Page 68 of In Too Deep

The door opened wide. A young woman was standing at the threshold. She had on a pink nightdress. She had long red hair and heavy makeup.

Reacher said, “You OK, miss?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“I noticed you peeking out from a corner of the drapes. I thought maybe you saw what happened with those guys. I wanted to reassure you. There’s nothing to worry about. We’re old friends. We’ve known each other since second grade. It was some harmless fun that got a little out of hand. You know how guys are. We’ll shake hands and it’ll all be forgotten in the morning.”

“A, that’s bullshit. B, you’re way off base. And C, you want to make sure I didn’t just dial 911.”

“Did you?”

“That would be about the stupidest thing I could possibly have done. So no. I am a little pissed, though.”

“How so?”

“You had a great chance. They were asking for it. You’re obviously capable. But you didn’t touch two of them. You let them walk away.”

Reacher thought for a moment. “Are you working?”

“Not right now.”

“But you do work from this room.”

“Is that why you’re here? To save my soul?”

Knight emerged from the office. She saw Reacher and came over to his side. She said, “What’s going on?”

Reacher said to the woman in the nightdress, “I need to know if you saw someone, yesterday.” He turned to Knight. “You got that photo of Gibson?”

Knight pulled out her phone. She fiddled with it for a moment. Found the picture. And said, “I have to warn you. This is an image of the victim of an accident. It shows a person who is no longer alive. Are you OK to look at it?”

The woman said, “You think I’m a blushing flower? Show me.”

Knight held up the phone.

The woman said, “It’s possible I saw him, I guess. My memory’s a little foggy.”

Reacher pulled out his bundle of banknotes and peeled off two twenties. He held them out. But he didn’t let the woman take them.

She said, “I more than saw him. And not just yesterday.”

Reacher said, “He was a regular customer?”

“Not one of my best. Not one of my worst.”

“When you say you saw him yesterday, do you mean walking by? Going to another room?”

“He wouldn’t dare. And the other girls wouldn’t take him. No. I saw him in here. For the full ninety minutes.”

Reacher let the woman take the two twenties. He peeled another two off his roll. “I have a couple more questions. They may sound strange but I need you to answer. There’s no right or wrong. Nothing that can hurt you in any way. Just tell me what you remember, OK?”

“Go for it.”

“When you were done, before he left, did you come to the door with him?”

“Sure. I gave him a kiss on the cheek and sent him on his way, like I always do.”

“What were you wearing?”

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