Kismet

Chapter 10 Kobe

Kobe

Blaze Freely, Jesse Vargas’s ex-girlfriend, was a fourth-year med student who lived in an apartment off campus with two other women.

Her roommates were in class that morning, and Blaze, who was supposed to be putting in hours for her clinical rotation, had called in after we’d insisted on an interview.

Rue and I turned down her offer of coffee, and the three of us settled in Blaze’s sparsely decorated living room among a clutter of university student detritus.

She apologized for the mess countless times as she relocated stacks of textbooks and notebooks to the kitchen and cleared an excess of dirty plates and cups that appeared to be growing mold.

The apartment smelled of fruity bodywash with an underlying hint of burnt microwave popcorn and garlic.

Blaze was unassuming in every way, neither tall nor short, heavyset nor thin.

She had the pale skin of a redhead but sported thick dark-brown hair and deep brown eyes with long lashes.

A University of Ottawa hoodie, three sizes too big, swallowed her tiny frame.

She toyed with a colorful scarf or wrap—I wasn’t sure what they were called—that had been looped several times around her neck. Every so often, she chewed the tassels.

Blaze had a girl-next-door quality with a subtle beauty that became more apparent the longer you looked at her, like she intentionally hid behind baggy clothing, hoping to go unnoticed.

She rippled with tension, glancing more than once in my direction with mistrust. I almost excused myself and let Rue conduct the interview alone.

The woman was clearly uncomfortable in my presence, and since she didn’t react the same when she looked at my partner, I assumed my masculinity was the cause.

Only because it pinged on my radar did I stick around.

I lingered at a safe distance and tried not to look imposing while Rue got things started. My job would be to assess Blaze’s demeanor and look for signs of dishonesty or deception.

“Thank you for meeting with us, Ms. Freely.”

The nervous woman nodded, tucking her hands inside the wrap and brushing it against her chin. “You can call me Blaze.”

“Do you know why we’re here, Blaze?”

“Jesse’s dead. Everyone on campus is talking about it. Someone killed him.”

“That’s right. Early Sunday morning. We’re chatting with his friends, family, and the people who knew him well.

Our goal is to gain knowledge of who he was, what types of activities he participated in, and what his routine looked like.

We especially want to know if he had any enemies.

When’s the last time you spoke with Jesse? ”

Blaze glanced at me, then the door, before returning her focus to Rue. “Um… It’s been a while. I try to avoid him.”

“Can you be more specific?”

“M-march.”

“So, near the end of the school year last year?”

“Yes.”

“You haven’t seen or talked to him this semester?”

“Seen him? Yes. He’s not supposed to be on campus, but he still hangs out. Have I talked to him? No.”

Rue checked her notes, but I already knew that March was when Blaze had dropped the charges against Jesse. He was kicked out of school a few weeks later.

“I’m given to understand you and Jesse dated for a time. Is that correct?”

Blaze nodded, her chin lowering, gaze fixed on a tassel she wrapped around her finger.

“Did you break up in March?”

“No. January.”

“How long did you date?”

“About eight months.”

“Can you tell me what happened?” Rue asked. “Why did you break up?”

Blaze rubbed her lips together, tiny creases appearing beside her strained eyes. Her shoulders rose and fell with a hitching effort as she took shallow breaths. “He… He wasn’t a nice person.”

“What does that mean?”

“He—”

The door to the apartment flew open, smashing against the wall, and a menacing, barrel-chested man charged into the room. Instinctively, I stepped forward, blocking his path with a raised arm. “Whoa. Easy there, my frie—”

The man swatted my hand out of the way and moved to bully past me, but I rooted my feet and used my bulk to press him against a nearby wall. “Stop.”

Ignoring me, the man pushed and shouted, “Blaze. What the fuck? I told you to wait for me. I told you not to talk to these motherfuckers alone.”

I shifted, putting my face in his way and blocking his view. “Your name, buddy. Right now.”

The man’s nostrils flared as he sized me up and down. “Neo. Neo Freely. Now get the fuck out of my way.”

“Freely?” Frowning, I glanced over my shoulder at the cowering girl on the couch.

Rue shrugged, expression unreadable as always.

“Do you know this guy?” I asked Blaze.

She nodded. “He’s my brother.”

“And she’s had enough fucking problems with bullying cops trying to manipulate her, so you aren’t talking to her without me present. Got it?”

Neo stopped fighting, but his size and the heat of his anger filled the room.

He was a big guy. Not tall but thick and muscular.

I saw the resemblance now that I knew who he was.

He shared Blaze’s hair and eye color, but his complexion was a shade darker, his face wider.

I couldn’t tell if he was older or younger, so I assumed they were close in age.

I stared at Neo but spoke to Blaze. “Do you want him here, Ms. Freely? I’d be happy to escort him out.”

“He can stay. If that’s okay.”

“See? You gonna back down, Officer?” The title was served with a side of petulance. Neo didn’t break eye contact, but I wasn’t intimidated.

All his attitude did was ratchet up my own. I had a habit of meeting aggression with aggression, and my partner knew it, so when Rue’s soft voice said, “Let him sit, Kobe,” I reluctantly released the bull of a man and stepped back.

Neo held his ground for another beat, asserting his dominance—or so I assumed—before joining Blaze on the couch.

The siblings spoke quietly. Neo’s hostility vanished as he asked Blaze if she was okay.

His concern and gentle demeanor were noteworthy, and as much as the guy had pissed me off, I gave him credit for his sensitivity.

Regardless, I was done fading into the background. With Protective Neo present, I joined the interview properly but remained on my feet, hoping my height advantage would remind the brother who was in charge.

Once everyone was settled, Rue backtracked. “We were discussing Blaze’s relationship with Jesse Vargas. Ms. Freely, you stated that you and Jesse broke up in January because he wasn’t a nice person. Can you explain what that means?”

Blaze leaned against her brother’s side as she spoke. “Jesse tried to hurt me. I knew it was a matter of time before something really bad happened. He had a reputation. I didn’t believe it at first. He seemed like a decent guy, but…” She trailed off.

I glanced at Rue, but she patiently waited for Blaze to elaborate.

The girl checked in with her brother before continuing. “Jesse used to party a lot. He and his friends never missed an event. Usually, Jesse was decent, but when he drank or was high, he… wasn’t nice.”

“Can you explain?” I asked, stepping on Rue’s toes.

Neo’s nostrils flared. “Can’t you read between the lines, dumbass?”

“No. I need her to spell it out, and if you don’t find some goddamn respect, I’ll usher you out the door, like it or not.”

Blaze rubbed her brother’s arm.

Calmer, Neo said, “The guy can’t keep his dick in his pants when he drinks. Thought he was god’s gift to women and fucked anything with two feet and a heartbeat. Alcohol gave him a power trip, and the word no became meaningless.”

Neo shifted his attention to Rue. “He and his posse of friends are grade A assholes. Think they can do whatever they want, consequence-free. When he was loaded, Jesse got horny, mouthy, and handsy. Any girl would do, and a lot of the skanky whores on campus would throw themselves at him. Sometimes, those skanks weren’t enough.

Jesse took what he wanted. He sought out the quiet and shy girls.

He’d feel them up or try to entice them into a nearby bedroom.

If they refused, he got aggressive about it.

He was an entitled prick. A lot of the girls caved.

If they didn’t and he got demanding, someone usually stepped in and put a stop to it before it went too far. Jesse’s buddies weren’t any different.”

“Blaze?” Rue said. “Can you confirm any of this?”

“Yes.”

“What did Jesse do to you?”

“Nothing he didn’t do to a dozen other girls.”

“I know it’s not easy, but I need you to elaborate?”

Blaze closed her eyes for a moment as though gathering strength.

“I didn’t usually go to parties with him.

I knew what he was like, and I avoided him when he drank, but it was a friend’s birthday.

Jesse was… He got drunk and obnoxious. We’d been dating for a while.

I knew he cheated on me at those parties.

I don’t know why I stayed with him. I tried to break up with him once, but he got mad. ”

When she stopped talking, lowering her head in shame, Rue coaxed her to continue.

“That night, Jesse was drunk and horny and wanted to have sex. Since I was there… Anyhow, he started to feel me up and wanted to find a bedroom. I told him no. He was acting like a dick. Plus, it was my friend’s birthday.

I didn’t want to leave the party. He… He dragged me to the bedroom anyhow.

Left bruises on my arm. I fought him, but he was stronger than me.

He said I was his girlfriend, and it was his right. I was to do what I was told.”

Blaze stopped talking, and in a flash, my anger flared as hot as Neo’s.

“If I hadn’t been there and seen him drag her upstairs, I have no doubt he’d have taken what he wanted,” Neo said. “I stepped in before that happened. And if the guy walked away with a fat lip, he deserved it.”

I opened my mouth to speak, but Rue must have sensed my fury and held up her hand to stop me. To Blaze, she said, “We discovered that you filed assault charges against Jesse Vargas on January twentieth. It was for this incident, I assume.”

“Yes.”

“I told her to do it,” Neo snapped. “Someone needed to teach that fucker a lesson.”

Rue ignored Neo. “Why did you drop the charges in March, Ms. Freely?”

Blaze glanced at her brother, who clenched his jaw and balled his fists. He wouldn’t look at his sister. Clearly, Neo wasn’t on board with the decision.

Blaze tucked her chin inside the scarf. “We broke up after I filed the charges, but his friends and other people he knew started harassing me because of it. Said I was ruining his life. They wouldn’t let up.

The harassment was unbearable and was interfering with school.

I just wanted everyone to leave me alone. ”

“The school and the cops were useless,” Neo said, cutting in and answering my unasked question.

“She went to the police station and talked to a guy, but he didn’t do anything about the harassment.

Jesse’s buddies weren’t the ones who were charged, so he didn’t care.

The school said they were looking into it, but fuck knows they didn’t seem to care either.

I confronted Jesse personally and made some threats.

Told him to have his friends back off or else. ”

“Or else you would kill him?” I asked.

Neo laughed humorlessly. “No. Are you trying to pin his murder on me?”

“It was a simple question.”

“Well, fuck you. I didn’t touch the guy, but I can tell you, he was an ongoing problem on campus. A lot of women had issues with him and his friends.”

“Why did you drop the charges, Blaze?” Rue asked.

“They wouldn’t leave me alone. It was the only way.”

“It took time, but the school finally wised up and got rid of Jesse,” Neo added, “but it was a joke. Fucking drug charges. How about assault? Meanwhile, he was gone, but his crowd was still around pulling the same shit.”

I considered Neo’s words as Rue asked Blaze another question. “Ms. Freely, did you know Professor Kordestani?”

Blaze wrinkled her nose as she picked at her nails. “Yes. I was in his biochem class in my second year.”

“You’re a med student?”

“Yes.”

“And what was your impression of Dr. Kordestani?”

“He’s an asshole,” Neo answered for his sister.

Rue arched a brow.

Neo didn’t elaborate, so I stepped in. “How do you know Dr. Kordestani, Neo?”

“I took his class before as well.”

“Are you both in the same program?”

“Yeah,” he said.

“Two med students. Bet your parents are so proud.”

“What the fuck does that mean?”

Rue gave me a warning look.

“Nothing. Are you aware that Dr. Kordestani was also killed in the same fashion as your beloved Jesse?”

Blaze gasped, eyes widening as she slapped a hand over her mouth. She flipped her attention from me to her brother and back. “We heard he died. We didn’t know he had been killed. Did you know, Neo?”

“News to me.”

I studied Neo’s reaction, but the guy was locked up tight.

“Do you know if Jesse Vargas and Navid Kordestani were acquainted?” Rue asked, taking back control.

Blaze seemed to grapple for an answer. “I don’t know. I… don’t think so. Jesse wasn’t in the medical program.” She turned to her brother. “Neo?”

“I don’t know,” he mumbled, far more subdued.

The interview ended shortly thereafter. Rue confirmed addresses for a few of Blaze’s friends, and we left.