Not that Ryan really wanted to. “What about her house?”
“We could check there and see if we can find any information relating to Steven. Is it still taped off?” Liv headed back towards the car, leaving Ryan to follow.
“The tape’s been removed.” Ryan followed, excitement building up. Maybe they could find something that had been missed, something that had been overlooked when they considered Cairo’s death a suicide.
“Let’s go.” Liv grinned, and unlocked the car.
14
Monday 10th October; 6pm
This time Liv did park in front of Cairo’s house, turning her lights off before she turned the car off. Ryan was sitting next to her, and Liv could almost feel her apprehension.
She reached out and put a hand on Ryan’s thigh. She liked it, the warm feeling of someone’s body under her hand. It made her wonder what had happened to Ryan’s body in the ten years they had been apart. But there was time for that later.
And by later, she strictly reminded herself, she meant never.
“It’s okay.” Liv spoke, then she nodded firmly as if to encourage Ryan to believe her words.
Ryan nodded, but didn’t speak otherwise.
Liv was first out of the car and led the walk to the door. She frowned. “It’s locked.”
“And I don’t have the key.” Ryan grimaced. “Maybe this was a waste of time.”
“Hold on.” Liv peered around the entrance to the door, looking at the rocks. “There.” She picked one up, feeling the flimsy plastic of a hide-a-key rock. “No one’s smart about these nowadays.”
“Where’s yours?” Ryan sounded amused.
“I just don’t have one.” Liv grinned.
Ryan rolled her eyes and walked back to the car. Liv put the key in the lock and turned it, pleased to hear the bolt slide back.
Liv opened the door, listening intently. It should be empty. There was no one else that was supposed to be watching the house, so they had it to themselves. She started inside, wishing she had thought to bring a flashlight.
“Here.” Ryan offered her one.
“Where’d you get these?” Liv looked at her, surprised.
“Brought them from the trunk of my patrol car and stashed them by my feet on the drive.” Ryan grinned ruefully. “I thought you might get me into some trouble.”
Liv scoffed. “As if you wouldn’t come of your own accord.”
Ryan snorted. “It doesn’t count if you drag me first.”
“Potayto, Potahto.” Liv waved a hand. They moved into the kitchen, going through the drawers first. Each was opened and rifled through. It felt strange, going through someone’s life. Liv knew she should have felt guilty, like she was invading Cairo’s privacy. But Cairo was dead, and justice wasn’t being served.
“Here’s a bank statement.” Carefully Ryan drew it out of the drawer and placed it on the counter. Liv nodded in acknowledgment and delved back into the drawers in front of her. Most were full of papers, but none seemed to be important.
“Here’s a deck of cards,” Liv said, pulling it out.
“There was a full deck found near her body.” Ryan’s voice was grim.
Liv didn’t know what to say to that. She had seen the murder scene from a distance but knowing it was a whole different thing.
There was a clunking noise outside, like a car shifting out of gear.
Liv froze, her eyes locked on Ryan.
“Hide!” Ryan hissed, turning off her flashlight, grabbing Liv’s, and heading out of the kitchen.
Oh shit. Liv could handle the fallout, but if Ryan lost her job because of something stupid Liv had suggested, she would never forgive herself. “Here.” there was a small closet off to the side, underneath the stairs on the opposite side of the door. It was unlocked, thankfully, and opened quietly.
In the movies, it always seemed like two people could fit into a regular-sized closet with little awkwardness. Let Liv tell you, it wasn’t like the movies. Since Liv was the smaller one, she ended up with both her legs on Ryan’s lap. At least her butt was on the ground.
They closed the dark closet door almost completely. The flashlights were off now, and Liv focused on keeping her breathing as quiet as she could.
The door screeched open. Did the person have a key? They hadn’t locked the door.
Oh god. Their car was there. Someone probably knew they were inside the house.
“It’s okay.” Ryan’s words were almost impossible to make out, but then her hand cupped Liv’s face, sending warmth spiraling through her.
Even in this situation, all Liv wanted to do was turn her face into Ryan’s hand and inhale her smell. She remembered it, just as it had been all those years ago. Evergreen with a hint of the fruity perfume she liked. A strange combination, but one that was uniquely her.
It was hard to hear what the intruder was doing. Not that it was the proper term, given that they were technically intruders too, but she wasn’t about to squabble about proper terminology. Instead she leaned forward, trying to get some relief for her aching back.
She could feel Ryan’s body moving against her as they both struggled to get comfortable without hurting themselves or making any noise. Liv moved forward just a bit, then realized what she was facing was Ryan’s collarbone. Who needed physics in a closet?
Ryan’s hand touched her face, and there was a question in the touch. Liv inhaled sharply, even though she knew they had to be quiet. Then Ryan’s hand was guiding her head to meet hers, and their lips touched for the first time in a decade.
The heat that had been building in her middle exploded, surging through her veins like a wildfire on crack. It was all she could to do stop herself from grabbing Ryan and kissing her like mad. Only the thought that they were currently possibly being stalked by a murderer stopped her.
Not that it stopped Liv from
