Page 43 of Toxic Obsession

“Sure, and if you see anything that’s off, please tell me. How much do you charge?”

“I tell you what. I’ll be driving through the area on my way back to Spokane, so let’s meet on the outskirts of town where you won’t run into anyone you know. I don’t want to cause problems if a parent or friend sees us having a meal together. Let me look over the info you’ve got, then I’ll give you a price before we get started.” She paused for a moment. “Wait, you’re a college student, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, but if you’re concerned about money, it isn’t an issue. I can pay you.”

I could almost hear her smile through the line. “Okay. How about lunch around one today?”

“I can make it work. Tell me where and I’ll be there.”

Sutton gave me the name of a café before she described herself with long blonde hair, average height, and blue eyes. I told her what I looked like, then we disconnected the call.

* * *

The cafe was a cozy space with green-and white-striped wallpaper. I took a deep breath, glancing around, searching for Sutton. Nervous energy bubbled in my chest as I squeezed between tables and chairs. A booth in the corner caught my attention. I hoped it would be free, so I could have a private conversation with Sutton. Reaching the vacant seat, I slid in, my heart pounding faster with each passing second.

I nervously bit my cheek, considering the worst-case scenarios and all the moments I had thought about skipping this meeting over the last few hours. Sutton would either confirm that Adam was being honest about Wynter or prove once and for all that I couldn’t believe a word out of the bastard’s mouth. Even though I hated Adam, I still had a need to trust him. If he was feeding me shit, it would fuck with me since about the only thing I could count on was that he’d always been straight with me in the past.

From what you can tell.

I stared at the folder in my lap while I waited, fiddling with the corner of the manila file. I had left home early to meet Sutton so I could first stop at the local library to make copies of the documents.

The bell on the entrance jingled and a woman in her late twenties sauntered in, a picture of confidence in her tailored navy suit and high heels. Her honey-blonde hair was pulled back into a neat bun, and she wore an expression of determination. She strolled toward me with purpose, her presence commanding the room.

“Quinn?”

I rose and extended my hand. “Nice to meet you, Mrs. Westbrook. Thanks for meeting me.”

“Please, call me Sutton.” She set her purse on the seat and slid into the booth to sit across from me. She shucked off her black overcoat, smiling warmly at me. “It sounds like you’ve been through a lot. I’m really sorry about your sister.”

My jaw clenched. I hated it when people apologized. It wasn’t their fault. I nodded, then laid the file on the table.

She placed her palm on the manila folder and dragged it toward her. “Have you eaten? I’m starving.”

“I could eat, but maybe we can look everything over while we wait for our food?”

“Of course. I have a long drive ahead of me, so I just want to get my order in now.”

“Spokane, right?” I folded my hands in my lap, appearing calmer than I was.

“Yeah. My husband Pierce and I live there. We have several locations for Westbrook Security, but we’re pretty happy splitting our time between Washington and Oregon.”

An older waitress brought us waters, then took our order. I hadn’t realized the menu was written in chalk on a blackboard, but it was easy enough to grab a late breakfast packed with protein with a stack of pancakes on the side.

Once the waitress left us alone, Sutton opened the file. After her first pass through the documents, she lifted her head, her blue eyes widening as they stared at me. “Quinn, I remember when all of this happened. Nothing I can say will help, but I would like to look into what you need at no charge. What I may discover could not only affect you and your family, but so many others’ lives too.”

Sutton’s compassion caught me off guard, and I struggled to swallow around the ball of emotions that lodged in my throat.

“I need to know about the letters, but if you want to dig into the police report and Wynter’s background, it might help. I’m trying to figure out what’s true and what isn’t. I’ve researched as much as I can. I need a professional.”

Sutton nodded and closed the folder.

“I … uh, Wynter worked for Dimitri Photography. I took out the images from the file, but she did porn in order to pay bills and support her sister after her father split and her mom began to drink all the time. I realize you’ll need that information, but if you go to the website, just understand what you’re about to walk into.”

Sutton removed a pen from her purse, then scribbled the details on the inside of the file. “Got it. Any detail you have is important. Also, any conversations we have are confidential. I don’t want you to worry that I’ll talk to anyone other than my team.”

“That helps, thanks. I really appreciate you looking into Wynter’s background. There are unanswered questions, and for a while I thought it didn’t matter, but then I met her. She attends Whitmore University now. I’ve talked to her a few times, and the way the article reads, it sounds like she was questioned as a person of interest. But …” I took a drink of my water, needing to tell Sutton the shit that was spinning around in my brain. “That’s not the girl I’ve spent time with. Not at all.”

The waitress brought our food and set it in front of us.

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