Chapter 4
CHAPTER
FOUR
The Silverstone Hotel’s restaurant, The Gilded Table, was hopping at nine o’clock on a Friday night—packed with a blend of tourists shaking off long days on their feet and locals lingering over drinks before heading back into the fog-draped streets.
Through the tall windows, the glow of streetlights reflected off damp pavement, the distant hum of traffic and cable cars bleeding faintly into the room.
Soft jazz drifted from hidden speakers—something mellow and forgettable—but it couldn’t quite mask the faint scent of seared steak, buttered rolls, and burnt coffee lingering from the dinner rush. The lighting was low and warm, casting everything in amber shadows.
Andi and her colleagues had pushed two tables together in a back corner. In true Mariella fashion, she’d brought several Yukon Energy drinks, and they were now displayed on the table. She’d taken several snapshots, as per the endorsement obligations.
Pam arrived fifteen minutes late, breathless from hurrying. Her clothes were wrinkled, and strands of hair had escaped her ponytail. She carried a laptop bag slung over one shoulder.
“Thank you for meeting with me.” She slid into the seat across from Andi, her purse thumping softly against the table leg. “I know you must think I’m crazy, ambushing you at your event like that.”
“Not crazy,” Andi assured her. “Worried. There’s a difference.”
Pam’s attempted smile wobbled—one corner of her mouth lifting while the other trembled and collapsed. “The police don’t seem to think so.”
“Why don’t you order some food and then we’ll start?” Duke suggested. “Dinner is on us, so get whatever you want.”
She nodded and grabbed a menu. A few minutes later, the waitress came, and they all ordered. Fresh rolls had been placed at the center of the table to hold them over until their meals arrived.
Andi ignored the bread and leaned forward, letting her tone soften. “So, Pam, tell us about yourself. What do you do for a living? Where are you from? Are you married? I know those things might seem insignificant, but they’re not.”
It always helped to get people started by talking about easy subjects. The easy subjects helped the team get a feel for the questions that held easy truths—and it made it easier to see the shift if they decided to lie. People conducting a lie detector test used the same methods.
Andi had learned to make those observations in her time as an attorney. Making people feel comfortable was important.
Pam drew in a deep breath before starting.
“I’m thirty-two and single. If you know of any single guys, let me know.
” She let out a feeble laugh before continuing.
“Gina and I grew up in a town north of here called Cloverdale. Our parents were both teachers, but they died in a car accident a few years ago. I moved to San Francisco to take a job as an assistant in the Public Works office. Gina moved here a year later.” Her voice caught. “We’re very close.”
“Tell us more about your sister,” Duke said. “Why do you think something’s happened to her? I want the rest of our team to hear the story from you.”
Pam inhaled shakily as if trying to ground herself. When she opened the folder again, her hands were steadier than they’d been earlier at the convention center.
“Gina’s always been the responsible one,” Pam began. “Straight As, law school honors, junior partner at Morrison, Blake, and Associates faster than anyone else in the firm. She’s reliable to a fault. So when she didn’t come to my place on Tuesday after work, I knew something was wrong.”
“It’s not like her to stand you up?” Simmy asked.
A server passed with a tray of sizzling fajitas, the smell of peppers making Andi’s stomach twist. She was hungrier than she realized. But eating could wait.
“No, it’s not. We have dinner together every Tuesday.
It was Gina’s idea—she said we needed to make sure we didn’t drift apart.
” Pam’s voice cracked. “She’s never missed one.
Not even when she had the flu. She just made me wear a mask and sit across the room.
Besides, she stayed with me after the attack,” Pam continued.
“Both she and her roommate didn’t want to stay at the apartment right away. They were pretty shaken up.”
“And the break-in?” Ranger prompted. “Tell us more about that.”
Pam pulled out a folded police report and repeated the story to the rest of the team.
“If we do this, we’d like to talk to Emily,” Andi said.
Pam nodded, a touch of eagerness in her gaze as if she was relieved to hear their response. “Of course. I mean, I can’t speak for her. But I’d imagine she wouldn’t mind. She’s a sweet girl, though a bit naive and clueless. She slept right through the break-in.”
As their food was delivered, Andi realized they had a lot to chew on—literally and figuratively.
After they’d prayed over their meals, Andi let her hands rest around the stem of her water glass and tried to refocus.
The clink of silverware and the low murmur of nearby conversations pressed in around them, grounding her in the restaurant even as her thoughts kept circling back to Gina James. This wasn’t a podcast taping or a panel discussion—this was someone’s life. And that distinction mattered.
“Did your sister have any enemies?” Mariella paused with her fork halfway to her mouth. The pasta on her plate—something rich and cream-based—released a warm, garlicky aroma that mingled with the scent of seared steak drifting from nearby tables. “Anyone she mentioned being scared of?”
Pam glanced at her untouched grilled salmon fillet before looking back at them. “You think this guy might not have been a stranger?”
“We’re just gathering information,” Duke said, his voice even.
Pam exhaled and nodded. “Then yes. Colin Hoffman. They dated for two years. Broke up about a month ago. He didn’t take it well.”
Andi felt the subtle shift around the table—the way attention sharpened, bodies leaned in.
Names had weight. They always did.
Ranger tore off another piece of bread, buttering it with slow deliberation before popping it into his mouth. “Define not well.”
“Two weeks ago, he showed up at her office demanding she talk to him,” Pam said.
“Posted nasty things about her online.” She slid her phone across the table, the screen glowing with screenshots.
“But Colin’s more pathetic than dangerous.
Or at least . . . that’s what I used to think.
He was supposed to escort her that night, but he never showed up. ”
Andi noted the phrasing. Used to think.
“Wouldn’t Pam have recognized him if he was the one who broke in?” Mariella asked.
“You’d think so, right?” Pam let out a breath that sounded halfway between a laugh and a scoff. The scent of lemon and herbs rose from her plate as she shifted. “But this guy had a light on his forehead. According to Gina, it was blinding. She couldn’t see anything about him.”
“What about his voice?” Andi asked, lifting her glass and taking a slow sip of water. She kept her tone neutral, though her mind was already running through possibilities. “Wouldn’t she have recognized it?”
“You would think that also,” Pam said. “But I wonder if the man disguised it. People do weird things sometimes, right?”
They do, Andi thought. She’d built an entire career on that truth—watching reasonable people make unreasonable choices when fear or pride got involved. She set her glass down carefully. The base clicked softly against the table, louder to her ears than it should have been.
“What does this Colin guy do?” Matthew asked.
“Day trader. Works from home. Lots of time on his hands.”
The implication didn’t need to be spelled out. Andi felt it settle over the table like a held breath.
“What about Gina’s work?” Andi asked. “You said she’s a lawyer, right? Did she have any cases that could make someone angry?”
She knew firsthand how quickly professional disputes could turn personal. She’d had clients threaten complaints, smear campaigns, even lawsuits when they didn’t like an outcome. People rarely blamed the system—they blamed the person standing in front of them.
Pam shook her head. “Gina never mentioned anything. I’m not sure.”
Andi grunted softly, more habit than reaction, her mind already slotting the information into categories: motive, opportunity, escalation. If nothing else, it widened the field—and she didn’t love that.
Duke turned toward her, studying her face the way he always did when her thoughts drifted somewhere deeper. “What are you thinking?”
She hesitated for a beat—just long enough to feel the weight of everything she hadn’t said yet.
“I’m just wondering if this guy might have been pretending to be random, but maybe he was secretly trying to get her ruffled and distract her from something else—like maybe a case at the law firm.”
“I’m sure things can get heated when they’re talking about lawsuits and things of that nature,” Mariella said.
Matthew nodded. “Especially if there are millions of dollars at stake.”
“But it would be extreme to actually kidnap her,” Andi added. “Am I right?”
Pam’s eyes flicked between them all. Hope and desperation warred visibly in her expression—her breath coming a little quicker, her hands clasped too tightly in her lap.
“So?” she asked. “Will you help? The police think she left by choice. But she didn’t. She wouldn’t.”
The team exchanged glances—silent discussions in raised eyebrows and small nods.
Andi felt confident she knew everyone’s answer.
She turned back to Pam. “We’ll do what we can. We can’t promise miracles in the time we have left in San Francisco, but we’ll investigate.”
Pam’s relief washed over her in a trembling exhale, her shoulders dropping as if she’d been holding herself rigid for days.
Tears shimmered in her eyes. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”
“There is one thing.” Mariella shifted as her gaze focused on Pam. “Would you be okay with us covering this on our podcast? It could help generate leads.”
Pam hesitated only a second. “If it helps find Gina, say whatever you need to. I . . . I just don’t know if I want to be mentioned.
I know that probably sounds funny, but .
. . I also had a stalker several years ago, and since then I haven’t wanted any kind of media attention.
That’s another reason I came to you instead of the local news stations. ”
“That might make this a little trickier, but I understand,” Andi said. “Hopefully we’ll be able to talk to enough other people that we won’t have to use our interviews with you. But we won’t post anything using your name or quotes without your permission. I promise.”
Visible relief washed over her. “Okay. Thanks. So what can I do to help?”
“We’ll need access,” Duke said. “To Gina’s apartment. We’ll need the names of any friends or coworkers who may have noticed something.”
“Of course,” Pam said. “I have her key. And I’ll send you names of people she trusts.”
“What about Colin?” Duke shifted in his seat. “Do you think he’d talk to us?”
Pam grimaced. “He loves attention. He’ll talk. But be careful. He’s . . . intense. And he blames me for the breakup. Says I poisoned Gina against him.”
“Did you?” Mariella asked, her eyes bright as she waited for an answer.
“I expressed concerns,” Pam admitted. “He checked her phone without her permission. Showed up places. Accused her of cheating. He was jealous. Controlling.”
Classic red flags, Andi thought, exchanging a look with Duke.
“We have time in the morning,” Andi said. “Can you meet us at Gina’s apartment at eight?”
“I’ll be there.” Pam gathered her things, her hands trembling again as the adrenaline wore off. “I can’t tell you what this means to me. Just having someone believe me. Someone actually willing to look.”
As Pam walked away, Andi prayed they didn’t let her down.