Page 8 of Beauty and Kaos

I untie my boots, the chunky soles barely fitting in the provided bin. Then I pull off my studdedbelt, and drop a collection of silver rings and a necklace on top. I glance back up at the officer expectantly, and he nods for me to go through. It flashes red again. I sigh.

“I have body jewelry too, and an underwire bra,” I offer dismissively, my patience wearing thin. “If you want me to take those off, I can, but it’s going to start getting really interesting in here.” I offer a half-wave at the officers watching from the desk across from us, paused mid-transaction.

The officer raises an eyebrow, then nods to a female co-worker, and the woman walks over and pats me down. When she is sufficiently satisfied, she sends me through.

“What can I help you with today?” The woman asks me.

I pull my boots back on. “I’m here to see Detective Phillips.”

The woman nods. “Second floor, room 215.”

I thank her as I stuff my jewelry into my pocket, then grab my backpack and head for the stairs. Officers bustle around the floor, carrying files between desks, accompanied by a constant chatter of noise from their radios. A door opens down the hall, and a disheveled woman escorted by two officers brushes past me, her hands in cuffs. Our eyes meet, and I can see the desperation anchored deep inside. The sign beside the door reads 215, and I take a breath.Fuck.

“Detective Phillips?” I ask, knocking lightly on the open door.

A man glances up from behind a mahogany L-shaped desk, his hands pausing on his computer keyboard. He’s wearing a suit instead of a uniform, his striped tie so tight it looks like it’s strangling him. His close-cropped hair is balding all the way to the darksunglasses perched on top of his head, and he’s sweating despite the frigid temperature of the office.

“Yes?” He answers, returning his attention to his work, his fingers tapping hurriedly along the keys.

“I’m Skylar Matthews. Paige’s sister. You asked me to come in.” He stops again, studying me for a moment, then motions to the chair in front of his desk.

“Thank you for coming in, Ms. Matthews.”

I nod. “Sure. Any news on Paige?”

He shakes his head. “We still have teams out looking for her. Nothing yet.”

“How can I help?”

The Detective shuffles around the papers on his desk, stacks up several files to get them out of the way, and lifts the receiver on his office phone. He doesn’t introduce himself, so I can tell it’s an in-office call. He asks another officer to come in, and my heart begins to race. Will this one have the cuffs?

“I’ve asked you in today because we need to go over the events of Friday night. We have video and eyewitness accounts of the incident, and testimonies from everyone she worked with at the Sandbar. When was the last time you spoke with her?”

Breathe.“She called me Friday afternoon, around three or so. We talked about work. We talked about the wave height in the Cove projected for the weekend. Everything sounded fine. She said she was going out that night with Evan, one of her managers at the restaurant. She works side jobs for him, cocktailing and bottle service at one of the other clubs his dad owns. The Aurora, I think.” Paige’s voice echoes inside my head, her laugh, her excited infliction every time she mentions Evan. “That was the last I heard from her.”

TheDetective nods. “She never called you after that? Didn’t text? Email? Anything?”

I shake my head. “Nothing.”

He nods again. “Do you have your phone with you today?”

My eyes narrow. “Yeah. Why?”

He pushes a piece of paper across the desk at me. “We’re going to need to collect that for evidence. You can have it back in a few days.”

“Is this a warrant?”

“Yes.” He stares at me expectantly, unflinching.

“Okay, look. I just got here. In a strange place where I don’t live and have never been. I don’t have anywhere to stay lined up. And without my phone, I can’t even call the cab back to get me. Paige has this number.” I pull my phone out of my pocket and place it on the desk, holding a hand over it possessively. “This phone is the most likely way I can get in contact with my sister if she is still alive. It is my ONE lifeline. And you want to take it.”

“Per phone records, you were the last person to talk with her. We need to check your records against what we have. I’m sorry. Kelly, at the first desk to the right of the door, can call you a cab when we’re done.” He takes the phone out from beneath my hand and slips it into a plastic bag, scribbling something on the label. When the second officer enters the office, he immediately hands it off, and I watch my phone disappear down the hall.

“Glad I could come all this way to help you guys,” I mumble, frustrated, as I slouch back into my chair.

“Look, there’s something you need to understand here. Is your sister missing? Yes. Are we looking for her? Yes. We wantto find her alive as much as you do, regardless of the circumstances. But this is also a murder investigation. Two people were killed, and the only suspect I have is Paige.”

I straighten in my chair. “What about Evan? He was supposed to be with her that night. Where was he?”

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