Damnit. “I was with Liv and we ran into him at the store,” she lied. It was close enough to the truth. She hadn’t seen Liv since she had come over. And she missed her.
That just sparked his interest even more, Ryan could see. Not because of Charles, but because she was with Liv. “Are you two —”
“Together? No. It was a coincidence.” Ryan was going to stick to that, at least for now. No matter what she wanted to happen, it was what it was. And she had a murder to solve and a missing teenager to find. “Anyway, he confirmed that he was still seeing Cairo while she was engaged to Steven.”
“Do you think Steven killed her?” Dane asked.
“I think it could have been either,” Ryan said helplessly. “I just don’t think it’s a suicide.”
“Toxicology comes in today,” Dane said, glancing around the desk. “Prelim reports supported a suicide.”
“Thus the Chief announcing it,” Ryan muttered. She hated politics. The Chief was an elected role in their small town and, like many politicians, he was going to do whatever he had to in order to maintain his position. And a tragic suicide looked a lot better than an unsolved murder.
The phone rang, drawing their attention. Ryan reached for it automatically. “Detective Olsen.”
“We’re emailing over the toxicology reports right now.” It was a lab tech on the other end of the line. “But we thought you should know. Cairo was pregnant.”
Ryan stared at air for a moment. “It was missed in the autopsy?”
“She was only four or five weeks along,” the tech replied. “And it was ectopic. Elliot didn’t find it until toxicology revealed high HCG levels and checked the slides she had.”
“How the hell did she miss that?” Ryan was almost speechless. Elliot was good at her job.
“When the pregnancy implants in the fallopian tube, the uterus doesn’t do anything to prepare,” the tech explained. “And the pregnancy was small enough that nothing looked different.”
“Thanks.” Ryan hung the phone up. As much as she hated it, that made sense and she couldn’t blame Elliot. She looked at Dane, who was looking at her. “Cairo was pregnant.”
“Guess it’s time to talk to Steven,” Dane said grimly.
Ryan grabbed her stuff, standing up. “We need to arrange for the embryo to be DNA tested, too.” Was Steven the father? Or was Charles?
“Olsen.” The Chief’s voice caught her off guard.
Ignoring the shiver down her spine, Ryan straightened up and turned to look at him. “Yes, sir?”
“Where are you going?” The Chief’s eyes weren’t nice.
“We’ve just found out that Cairo was pregnant, Sir.” Ryan kept her voice respectful. “So we were going to go talk to Steven Blackstone.”
“That case is over, Detective.” His voice was warning now.
“With the utmost respect, sir, this introduces a new variable into the equation.” Ryan balled her hand into a fist. Was he going to warn her off?
“Maybe you didn’t hear me. This case is closed.” There was no emotion in his voice. The flatness made her shiver. “If you cannot respect my decision, I’ll have to find another Detective who will.”
The thought paralyzed her. Give up her job? This was all she had been doing for almost a decade. Slowly, as if in a daze, she sat back down. “Yes, sir.”
The Chief studied her for a bit, and then nodded to Dane before he disappeared back into his office. Ryan was still sitting there, not sure what to do. She had promised Liv. And not just Liv, but she wanted to find the real truth behind Cairo’s ‘suicide’, not just be told she had to give the case up like a minion.
“Go.” Dane’s voice was quiet.
Ryan turned to look at him, shock flashing across her face. “What?”
“I’ll cover for you.” Dane waved a hand at her. “Go.”
Ryan hesitated, then nodded. “Thank you.” She turned and left the building.
Monday 10th October; 4:30pm
It would have been too obvious to go to Steven’s right away. Surely the Chief would be tracking who talked to him, and Ryan wasn’t that eager to lose her job. She’d wait for a bit, and then go.
She didn’t know what drew her to Liv’s coffee shop, but there she was. It was the only place she knew where to find her. Even in high school, they’d spent all their time at Ryan’s place. Liv hadn’t offered, and Ryan hadn’t asked. In high school, there was nothing more important than love.
Ryan pushed open the door, catching sight of Liv talking to another woman that Ryan recognized. River, one of the other girls who had attended high school with them.
Liv’s eyes brightened when she saw Ryan. Either that, or Ryan was imagining it. Given how her day was going, either could be true. But she desperately wanted to believe that Liv still cared about her.
That the day before wasn’t a ruse, designed to get Ryan to reveal more about Cairo’s case. She shoved the thought away. The situation with the Chief was making her more and more paranoid.
“Can I get you something?” Liv asked. River whispered something in her ear and Liv swatted her away, her cheeks flushing crimson.
Ignoring the obviously cheesy and lewd response she could have given, Ryan coughed. “Can I talk to you?”
Liv’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “About what?”
Ryan’s eyes flickered to River. “In private. It’s important.”
“I’ll bet it is,” River muttered.
“River!” Liv hushed, but she was turning pinker.
Ryan couldn’t help a faint smile coming to her lips, but it was mostly hidden by her grim expression.
“Follow me.” Liv pointed a finger at River as if warning her to behave, then gestured for Ryan to follow her further into the kitchen behind the coffee shop. Liv leaned against the counter, her arms crossed over her chest. “What’s wrong?”
“I’ve been kicked off Cairo’s case,” Ryan said ruefully.
“What?” Liv looked shocked.
“If I don’t stop looking into it, the Chief will fire me.” There was bitterness in Ryan’s voice. Why would he give her up like that? She was a fine Detective.
