Page 133 of Say My Name

Ashley trails behind me. “The problem isn’t just going to go away on its own.”

I let out a deep breath. “What would you do, Ash?”

She sighs. “I can’t answer this one for you, Chloe. This is huge. It’s something you need to think about and discuss with Devereaux.”

I nod, wanting to discuss this with him, but not now. “I have so much on my plate right now. It isn’t the right time.”

“It’ll never be the right time,” Ashley says, sounding wiser than her years.

I plop onto a barstool. “I know, but I can’t think about this now. I have to find out who’s killing these women.”

Ashley frowns. “And you will, Chloe. Maybe you’re on the right path. Or maybe you’ve just been looking at everything from the wrong angle.”

“What’s the right angle?”

“Only you can answer that.” She wraps me in a hug. “I have a house showing later this afternoon. I’ll stop by afterward?”

I shake my head. “No, it’s ok. I have to go home to Devereaux.”

“You should tell him. Maybe he can help you decide what’s best.”

I chew on my bottom lip, my hand instinctively going to my belly. “Maybe.”

Ashley grabs her handbag and gives me one last hug before she leaves. And when she’s gone, I sit in silence in my kitchen. Alone. But not really. There’s a baby in my belly. And if I keep him or her, it’ll be just us. Because I’m pregnant by a man I can never have.

Chapter 38

Devereaux

Yuri was a dead end. I need to focus on the prostitution ring in my club and figure out who’s behind it.

It’s late, and once again, I’m going through the member files. I pull up Derek Matthews on my computer, making sure I didn’t miss anything the first time I looked at his information.

“I’m headed out for the night,” Adele says, stepping into my office. “Do you need anything else before I go?”

I wave her off. “No, everything’s fine. Before you go, though, what do you think of Derek Matthews?” I ask, wanting her opinion on the man since she’s dealt with him more than me.

She shrugs. “Good guy, I guess. He brings a lot of different guests into the club.”

I click the button labeled “Member Guests” and pull up the women he’s brought into the club over the years. Their background checks flash up on screen and I sift through the different women, not sure what I’m even hoping to find. And that’s when I see her. Chloe’s sister.

Ashley Bardot.

“Do you know this woman?” I ask Adele.

She crosses the floor to stand behind me, peering over my shoulder at the woman on the screen. “I think I’ve seen her before. Why?”

I glance up at Adele. “Nothing. You should go home.”

Adele smiles and says her goodbyes.

Once I’m alone, curiosity gets the best of me, and I do a quick Google search of Ashley Bardot. I find her Facebook page and click on it, wondering if I’ll get a glimpse of Chloe. Of her life outside these walls. It looks like Ashley isn’t a regular Facebook user, can’t blame her, but she has posted some sporadic personal photos. I scroll through the occasional photo of Ashley, feeling like a creeper, until Chloe’s green eyes and smiling face stop me. My blood turns ice cold.

She’s dressed in a uniform.

I blink, not believing my eyes. But it’s her, and that’s definitely a badge above her breast and a gun on her hip. I scroll through different photos, and come across a few more of Chloe in a police officer’s uniform, and then I see a picture of Chloe and Ashley with the caption, “Chloe just graduated from the Police Academy.”

I type Chloe’s name in the search bar and nothing comes up. She doesn't have a Facebook page. But I find her mother’s.

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