'The cashier at the restaurant would've seen me.' he answered automatically. 'I talked to Charles Kipler there, as well. I think he was getting dinner for Celia.'
His mind rebelled at the thought of Celia Shore being dead. It wasn't as if he hadn't seen death before. God knew, he had. But she'd been okay the last time he saw her. Getting better. Who would hate her enough to kill her?
'Did you and Mr. Kipler have a fight?' Melvin Lively asked.
Maddox lifted his hand to his scraped cheek. 'No, Fell down some stairs.'
He felt Iris's gaze on him. He cut his eyes toward her, hoping she'd follow his lead. The cops didn't need to know about Quinn's visit. That was something he was going to have to handle on his own, quietly.
'Are you sure?' the shorter detective asked.
'Positive. I was just about to let Ms. Browning play doctor with me.' He shot her an exaggerated leer. Her look in return was about as queasy as he felt.
'You'll understand if we defer that until later.' Lively said, his dark eyes amused despite the serious look on his face.
Maddox's smile faded. 'Yeah, I understand.'
'Good. Now, can we go over this one more time?'
Iris could add little to the detective's knowledge of what had happened to Celia Shore. She glanced at Maddox, wondering why she was keeping quiet about the bearded man. Because Maddox wanted her to? Had she lost her mind? What if Quinn had killed Celia?
The timing didn't seem right-he'd been here on this floor, trying to get her to let him come into her room, during the short span of time when Celia seemed to have met her end. But was his presence here really a coincidence?
She should say something to the police. Now.
'Doesn't the hotel have surveillance cameras?' Maddox asked, his face pale beneath his tan.
'Someone tampered with them.' Melvin said before the shorter detective could shush him. 'Ms, Browning, if you could tell us again about your discussion with Ms. Shore-'
'She already answered that twice. Melvin.' Maddox interjected, impatience bleeding from his gritty drawl.
Detective Lively shot Maddox an exasperated look. 'You are still here because I'm a nice guy, Mr. Heller. You do not want to make me become a not-so-nice guy.'
Maddox's lips thinned to a tight line, but he kept quiet. Iris answered the detective's question again, glancing at Maddox. She took a deep breath, preparing to bring up the subject of the bearded man who'd accosted her, but the dark look in Maddox's eyes kept her silent.
Okay, she thought. I play it your way. But you're going to tell me who Quinn is and what's going on. And if she didn't like his answer, she'd be on the phone to the police before he could turn around twice.
Detective Lively had almost finished taking her through what information she had about Sandrine's disappearance for a second time when a newcomer arrived, a tall, dark-haired man with brown eyes and a lanky build. As the policeman at her door let him in, the man's gaze moved first to Maddox. One dark eyebrow quirked at the sight of his battered face.
The two had met before. Iris realized. The dark-haired man looked away from Maddox and nodded a greeting to Detective Lively.
He spoke with a British accent. 'I'll wait outside until you finish. Detective Lively. I don't want to interfere in your investigation-'
'We're wrapping things up, Mr. Darcy.' Detective Lively assured him. He stood and closed his notebook.
The man named Darcy stepped closer to Iris. 'Miss Browning, I'm Nicholas Darcy with the U.S. consulate. I wanted to leave my contact information and let you know we will be available to help you with any legal issues that may arise from this incident' Darcy said.
'Darcy's the Regional Security Officer-an embassy cop. I guess you'd say.' Maddox's voice was inflection-free, but a wave of bitterness flowed into Iris from his direction.
'I'm sorry to hear of Miss Shore's demise. Were you close?' Though he directed the question at Iris, Nicholas Darcy shot Maddox a tight glare.
Maddox returned the look, his jaw squared. Interesting, Iris thought.
Detective Lively paused in the doorway, bowing slightly toward her. 'Ms. Browning, will you be remaining here at the hotel for the next couple of days?'
As Iris opened her mouth to assure the detective she would. Maddox said. 'No. She will not.'
Iris glared at Maddox. 'I beg your pardon?'
Maddox returned the look, his expression deadly serious. Anxiety radiated from him in almost tangible ripples. 'A woman was just murdered here. You yourself said you think she may have been part of the same focus group your friend was part of. And you've been asking a lot of questions about that focus group. Why on God's green earth would you stay here in this hotel another minute?'
He turned to Nicholas Darcy. 'Darcy, there's got to be someplace at the consulate she can stay.'
'She's not a refugee, and she's not under any sort of direct threat.' Darcy replied in clipped, formal tones, although Iris could feel his ambivalence. The RSO's voice dropped a half tone as he met Maddox's hard gaze. 'You know there's nothing I can do under the current circumstances.'
Why didn't Maddox tell him about the bearded man? Surely if Mr. Darcy knew about the break-in- She looked at Maddox. He met her gaze, his eyes narrowed.
'There will be a heavy police presence here for the next day or two.' Detective Lively interjected.
'Or you could provide her with protection yourself.' Darcy said, still looking at Maddox.
Silence settled over the room in the aftermath of Darcy's quiet suggestion. Iris's stomach knotted, an unexpected gush of sheer terror flooding her chest, interfering with her breathing. The emotion came from Maddox.
When he spoke, his voice was soft and strangled. Fear suffused him, darkened his eyes and dug furrows into his brow and cheeks. 'I can't do that.'
Iris tried to make sense of what she was feeling. The thought of playing bodyguard to her obviously scared the hell out of him. But why? Because of what she'd revealed to him about her gift this afternoon? Did he find her so scary?
'I could arrange for you to take a room in another hotel.' Darcy said, breaking the silence.
'Or I could just stay here.' Iris said firmly.
The emotion coming from Maddox shifted. The fear was still there, along with a hot, tight pain in the center of her belly. But she also felt a strange sense of desperation, a jittery edginess that sparked through her limbs.
Maddox turned to look at Detective Lively. 'I'll give you my phone number. You can reach her there for the next day or so.'
He stood and looked at Iris, shooting her a flash of dimples. 'Sorry, danger monkey, I know you liked wrapping your legs around the Harley yesterday, but I drove the Jeep today. I'll go bring it around to the front. You start packing.'
This was insane, Iris thought. 'I'm not coming with you.'
'Yes, you are.' Maddox followed the detective out of the hotel room, leaving Iris staring at the empty doorway.
She looked at Nicholas Darcy, wondering why he hadn't intervened. 'This is crazy'
He sighed. 'Yes, it is'
'The hotel will be perfectly safe.'
Unfortunately, her declaration didn't sound convincing, even to her own ears. The truth was, she didn't want to stay here another night alone. She wanted to hop the next plane back to the States, but Sandrine was still missing, and nobody seemed concerned about it but her.
'Heller seems very certain that the hotel is not a safe place for you.' Darcy looked concerned.
She frowned at him. He sounded as if he were trying to talk her into going with Maddox. 'You can't be suggesting that I go stay with a stranger rather than stay here at a hotel with policemen.'
'I didn't realize you considered him a stranger.'
'We just met yesterday'
Darcy didn't respond, but the look in his eyes was clear. A lot could happen in a day between a man and a
