By the time the questioning was over, a flock of reporters had gathered outside the gate. Leaving would be a bitch.
When the time to exit came, uniformed officers backed the reporters away from the gate so Finley could leave. Olivia was in the back seat with a blanket over her so they wouldn’t be followed. Jack left right behind her and took a different route. Since he was the representing attorney, hopefully any ambitious reporters would follow him.
When they were far enough away and no one had followed, Finley gave Olivia a task. “You can sit up for now. I want you to call the security company. If possible, find out the times the house was entered and exited today using the security code. And find out when the cameras were shut down.”
One of those detectives would be doing that very thing, if he hadn’t already. The fewer steps she and Jack were behind, the better.
As Olivia sat up, the blanket shifted off her face. “If she hasn’t changed the pin number, I can.”
“Give it a shot,” Finley urged as she focused on driving. “And don’t lie to me, Olivia. I will be confirming whatever you tell me.”
Olivia made the call. Finley mentally crossed her fingers. They needed that information.
By the time she reached Olivia’s hotel, she was fairly confident they had no tails. Olivia had recalled the property pin—her parents’ wedding anniversary—and passed along the information obtained to Finley. Meanwhile Finley had called the hotel manager, and he’d given her instructions on the best way to get Olivia to her room. Rather than pull up in front of the hotel entrance, she drove into the garage and parked in the staff parking area. She escorted Olivia inside through a service entry. Security had blocked the corridor and monitored the service elevator to ensure no one had boarded ahead of them.
Good thing Jack had a lot of friends in this city. Other than the Judge and the trinity, most people liked him, which was immensely useful in situations like this one.
Olivia unlocked the door, and they entered together. Finley checked the room. All clear. “You need to stay in your room. Get room service when you need something. Call me or Jack if you have any trouble or feel you need someone to talk to. It would be best if you didn’t talk to anyone else.”
“I won’t. I don’t have any friends left here, so there’s no one to talk to. Unless Cecelia calls.”
“If Cecelia calls, talk to her,” Finley amended. “Don’t scare her off—just try to get her location. We need to find her.”
Olivia nodded.
“If the police come, don’t say a word until Jack or I get here.”
Another nod.
“Call me if you need me.”
Finley hurried back to her car and got away without being followed by anyone who showed an interest in her vehicle. She put through a call to Jack. “You back home?”
“Yeah.”
“You okay?”
“Yeah.” He knew what she was asking.
“If that status changes, I want to hear from you.”
“Don’t worry, I’m okay.”
“I had Olivia call the security company. The alarm was deactivated at nine this morning, then reactivated at nine forty-five. It wasn’t deactivated again until two this afternoon, which would seem to confirm Olivia’s story.”
“Sophia never struck me as one to sleep in,” he countered. “Why would she be in bed until nine?”
“It’s Sunday. She’s older now, and she’s been under a lot of stress,” Finley offered.
“Maybe.”
Finley inhaled a long, deep breath. “Look, I asked Olivia about the roommate, and she assured me there was a mistake. She spouted off another name without the slightest hesitation. Maybe . . .” It was possible, Finley had to admit.
“I’m listening,” Jack prodded.
“Maybe Holly Thompson was a clerical error.” There, she’d said it.
“Your gut is telling you,” he countered, “that you should still check it out.”
“Yeah.”
“Do it, Fin. At this point, I’m not banking on anything being what it appears to be on this one.”
“You’re right. I’ll call you later.” Finley ended the call without telling him she would be making an in-person contact tonight to be sure he was okay.
Turning onto her street, she spotted a vehicle parked at the curb in front of her house. What now? She’d had more unexpected visitors in the past two days than she’d had all year.
As she rolled closer, she recognized the car.