45. Teddy
Teddy
I scroll through the file Jackson sent me to get a feel for what I’m doing. I’m fucking nervous, and it’s messing with me.
This client is worried her boyfriend is cheating on her.
He’d been acting shady for a couple of weeks.
She’d searched his phone but didn’t find anything, so she hired us to tail him.
It seems a little over-the-top to me to hire a private investigator for a cheating boyfriend. Wouldn’t it just be easier to dump him?
Through the windshield of my car, I watch the dude come walking down the sidewalk with his hands in his pockets until he stops at a jewelry store. I wait for a minute to see if he comes back out. When he doesn’t, I make my way into the store.
While I was in New York, Jackson gave me some tips on surveilling our targets. It’s not a dangerous job, per se; it’s more about ensuring they remain clueless to us following them.
Glass cases filled with sparkling jewels greet me as I walk inside the store. I find my target standing at a counter full of rings. Could he be acting shady because he’s going to propose? Let’s find out.
When I get close, I pretend to browse the rings. Jesus. Some of these rocks are fucking huge. I can’t even fathom the cost of them.
“There are a lot of options,” my target says to me. He just made my job ten times easier.
“Tell me about it. I’m trying to find one for my girlfriend. I have no clue what I’m looking for.”
“Same. I think she’s starting to catch on, too.
We normally have lunch together, but I’ve canceled a few times too many to go unnoticed.
I wanted it to be a surprise, but it’s taken longer to pick one out than I thought it would.
I’ve been to five different stores already. ” He sighs with exasperation.
“Five.” I whistle. “That’s a lot. This is my first one.”
“I hope you have better luck than me.”
“What’s her personality like?”
He gets a dreamy smile on his face. Yeah, this sucker isn’t cheating. “Yelena is a dream come true. She can be cold to others who don’t know her well, but around me, she melts into a puddle. She only shows her soft core to the people she loves most.”
The name is even further confirmation that he isn’t cheating. “Sounds like she really loves you.”
His gaze snags on a ring. “That’s it. That’s the one. Thank you!”
“I didn’t do anything.” I chuckle.
“You helped me find the ring that fits her personality, not just one I think she might like.”
I shrug. “Glad you found it.”
He waves down the attendant who’s been subtly watching us the whole time. I pretend to keep searching while my target provides sizing and checks out. I’m glad this case ended happily. Not all of them will be as simple as that, but I’m grateful my first one was pretty open-and-shut.
I turn to leave when a ring catches my attention.
It looks vintage, with a thin gold band and a skinny oval diamond set in the center.
Around the middle diamond is a cluster of smaller diamonds that make the center one stand out.
It’s exactly what I’d imagine Lottie would love.
This is crazy. I can’t just buy an engagement ring because it reminds me of my girlfriend.
It’s not like I’d have to give it to her immediately.
I could always hold on to it until after we have the marriage discussion. What the fuck am I even thinking? I don’t even know her ring size.
Before I know it, I’m leaving the jewelry store with a brown paper shopping bag in my hand and a much lighter wallet.
“I sent over the report. Let me know if I messed anything up,” I tell Jackson over the phone.
I slip the file I’d printed into a filing cabinet in my living room.
It’s not a long-term spot to house my cases, but I’m making do until Lottie’s uncle Levi comes to do a walk-through and talk about renovating the house.
“Of course. How did your first case feel?”
“Pretty good, actually. It was way too cut-and-dried to be an accurate representation of the job, but I enjoyed it.”
“Yeah, I tried to set you up with an easy one. I’m glad this one worked out well. We’ll send you one at a time until you’ve got your feet under you. Depending on demand, we might have to give you multiple at a time.”
“That’s fine.”
“Make sure you keep me updated on your capacity. I also want to know when to schedule breaks. I don’t expect you to work around the clock, but sometimes my guys don’t pay attention to workloads, so we expect you to communicate with us.”
“Understood. Hey, do you guys ever do missing person cases?”
Jackson pauses. “We’ve had people inquire about them, but it’s always felt like a big ask for our teams.”
“I get that. Lottie’s podcast just made me realize that people involved in cold cases might want someone’s help outside of the police.”
“Let me strategize a bit more on that. Now that the company has grown, it might be something we could add to our services. Thanks for bringing it up.”
“No problem. We’ll talk soon.” I hang up the phone and check for an update on Lottie.
Watching her leave today was the hardest thing I’ve done.
I’m going to have to get used to it, though.
This won’t be the last case she investigates.
She’s very good at her job, and I have no desire to hold her back from doing what she loves.
If Jackson decides to add missing person cases to our services, Lottie and I could team up on some of them. I can’t decide if that would be a dream or if Lottie would make me pull my hair out. At the very least, I could keep an eye on her, which would make the hair-pulling worth it.
I don’t have any notifications from Lottie, but I haven’t texted since before I met with my target. I send her a text to check in. I hoped she’d be on her way home by now, but maybe Candace really needed someone to talk to.
When she doesn’t respond after ten minutes, I send one more. I’m not going to lose my mind for no reason. Lottie is fine. I’m sure she’s just distracted.
After another thirty minutes goes by without an answer, my worry begins to flare. I give her a call, uncaring that it makes me seem like an obsessive asshole.
It rings through to her voicemail, and I curse.
Something isn’t right.
I open the app Lottie downloaded to my phone this morning. She thought it would help ease my anxiety when she was out of my sight. I hadn’t looked at it until now. She’d been responding to all of my messages.
Her little blue dot is at a standstill. I zoom in to get an address, only to find she’s on the outskirts of Greensboro now. That is not where she’s supposed to be.
Okay, I can’t go in there half-cocked. I need help.
I press on the contact of the only man I know who loves Lottie as much as I do.
“Cooper, where are you?”
“At the station. What’s wrong?”
“I think Lottie’s in trouble. I’ll be there in ten minutes.
” I don’t give him time to respond. I jump into my car and head straight to the police station.
It’s right in the middle of town. There’s no missing the big building.
I park in front and am greeted by three scowling men.
Cooper, Todd, and Michael stand in the lobby of the station with their hands on their hips.
“What do you know?” Cooper asks.
I give him the rundown, explaining what Lottie was up to today and our countermeasures to attempt to keep her safe.
“She’d never have gone off somewhere random without telling us.
She knows how much we’d worry,” Michael says while Cooper curses at the stupidity of Lottie’s choices.
I don’t exactly disagree with Coop, but there was no stopping her, which I’m sure he’s fully aware of.
“She was either knocked out or threatened enough to comply.”
“What do we know about this Candace woman?” Todd asks .
“I had Jackson run all four of the former students when she first met with them. They’re squeaky clean,” I tell him.
“Doesn’t mean they’re not dangerous,” Cooper points out.
I tilt my head to the side. “True. What are we going to do?”
“All three of us can’t race to Greensboro. Not only are we on shift, but I don’t think the GPD would care for us moving in without any warning,” Michael points out.
“Why do you have to be so logical? Your dad has the same annoying trait,” Cooper grumbles. “But you’re right. Okay, here’s what we’re going to do. I’ve got a contact at the GPD. I’ll call her while you and Teddy drive to Greensboro. We’ll bring in an off-duty officer to cover your shift, Michael.”
We both nod. “Call us when you’ve got a plan with your contact. I’ll send you the address Lottie’s tracker is pinging at.”
“Good luck, you two. Bring our girl home.” Cooper gives me a serious look.
“I intend to.”