Chapter 14
Chapter Fourteen
“Good work, Blankenship.”
Colton berated himself after Riley disappeared at the top of the stairs.
He hadn’t meant to offend her with his comment.
In fact, he found her compulsion to take care of others admirable.
But his tendency to speak the truth bluntly had inadvertently struck a nerve.
Probably why the Bible had a lot to say about taming the tongue, although he hadn’t consulted the Good Book much in the past few years. Not since—
His phone went off, and he pulled it from his back pocket. “Blankenship.”
“Hey, Colton. Dillon with Tech Ops. Something you should see came up on the social media scan I just ran.”
“Send me the link.” He took the stairs three at a time to the upstairs study they’d been using for daily briefings, where his laptop sat on the desk. So much for sleeping in his bed tonight. By the sound of the hail hitting the windows, he wouldn’t be going anywhere.
He put Dillon on speaker as he took a seat and opened his laptop, clicking the link when the instant message from Tech Opps popped up.
A social media page opened with a smiling Riley in the profile picture and her name at the top. He scrolled through the posts from the past two days, his pulse quickening. “This can’t be her page.”
“It’s a fake. Somebody’s posting as Riley.”
“Where’d they get these images?”
The latest post had come in twenty minutes earlier. Riley in a club dancing up close and personal with an unknown male who resembled him from behind. Not from tonight because her outfit was different, and he didn’t dance with Riley at the party.
And if he ever had another chance to be with her on a dance floor, he certainly would never hold her like that. Riley was a woman a man treated with respect. Not like she was a piece of meat for his gratification.
“From what we’ve been able to ascertain, they’re altered. We’re pretty sure that’s not Riley, but her face has been switched in. And we know for sure that’s not you.”
The caption below the image made his stomach turn. Bodyguards have all the best moves!
If Riley saw that, she’d be mortified. And livid.
Scrolling to the next image, he shook his head.
Riley in a bikini, holding a drink in a martini glass, draped over a man much too old for her.
The explicit post about mature men and experience had his gut churning.
He had no doubt she was every bit as fit as whoever this was in the photo, but he couldn’t reconcile modest Riley with the woman on the page showing off all her assets.
And not once had he witnessed her drink anything with alcohol.
Even tonight, while her other friends enjoyed a glass of wine, she opted for ginger ale.
“Do we know who’s in the second post?”
“With the older guy?”
“Yes.”
“We don’t know who the girl is. Again, Riley’s face has been overlaid on it. But the male is a former executive with Hudson Financial. Former, as in fired a year ago.”
“So, this photo would insinuate he was fired because he was mixed up with the boss’s daughter.”
“That would be my guess.”
But it was the next image that had him stumped. He leaned in to peer more closely at the photo. “Is that the guy convicted of killing Caitlyn Mulaney?”
“Affirmative.” Dillon tapped keys on his end. “Riley’s current case.”
His head popped back. “Wait. What?”
“You didn’t know? She’s repping Shane Everett to get him a new trial.”
That couldn’t be right. Caitlyn and Riley had been friends. Good friends. He’d witnessed himself the depth of grief in those green eyes the day of the funeral.
It didn’t fit with the Riley he’d come to know over the past few days. A woman of faith. Loyal to her friends. A champion of the underdog.
There was no greater underdog than a woman murdered by the one who professed to love her.
“How did you get that intel?”
“News. She had a press conference a couple of weeks ago about it.”
While Colton had been out of the country. If Jamison or Paxton were aware, they hadn’t mentioned it. But, then, there had been no reason to. It had no bearing on their assignment.
“Is this one doctored too?”
“Looks to be. Still working on it.”
More key-tapping on the other end of the line while he studied the photo of Shane Everett and Riley in a clinch. Or someone who appeared to be Riley. He couldn’t imagine she’d stepped out with her friend’s boyfriend.
This guy is innocent, read the caption under the image. Trust me. I know. Just don’t ask me how. Followed by #freeshanenow.
“Wait. That’s not right.”
“What?”
“I saw Riley two and a half years ago. She had shoulder-length hair and bangs. If this is supposed to be around the time of the murder, that’s not how she appeared back then. This is much more recent.”
“So, somebody again photoshopped her face onto another girl.”
Probably Caitlyn, which was even worse. “That’s a viable assumption. Caitlyn Mulaney was a social media influencer. See if you can back-check her old account. Maybe this photo was originally posted there.”
“That’s some kind of twisted, if this girl is indeed Miss Mulaney.”
“You might also see if you can find that image of the Hudson exec. See who’s really in that photo.”
“Copy. We’ll keep working it and see if we can get anything on whoever set up this account in her name. We’ll also get it taken down.”
“Good work. Thanks.”
He disconnected and clicked over to Riley’s actual page.
Scrolling through, he found images of nature overlaid with Scripture verses, photos of her with her friends on various trips or working at a charity function.
In fact, the majority of her posts centered on her charities—their objective, how to get involved, how to give.
Not one thing about any of her cases, although others had posted either congrats for another win or their opposing opinion. If anybody compared the two accounts, they would see the cloned one couldn’t be hers.
Unless she was living a double life, and he knew that wasn’t the case. No way could she fit another life into her already packed schedule.
No, the Riley he’d come to know was the authentic Riley Hudson. He’d bet a year’s salary on it.
Did this attempt to discredit her go back to last week’s attack?
Or were they missing an even bigger picture?