Page 98 of Oblivion

Jackson swiveled to and fro in his office chair. “Well, itdid,but it matched with a well-known hypnotist here in San Diego. His shows are always sold out and he has a strong public presence. Unfortunately, questioning him about his whereabouts over the period Penny was captured is out of our jurisdiction, but I did pass on the information to the police. They’ve since informed me that his alibi checked out.”

“But what about the hotel camera footage?”

‘That was erased by someone at the hotel not long after you viewed it. Fingers are pointing, but no one is coming forward with information. Talk about a fuck-up. Seems like someone’s paying people to keep their mouths shut.”

Itskedwith frustration and ran a hand through my hair. “So, back to square one, then?”

He hummed. “It’s out of our hands now. We do recovery and security, not the investigation that comes afterward. That’s what the police are for.”

I cursed and cracked my neck from side-to-side. “Okay. Should I let Penny know?”

Jackson pushed to his feet. “Please do. I’m afraid there isn’t more information to offer if she starts asking further questions.”

“Got it.” I nodded and made my way to the door, only to pause. “Uh, and Jackson?”

“Mm?”

“That thing between me and Penny? It won’t be a problem.”

A knowing snort came before his drawled remark. “Keep tellin’ yourself that, Bateman. Maybe one day you’ll believe it.”

I left his office before a snarky reply slipped out. Jackson was right; I could keep telling myself that the history between me and Penny wouldn’t be a problem, but we both knew I was full of shit.

I let out a frustrated huff as I entered the break room. Penny and Twilight’s attention snapped up from the the newspaper they were reading.

“Ooh, let’s do Dante!” Penny declared with excitement.

“Already have,” I muttered under my breath, only to hear a snort behind me.

Jackson pushed past and did a piss-poor job of smothering his laughter. He continued to chuckle as he grabbed a mug from the overhead cupboard and poured himself some coffee.

“Do me how?” I asked, while flipping off my boss.

“Horoscopes,” Mark deadpanned, and rolled his eyes. “Crock of shit if you ask me.”

Penny backhanded his upper arm, then turned her illuminated gaze on me. “What’s your sign?”

“Dunno.”

“Then, when’s your birthday?”

“April.”

“Date,”she hissed from behind her teeth.

“Twenty-ninth,” I deadpanned.

Victory lit her face. “Ha, I knew you were a bull. Taurus,” she murmured as her finger skimmed through the list. “Oh, here we go. While you don’t shy away from hard work, this week will test your patience and perfectionist habits to the limit. Be careful not to take your pleasure-seeking tendencies too far, as a new connection may seem too good to be true.” Penny grimaced. “That sounds ominous.”

I folded my arms across my chest and steadied my feet hip-width apart. “I’m with Twilight. It’s a crock of shit.”

No way was I admitting that the entire paragraph hitwaytoo close to home—especially the part about taking pleasure-seeking tendencies too fucking far.

Jackson interjected, talking to Mark. “Yo, you pasty son-of-a-bitch, ready to get this meeting done and dusted?”

Mark pushed to his feet. “Sorry, what was that? I couldn’t hear you past your dad-bod.”

Jackson’s pitch rose. “Thefuck?This is still washboard, asshole!” He ran a hand up and down his abdomen.

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