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“Any motive?” Daly asks.
I shake my head no in response.
“Just that Summer was attacked her first night here. Harry arrives a couple of days later, and each time he’s been seen, he’s been with Luca. No evidence, but it looks suspicious.”
“What do we know about Harry?” Daly turns to me.
“Not a lot. All his businesses with Eric Stanton are legit. No crim…”
“Eric Stanton? Daly jerks forward in his chair, alarmed.
“Yeah, Summer Harper’s Stepfather.”
“Shit, that can’t be a coincidence.” He mutters, lowering his gaze looks to the desk in front of him.
“You’ve heard of him before?” I ask.
Daly nods, swallowing hard. As though you can see the shiver running up his spine.
“About a year ago, a woman came into the precinct. Claimed they’d be raped and beaten by Eric Stanton. She went for a rape kit, but no DNA was recovered.” Daly lets out a low breath as he continues. “Six months after that, a different woman came in with the same story. Both said they’d been kidnapped from Mexico, drove for days, and then ended up at a party. They claim Eric purchased them for the night, repeatedly raped them, beat them, but they’d managed to escape.”
“What happened after that?” I ask, trying to keep my expression neutral.
“They just disappeared from their shelters. They had no papers, no passport, no money. Each within a few days of making the reports, they just vanished. Didn’t leave a note or ever try to contact the police again.”
“Did you ever speak with Eric about the accusation?”
“He went to his local precinct to make a statement back in L.A. But with no DNA, evidence, or record of him being in New York, there was little we could do.”
“Could it have been a setup?” I hate myself for asking; no one should go through such a traumatic ordeal, but something about the story just isn’t sitting well with me.
“Maybe, but without the two victims, it went cold. Plus, their legal status and the drugs in their system, they wouldn’t have been reliable.”
“Eric is here in the city. He was at Michael's funeral yesterday along with his wife, Harry, and Luca.”
“What the hell? Why would they show up?” There’s a flicker of anger in Daly’s face, mirroring mine from Tuesday.
“Harry was there to torment Summer, But I’m not sure about the others.”
Daly looks around the office momentarily, his eyes almost looking past the walls as he contemplates his next question.
“What if we had a surveillance team watching them?”
“How would we swing that?”
“All three of them could be in business together. We have the complaints about Eric for rape and battery. There could be something bigger at play here?”
“That’s all circumstantial without the two victims. It just looks like a phishing expedition.” I say hastily.
“True.” Daly rises from his seat and straightens his suit before extending his hand to Captain Dean and myself. “If I hear anything, I’ll call you. If it’ll help put Luca behind bars for the rest of his life.”
Exiting the room, he closes the door behind him. An odd silence falls in the office as the captain, and I look at each other with the same suspicious look.
“Something on your mind Grey?” The captain quirks a brow at me, a small smug smile creeps across his face.
He knows all too well there’s something up with Detective Daly’s story, but I won’t accuse someone I hardly know of being a liar. Especially when I don’t know the reasons behind it or have the proof to back my theory up.
“I’m gonna head over to see Strode.” Pushing to my feet, captain nods before I head out of the office.
