Page 68 of Unburied

Mason took a knee next to her office chair, but she kept her eyes focused forward. Placing a hand on her thigh, he gently swiveled her so she had no choice but to look at him. “I’m going to go talk to your brother. Zane will be out here with you in case anyone shows up,” he said.

She gave a little nod but remained silent. That was another thing. She had been quieter than he had ever seen her since the day they met, and it worried him immensely. It was as if her bubbly personality had been extinguished, overridden by fear and worry, and he hated it.

He lifted his free hand and pinched her chin between his thumb and forefinger, studying her for a long moment. He didn’t say a word. He didn’t need to. She knew exactly how he felt about her; he’d do anything to keep her safe.

He tipped her mouth down to meet his for a single, soft kiss. Vivi pulled back almost immediately, and her cheeks flared pink as her eyes darted over his shoulder. Mason knew Knox was standing there. He heard him approach just before he kissed her, but he didn’t care.

Not bothering to glance Knox’s way, he levered to his feet then dropped another kiss on her forehead before stepping away. “Yell if you need anything,” he said.

She gave a little nod, her gaze landing on everything except him and her brother. Mason met Knox’s eyes as he turned around. Knox’s face was inscrutable, hands tucked into the pockets of his black slacks. Anyone else would have assumed he was relaxed. Mason knew better.

He was sure there was a huge part of Knox that still resented the fact that Vivi and Mason were together, but he couldn't bring himself to care. He jerked his head toward Knox’s office, and Knox silently fell into step beside him as they made their way down the hall.

They were silent for a long moment as Knox settled behind his desk, and Mason took the chair on the opposite side. Knox stared at him for nearly a minute before speaking. “It's still weird.”

Mason bit back a smile. He refused to apologize for it.

“You really care about her,” Knox stated, not asking.

“She’s everything,” Mason replied.

Knox nodded slowly. “To me, too. As long as you take care of her and she’s happy, I don’t want to know anything. I’m just going to pretend you’re not defiling my sister.”

He wasn't wrong. Mason was no more comfortable telling Knox about their relationship than Knox was hearing about it. “No worries there,” Mason assured him.

Knox gave a curt nod. “Talk to me. What happened?”

“I haven’t spoken with anyone up that way yet, but from the article Vivi read to me on the way here, looks like a car accident,” Mason explained.

Knox arched a brow. “And your take?”

Mason didn’t hesitate. “Not an accident. I left a message for the lieutenant who handled it, but he was tied up so I’m waiting on a call back.”

“Let me know what you find out,” Knox said, giving a concise nod. “Also, we’ve got nothing on the cameras from last night.”

Of course not, Mason thought. “All right. I’m gonna wrap up a couple things before we head out. Hopefully he’ll touch base soon.”

He didn’t have to wait long. Not five minutes after he left Knox’s office, his phone rang. He thumbed the screen and held it to his ear. “Kane,” he answered.

“Mr. Kane, this is Lieutenant Mabry returning your call,” the voice on the other end said.

Mason explained everything to Mabry, but the lieutenant didn't seem particularly concerned about a man searching for his missing father. To them, Russ was an adult who was free to move about of his own will.

Though Mason knew they couldn't waste a ton of their time and resources on what appeared to be an open and shut case, he wasn't willing to just sit back and wait for something to happen. He refused to jeopardize Vivi's safety, and one way or the other, they were going to figure out who was behind this before he came after her again. Because there was no doubt in Mason's mind that the man who had accosted Vivi in the parking lot at the bar was also responsible for Tyler’s death.

Mabry made a little sound in the back of his throat. “Are you saying you believe those two are connected?”

“I think it’s definitely possible,” Mason offered, trying to be as diplomatic as possible, given the circumstances.

“We retrieved the car from the ravine and had our investigators look it over. So far there's been no sign of foul play,” Mabry informed him.

Mason could hear the trace of condescension in his voice, and it set his hackles on edge. “Listen, I trust your guys. I'm sure they did a thorough job. All I'm saying is, maybe there's more to the story.”

He told Mabry about Tyler going up to Orlando to speak with one of Russ's relatives. “We tried to contact him for several days but could never get a response. We just saw the death notice this morning, so I wanted to reach out to you. It could be nothing, but I don't believe in coincidence.”

The lieutenant was quiet for several seconds before he let out a soft sigh. “I'll have my guys double-check, see if they overlooked anything.”

“I appreciate that,” Mason said sincerely. “I could just be looking for trouble where there is none, but…”