Page 33 of Locked In Ice

“I’m assuming you couldn’t clearly see this person’s face?”Ophelia queried carefully.She needed to know what evidence they were facing.

“He hid from the rest of the cameras.Turned away.Smart sonofabitch.”Shay’s attention was still on Lane.“He knew exactly where they were.As if…he’d been there before.”

Fuck.Lane had gone back into holding.She remembered him walking away with one of the younger cops.

“An officer reported his uniform missing shortly after we wrapped up questioning at the station—after Bass’s booking.Didn’t think anything of it at the time,” Shay admitted.“Figured he’d misplaced it or that someone had grabbed it out of his locker by mistake.Now, of course, I see the situation in a whole new light.”

What the detective meant…She sees Lane in a guilty-as-sin light.Shay thought he’d swiped the uniform while he’d been at the station.That he’d taken note of all the cameras so that he could avoid detection.While Ophelia had been answering the last of the seemingly endless questions that Shay had for her, Lane had disappeared for a while.

And he’d disappeared the night before.Leaving right at 3:23 a.m.

Now the detective was looking at Lane like he was her chief suspect.Because he was.Time to nip this nonsense in the bud.“Lane was with me last night,” Ophelia said.“We have separate rooms, but we shared the same bed.”

Shay smiled at her.“Nice try, Ophelia.”

It hadn’t been a try.It had been the truth.

“But I spoke to the man at the front desk when I came inside.When you flash a badge, you’d be surprised at how talkative some people get.”

Considering that Ophelia had once possessed a badge, no, she would not be surprised.

“The friendly fellow gave me your room numbers, and he also mentioned how puzzled he was when Lane strode through the lobby at 3:30 this morning.”

Her hand remained pressed to Lane’s heart.

“Lane…alone, at 3:30,” Shay added with a shrug.“He went out the lobby doors and into the night.And he didn’t return—again, alone—until nearly 5 a.m.”Her brows rose as Shay focused on Lane.“Gonna need you to come down to the station so you can tell meexactlywhere you were during that time.”

A low curse broke from him.“I’m going to need a lawyer.”

Shay smiled.“The guilty always do.”

Ophelia felt Lane tense even more beneath her hand.So she gave him a reassuring pat.“No worries, Lane.Your lawyer is right in front of you.”She beamed at Shay.“My client and I will get dressed then head down to the station with you.But you willnotask him any questions without me being present, you understand?”

“You’re a PI,” Shay snapped.

“Um, absolutely.I am.ButbeforeI got my PI license, I was—once upon a time—a law student.And I am currently licensed to practice law in the state of Georgia.Myclientand I will be happy to cooperate, and when we’re done, I am sure that you will be apologizing for the inconvenience you’ve caused us.”

Shay’s gaze hardened.“Or I’ll be throwing your client in a cell.”

“Yes, I suppose that could be another option.”But one I will not let happen.

***

“Since when are you a lawyer?”

He’d just entered Ophelia’s room through the connecting door.She finished tugging down her blouse before turning toward Lane.He’d kept his voice low, no doubt due to the fact that the detective was waiting in the hallway.“You and Shay,” Ophelia sighed.“Why do you both seem surprised by my skills?Shouldn’t you just be grateful right now instead of firing questions at me?”

He took a step toward her, but seemed to catch himself.Lane’s eyes glittered with intensity.“You haven’t asked me where I went.”

No, she hadn’t.“Plenty of FBI agents have law degrees.Not like me having one is anything out of the ordinary.”The law degree had given her a more competitive edge, yes, and when she’d first entered the Bureau, competition had been her game.She’d wanted to prove herself so desperately.

She’d wanted to take the killers off the streets.To find the darkest monsters out there and stop the predators who lived to torture and terrify.

But I didn’t find them.They found me.

Or, one in particular had.He’d found her in her home.Where she should have been safe.But she hadn’t been safe since the day she’d joined the Bureau.

Ophelia swallowed and lifted her chin.“Trust me, would you?”

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