Page 47 of No Lies No Promises

A lie.

“Who did see her?” She’s really pissing me off. “Someone must’ve been at the front desk.”

“Kiran. She doesn’t work here anymore.”

Of course she doesn’t. “No matter.” I close the book and hand it back to her. “We’ve got what we came for. Sean, we should go.”

My partner arches an eyebrow. “Sure you don’t want to talk to more staff members?”

“Nope.” I upload the photo I took to the cloud. “Trust me.”

Soon, we’re in the car. Kneeling on the passenger seat, I peer out the back window until I’m certain no one’s following. Only then do I face forward. “All clear.”

After one last glance in the rearview mirror, Sean’s grip loosens on the wheel. “So? What did you find?”

“Hart’s so-called brother is none other than our prime suspect, Jeff.”

His jaw drops. “Let me get this straight. Weeks before Dante assigned us the Parkhaven case, Pearson, pretending to be Simone’s brother, checked her out of this facility. When he reported how she wandered off, no one gave a damn until she blew up a fertilizer truck.”

“Yup. Don’t forget she knew our nondenominational joke.”

“Right.” He shakes his head. “How about we drive over to Talon and talk to Pierre? Maybe he can shed some light on this ever-expanding black hole.”

Chapter 24

Sean

After a fruitless trip to Talon Bar, we return to the Brooklyn warehouse, parking underground. In the conference room, my stomach rumbles at the catered lunch on the table.

Taking chairs to Dante’s right, the two of us grab a sandwich. Mason, across from us, nods as he stuffs a forkful of potato salad into his mouth. Daedalus waves from the wall monitor.

Between bites, Lil and I download everything we learned at the psychiatric facility.

Daed breaks the stunned silence first, his voice rumbling from the speaker. “I analyzed the signature. You were right, Lillian. It belongs to Pearson.”

“What about Hart’s bank account? Any unusual deposits or withdrawals?” As I speak, the wall-mounted camera swivels toward me.

“No. Same with credit cards.” Our on-screen analyst scratches his unshaven chin.

“Wasn’t Simone’s family worried?” While Lil grabs a cookie, he shakes his head.

“It wasn’t the first time she wandered off.”

My fists clench as more of my anger shifts toward Pearson. “He used her. But how? Why?”

“Give me a sec.” Daedalus glances down, his keyboard clattering. “He used the name Stephen Hart to sign out Simone. However, the real Stephen Hart works for Rehabo. They make AI-powered robots for people with disabilities. Parkhaven has poured hundreds of millions into the company.”

Mace pipes up for the first time. “So Jeff Pearson is actually Stephen Hart?”

Daed tilts his head. “Nope. Neither person exists. If I had to guess, I’d say he’s ex-intelligence. Mossad. CIA. FSB.”

Jesus. If I were a cartoon, right about now, my head would be exploding. “So, Jeff Pearson, aka Stephen Hart, aka God-knows-who, convinced a schizophrenic patient to kill us weeks before we ever started investigating Parkhaven. He also has ties to a cutting-edge robotics company. None of this makes a damn bit of sense. We might as well have my grandmother pull out her Ouija board to help figure it out.”

Dante scratches his beard and grimaces. “You’re right about one thing. We need more data. Lillian, dig deeper into Rehabo. Sean, check your father’s connection to Pearson or Parkhaven. We’ll regroup here tomorrow unless something urgent turns up.”

Shortly afterward, I walk Lillian up the stairs to our temporary living quarters. It’s been too long since we’ve had a moment alone, and I’m jonesing for a fix.

“Hey, stop for a second.” I catch her at the waist, pin her gently against the wall, then press my body into hers. “Have I ever told you how amazing you are?”