Chapter Twenty

Platt looked like someone had just snatched away his favorite donut and left him with a whole-wheat bagel instead. “I don’t like this.”

Amber winked at him. “Don’t worry, big guy. I’ll explain. The last time anyone saw Trinity was at Dhane’s memorial service. My client met with Detective Kennedy directly afterward. Then she was abducted and taken to the Raine Hotel where she discovered that Trinity had died. She called Detective Kennedy and your handsome self to the scene.” Amber turned to Kennedy, her smile dropping from warm and flirty to arctic and cunning. “So why all the theatrics, Detective? I thought you were better than that.”

Kennedy peeled away from the mirror and shoved his hands in his pockets. “Your client has been involved in this case from the very beginning. Every time I turned around, she was there. It wasn’t too far a leap to assume she had something to do with Trinity’s murder, either directly or indirectly.”

I gasped. He blamed me for what had happened to Trinity. Alex squeezed my hand. I remembered his words from earlier about blame and wondered if we had been smarter, faster, better, could we have prevented Trinity’s death? I could see it on Kennedy in the way his jaw set, the overbrightness of his eyes and the brackets around his mouth: Guilt weighed on him like a leaden coat. And he was looking to shove some of it off onto me.

Maybe he was right. Maybe I was to blame. The flower in Trinity’s hand was a clear message I wasn’t going to ignore.

“Can I say something?” I asked.

Amber answered, “No” at the same time Platt and Kennedy said, “Yes.”

“I think our time here is done.” Picking up her briefcase, Amber pushed to her feet. “Let’s go.”

Alex stood, too, leaving Platt and me the only ones sitting.

“Dhane’s wife was having an affair,” I blurted out.

“Azalea!” Amber plopped back down into her seat. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“Yes.” I looked at Kennedy. “I have to.”

Amber put her hand on my arm. “Give me a moment first.” She directed her attention to Kennedy. “I want immunity and protection for my client. In writing. I don’t care who you have to pull out of the swimming pool to get it, but she doesn’t say another word until she gets it.”

“Done,” Kennedy said. “But the best way to protect her is for her to go home.”

“I agree.” Alex didn’t look happy about having something in common with Kennedy.

“I’m not leaving. I came here for a fun weekend with my friends and to go to the hair show.” I had to try to salvage something from this trip. “Tomorrow is the last day and tomorrow night is the awards ceremony. I have a couple of friends who are up for awards. I’ll just go to the show and the awards and that’s it. I promise.” And I meant it. I really did. I turned to Alex. “You’ll be with me. That’s all the protection I’ll need.”

Alex shook his head. “I won’t. I have to fly back tomorrow. I really think you, Juan Carlos, James, and Vivian should go home with me.”

“I’ll go if they go.” But I knew they wouldn’t. They’d been looking forward to this trip more than I had. Especially Juan Carlos.

Three frowns and a glare were directed at me.

“Why don’t I believe you?” Kennedy asked.

I held up a hand, trying hard to convey how serious I was. “I swear I won’t ask any more questions, snoop where I don’t belong, or look up anything on the Internet.”

“Speaking of…” Kennedy turned his angry stare on Alex. “From now until you leave Vegas, you won’t interfere in this case. That includes calling Kansas, Washington, or Timbuktu.”

Alex’s blue-eyed gaze stuck on me. “Now that Vivian’s clear, I’m not going to do anything else to encourage Azalea. You’ve got my word.”

Washington? Wait. What was in Washington?

“Uh-oh, she’s got that look,” Alex said.

I browsed the faces in the room, confused. “What look?”

Narrowing his eyes, Alex pointed at me. “That look you get when you’re trying to figure something out. What’s going on?”

“I hate that look,” Kennedy said.

“Nothing’s going on. I swear.”

I could tell I hadn’t convinced anyone.

“Platt.” Kennedy addressed him with his eyes on me. “You’re her guard tomorrow.”

“What? Why me?” Platt whined.

“Yeah, why him?” I whined, too.

Kennedy moved his focus to Alex. “What time does your plane take off?”

“Ten. I leave at eight thirty,” Alex replied.

“You’ll be at her door by eight fifteen,” Kennedy told Platt. “And you’ll do it because it’s our job to protect and serve.”

Platt looked like he was trying to sneer at me, but he ended up looking more constipated than mean. Great. What was I going to do with this boat anchor dragging along behind me all day tomorrow?

It took twenty minutes to get the paperwork Amber wanted and another forty for me to tell them everything I’d found out, speculated on, and supposed about Dhane’s and Trinity’s murders. When I finished, Kennedy gave me one last “stay out of trouble” combined with a fierce warning glare before he strode out with Platt riding his heels.

Alex, Amber, and I walked out of the police station and into the oven-hot Vegas afternoon.

Alex put an arm around Amber. I really wished he’d stop doing that. “I owe you, and so does Azalea.”

“I thought this made us even.” Amber fingered a button on Alex’s shirt like she was thinking of popping them all. “But if you insist we’re not, then I can’t wait to collect.”

I mentally rolled my eyes.

“Azalea, thank Amber.”

I looked at my sex-kitten attorney. She sure had flummoxed all of the men in the room. She’d played to the stereotype, but there was definitely a brain under all of those bleached-blond extensions. She wouldn’t ever be NOW’s poster girl, but she had definitely come through for me in a pinch. And it sure had been fun watching Platt make a drooling fool of himself.

“Thank you, Amber.” I went to her for a hug that caught her off guard. “If you’re ever in Southern California with a hair emergency, you give me a call.” I handed her my card. Whatever might have been between her and Alex, I was positive it was firmly in the past. He liked her, but he didn’t look at her the way he looked at me. Even if I didn’t have all of her attributes.

My offer of friendship seemed to touch her. I could have sworn she had tears in her eyes. I guessed she didn’t have many female friends.

“Thank you. I will. Call me if you need any more legal help.” She gripped Alex’s chin and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. The spark of jealousy was still there, but not as sharp. “Take care of this one,” she said to me, patting his chest. She gave us a small wave and spun on her heel.

Alex put his arm around me and gave me a half hug. “I told you she was incredible.”

We watched Amber sway away until she rounded the corner of the building, then we strolled out onto the main street to try and catch a cab.

“Alex?” I asked with a smile.

“Hmm?”

“Are you going to wear that lipstick all day?”