Page 17 of Shadow Killer
Brandon squeezed her hand one last time before letting her go. “Meet me in the parking garage. I’ll borrow a car. Don’t leave the building alone. Not until everything is sorted out.”
The Quicksilver wasn’t the closest restaurant to the station but had been the most popular meet-up place for decades.
When Noelle finally got hold of the owner, the man wasn’t that happy to be disturbed as he’d only just got into bed. It took a few more phone calls from other contacts and one conference call to finally get the alarm code, as the man refused to meet them unless they got a warrant.
In the early morning, the cool air made her shiver, and she’d changed into a sensible pair of jeans, a thin blouse, and asweater. Layering was the trick as temperature could change to sweltering as soon as the sun rose over the horizon.
Before dawn was one of the infrequent moments where the streets were emptied of all partygoers and tourists.
Brandon parked the unmarked police car just around the corner, and they went to the front door. As he was on the lookout, Noelle punched in the code and entered.
Even though she’d only been there a couple of times over the years, the place hadn’t changed a bit. The decor wanted to copy an Irish pub, but with the Mardi Gras masks all around and pictures of famous floats on the wall, it created a weird mash-up.
“I don’t see any cameras. Do you?”
Noelle couldn’t either. “Let’s go to the office. If there are any, we should find them there.”
Just beyond the kitchen was a cramped office that looked like a complete mess of endless piles of papers, empty dishes and the intense smell of smoke impregnating every square inch. On the desk was a closed laptop.
Brandon sat to boot it up. “If we’re lucky, the owner didn’t bother with a password.”
“I’m not worried about that. All we have to do is contact Roseline. With her magic fingers, she can unlock anything.”
However, it wasn’t a surprise to see that nothing was secured on the device. A few clicks confirmed there was no camera inside the pub.
“It’s not surprising, especially since cops mainly frequent it.”
Brandon tapped on a few keys and opened a video feed. “He may not be concerned with what’s going on inside, but outside seems to be another matter. There are three exits, and there’s a camera on each of them.”
Noelle gripped his shoulder. “I doubt that Leanna or Jordyn would’ve gone through the main entrance because Ryland andNico would’ve seen them. As for the fire escape, the alarm would have gone off.”
“That leaves us with the service door.”
A few more clicks, and not only did he show the service door feed but forwarded it to around the time both women had disappeared.
The screen showed 2:13 a.m. when two familiar silhouettes walked out of the bar, turned right, and disappeared up the street.
“That was weird. Can you play it again?”
Brandon did as she asked, and again, Leanna exited first, followed by Jordyn, a few steps behind. They didn’t rush or looked back, and even more unusual, didn’t walk side by side.
Brandon leaned back on the rickety chair, rubbing his forehead. “What the hell? There’s nobody near, and the street seems empty. No cars, and they both walked out, and didn’t look back. If only we could’ve seen their faces. What could have motivated them to flee like that? A sudden threat? But they don’t live here. That kind of scam is touch and go, and worse, they both left their bags at the booth, so there’s no way they could have interested those types of crooks.”
She could only agree with him from her own experience and life in Crescent City. “Okay, so I guess our next step is to check potential cameras from other shops and restaurants and hope that one recorded them. If you don’t mind, I’ll call Roseline. Not that she’ll be happy bypassing that many rules, but it will be faster than knocking on all those doors at this time of night. At least there wasn’t anyone else around, so whatever happened, they should be safe.”
All her being wanted it. Despite only knowing the two couples for a short time, Noelle wanted this improbable missing case to be solved quickly, both for them and Brandon.
Just as she was about to make a call, Brandon’s cell phone rang.
“It’s Callan.”
Noelle remembered the name vaguely as one of the newbies the commander wanted to bring into the department.
“Wait a sec. I’m putting you on speakerphone. I’m with Noelle.”
The voice coming out of the phone was all business, clipped and urgent. “Hey, guys. I received your text earlier about the case concerning your friends, and instead of going out for my morning jog, I went to the station right away, and just in time. When I went to check them, they were being interrogated for domestic violence.”
Brandon jumped from his seat. “Are you fucking with me? Don’t they have the benefit of the doubt? Have them call Houston! They’re outstanding officers back there!”