Page 9 of Bad Mother

“Maybe.” He paused. “But first, tell me about the cards.”

“The cards?”

“The ones from your case. The woman who was murdered last night.”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t disclose anything to you about a murder still under investigation.”

“You—or someone from the Reno PD—were probably going to question me anyway if you didn’t come up with any leads to those cards, so why don’t you do it now and tell me a little about them.”

She narrowed her eyes. “I’m assuming the manager at the gift shop told you we’d stopped by earlier today.”

“Your mind works quickly.” He smiled again. “It always did.”

She let out a slow breath, but her burst of anger had faded. Maybe he was right. Now that he was sitting in front of her, why not use the opportunity to question him about the cards? They’d planned to potentially do that anyway, so in essence, she’d already been grantedpermission. “Fine. We found several cards at the crime scene. We were later told that the design on the backs of those cards was originally inspired by a tattoo you were well known for during your poker days.”

He paused a moment and then turned his arm over, pulling up his shirtsleeve to reveal the art on his inner wrist. Her stomach dropped even though she’d had a good idea what it looked like based on the card design. Whathadn’tbeen on the cards was the slip of lake behind the swans, the tree placement she knew well. She met his eyes. “When did you have that done?”

Gavin pulled his arm back, lowering his sleeve. The waitress approached the table and asked if she could get him anything. “A cup of coffee would be great.”

She nodded. “Anything else for you, ma’am?”

“No, I’m good. Just the bill when you get the chance.” Sienna wanted to be able to leave the minute she was ready.

“When I left Reno, I joined the military.” He smiled a bit ruefully. “I would have started competing in cards right away, but—”

“You were only eighteen. Yes, I’m well aware.”

There was that flicker again. “Yeah. Anyway, me and the guys went out drinking our first weekend off and all got tattoos. They got snakes, army insignias, leopards, and swords, and I got—”

“Swans floating on a lake. Pretty.”

“Right. They still harass me over it.” He smiled, and dammit, she softened. Not much, but she did.

She shook her head, the small smile she’d given him in return dissipating. She wasn’t going to ask more about thewhy. It had been a pretty lake. There were good memories there, even if, for her, they’d been cast in hurt later. It was a happy part of his childhood. Something beautiful in the midst of ugly.

“I happened to drive by Paradise Estates the other day,” she told him, and if he doubted the “happened to” claim, his expression didn’t show it. “But I was heading east, so I didn’t drive past the lake.”

“Good thing you didn’t,” he said as the waitress showed up with his cup of coffee. She placed it down with a bowl of creamer and walked away before he continued with what he was saying. “The whole park has gone to hell. It’s infested with drug dealers and even some prostitution.”

Sienna let out a groan of disappointment. “God, that’s a shame. I can’t say I’m completely surprised, but I hoped...”

She didn’t have to finish the statement. He nodded, obviously knowing exactly what she was thinking.I hoped the people of the community where Paradise Estates was located would show some pride in the park they’d been gifted by a philanthropist attempting to beautify the area with good intentions but faulty logic and little understanding of poverty and human nature. I hoped they’d work to keep the park clean and well kept. Safe.But that had been a pipe dream. Most of the people in the community barely kept their own residences livable. Why in the world would they maintain a park? They had no real ownership in either. Therewerea few people who tried their best to use the park as intended—an aesthetically pleasing, family-friendly location they didn’t need to travel halfway across town to utilize. But it was an uphill battle that they’d apparently lost.

“Yeah,” he sighed. “It went to ruin. Otis and Odette had babies, though, four of them.”

Sienna’s eyes widened with surprised pleasure.Otis and Odette.She’d forgotten they’d named their favorite swans once upon a time. But Gavin raised his hand as though she should temper her obvious delight. “Sadly, Odette passed away. They tried to save her, but...”

Sienna inhaled a sharp breath. “Oh no.” Poor Otis. Swans mated for life. “Is Otis still there?”

“No. They moved him. I’m not sure where. The lake had become a garbage-filled swamp.”

She opened her mouth to ask him more about the poor single dad but thought twice, pressing her lips together. How had they fallenso easily back into casual conversation anyway? She sat up straighter. “So... the cards. Who designed them?”

He leaned back, slinging his arm over the top of the booth. “The leader of my fan club.”

“You have afan club?” She tried to keep her brow from rising, but it didn’t comply.

He grimaced. “Had. It disbanded when I quit playing—” He shook his head as if the very thought of a fan club pained him deeply.

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