Page 44 of Be Very Quiet

Liliana slid outside and shouted, “Rex.”

He turned and instead of his usual smile when he saw her, he looked troubled. “Hey, Liliana. I wanted to talk to you.”

“I-we wanted to talk to you too. This is Audrey Grant. She has some real estate questions to ask you.” At least it wasn’t a lie. Audria wanted to inquire about his visit to her condo.

Rex took her arm and guided her away from Audria. Lowering his voice, he asked, “Have you heard about the latest murders? They sound like the work of The Mortician.”

Liliana gasped, and a hand flew to her chest. “How do you know about him?”

“I was in school at Marquette at the time. I remember hearing about the string of brutal killings a state over in Minnesota. Liliana, that was you, wasn’t it? You are the one who escaped him.”

“Everything okay here?”

Liliana appreciated Luca’s support since Rex had blindsided her and she didn’t know how to react. Her heart was fluttering so fast, she feared she might be having a heart attack. “Rex was asking me about The Mortician.”

Luca stiffened next to her. “Why don’t we go to Liliana’s office and talk, Mr. Raines?”

Luca had phrased it as a question, but it was obviously a command.

Rex checked his watch. “I have about twenty minutes before a scheduled meeting with a client. Let’s go.”

Liliana led them inside on legs that were anything but steady. She had a feeling the hand on her back was Luca’s way of letting her know he wouldn’t let her fall.

Shonda called out a greeting and waved as they proceeded to her office. Liliana placed her bag inside the credenza and sat down. She didn’t remove her bulletproof vest yet because she didn’t want Rex to know she was wearing one. He dropped into one of the chairs in front of her desk while Luca leaned against it, facing him. Audria and Christian took up strategic spots around the room.

“Why were you at Liliana’s place yesterday?”

Luca had said that Audria would question him, but he’d obviously changed his mind and taken the reins.

The question took Rex off guard for a moment. “I wasn’t at her condo, but I was at the complex. I had a client who requested a viewing of an open unit.”

“Douglas Speke.”

Rex nodded in confirmation. “Yes.”

“He asked you to show it to him? You didn’t suggest it?”

Rex shook his head. “No. He approached me two days ago and asked if I’d be his realtor. He said that he’d seen a listing for a condo in the building and wanted to look at it.”

“Were you with him the entire time?” Christian asked.

“Yeah, pretty much. We drove separately and met there but went up together to look at the listing.”

“Did he know Liliana lived in the building?” Audria questioned.

“If he did, he didn’t tell me. I certainly didn’t point it out to him, even though there’s no such thing as realtor-client privilege.” Rex’s brows pulled together. “I did find it curious that he asked me to show him that complex. It was out of the price range he quoted to me.”

Luca asked, “Did you pass Liliana’s condo while you were there?”

“No. The listing was for a unit on the third floor. We went in and looked around. He seemed interested but didn’t want to make an offer. He said he wanted to think about it.”

Rex’s phone buzzed, and he frowned at the screen.

“Problem?” Luca wondered.

“An issue with a listing,” he said before putting the phone away.

“What do you know about The Mortician?” Luca pressed.

---