Page 75 of Forgotten Deeds

“Not a problem,” Darius assures me.

A car pulls up behind me. “Oh, no,” I say wearily.

“What?” he asks.

“That’s Harrison’s dad. He was acting sketchy at the funeral; I guess he thinks he’s coming into an inheritance. Made me really uncomfortable telling Iris he’s her grandpa, considering we’d never laid eyes on the man until today.”

Without a word, Darius marches to the car and knocks on the driver side window. Harrison’s dad rolls it down, and there’s a back and forth, but I can’t hear what’s being said. Whatever was said, the man backs up, turning around and driving off.

Darius returns, and I quip, “Just like that?”

He playfully flicks my nose. “Just like that.”

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Lily

We join Ethan on the sidewalk, with Iris perched on Darius’ shoulders. “Hey, I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Ethan McGregor,” he says, extending his hand. “Officer Harrison’s former partner.”

“I’m Darius Angelos, Lily’s husband. It’s nice to meet you. Sorry for your loss,” Darius says politely.

“Thanks.” The two men shake, and Ethan turns to me. “Ready to take a look?”

I nod. “Darius is going to hang out with Iris while we’re inside.”

“Take your time,” Darius tells me. Placing Iris on her feet, he reaches behind her ear, making a bubble wand “appear.” She jumps up and down, eagerly grabbing it.

I smile at the two of them before following Ethan up the steps to the front door. He uses his key, and we step inside the eerily quiet house. Flipping on the light, I take a look around the living room that screams bachelor pad. A huge gaming system with a leather couch takes up the entirety of the space, with not a single picture of Harrison’s daughter to be found.

“Lily, what have you gotten yourself mixed up with?” Ethan demands, suddenly in my face.

Taken aback, I say, “I’m sorry, but I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“That’s fucking Darius Angelos!” he says, rubbing the back of his neck. “Do you know who you married?”

“Yes, I know who I married.” I square my chin and cross my arms. “A good man who loves me and Iris.”

“A good man?” he parrots incredulously. “For Chrissake, Lily, he’s connected to the mob. Everybody knows it!” He grabs me by the shoulders and gives me a little shake.

“Just a bunch of whispers and hearsay,” I throw his words back at him as I shrug out of his hold. “Like the bullshit rumors about Harrison. You of all people should know not to believe everything you hear.”

“That’s different,” he argues.

Holding up my hand, I say, “I’m going to start in the bedroom looking for Iris’ rainbow charm. How about you start with Harrison’s car, and then the living room?” I don’t wait for Ethan to answer, taking off down the hall.

Stepping into Harrison’s bedroom, the noxious smell of bleach lingers in the air, and I try not to think about why—or why the bed’s missing for that matter. What’s left of the room has been ransacked, but I go through the mess anyway, not finding the rainbow charm. I do find several discarded thongs, a box of condoms and lube, and various plugs and cock rings—none of which you could get me to touch with a ten-foot pole.

Opening the closet, I check the pockets of Harrison’s pants and his jackets, but no luck.

Walking across the hall to the spare bedroom that served as Iris’ room the few times she spent the night, I search the room in vain. I peek inside the small closet—some toys, plus a few of Iris’ outfits that were missing after visitation. Harrison swore up and down he sent the clothes back with her.

There’s a large plastic dollhouse in the corner; underneath it, the cheap carpet tiles are pulling away from the floor. I wonder if maybe Iris played back there and used it as a hidey spot? Squatting down, I move the dollhouse pull one of the tile pieces off the floor.

Trying not to gasp, I find a safe built into the floor with an electronic number lock. Knowing why Darius has one in our house, I’m struggling to understand why a cop would need one in his. Maybe Harrison used it to store his gun collection? He was robbed, so clearly this isn’t the safest neighborhood. Or maybe some of the “bullshit rumors” about Harrison are more than just rumors?

Giving Iris’ birth date a try, the safe beeps red. Maybe it’s a four-digit code instead of six? I punch in just her birth date and month, but again, it beeps red. Trying the same numbers in reverse; red. What would a man like Harrison use as his combination? Punching in his birthday; red. I cringe, typing in 6-9-6-9. Red. Harrison always wanted to receive head without having to return the favor, so it makes sense that’s not the code.

Grasping at straws, I try 1-2-3-4. Red.

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