to follow them, but he argues, still paying more attention to the elevators than the men in front of him.
They grab him, one on each side, and he momentarily seems to put up a fight before relaxing in their hold. As they escort him away, he throws one last look behind him.
As soon as he’s gone, I slip out of the stairwell and whisper, “Moving to the exit.”
“I’m tapped into the street cams so I’ll see you as soon as you clear the doors.”
The closest exit is a door that lets out on the side street. I’m steps away when I hear, “Hey, Lucca.”
I spin around and freeze when I see who it is.
“Fancy seeing you here, George.”
“Get him on the street,” Devon says in my ear. “I don’t have eyes on you in there.”
“You shouldn’t be surprised since you stood me up yesterday,” he says.
I nod toward the door to let him know we’re taking this outside. He nods back as if he’s good with it.
“Gotcha. Start walking north to the intersection,” Devon tells me.
Even though I can’t see the cameras, I feel some relief that someone else in the world is watching out for me, even if there isn’t too much he can do for me right now.
“You’re plan B if the detectives strike out, right?” It takes everything in me to keep my voice strong and steady.
George laughs. “I was supposed to be plan A. If you just gave him what he wanted, you wouldn’t have had to bother with those cops.”
I shrug and look at him as he walks beside me. “Until next time I piss him off. He’d just pull the card out again. I mean, there’s no statute of limitations on murder.”
“Maybe you should have thought about that before you lit that match,” he says quietly.
“Ryan has left the hotel.” Devon again.
I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. Then one more. “My regrets are long, and I’ll have to live with the things I’ve done.” And then I meet his gaze. “You don’t have to do this.”
We stop a few feet from the crosswalk and he stares at me, his eyes roaming my face. “I don’t want to do this. But I have to get what’s in that safe deposit box. We both know that’s the only option right now. My hands are tied, Lucca. You haven’t left me any other choice.”
“And then what?” I whisper.
His hands go to his hips and he steps away from me, his eyes sweeping the streets. He turns back to me. “Maybe I’ll be distracted while I check what’s in the box. Maybe I won’t see that you disappeared.”
He wants me to think he’ll let me go. And he might right now, but it wouldn’t be long before I see him over my shoulder.
The light flashes that we’re clear to cross the street and we walk the next two blocks in silence, until we’re standing in front of the bank.
“If you were gonna walk, now is the time,” Devon says in my ear. “Once you go inside, there’s no turning back.”
George starts up the steps to the entrance of the bank while I’m frozen.
“You coming?” he asks.
I shake it off and follow him instead. Walking away was never an option.
Alias: Regina Hale—Six Months Ago
The smell of sulfur stings my nose as the match flame comes to life. I hold it steady for a second or so to make sure it’s going to stay lit, then throw it on the bed. Flames stretch and grow as it feeds off the synthetic fibers of the comforter and really take hold once it latches on to the bright red coat.