Michael frowned. “We think so, but it’s not official yet. The woman who was taken . . . she was our friend.”
“God bless you both as you look for her.” Regina’s shoulders slumped, and more tears leaked from her eyes. “I hope you find her. I really do. Because if you don’t . . . your lives will never be the same again.”
An hour later, Oscar met us at an upscale seafood restaurant called The Quarterdeck so we could discuss what we’d learned. The place was decorated with a nautical theme and all wood surroundings—from the floor to the walls to the ceiling.
Oscar didn’t ask Michael or I what we wanted to eat. Instead, he’d ordered a variety of dishes and appetizers we could share.
The truth was, I figured none of us felt like eating, though the scent of fried seafood was a little too appetizing right now.
Our first priority was to compare notes and see if there was anything that might help us find Velma.
Oscar had gone to talk to the family of the second victim, and I hoped he’d learned more than we had.
“So, the second victim’s name was Gloria Wilson,” Oscar started, dunking a jumbo shrimp into some cocktail sauce.
I pictured the woman in my head. She had red hair the color of fire and green eyes like clovers. She’d been a waitress at a dive bar outside of DC.
“Her father lives down in Richmond,” Oscar continued. “I was able to talk to him for a few minutes. I wish he’d had something to share that would help us, but there was very little he knew. He hadn’t spoken with his daughter for almost a year when she disappeared.”
“She was like the rest of them?” I asked. “A loner with no one really to look out for her . . .”
Oscar nodded solemnly before nearly mauling the shrimp. “That’s right.”
My heart seemed to lodge in my throat. I picked up a crusty piece of bread, but I wasn’t sure I’d be able to scoop any crab dip onto it. “I never thought of Velma that way. She had us.”
The frown on Oscar’s face grew deeper. “She did. But that was only at work. After hours . . . she did her own thing. Just like we all do.”
The lump in my throat grew larger at his ominous words.
Did Oscar know—or suspect—that Michael and I were dating? I felt certain he would fire us if he did. I knew all about the hazards of a workplace romance. Yet here I was, unable to walk away from this thing that was developing between Michael and me.
I doubted that was Oscar’s biggest concern at the moment.
I cleared my throat. “Still, I just hate to think of Velma that way.”
“We all do.” Oscar picked up another shrimp. “That’s why we have to find her. We’re all she’s got.”
“What do we do now?” Michael leaned back in his seat, his arm casually draped around the back of my wooden chair. He’d eaten a mini crab cake already but didn’t seem interested in any other food. “There are three other families we could talk to.”
“True,” Oscar said.
Michael glanced at me. “You’ve already talked to Hunter about his fiancée, haven’t you?”
That familiar heat rose from my neck all the way to my cheeks. “I have. He doesn’t like to talk about what happened to her, and I’m sure he doesn’t want us investigating. I’m not really sure what good it would do if we tried to talk to him about her anymore.”
“You’re probably right.” Oscar nodded slowly, stabbing the last crab cake with his fork. “The only other thing I can think of is that we need to go back to Velma’s apartment complex. The police are probably gone by now, and we need to talk to everybody who lives there. Maybe somebody saw something.”
I hoped so.
“And by the way.” Oscar nodded at Michael. “No arms around the backs of chairs. Don’t you know how prevalent sexual harassment cases are?”
As Michael removed his arm, the lump in my throat grew larger.
Chapter Six
It was a truth universally known that people were more inclined to talk to ordinary citizens than they were official police detectives. That was the only thing that gave me hope as we approached Velma’s apartment complex after our late lunch.
To my shock, Oscar had joined Michael and me. He’d insisted that we should go door to door to find answers and that three people worked faster than two.
Two police cars were still on the scene, but I wasn’t sure exactly why. There didn’t appear to be any evidence here, at least from what I’d seen earlier.
I hoped that the officers didn’t try to stop us.
I had ridden over with Michael. As we climbed from his minivan, I took a moment to look around.
There had to be at least a hundred apartments at this complex. It would take a while to knock on every door. Plus, most likely everybody wouldn’t be home. The task almost seemed overwhelming as I thought about it.
But Velma was worth it.
“We should split up,” Oscar said as he joined us near Michael’s minivan. “That way we can save time.”
“Why don’t we each take one floor?” I suggested. “We should make a note on our phones of which residents don’t answer so we can come back later and talk to them. I’m assuming a lot of people aren’t home right now, and those could be the very people who saw something. The fact is, some residents may not have even realized they saw something.”
Oscar’s eyebrows flickered up, almost as if he was impressed with my assumption.
“Let’s do it. I’ll take the first floor.” Oscar nodded as he started that way.
As Michael and I headed to the stairway, he said, “If at any point you feel like you’re in danger, yell, and I’ll be right there.”
My heart warmed at the concern in his words. “Thanks. I appreciate you looking out for me.”
He winked. “Always.”
His words made me suck in a quick breath. Hearing the affection in his voice made me want to pinch myself. Michael had been in front of me this whole time, and I hadn’t seen him as a romantic interest.
Yet I couldn’t imagine anyone more perfect for me.
When Oscar faded from sight and we’d cleared the first stairway, Michael tugged me behind the edge of the stairway and leaned close.
Almost like he wanted to kiss me.
But he didn’t.
He only teased me.
When he stepped back, my heart fluttered from his nearness.
“You’re so bad.” I jabbed a finger in his chest.
“I just hate that we’re keeping this a secret. Keeping us a secret.”
“It’s for the best,” I reminded him. New relationships were too fragile. We needed to be on solid ground before we announced ourselves to others who would be affected—like Chloe or Oscar.
He nodded, that tender look still present in his eyes. “You’re right. We should get to work. But really—be careful.”
We said that to each other almost as much as most normal people said hello, goodbye, and thank you.
As he left me on the second floor, I stared at the row of doors in front of me. I had to get busy. There was no time to waste here, and we had a huge task in front of us.