Chapter 10
CHAPTER TEN
One second she was looking down at her phone, the next she was down on the ground beneath Zeke’s muscled frame. While she couldn’t see anything, shouts echoed from the police precinct as footsteps pounded the pavement.
“To the right,” Zeke shouted. “The black car!”
She squirmed, trying to get out from beneath him. After a long moment, Zeke stood, giving her room to breathe. He grasped her arm to help her upright.
“Are you okay?” He ran his hands up and down her arms as if to reassure himself there were no bullet wounds. “You weren’t hit?”
“I’m fine. What about you?” She was humbled by the way he’d put himself in the line of fire. She didn’t see any sign of blood. Not like when Flynn had gotten nicked at the City Central Hotel.
“Not hit.” His tone was curt. “Just angry that this guy had the nerve to take a shot at us here outside the precinct.”
“How did he know we were here?” Her gaze landed on her cracked phone lying on the ground. “My phone? He tracked my phone?”
“It wasn’t the first time.” Zeke bent and scooped it up. He stared down at the screen for a moment, then at her. “Your manager, Dirk. He didn’t answer either of your calls. Then suddenly someone is shooting at us.”
Hard to argue Zeke’s logic. Normally, Dirk would be quick to respond to her calls. Then again, she hadn’t powered up her phone in hours. Maybe Dirk was angry with her for shutting him out.
“I don’t know what to think.” Taking the phone, she quickly powered it down, then handed it back to him. “Ditch it if you want, I don’t care.”
He nodded, then slid his arm around her shoulders to give her a quick hug. “I’m sorry. I know it’s hard to accept a friend’s betrayal.”
Dirk wasn’t a friend, but he was important to her. Obviously, moving forward with the tour wasn’t going to work. Even if Zeke could prove Dirk was involved and have him arrested, who would be able to pick up where Dirk left off? There wasn’t time to find another manager.
She didn’t like it, but she had to accept that her future as a Christian singer would be short-lived.
As in nonexistent.
“You both okay?” Rhy jogged over to them.
“Yeah. What about the black car?” Zeke gestured to the right. “Anyone catch up to it?”
“Not yet.” Rhy sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t like this.”
“It’s my fault,” Sienna said. “I used my phone to contact my manager. I guess he’s been tracking my phone for my ex-husband.”
Rhy glanced at Zeke who nodded. “That’s the working theory. I think we should go back inside and give Dirk Green a call.” Zeke frowned. “Is he even in Wisconsin? I’d like to set up a face-to-face meeting with him, preferably here at the precinct.”
“Yes, he’s in town, staying in a hotel near the music center.” Maybe Zeke was right about setting up a meeting with Dirk. After everything that had happened, including Ken Holt’s murder, this nightmare had to end.
Soon. Before anyone else got hurt.
“Let’s get you inside.” Zeke tugged on her arm. She didn’t resist, knowing he was only looking out for her safety.
At the expense of his own.
Maybe it was time to change tactics. She could call her lawyer and accuse Josh of trying to kill her. He would deny it, but she could point out that he has the financial means and motive to pay someone to come after her.
Would the judge put the custody hearing on hold pending the outcome of the investigation? Possibly, since Josh had a history of physical abuse. If so, that could buy her some time.
Time to arrange a way for her and Bailey to disappear.
“Which hotel is Dirk staying at?” Zeke asked, settling in behind a computer.
“The Pfister,” she admitted.
Zeke arched a brow. “Fancy.”
She winced. “I’m paying for his stay.” She’d personally thought it was a waste of money, but the old historic hotel was also a status symbol, one he couldn’t resist. “He insisted he wanted to stay there because it was close to the venue.”
“You didn’t stay there,” Zeke pointed out, bringing the hotel website up.
“We would have needed a large two-bedroom suite, and the rental house seemed easier.” And cheaper, but that hadn’t been the true deciding factor. It had been her hope to avoid getting more threatening letters.
So much for that plan.
“This is MPD Officer Hawthorne, I need to speak with one of your guests, a Mr. Dirk Green.” Zeke’s tone was polite but firm. “Yes, I’ll hold.”
She leaned forward, wishing he’d put the call on speaker. But it didn’t matter.
“No answer in his room?” Zeke was saying. “I’d like to leave a message. Please ask him to call the MPD Seventh District at this number to speak with Officer Zeke Hawthorne. Thank you.” After hanging up the phone, Zeke turned to her. “Any idea where he might be?”
“Possibly at the TV station to finalize details for the morning show interview.” A shiver of apprehension washed over her. “Could he be in danger too?”
Zeke didn’t answer for a long moment. “I don’t know. I’m a little concerned at how quickly after our arrival at the Wooden Nickel that Ken Holt was murdered. Your ex has already silenced one witness. From that, I’d say anything is possible.”
“We need to head over to the hotel.” She tried to think back to the details Dirk had arranged. Had he mentioned his hotel room? She reached for her phone. “I might have his room number in an email from him.”
“Hold on, why don’t you access your email from this computer instead?” Zeke dropped her phone in the trash and stood to offer up his chair. “If you have his room number, we’ll check it out.”
“Okay.” She honestly couldn’t remember if he’d given it to her or not. At the time, she hadn’t paid any attention since his room didn’t impact her in any way. It took a moment for her to remember her password, then she logged in.
There were at least a dozen unread messages in her inbox. Swallowing a flash of guilt, she realized she should have checked in before now.
Scanning the emails, she noticed several were from Dirk, one from her lawyer in the custody case, and yet others from the PR firm Dirk was using. She clicked on the email from her attorney first. Thankfully, there wasn’t anything new to be concerned with; Marsha was simply reminding her of the court date.
As if I could forget , she thought as she clicked out.
“Dirk’s room number?” Zeke said.
“Yeah, sorry.” She opened Dirk’s most recent email next. He was upset she hadn’t answered any of his calls. She scrolled down to see his previous emails.
Then near the bottom, she found the one she was looking for. Dirk’s room number. She sat back so Zeke could see the screen. “He’s in suite 305.”
“Great, I’m heading over.” He jumped to his feet. “I’d like you to wait for us here.”
She didn’t want to wait, but remembering how she’d blown the visit to the Wooden Nickel gave her pause. “Zeke, I don’t want to put you or anyone in danger, but Dirk is more likely to answer the door for me.”
“I’m a cop. He’ll answer the door,” Zeke said.
“And if he doesn’t?” She reached for the computer keyboard and double-checked the hotel registration. “He used my Sienna! business account to book the room. I think that allows me access to a room key.”
Zeke scowled, then reluctantly nodded. “Okay, that works.” He hesitated, then added, “Stay behind me as much as possible, okay? It shouldn’t be dangerous to go to a hotel, but I want you to be prepared for anything.”
“I understand.” She wouldn’t make the same mistake she had at the Wooden Nickel. “I won’t get in your way.”
He looked a bit skeptical but led the way back outside. Two officers came in as they were heading out.
“Did you lose the black car?” Zeke asked.
“Yeah, sorry. There was no rear plate either.” One cop shook his head in disgust. “We’ve issued a BOLO for it. Hopefully, someone notices and pulls him over.”
“Thanks.” Zeke gave them a nod and then turned to her. “Please wait here while I get the SUV.”
“Sure.” She moved aside to allow the officers to head inside and scanned the parking lot as Zeke jogged to Flynn’s SUV. She didn’t see anything suspicious, but she hadn’t noticed the gunman either.
The more she thought about Dirk working with Josh to locate her, the more her anger simmered. Dirk should know better than to believe anything Josh told him. Yet she also knew Dirk was easily swayed by money.
The more the better.
Zeke pulled up a few minutes later. He was quiet during the drive to the hotel. The historic hotel was impressive, and it made her wonder just how much staying here cost.
“Let’s go to his room first,” Zeke said, moving past the main desk as if they knew exactly where they were going.
“Okay.” She turned toward the elevator and jabbed the button. “I’m going to assume it’s on the third floor.”
“You’ve never stayed here?” Zeke asked.
“Nope.” She had preferred the modest but nice rental house. Up until the moment a brick came through the window.
Finding Dirk’s room wasn’t difficult. She quickened her pace when she saw a cleaning cart parked beside it. The door was ajar, so she pushed it open and breezed inside.
“Oh, hi,” she greeted the maid with a cheerful smile. “Don’t mind me, I forgot something.” She stood and scanned the room, grateful there was no sign of trouble. Dirk’s suitcase was open, but empty. The maid eyed her suspiciously as she ducked into the bathroom in pretense of leaving something behind.
“Oh, here it is,” she spoke loud enough for the maid to hear. Then emerged from the bathroom. “Thanks, sorry about that. Dirk’s waiting for me at the TV studio.”
A moment later, she was back in the hall where Zeke had waited. “I’m impressed you were able to pull that off,” he said in a low voice. “See anything unusual inside?”
“No, it’s a typical motel room. Well, nicer than most,” she amended. “Remind me to never pursue an acting career. I’m not good at pretending.” She glanced down at the beautiful engagement ring on her finger for a second, then did her best to ignore it. “Obviously, Dirk isn’t here. Maybe he really is at the TV studio.”
“Let’s head back down to the lobby, maybe we’ll catch him returning to his room.” Zeke rested his hand in the small of her back as they returned to the elevator. “Whatever he’s up to shouldn’t take too long.”
“Hopefully not meeting with Josh,” she said as they stepped into the elevator. “I don’t care what his good friend Shawn says, I’m convinced Josh is here in Milwaukee.” As they emerged from the elevator and stepped into the grand lobby with the high ceilings and beautiful curved staircase leading to the grand ballroom, she had to admit that if Josh was in town, this was exactly the sort of place he’d stay.
Maybe hanging out in the lobby would be the best option. She followed Zeke to a set of plush chairs, silently praying that if Josh was in town, they’d find him here.
Putting an end to this once and for all.
Zeke had to work hard to remain calm and relaxed as the minutes ticked by. He’d been encouraged to learn Dirk’s room was empty and being serviced by the hotel staff. He hadn’t anticipated Sienna would breeze in like she owned the place, but her pretense had worked to their advantage.
He’d half expected to find her manager dead in his room with a gunshot wound to the chest.
Like Ken Holt.
Thrusting that image aside, he scanned the faces of those coming and going in the plush hotel. Patience was not his strong suit, and when he caught a glimpse of a couple of star baseball players, he resisted the urge to ask for an autograph.
“We’ve been here an hour,” Sienna said in a low voice. “How long do you plan to stick around?”
“As long as it takes.” He had considered heading to the TV station, but Sienna’s comment about Dirk meeting with Josh had convinced him that sticking around here was the better option.
Yet the seemingly endless waiting was wearing on him too.
He was about to suggest they head back to the precinct when a man walked in through the main doors. “Sienna? Is that you?”
“Hi, Dirk.” She stood and would have headed over toward the guy if he hadn’t grabbed her hand. She paused, waiting for Dirk to approach. “I’d like you to meet my fiancé, Zeke Hawthorne.”
Dirk’s eyes narrowed taking in Zeke’s appearance, then he frowned. “Wait, aren’t you the cop that left me a message?”
“Oh, so you did get that.” Zeke stepped forward, putting himself between Dirk and Sienna, to shake the man’s hand. He didn’t see obvious signs of a weapon, and the cut of Dirk’s suit was such that he would have noticed a shoulder harness. “Nice to meet you. We need a few minutes of your time.”
“Where have you been, Sienna?” Dirk asked, ignoring Zeke. “I’ve called and emailed, without the courtesy of a response. I just met with the PR team at the TV station. They were wondering where you were.”
“What time did you get to the TV station?” Zeke asked.
“Eight thirty, why?” Dirk scowled. “I don’t understand how you and Sienna can be engaged. She wasn’t dating anyone that I knew about.”
“I prefer to keep my personal life private,” Sienna said. “Zeke is an old family friend. And as he said, we need to talk.”
“We can use my suite,” Dirk said, seemingly less angry now that Sienna was there.
Zeke was tempted to push the issue of going to the precinct for the interview but decided against it. Dirk may not have answered his phone because he was at the TV station. And that also meant he wasn’t the shooter.
Maybe talking to him here in a laid-back environment would be better. He glanced at Sienna, who frowned.
“Let’s talk here in the lobby,” she suggested.
Dirk glanced around, then walked toward a trio of chairs. “There’s a lot we need to discuss,” Dirk said, ignoring Zeke. “I have several more interviews set up, in Chicago and in Louisville. I would have run them past you first, but you weren’t available.”
“I’m sure they’re fine.” Sienna waved a hand. “I’m happy to leave the details to you.”
“You need to be at the studio by eight o’clock tomorrow morning,” Dirk went on. “They want an hour to do your hair and makeup.”
“Great.” Her smile was forced as they followed him into the room. “I can hardly wait.”
“Mr. Green, if you don’t mind, I have a few questions.” Zeke decided it was time to take over the trajectory of the conversation.
“Like what?” To his credit, Dirk looked genuinely confused. “I listened to your message but had no idea why anyone from the Milwaukee Police Department would need to speak to me.” Sienna’s manager spread his hands. “I don’t live here and haven’t been involved in anything illegal.”
“Where you were last night?” Zeke asked. “From eight o’clock to about ten?”
Dirk frowned. “Here at the hotel. I had a late dinner in the restaurant, then headed up to my room.” He glanced at Sienna. “The food is amazing; you should try it.”
Zeke could only imagine how much Dirk’s meal had cost and mentally compared that to the frozen pizza’s they’d eaten. From what he knew of Sienna, she’d preferred the grocery store pizza. “Do you have a bill so we can verify that?”
“Um, sure. But I, um, put it on my room.” Dirk looked a bit guilty as if knowing the tab would shock Sienna. “I can get a copy from the front desk.”
“Great, that works. So you were here all evening?” Zeke pressed.
“Yes, I was on the phone for a few hours making the arrangements for Sienna’s interviews.” Dirk frowned. “You haven’t told me what this is about. Why all the questions?”
“I’ll get to that,” he answered evasively. “Have you been in contact with Josh Allenton while you’ve been here in town?”
“Josh? No.” Again, Dirk darted a glance at Sienna. If the guy was acting, he was pretty good. “You mentioned early on that you weren’t on good terms with your ex-husband. Why would he call me?”
“To check up on Sienna. Maybe to know what she’s been doing,” Zeke said. “I need you to be honest with me, Mr. Green. Have you spoken to Josh Allenton either in person or on the phone since you’ve been in Milwaukee?”
“In person? Isn’t he in Los Angeles?” Dirk shook his head. “No, I have not spoken to Josh. I have no reason to. Even if he did try to contact me, I wouldn’t call him back.” Now his expression turned earnest as he looked at Sienna. “I know that talking to him would upset you. This tour is important to both of us. I would never jeopardize that.”
“Allenton is wealthy,” Zeke said. “Maybe he paid you to keep him updated on where Sienna was staying and what she was doing.”
“I know he’s rich, but I haven’t spoken to him.” Dirk’s face flushed with anger. “You want to check my phone?”
“Yes, that would be very helpful,” Zeke said.
Dirk’s jaw dropped in shock, as if he never expected Zeke to follow through on his offer. Little did Dirk know that a cop never turned down information that was voluntarily offered. Some crooks felt they could outsmart a cop by appearing to cooperate fully, essentially bluffing their way out.
They were wrong.
“Here.” Dirk pulled his phone from his pocket and thrust it at him. “You want to look at my call log? Go ahead.”
“Thank you.” Zeke knew Dirk could have a disposable phone, too, but would start here. “Please unlock it for me.”
Dirk’s scowl deepened, but he did as Zeke asked, then handed it back. “I’d still like to know what this is about.”
“Yes, I know. Would you please go up to the front desk to get that hotel bill while I do this?” Zeke smiled. “Once I verify your actions, we’ll be out of your hair.”
Dirk glanced at Sienna. “Did something happen? Why are you looking at me as if I’m some sort of criminal?”
Zeke gave her a subtle shake of his head, indicating she shouldn’t give anything away.
“I’m concerned about my safety and Bailey’s too,” Sienna said. “We really appreciate your cooperation.”
“Like I have a choice?” Dirk jumped to his feet and stalked to the front desk.
Zeke showed Sienna Dirk’s phone screen. “See Josh’s number on here?”
She took the phone and scrolled through Dirk’s recent calls. After a long moment, she sighed. “No, I don’t. But you know he could have a cheap disposable phone on him.”
“I’ll get to that. What about the other numbers? Any you don’t recognize?” Zeke knew Dirk could very well be chatting with someone Josh hired rather than Josh himself. “I plan to take note of the numbers and check them out, but it would be nice if you could help narrow the list.”
“Yes, I don’t know this one.” She pointed at it. Zeke quickly jotted it down. “And there was another one... yeah, this one.” She turned the screen toward him again so he could make a note of that one too. “Josie from the PR team has this number. Looks like she and Dirk have been in touch a lot.”
Maybe Dirk hadn’t lied about that. He took the phone and continued double-checking the list of numbers. There was only one that had the local 414 area code. He made a note of that, even though he felt certain it was probably the local TV station.
“Here.” Dirk thrust a sheet of paper toward him. “This is my bill to date. You can see the dinner on there.”
“Wow, did you order the steak and lobster?” He eyed the staggering amount. “The cost of your meal is a third of my house payment.”
Dirk avoided Sienna’s gaze without answering. Zeke had to resist the urge to sock the guy in the arm for taking advantage of his position as Sienna’s manager.
But it was her job to rein him in, not his. Another thought struck. “What sort of rental car are you driving?”
“A silver Honda Civic.” Dirk looked confused again. At least that car was reasonable. He’d half expected the guy to be driving a BMW or Mercedes.
Glancing at the phone, he jotted down two more numbers and then began to call them.
“Wait, what are you doing? You can’t call people in my phone.” Dirk looked so panicked, he wondered if the guy had called an escort service or something. “That’s my business.”
“Yes, and I need to make sure you’re not speaking to anyone who is connected with Josh Allenton,” Zeke said.
“Let me see those numbers,” Dirk said, craning his neck to look at Zeke’s notepad. “I can tell you who they belong to.”
“See, that’s the thing. I can’t just take your word for it.” Zeke smiled again, but Dirk was not seeing the humor in the situation.
“Okay, okay!” Dirk squirmed in his seat for a moment, then said, “I’ve been offering my manager services to other potential clients. Those numbers belong to Rachel, Christine, and Jonas.”
Of course, he was. Zeke noted the flash of anger and hurt in Sienna’s gaze, but he jotted the names down and proceeded to call each of them to make sure the names were real.
Surprisingly, they were.
“Do you have another phone?” Zeke asked.
“What? No, why?” It took Dirk a minute to understand. He stood and began emptying his pockets, dumping his wallet, keys, a nail clipper, a pack of gum, and a money clip onto the table. “This is all I have on me.”
Zeke reached over to pat his pockets to make sure they were empty. Then he glanced at Sienna and shrugged.
From what he could tell, Dirk Green was telling the truth. The guy might be on the sleazy side, but he wasn’t communicating with Josh to set Sienna up for these attacks.
And if not Dirk, then who?