Page 31 of The Bratva's Christmas Bump
“Mhm.” She sighs deeply. “I’m a musician by trade, so I have to massage my hands a lot. And also keep them moisturized to stop wear and tear.”
“You’re a musician?” I barely know anything about her. This woman who wandered into the wrong pizzeria has a whole life I know nothing about.
“Like a celebrity?” Stu asks.
“No.” Hollie snorts softly. “I play parties. Hotel lobbies. Restaurants. That kind of thing. This time of year is my busiest time because everyone wants the charm of live music.”
Past her head, several Thanksgiving turkey streamers weave between twinkling tinsel and sparkling drop lights of various festive colors. In all my years in fancy hotels and restaurants,I’ve never looked twice at the live musicians and yet they’re such a core part of my experiences there.
“That sounds like a fun job.”
She straightens up slightly and smiles. “It is. Hectic. And kind of strained when it comes to money, but it’s so fun. My boss, Tiffany? She’s got quite the knack for getting me gigs at some of the top places. And I’m great at being available at the last minute.”
“Were you booked for Thanksgiving?” I ask as a waiter approaches us.
Hollie nods. “I was, yeah.”
Over a pot of tea and some toast for Hollie’s stomach, we discuss her musician life. She plays the piano and the violin, though her bashfulness keeps her reserved about the extent of her capabilities. She lists hotels and restaurants, and I’m familiar with nearly all of them. It strikes me that we’ve most likely crossed paths before in the past and never even noticed each other. It’s a nice conversation, given the circumstances, and ends when Rex calls me sounding like he’s about to have a brain aneurysm.
“Are you kidding me?” Rex barks down the phone. “You’re having coffee and tea while I’m tearing my hair out trying to make this new place into a fortress for you? Do you not care about me atall?”
Smirking, I finish paying the bill and we head outside. “Listen, Rex. I know what it looks like, but we really are on our way this time. Just give me?—”
“Miss Wolfe? Miss Hollie Wolfe?” An unfamiliar voice rises up from behind us as we step out onto the street. Stu moves around me, and I position myself between the voices and Hollie, but my gut tightens like the snap of a rubber band when we turn to face two police officers.
“Can I help you?” I ask, studying both faces. Neither of them are familiar, and they both look young enough that they might not know who I am.
“Sir, step aside. We need to speak with Miss Wolfe.”
All eyes fall on Hollie who gapes at the officers, then she looks at me and I see it in her eyes. That momentary hope of freedom. One word to them and she’ll be whisked away. It won’t matter that anything she says can’t be used against me. The stain of losing my wife to the police will be enough to taint my reputation, and it’s all downhill from there.
Her family won’t live to see another sunrise, and it won’t be by my hand.
“I’m Miss Wolfe,” Hollie says, her voice strained. “How can I help you?”
“Miss, are you alright?”
She nods quickly. “Yes, fine.”
“Can you tell us what happened to your face?” As the officer steps closer, his presence invades my space as he tries to get closer to her. “Did someone hurt you?”
Hollie’s lips part and a tense silence fills the cold air between us. Clouds of breath from all five of us collide and rise into the sky as Hollie struggles to find her words. “No,” she says eventually,surprising me. “I slipped on some ice a few days ago and went down hard. Kind of embarrassing, really.”
“What is this about?” I cut in, and one of the officers turns his narrowed gaze to me.
“Miss Wolfe’s family reported her as missing since Thanksgiving. You can imagine our surprise to find you just out in the street like this. What happened?”
Hollie doesn’t look at me. My heart stalls in my chest, and Stu subtly moves his hand to his waist for easy access to his weapon. One word from Hollie and this entire thing goes up in flames. A silence that lasts only a few seconds feels like it drags out for eternity as each officer shifts their weight.
“I…”
“Yes?” the officer prompts.
“I was in the hospital. Like I said, I fell and it was pretty bad. So I went to Accident and Emergency and they gave me some heavy-duty painkillers. The last few days have honestly been a little bit of a blur.”
“And you haven’t called home?”
Hollie laughs softly. “Well, my last conversation with my mother was her ordering me not to turn up at all because I was going to be late, so we’re not exactly on speaking terms. This feels a bit far-fetched, though. I’m not missing.”
