Page 139 of Blue Moon

Kobie shook his head. “No, he just said to wait.”

“What else did he tell you about the snakes?”

The boy brightened. “He has four of them. And guess what? Some are poisonous!”

“Venomous,” Tulsa muttered from beside Ryder. And there had been five tanks in the apartment, so there was little doubt where the king cobra in Julius Whitlow’s home had come from.

“Then it’s probably good that they weren’t there.”

“Mom, can I have a snake?”

Nola looked horrified. “We don’t have room for a snake, mijito.”

“I would get a small one, and it can live on the table by the TV.”

“I think it’s a ‘no’ on the snake, buddy. But if you’re good, I’m sure your mom will take you to Sea Quest to visit the animals.”

“Mom, can we go?”

“We’ll see.”

Dice and Spider were out canvassing pet stores, searching for anyone familiar with Hebert and his snakes. Jezebel had gone to the Luxor to hunt for a lead on Hebert’s ex. He had a bolt-hole, another place to stay that she might know about. Romeo and Sin were at the Nile Palace, the former doing damage control and the latter eavesdropping on the cops for information. Storm had an unrelated emergency to deal with at Creech Air Force Base, and Emmy was questioning Hebert’s neighbours with Slater.

What had they gotten so far?

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

At least there hadn’t been any more catfights. Tulsa had fixed an electronic tag to Elene’s ankle and promised that if she left the property, she’d find herself in the wilds of Alaska. Caro was assisting Marcel in the kitchen.

“I’ll go help Emmy with the neighbours,” Ryder murmured to Tulsa. He’d been hopeful the boy would know something, give them a tiny sliver of information that would lead to Luna, but other than the existence of a second location, he knew zip. He hadn’t seen Luna, and he’d slept through most of the drama. Fucking roofies.

“We have a confirmed licence plate,” Dan said over the comms system. “It’s a three-year-old Chevrolet Tahoe with the V8 engine. The previous owner sold it two months ago, but Hebert never transferred the title.”

Emmy spoke up. “We’re sure the registered owner isn’t involved?”

“As sure as we can be. He’s stuck at home with two sick kids while his husband works overtime at the hospital. And he isn’t Luna’s biggest fan—when I told him the Tahoe hit my car while I was watching Luna’s show at the Nile Palace, he grimaced and suggested I should have saved my money for Imelda Raine at the Black Diamond because the whole experience is so much classier.”

Tulsa snickered, and Emmy said, “Aw, I’m touched.”

“We did get one small clue that might be useful.”

“What is it?” Ryder asked quickly.

“Hebert asked if the vehicle drove well in snow.”

“Snow? Did he say where he was going?”

“Robbie—the registered keeper—never went farther than Red Rock Canyon, so he had no idea of the answer. Hebert never elaborated after that.”

“Doesn’t he come from Minnesota?” Emmy asked. “Isn’t it nicknamed Minnesnowta?”

“It doesn’t snow there in July,” another voice answered. Sin, Ryder thought. “But we don’t know when he’s planning to drive in snow. Maybe he’s just thinking ahead?”

They already knew he was capable of that.

Tulsa followed Ryder out of the sunroom. “We picked the kid up by Woodlawn Cemetery. You know what else is near there?”

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