Page 58 of Cassidy

Miles opened his mouth to answer, but Gordon quickly interrupted. “Wait, I want assurances that you won’t press charges against Miles if he cooperates.”

Gabe would have instantly agreed but noticed that Jina and Cassidy exchanged a long look. “I have to run that past the DA’s office,” Cass finally said. “Your ability to get a deal depends on the extent of your involvement in the crime.”

“He’s not talking until we meet with the DA,” Gordon repeated. “I don’t want Miles to face any charges.”

“Fine, then we’ll take Miles to the precinct,” Jina said with a shrug.

Gordon started to protest, but Cassidy interrupted him. “We’ll talk to the DA’s office on the way back to Milwaukee. I’m sure we can arrange for one of the ADAs to join us in the interview.”

No! Gabe didn’t want to wait a second longer than necessary. Miles made it sound as if Travis was still alive the last time he saw him, but that was hours ago.

The men who had him may have already killed him.

“We’ll find him,” Cass murmured as Jina marched the cuffed Miles toward her SUV. “We’re one step closer Gabe. This kid will tell us what we need to know.”

“What if it’s too late?” He searched her gaze as dawn crept over the horizon. “What if they’ve gotten rid of Travis by now?”

“Gabe, I know this is incredibly difficult.” She wrapped her arm around his waist, hugging him close. “I won’t lie to you. It is possible they’ve killed Travis. It’s been several hours since they went on the run. But they’ve kept him alive this long for a reason. We need to stay positive. To have faith in God’s plan.”

He wasn’t sure he could do that, but he managed to nod. Everything she said was true. It had been hours since they’d found the phone in the restaurant. If they wanted to silence his brother, they’d have had plenty of time to do the job.

And if they hadn’t? He glared at Miles as he slid into the back of Jina’s SUV. “You need to get answers from him, Cass. And soon.”

“That’s the goal.” She hugged him again. “Let’s hit the road. I’ll make some calls along the way.”

“Where are you taking Miles?” Gordon asked. “I thought you were from the Newport police station.”

“We’re MPD,” she said. Then she rattled off the address of the Seventh Precinct police station. Gabe felt a flash of sympathy for the older man. Gordon Wayland looked as if he’d aged ten years since they’d arrived.

“Thank you. I’ll be there soon.” Gordon turned and headed back inside the cabin.

As he followed Cass back to their SUV, he asked, “Will you let Miles’s father participate in the interview?”

She shrugged. “By law, we don’t have to. But if Gordan can get his son to cooperate, I’m all for it.”

“Me too,” Gabe murmured.

“Are you able to drive?” Cassidy asked as they neared the rental. She pulled the key fob from her pocket and tossed it to him.

“Yes.” He gratefully took the key, knowing she’d get more work done on the trip back than he would.

They were back on the road and heading toward the interstate a few minutes later. True to her word, Cassidy made several calls. He listened to her side of the conversation as he drove. “Hey, Rhy, Jina is bringing in a suspect by the name of Miles Wayland to the precinct. We believe he has pertinent information regarding the disappearance of Travis McCord.”

If Rhy was upset about them leaving before he arrived, Cassidy’s expression didn’t let on.

He listened as she described how they’d tracked Miles Wayland to the cottage on Newport Lake. “We were checking the place out when Miles Wayland and his father, Gordon, arrived home. They weren’t cooperative at first, but once we arrested Miles, he pretty much intimated that he knew Travis but didn’t know where they had taken him.” A pause, then, “No, he didn’t say whotheywere. His dad stopped him, demanding a deal in exchange for his son’s cooperation with the investigation. My next call is to your brother-in-law Bax Scala to hopefully make that happen.”

Gabe pushed the speed limit, but the flash of brake lights up ahead made him groan. Of course, they were heading downtown right during rush hour.

“The one comment Miles did let slip was that Travis should have kept his mouth shut. I’m not sure if that’s related to the secret call he made to Gabe’s office from the disposable phone, or something else entirely.”

He had found that comment from Miles interesting too. It could have been in reference to the phone call, but Gabe couldn’t help but wonder if it was more than that. Like the fact that Travis had reached out to him in the first place about the gaming software. Prior to his being assaulted.

He hit the brake, slowing as traffic became more congested. At this rate, it would take twice as long to get back to the precinct as it had for them to get to Newport Lake.

It took a minute for him to realize Cass was onto the next call to Bax Scala. That conversation was short, and it sounded as if Bax was more than willing to meet them at the precinct.

“Everything set?” he asked when Cass lowered her phone.

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