Page 110 of Lethal Danger

“What?” Nev had shifted so her back leaned against the arm of the sofa and she fully faced Jazz, legs crossed under the afghan her grandma had crocheted.

“She wants me to meet her first thing in the morning. Six thirty. At this Forever Home place.”

“Ooh.” Nev widened her eyes.

“What?”

“Nobody gets to go there.”

Jazz gave her a skeptical stare.

“I mean, adopters must since Marion Moore adopts out dogs she rescues. Phoenix got Al and Cannenta from there. But I don’t think even Cora has been there.” Nev fingered a twisty curl of her hair as she looked toward the ceiling. “Bris maybe mentioned going there once to touch up Toby’s detection skills. But she’s the only one I know of besides Phoenix.”

“That’s…very sus.”

Nev shifted the popcorn bowl she’d conveniently moved to her lap and shoved Jazz’s leg with a blanketed foot. “It is not.”

“What’s wrong with the place? Is that where the boss’s dead bodies are buried?”

“You crazy.” Nev held up a kernel of popcorn between her fingers and aimed it at Jazz before letting it fly.

The kernel harmlessly bounced off Jazz’s soft Henley and fell to the red fleece blanket covering her legs.

“Phoenix goes there a lot, right?”

Nev shrugged. “I dunno.” She pushed popcorn into her mouth.

“But she never takes anyone with her.”

Nev held up a finger, so Jazz corrected herself.

“No one but Bris, apparently. So why in the world would she call me in the middle of the night and say I have to meet her there? She doesn’t like me, so it can’t be good.”

“You always think she don’t like you. But this proves I’m right.”

“About what?”

“That she just treatin’ you the way she treat everybody. I told you she don’t act no friendlier with anybody else.”

“Then why is she singling me out for this?”

“It’s an honor. Maybe she likes you best.”

“More like she plans to do something weird there when nobody’s around to see.”

Nev snorted. “Girl, you been reading too much Carson Steele. The boss ain’t no serial killer.”

“How do you know?” Jazz crossed her arms over her shirt.

“You for real?”

“Sort of.” Jazz lowered her arms. “I mean, what do you really know about her? What do any of you know? She’s always so secretive, and nobody knows why. What’s she hiding? Don’t you want to know?”

“Not really.” Nev fingered the popcorn without picking any up. “We all got a right to some secrets.”

“Not when she knows everyone’s secrets but doesn’t want anyone to know hers.”

Nev narrowed her eyes as she watched Jazz.

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