Chapter 27
HAWK
“What the hell are you doing here?”
I widen my eyes. “Nice to see you too, Vinnie.”
Vinnie opens the door. “Sorry. I’m in investigation mode, and I’ve been finding a lot of shit I don’t like. Just didn’t expect to see you.”
I shrug and step inside. “I didn’t think I’d be here today, but I hit a dead end with my first suspect.”
“Who?” he asks.
“Jordan Fletcher from Daniela’s cooking school class.”
He cocks his head. “A cooking student?”
“I know how it sounds, but he’s been hitting on Dani.” I shrug. “Maybe I got carried away. There’s another who’s much more likely.”
“Hernando Reyes,” Vinnie says.
“Right.”
“I’ve got some information.” His tone is measured, but there’s no hostility—just that guarded weight Vinnie always carries. Who can blame him, after what he’s seen?
I follow him through the house to his massive family room.
And I see her.
Daniela.
She’s curled into one of Raven’s armchairs, hair twisted up in a messy bun and wearing the same jeans and tank she wore yesterday. She glances up when I walk in, eyes meeting mine for just long enough to make my chest tighten before she looks back down at a photo she’s holding.
Vinnie gestures toward the sofa. “Sit. We were just talking about Hernando Reyes.”
I drop into the seat, leaning forward on my elbows. “Tell me.”
“Reyes has a house in West Lake Hills. Gated community. Big place.” Vinnie pulls the photo from a folder and slides it across the coffee table.
I take a look. Nice house. Then Daniela hands me the photo she’s been holding.
The guy’s got the kind of smug, polished look that makes my skin itch. “That’s him?” I ask.
Daniela nods. “Yes. Without question.”
Vinnie sits back. “I’ve got a guy who can test the flowers and note Dani got from the hospital for DNA. He’s quick. I can have the results tonight.”
“Good,” I say. “Do it.”
Daniela shifts. “Vinnie also mentioned someone named Gordon Brown.”
I set the photo down. “Ever heard of him?”
She shakes her head. “No.”
“Then it’s not worth your energy,” I tell her. “If you don’t recognize the name, he’s not a threat right now. Probably someone from when you were working for your father.”
Vinnie raises an eyebrow at me. “Sometimes the people you don’t remember are the ones you should be worried about. They might have drugged her.”
“Maybe,” I say. “But Reyes is the priority.”
“I agree,” Vinnie says. “For now, at least.”
Raven enters from the kitchen with a can of Orange Crush. “Gordon Brown could be a pseudonym. People like this—especially people in the Derek Wolfe circle—don’t tend to use their real names.”
Daniela looks between us. “You think he could be behind the gifts?”
Vinnie tilts his head. “It’s possible. But my gut says Reyes is the guy.”
I lean back. “Then Reyes is the one I’m looking at.”
Vinnie taps the photo of the house. “His place is locked down tight. You’re not getting in without planning.”
A faint smile pulls at my mouth. “We’ll see.”
Raven gives me a knowing look. “You’re going tonight, aren’t you?”
I don’t reply.
Daniela rises and comes to me, sits on my knee. “Please, Hawk. Don’t. I can’t have you in danger.”
“Didn’t you know?” I ask. “I’ve got nine lives.”
“That’s not funny.” She punches my arm.
Stalking Jordan at church didn’t put me in any kind of harm’s way. Stalking Hernando Reyes? That’s a different story.
Vinnie looks at me sternly. “If you are going tonight, don’t get caught. Those gated communities have private security, cameras.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.”
Raven crosses her arms. “At least stay for dinner before you run off and do something stupid.”
I flash her a smile. “Appreciate it, but I’m not hungry.”
Daniela studies me. “Not hungry or not wanting company?”
“I always want your company.” I kiss her hand. “But this is something I have to do.”
“I’ll go with you,” Vinnie says.
“No. I want you to get to work on those flowers. For Dani. Please.”
Vinnie nods, and Raven looks visibly relieved.
My sister has been through her own kind of hell, and I’m not going to put her fiancé in danger.
Besides, as good as Vinnie is, I can move more quickly alone.
I stand. “Text me if you get any updates. DNA, toxicology, whatever.”
Vinnie nods. “You’ll be the first to know.”
* * *
By the time I reach West Lake Hills, the sun is beginning to set.
The gate is exactly what I expected—iron bars, keypad entry, security camera overhead. Looks impressive to anyone who doesn’t know better.
Getting in is simple. I wait, idling a few car lengths back until a silver Lexus rolls up and punches in the code. When the gate starts to swing shut, I ease in behind them like I belong.
Reyes’s place is deep inside the neighborhood, a southwestern style with clay shingles and perfectly trimmed bluegrass. Lights are on inside. Someone’s home.
I park two streets over, just close enough to keep an eye without drawing attention.
I walk over and check the perimeter.
Three real cameras, two fakes. The fakes are the cheap, hollow kind you can spot in seconds. The real ones cover the front door, back door, garage, and a bay window—master bedroom, if the Zillow listing I pulled is still accurate.
I scroll Zillow on my phone. Reyes bought the house a few years ago. It has five bedrooms, each with their own bathroom. A kitchen that looks like it belongs in a cooking show. A finished basement with all the luxuries—gym, wine cellar, home theater.
It’s the theater that grabs me.
One of the listing photos shows a door in the corner. I flip to the floor plan. There’s another entrance, leading from a stairwell off the pool deck.
I glance toward the pool. Sure enough, a camera points that way. But the casing’s wrong. It’s a dummy.
That’s my in.
I’ll come back after nightfall.