Chapter 3
CHAPTER
THREE
The last of the fans had finally dispersed from the signing floor, and the convention center staff had begun stacking chairs in the cavernous main room. The air still held the faint smell of popcorn, perfume, and five thousand excited true crime fans.
Andi and Duke had managed to make it back out to the floor after their chat with Pam, and now Andi’s cheeks hurt from smiling so much. There had been photos.
So. Many. Photos.
One fan had tried to jump into Andi’s arms without warning. Andi had saved her back when she scooted out of the way, but the fan had hit the ground. Another fan had gotten too handsy, and Duke had to put him in his place.
All in all, it had been a zoo.
Who would have ever thought a podcast would garner this much attention? She supposed their high success rate in solving several crimes had earned them that place.
But their podcast had grown fast—maybe too fast. And now everyone except Mariella was scrambling to keep their heads above water.
Mariella was an anomaly. She was made for stuff like this.
The hardest part for her was being so far away from her boyfriend, Jason Somersby, who was still in Alaska working as a charter fisherman.
When the event was complete and fans had been ushered out, Andi had called the team behind stage to chat.
“Tonight was . . . a lot,” Simmy started, her eyes heavy with exhaustion as she fell back into the sagging sofa. She flinched and rubbed her backside after being reminded how uncomfortable the seat was.
The truth was they were all exhausted from this tour, and they were only three weeks in. But tonight’s crowd had been more demanding than most. The venue had been larger, meaning more tickets had been sold.
There were towns in Alaska with far less people than the number showing up at this event. While San Francisco was beautiful, it wasn’t home. It wasn’t Alaska with its northern lights, reindeer, and craggy mountains.
“I think this crowd was even more excited than most,” Mariella added with a bright smile. “We didn’t get any breaks.”
“Excited or frantic?” Duke murmured with lifted eyebrows.
“You got that right,” Ranger agreed. “One lady tried to cut off a piece of my beard.”
“I’ve had five women give me their numbers,” Matthew said.
Andi wondered how many women had tried to give their numbers to Duke.
She trusted him completely.
However . . . she had seen him glance at his phone a couple of times, an uncomfortable look in his gaze. What had that been about?
That was something to think about at another time.
Right now, Andi needed to explain about Gina James.
She remained standing and placed her hands on her hips to address everyone.
Before the first words could leave her mouth, Rupert swooped into the room.
She fought a scowl.
“There you all are!” He gripped a clipboard in his hands. “SafeStride is waiting by their booth for the post-show photo.”
SafeStride was a personal safety app designed to help users feel secure while traveling, walking alone, or navigating unfamiliar environments.
With one-tap activation, it instantly alerted a chosen safety circle and shared live GPS tracking, while also offering features like timed check-ins, virtual companion mode, and automatic alerts if movement suddenly stopped or a phone was dropped.
She’d been over the information so many times she could say it in her sleep. They were also one of the advertisers for their podcast, so their commercials interrupted their episodes every ten minutes or so.
SafeStride—You’re Never Alone was their motto.
Personally, Andi thought the slogan was a little creepy.
“Andi, darling—here.” Rupert thrust a neon can of Yukon Yeti Energy into her hand. “You’re the only one I haven’t gotten a candid picture with yet—you with your drink of choice.”
Yukon Energy drinks was another sponsor, and the company had come out with special edition flavors just for this tour. Andi still had a hard time wrapping her mind around that one.
Andi’s was Yukon Yeti: Arctic Focus. Icy Mint + Glacier Citrus. “Cold clarity. Killer focus.”
Mariella’s was Blush Rush: Strawberry Rosé Splash. “Sweet energy with dramatic flair.”
Duke—Midnight Blackout: Black Cherry + Dark Espresso. “Silent power. Lasting drive.”
Ranger—Trailbreaker Surge: Pineapple Lime + Electrolytes. “Built for the wild.”
Simmy—Silver Calm: Vanilla Almond + Honey. “Smooth power. Gentle strength.”
Matthew—Overclock Charge: Blue Raspberry + Ginseng. “Fuel your brain. Dominate the data.”
And then there was the overall Tour Exclusive—Cold Case Citrus: Blood Orange + Arctic Lemon. “Once you start . . . you can't stop.”
“Please take one quick sip so I can snap a picture for their social media feeds.” Rupert raised his phone camera. “Just one. They specifically asked for a ‘candid moment of enjoyment.’”
Andi stared at the can.
It stared back—glowing an unnatural shade of electric-blue acid.
“Rupert, I am not drinking melted gummy bear battery fluid right now.” She had to keep her boundaries with the man or he’d trample her. She wasn’t going to let that happen.
His eyes bulged at her rebuttal. “But the sponsor—”
“No.” Andi shoved the can back in his hand as if it were radioactive. “Absolutely not.”
She hadn’t been in favor of those stupid energy drinks, but she’d been vetoed by the rest of the group. She couldn’t deny that the exposure was great. But how could she support a product she didn’t actually like? To be fair, she didn’t like any energy drinks.
However, all the proceeds from their sales would go to the Alaska’s Missing Person Initiative program. It was a great cause that desperately needed more funding. Andi figured she could suck it up for a good cause.
But she still had her limits.
Rupert looked personally victimized as he stared at the drink. “Come on, Andi. Just a tiny—”
“Rupert,” Duke warned.
Rupert deflated with a sigh and slunk toward the doorway, muttering something about “branding crises” and “the death of subtlety.”
When he was gone, Ranger dropped onto the couch with a grunt. “He’s a piece of work.”
“But brilliant,” Mariella added before looking at Andi. “You were about to say something? Maybe about that woman you were meeting with?”
Andi drew in a deep breath and tried to bring her thoughts back into focus.
Andi gave the team a rundown of her conversation with Pam.
“She’s asked for our help,” she continued. “She thinks her sister could still be alive—but she doesn’t know for how much longer.”
The group glanced at each other, silently communicating in a way that only those who’d faced death together before could do.
“So, we’re really considering this?” Mariella crossed her arms as her gaze slid from face to face. “In the middle of our tour, which is already strenuous. Not to sound like a shrink or something, but our mental health is important also.”
Simmy shrugged. “A woman is missing. Her sister is desperate. How can we not at least find out more information?”
“We’re podcasters, not private investigators,” Matthew reminded them. “Although we do have a great record of success in doing these things. No one can deny that we all work well together and use our strengths to find answers.”
Andi’s throat tightened. She let everyone talk it out while her mind replayed Pam’s trembling voice.
The break-in.
The stalker.
The tied wrists and ankles.
The sudden silence.
Andi’s stomach knotted.
The room grew quiet, and everyone looked at her, waiting for her response.
She straightened before saying, “The pattern bothers me.”
“What do you mean?” Duke’s gaze narrowed as he studied her.
“The stalker breaks in, terrorizes this woman, doesn’t steal anything, doesn’t . . . physically harm her,” Andi continued. “Then he warns her he’s coming back. That’s not typical stalker behavior.”
“You’re right.” Ranger offered an affirming nod. “It’s much more calculated.”
Andi pulled out her phone to look at her calendar. “So, listen. We’re in the San Francisco area for two more nights. Am I right? Tomorrow at noon is—”
“The question-and-answer event in Santa Clara,” Mariella said.
Andi fought a frown as she remembered just how busy they were. “Right. And the Channel Eight interview at six. Then Sunday afternoon we have the meet-and-greet before we head out to—”
“Los Angeles,” Matthew finished.
Andi had to admit, she wasn’t especially excited about LA. She was longing for the peace and quiet of her place in Fairbanks.
She never thought she’d feel this way. But Fairbanks and its subarctic temperatures had grown on her.
“Pam said she can give us access to Gina’s apartment, her notes, her work contacts—everything the police dismissed,” Andi continued.
Ranger shifted. “This stalker, whoever he is—it sounds like he escalated. Do we want to insert ourselves into that?”
“When has danger ever stopped us?” Mariella lifted her brow.
“It should,” Ranger muttered. “It really should.”
“We could cover it on the podcast,” Mariella continued. “In real-time. Our listeners would devour it. It would be a win-win.”
“I thought about that,” Andi said. “But we should only do that if Pam agrees. This is her sister’s life, not entertainment.”
“Of course.” Mariella nodded quickly.
“I think we should meet with Pam tonight,” Andi continued. “I want y’all to meet her and ask whatever questions you might have.”
Simmy nodded. “Agreed.”
Duke folded his arms. “Where?”
“The hotel restaurant?” Mariella suggested.
“Sounds perfect,” Andi said. “Let’s text Pam and see if she can meet us there in an hour.”
Rupert reappeared in the doorway. “So, technically, we’re now forty-two minutes off schedule, and the sponsor is becoming . . . twitchy for lack of a better word. But if we hurry—”
“Not right now.” Andi didn’t bother to turn around.
Rupert sighed. “You always have to be so difficult.”
Duke stepped forward, his shoulders bristled and his voice firm. “We’ll do the photo in a minute. Give us some space.”
Rupert made a face but finally said, “Very well. I’ll buy more time.”
He disappeared again, mumbling something under his breath as he left.
Andi drew in a long gulp of air and glanced at her team.
She tried to read their faces.
Was she the only one who wanted to fire Rupert and possibly even forget about this whole tour?
She couldn’t be sure.
So she’d take one for the team. She’d grin and bear it. The money coming in from this tour was going to some valuable causes. And they were doing good work—helping people and bringing light to cold cases that had been forgotten.
But meeting Pam was the only interesting thing to happen since this tour started.