Page 8 of Hunt

“Selkie?”

“Nothing,” he chuckled. “I need to go to class.”

“Wait. Tell me where Riley’s class is,” I demanded.

“Gotta go, bro.” He clicked off, leaving me hanging. At least I knew she was alive and okay, and Ronan was watching over her, too.

4

Danny Lam sat opposite with his notebook, flicking through several leaves of handwritten pages. My chest tightened in impatience, and I waited for him to update me. My patience had lengthened somewhat by being in prison, living by the system. I was fed by the clock, I trained in the gym by the clock, and I lived significant portions of my life in a small room, lying on an uncomfortable bed, staring up at the ceiling, and plotting my revenge on Annika and whoever murdered my uncle.

He cleared his throat before speaking, “I revisited the witnesses of Mr. Kaiser’s death-”

“The neighbors?” I asked, wondering whether he had discovered new witnesses. But I was told that the only people who saw the van drive up to the Kaiser’s house were witnesses andher…the little lying snitch.

“Are you aware that the main witness who identified that there were two men in the van that pulled up outside the Kaiser house is deceased?”

“How? When? Are you referring to the old woman? I enquired, wondering if her death was suspicious. She was the best witness, and I remember her being helpful with the inquiry until she became scared off and fell silent. When we approached her, we found that the house had been put on the market, and she had moved to another state.

“Yes, she died in her bed of natural causes three years ago,” he explained. “But…” he sighed and I knew what was coming next was going to irritate the living shit out of me. “She was the best witness we had.”

“So, what are you saying?” I snarled at him. It’s not his fault that every fucking lead seemed to dissolve into a thousand fucking pieces.

“I contacted her daughter to see if she’d be open to me asking her some questions about that evening when Mr. Kaiser died and…ah, how shall I say, she became very nervous and cut me off. When I called her the following day, she asked me not to contact her again because it caused a lot of stress in their family,” he trailed off.

I waited for him to continue, but he seemed to have nothing else to say, so I suggested, “Pay her off. How much? How much do you think it would take to get her to speak?

This offer took him aback. “I don’t know.”

“Someone had gotten under her skin and frightened her into silence, so offer her something she can’t refuse.” I lit a cigar and took a pull, blowing out the smoke. One thing I have in bucket loads is money, so call her again and ask how much it would take for her to speak. I haven’t been in this business for as long as my uncle, but I know one thing for sure: the daughter of the best witness we had knew something. And money talks, Mr. Lam, money talks.” I take another pull of a Danish King, watching him closely, working it out in my head. “Ask her. Ask her how much she’d like to trade for information about that day when Mr. Kaiser was shot.”

Danny nodded slowly. “That was the impression I got. Her mother knew something, but the daughter wipes her hands clean of it.”

“Alright,” I sighed, glancing at the time on my phone. Dinner time was near, which meant the little liar would deliver my meal. Fake IDs and underage girls working in the club were not something I supported, but we’ll let her ride the wave until we’ve figured out who she is. “Call the daughter tonight and get back to me.”

“Sure,” he replied, taking out a folded-up printed pic from his pocket. “One more thing. Your nephew sent me a picture of a woman he wanted me to identify…” He looked at me as if I should know that.

I shrugged. “I hadn’t spoken to Gunner for a while,” I clarified, slightly confused as I took the pic from his hand and peered at the blond woman before me. “Is she a cop?” It looked obvious to me.

“Yes,” he exhaled. “Not just any cop, but an investigating officer in the Larsson Police Force.”

“Larsson?” Even the sound of the name of that city turned my stomach. “Give me some context here. What was Gunner taking pics of her for?”

“He said she was speaking to a student in her dorm in his words in a ‘threatening manner,’” Danny replied.

“Student? At Gotland?” I pressed, slightly confused.

He nodded.

“What’s she doing here out of jurisdiction? And what did it have to do with us?” I frowned, knowing that neither he nor Gunner would’ve raised the subject unless it was relevant.

“I don’t know that yet, and your nephew asked me because this officer was visiting a…” checks notes, “Riley Laws.”

“Huh,” I grunted as the pieces fell into place. “Well, well, well.”

“Gunner has asked me to investigate this Riley Laws, too, but I’m struggling to see what she has to do with your uncle's death,” he questioned, hoping I’d fill in the gaps.

I leaned in as the rattling sound of the dinner trolley being pushed over the elevator door tracks filled the room. I pointed to the door. The girl who’s about to deliver my meal is Riley Laws, but she goes by the alias Petra Black and uses a fake ID. The sound of her muffled, gentle knock on Ronan’s office door was dangerously close to me. I heard the door open and words exchanged, but I couldn’t pick up on what was said.

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