Chapter 30
CHAPTER
THIRTY
Andi gripped her phone as she and Duke walked into the police station, the weight of the parking-garage footage pressing against her ribs.
This time was different.
This time they weren’t asking for speculation or favors. They weren’t offering hunches or intuition. They were bringing evidence—grainy, imperfect, but undeniable.
Hawkins sat behind his desk, coffee-ringed paperwork spread in uneven piles around him. His expression barely changed when he saw them approach.
“Back again.” The words weren’t a question. Instead, annoyance laced his voice.
Andi remembered her vow not to back down to bullies, to the apathetic or the arrogant. Right now, Hawkins fit all three.
“Yes.” Andi paused in front of his desk. “And this time, we have something you need to see.”
That earned them a grunt.
Andi placed her phone on the desk and slid it forward, parking lot footage playing.
Detective Hawkins squinted at the screen as he watched.
Gina walking through the garage. The van in the corner. The sudden flare of light that swallowed details whole.
The detective’s jaw tightened. “Hmph.”
He paused the video, rewound it, played it again—this time slower. He leaned in, elbows on the desk, pen already in hand as he jotted down what he could make out.
“There,” he muttered, the first hint of excitement entering his voice. “Plate’s partial, but it might be enough.”
Andi’s pulse spiked. Maybe this guy was actually taking them seriously this time.
He turned to his computer, fingers moving faster now, the earlier dismissiveness gone. The hum of the station seemed to fade as Andi watched his reaction.
A few seconds passed.
Then his brows drew together. “That’s . . . interesting.”
He turned the screen slightly, eyes flicking up to meet Andi’s then Duke’s.
“Van’s registered to a Colin Hoffman,” he said. “Local address. Day trader.”
The blood drained from Andi’s face.
Colin.
The room seemed to tilt, everything they’d uncovered snapping into grim alignment—the garage, the phone call, the fear, the van.
“Colin is Gina’s ex-boyfriend,” Andi told him. “Gina accused him of stalking her. Plus, he has a record for assault.”
The detective’s eyes flickered with surprise. “We’ll look into him.”
Some of the tension left her chest.
But there was more. “There’s one other thing.”
She told him about the Fake Pam.
Detective Hawkins leaned back in his chair, studying them with a touch of admiration in his gaze. “Well, looks like we need to open this case after all.”
Duke sat back against the hard plastic chair outside the interrogation rooms and studied the scuffed floor like it might tell him something useful.
Colin had mentioned something about a van to Duke when they’d talked. He said he’d seen the van in the parking lot. That he’d seen the van outside Gina’s place.
What he hadn’t mentioned was that the van belonged to him.
What kind of game was he playing?
Hawkins had surprised Duke by letting them stay. Two patrol officers had gone to pick up Colin.
“You’ve earned the right to hear it,” Hawkins had said gruffly, as if that admission were painful.
Duke hadn’t argued.
As they waited, Ranger called. He’d gone to Gina’s apartment. None of the neighbors had seen or heard anything. He’d also gone to the Public Works office to ask questions. No one recognized Fake Pam. Apparently, her job was just a cover story also. It wasn’t entirely surprising.
What about the woman was real? Where was she now? What was her role in all this?
The door down the hall finally opened.
Colin Hoffman shuffled in between two officers, his eyes darting with the frantic alertness of a man who knew the ground beneath him was giving way.
He looked smaller than Duke remembered, less sure of himself.
Good.
As they headed toward the interrogation room, the cops led Colin past Duke and Andi. His gaze flicked up—and just as quickly dropped to the floor, his shoulders rounding as if he were trying to make himself smaller.
He didn’t slow or speak, just kept walking, jaw tight, like a man ashamed to be seen.
Then Hawkins motioned to them, and Duke and Andi were positioned in another room adjacent to the interrogation room. The one-way window there was dark enough to hide them, but not the truth unfolding on the other side.
Detective Hawkins slid into the chair diagonal from Colin—blocking a clear path to the exit, mentally and physically cornering the man—and flipped open a file. “Let’s start simple. That van in the parking garage. It’s registered to you.”
Colin’s mouth opened immediately. “Yeah, but I sold it.”
Andi stiffened beside Duke and let out a hmm.
“When?” Detective Hawkins pressed.
“About—about . . . about a week ago,” Colin stuttered. “Guy paid cash. Said he was working out of town.”
“Name?”
Colin hesitated. “I—I don’t remember.”
Hawkins lifted an eyebrow. “You sell a vehicle worth thousands of dollars and forget the buyer’s name?”
“I didn’t think it mattered,” Colin snapped, then visibly reined himself in. “We met late. Nighttime. He was wearing a baseball cap. It was hard to see him clearly.”
“And you transferred ownership?” Hawkins pressed.
Colin grimaced and squirmed. “I meant to. I just . . . I haven’t gotten around to it yet.”
Of course.
Duke and Andi exchanged a look.
The detective leaned back slightly, his eyes narrowed. “Convenient. And impossible to do if you don’t have a name.”
Colin swallowed hard. “I wasn’t thinking things through like I should have. But you’re right. I missed some steps.”
“And you didn’t recognize this van when you saw it in the parking lot before your ex-girlfriend disappeared?”
Colin raked a hand through his hair, his stress obvious. “I knew how it would look. I didn’t have anything to do with this. Yes, I can be a little obsessive at times. But I didn’t do anything to Gina! I promise!”
“You cared so much about her that you withheld this information that could have helped our investigation?” Hawkins raised an eyebrow.
Colin dropped his face into his hands. “It was wrong. I knew it was. But I panicked. I didn’t know what to do. I don’t know why this guy would buy my van, only to potentially abduct my ex-girlfriend. It’s sick, man. Sick.”
A beat passed. Then Hawkins slid a photo across the table.
Duke leaned forward.
It was an image of Fake Pam taken from the grainy hotel footage.
“Recognize her?” Hawkins asked.
Colin stared at the photo longer than Duke expected. His brow furrowed, something flickering behind his eyes as he said, “Maybe.”
“Maybe?” Hawkins echoed.
Colin rubbed his face with both hands, breathing faster now. “I—I can’t place her. But she looks familiar.”
“Think harder.”
Colin stared down at the photo again. Silence stretched.
Then his head jerked up. “I remember now. It was before Gina disappeared. We had met to talk about a few things after our breakup. Truthfully, I tried to get her to change her mind.”
“How many days before she disappeared was this?”
Colin shrugged. “Maybe three or four? I think . . . I think it was right before that man broke into her house. Anyway, we were at a restaurant. I think I saw that woman—or someone who looked like her.”
He frowned as if questioning himself.
Duke’s pulse thudded as he waited for him to continue.
“She was sitting at another table.” Colin’s words tumbled faster now. “By herself. She kept watching us. Not subtle—just these long looks. Like she was . . . studying Gina. Studying us.”
Hawkins narrowed his eyes. “You’re sure?”
Colin nodded vigorously. “Yes. I remember thinking it was weird. I even asked Gina if she knew her. She said no.”
Duke pressed his eyes closed.
Fake Pam hadn’t appeared out of nowhere.
She’d been watching and waiting.
But why? That still didn’t make sense. She had to be a part of this—if not the person behind the abduction, then an accomplice.
Detective Hawkins stood. “We’re going to need to verify all of this. Wait here.”
As Hawkins left the room, Duke leaned closer to Andi. “This isn’t about Colin. My gut says he’s smart but not enough to pull off something like this. We’re dealing with someone patient and calculating.”
Her gaze hardened as she nodded. “I agree.”
“And something tells me this ‘someone’ isn’t done yet.”