Page 57 of Cassidy

Miles stiffened, then said. “I don’t know anything about Travis. And if I’m not under arrest, I don’t have to talk to you.”

“Wrong answer, Miles,” Jina drawled. “You admitted to knowing Travis, and that gives us probable cause to arrest you.”

Cass pulled open the screen door, and thankfully, Miles wasn’t quick enough to stop her. Elbowing the door aside, she reached out and grabbed his arm. Yanking hard, she pulled him down onto the porch. “Miles Wayland, you’re under arrest for endangering the welfare of a minor. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.” She pushed his lean frame up against the side of the house, waiting for Jina to bring her handcuffs over to secure his wrists. “You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford one, an attorney will be provided at no cost to you.”

“Hey, wait!” the older man protested. “You can’t do that. I’m his father, you can’t just take him away.”

“Mr. Wayland, Miles is an adult, and therefore, you have no say over the matter.” She eyed him thoughtfully. “Unless you’re involved in Travis’s disappearance too?”

“Of course not,” Gordon denied hotly. “This is ridiculous. Miles, don’t say anything until I can hire a lawyer.”

“Mr. Wayland, we need to make sure Travis isn’t in the house, the garage, or the car.” Cassidy kept her voice firm, not asking for permission so much as telling him what she wanted.

“Go ahead,” Gordon said, throwing his hands out. “He’s not here. We just arrived ourselves.”

The grimace on Miles’s face told her he might know more than he’s letting on. She pushed him toward Jina and then headed inside.

The search didn’t take long. The place was empty. If Travis had been there, he wasn’t any longer.

She caught Gabe’s agonized expression when she returned without his brother. She felt bad for him, knowing that they needed to convince Miles to talk if they had any hope of finding Travis.

ChapterThirteen

When Cass emerged from the house without his brother, a flash of anger hit hard. They’d come too far to leave empty-handed. Miles Wayland had to know where Travis was!

Gabe rushed forward, grabbing the kid’s shoulders and shaking him. “Where’s Travis? You need to tell me where he is!”

“Easy, Gabe,” Jina cautioned. “We’ll get him to talk.”

“Tell me where he is!” He shook the kid again, unable to hide his panicked distress. “Did you kill him? Is that it? Did you kill a seventeen-year-old kid?”

“No, no, no,” Miles stuttered. “No!”

“Hey, get him away from my son!” Gordon Wayland shouted from the doorway. “That’s police brutality! Let him go or I’ll file a complaint with the Newport Police Department.”

Police brutality would be if Gabe punched the kid in the jaw, which was tempting, but he managed to hold back. Nobody bothered to correct Gordon’s assumption that they were local police. He released Miles’s shoulders but didn’t back off.

“Mr. Wayland, I highly advise you convince your son to cooperate with us,” Cassidy said in a calm but firm tone. “If Travis McCord is dead, your son will face serious charges. First degree murder and kidnapping a minor, and those are just for starters. A young man’s life is at stake.”

“My son didn’t kill anyone!” Gordon shot back. But when Miles fell silent, standing with his head down and his shoulders slumped in defeat, his father frowned, and said, “Miles? You don’t know this Travis kid, do you?”

When Miles didn’t immediately answer, Gordon strode purposefully from the house, planting himself in front of his son. Gabe took two steps back, praying Gordon would convince Miles to cooperate.

“Miles?” Gordon glared at him. “I asked you a question.”

More silence.

“If you know something about this missing kid, you need to tell us,” Jina said as father and son simply stared at each other. “Every minute counts. If you don’t cooperate, and we find that Travis has been killed, you will face murder charges.”

Gabe noticed Miles went pale upon hearing that.

“However, if you talk to us now, I’ll let the DA’s office know that you cooperated with the investigation,” Cass added. “But if you don’t, then you’ll face the consequences of your actions in front of a judge.”

“Miles, please.” Gordon’s voice was low and urgent. His earlier claims regarding his son’s innocence had vanished as the older man seemed to understand Miles knew far more than he was letting on. “Tell them the truth. I know you wouldn’t hurt anyone. Don’t stand there and take the fall for someone else’s actions.”

“I don’t know where they took him,” Miles finally said. “Travis should have just kept his mouth shut.”

Gabe’s stomach knotted. “Who took him? Tell us their names.”

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