She crossed the few steps to the counter and grabbed her purse and keys. “Well, then, what are we hanging around for? Let’s go to this stupid place and get her.”
“Brynn.” He grabbed her wrist before she reached the door.
She glanced back over her shoulder, urgency rolling off her. “What’s wrong?”
“I have no idea where this place is. And even if I did, you’re not going to be able to get in without an invitation… or a master.”
All the blood drained from her face. She glanced down at his fingers circling her wrist and jerked her arm free. “What? I can’t—”
“Look, calm down,” he said, frowning down at her. “We can’t do anything tonight, but I know someone who may have a connection there. Let me see if I can get any information—find out if your sister is even there. In the meantime, you can go home and call anyone you can think of—her friends, boyfriends, whoever. Someone has to know where she is.”
Brynn chewed her lip, considering him, then nodded. “Okay. I guess that’s the best we can do tonight.”
He walked her down to her car, keeping an eye on their surroundings to make sure her attacker hadn’t decided to hang around.
She pulled open her car door and slid in, looking up at him with tired eyes. “Thanks for your help. I take back the comment about you not being able to scare off bad guys.”
He smiled. “Thanks, and I don’t mind helping.”
She dug in her purse and pulled out a business card. “Here. My cell is on there. Call me if you find anything out.”
He took the card from her and slipped it into his pocket, then feigned a grimace. “Shit.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I must’ve left my cell upstairs.”
She moved to climb out of the car. “Oh, well, I can go grab it for you.”
He held up a hand. “No, it’s late, and the sooner you’re out of this neighborhood, the better. Why don’t you just give me your sister’s key and you can leave? I’ll get the key back to you on Monday.”
She paused, evaluating him for a moment, then glanced down the darkened street. “Yeah, okay, but just make sure everything’s locked when you leave.”
She slid the key off her key chain and handed it over. Trusting him.
Guilt flooded him, but he charged forward with his plan anyway. “No worries. I’ll just run in and then lock back up. And
I promise I’ll touch base with you tomorrow if I can find anything out.”
“Thanks.” She pulled her seat belt across her chest. “Good night, Reid.”
“Drive safe, sugar.” He shut her door and waited on the curb, watching her taillights fade around the corner. As soon as he was sure she was far enough away, he jogged back up the stairs and let himself into Kelsey’s apartment, locking the door behind him.
Surveying the room, his eyes honed in on the boxes he hadn’t been able to explore while Brynn was there. The ones labeled Mom’s things. Thinking about what could be in those boxes had made his heart pick up speed. Last week when he’d visited Hank in jail, he’d told Reid that Kelsey had called him—said she may have found something that could help him get an appeal. Reid had planned to contact Kelsey to see what she had come across, but now…r: Roni Loren
She glanced up, her green eyes glinting with worry before she dropped her focus back to her task. “She wasn’t here when I arrived, and I can’t get her on her phone.”
He frowned. “Is it standard MO for her?”
She shrugged, but the motion seemed tense instead of casual.
“Is she still…” He paused, not knowing how to phrase it politely.
Brynn smirked at him. “Fucked up?”
Looking at this refined blonde in her elegant outfit, he’d forgotten where Brynn had come from. She’d never been one to mince words. He nodded.
She rose and returned to the adjoining kitchen, turning her back to him as she opened the freezer. “After the murder, she