“Valor?” the receptionist asked – a beta per his scent.
“Yeah, we called ahead.” I pulled out my phone and showed the receptionist the police chief’s letter of approval Liam had managed to get us. “How long do we have?”
“Police will be here in thirty minutes to an hour,” the receptionist warned, taking the phone to put the information into the computer. “I’d hurry if I were you.”
The private detectives didn’t wait for my permission. Frankie pushed through the double doors first and Lucy paused just long enough to give the receptionist a small nod. “Good to see you again, Peter. I appreciate the warning.”
“Anything for you, Lucy.” Peter gave her a wink. “Go do your thing. I’ll stall them if they get here early. Eric is waiting and ready.”
“Thanks.”
For the first time, I got to see Lucy give someone a real smile and I gritted my teeth when she disappeared through those double doors.
It wasn’t my place to worry about her, or even give a shit who she flirted with, but my blood was boiling and my hands itched to strangle this guy’s neck until he couldn’t wink at her ever again.
Not that I could really blame the guy. She had this whole…alluring mystery about her.
Lucy also had this innate grace that made it seem as if she wasn’t really a part of this world – or maybe, we weren’t a part of hers. The way she looked at everything…she saw things no one else could, and I really didn’t like that.
How could I possibly predict what she might do or say if I had no idea what she was seeing?
“Here you go,” Peter said, handing my phone over. “Those two are geniuses. You won’t be disappointed.”
I made a noncommittal noise as I studied this beta who clearly knew her well. “She’s an omega.”
“So?” The beta grinned up at me. “She’s really fucking good at her job and has a stronger stomach than most alphas. Go in there and see for yourself if you don’t believe me.”
I was pretty sure they had nothing more than a professional relationship, but it was nice to see there was someone else in this field that believed in her work and not what her designation supposedly could or couldn’t do.
“You seem to know her pretty well. What kind of food does she like?” I asked as I opened my messages to relay the information to Liam. “Frankie insisted I have something ready by the time they’re done.”
“She usually orders Chinese takeout when she’s here,” Peter said with a shrug. “I think she gets the Kung Pao chicken and steamed buns. Frankie can’t really handle anything spicy, so she gets the Mongolian beef.”
“Thanks.” I was about to text all that to Liam, but the other alpha sent me a screenshot of what he’d ordered before I could.
Kung Pao chicken and steamed buns along with a variety of other things from the Chinese place down the street.
It could just be a coincidence, but with the way Liam had been acting earlier, I doubted it.
He must have stalked her somehow. How else would he know her food preferences when they’d barely spoken for more than an hour? The girl didn’t even have any social media presence.
I pushed through the double doors to see Lucy chatting with the medical examiner instead of Frankie. They spoke in low tones while the beta pointed out various different parts of the body.
Staring at the pale, waxy skin, it was difficult to believe this was all that was left of Gideon. I hadn’t been as close to him as Liam, but I had been the one to find the body first.
I still couldn’t believe he was dead.
We’d had lunch together just yesterday as Gideon and Liam discussed their project, laughing and joking while we ate sushi just like we always did on Thursdays.
Under the bright fluorescent lights, Gideon didn’t even look real. He looked like a bad imitation of himself – the body nothing more than clay. It wasn’t the legacy alpha I’d known for the better part of two decades anymore.
Someone had killed him, and I was still pissed I had no idea who it could be.
It was just shitty fucking luck that the only person who suspected me was smart enough to figure out I’d been there at the scene of the crime at some point between Gideon’s death and when the police had arrived.
I should just tell her the truth, but there was still a chance these two would want to submit any evidence at all to the police, and neither I nor Liam could afford for that to happen.
“The blade had to be at least ten inches long then,” Lucy said, pulling me out of my thoughts.