8. Sinclair

"Sweetheart, you've been reading those reports for two hours. You're going to give yourself a headache staring at that screen." I knew Jayne was serious about figuring out Charlie's death, something I really appreciated but not at the expense of Jayne's health.

"Yeah, I should probably take a break." She looked up from the computer. "What time is it?"

"Almost seven. Did you learn anything?" I'd look at the reports later myself, but I wanted her thoughts.

She closed the computer. "Not much. There's no suicide note mentioned in the report. I know there isn't always one, but…" She shook her head and sighed. "You want to take a walk or something? After we take care of Slim, that is. I feel like I could use some fresh air."

"Sure. Are we taking the stroller?" To be honest, I low-key hated that thing. Even if it had been a recent gift from my Aunt Zinnia, who had legitimately become a crazy cat lady after adopting two cats.

Did I mention this was a pet stroller?

Unfortunately, Jayne loved the stroller. She loved taking the cats with us when we went places. I was surprised we hadn't had the thing out yet and taken them into the French Quarter. Thankfully, it was collapsible and folded up pretty small. Every time I put it away, I hoped Jayne would forget about it. I'd only mentioned it because I thought it might lift her mood.

Her eyes lit up. "Yes, definitely. It'll be good for them to get some fresh air, too."

I smiled, because I'd been right. "I'll get it."

She grinned. "I know you hate it. Don't worry, I'll push it. I promise you, most people just think there's a baby in there. Anyway, it's good practice for our future."

"You know I hate it?" That genuinely surprised me. I'd been doing my best not to let it show.

This time, she laughed. "Yes, and I get it. It's a little precious taking the cats out in a stroller, but it's not like we can let them loose at a dog park. It's good for them to get out of the RV once in a while. Besides, they love it."

That much was true. I nodded. "And it wears them out." Generally, after going for a ride in the stroller, Spider and Sugar would zonk out for several hours of serious sleeping. Doing this right before bed might ensure there were no midnight zoomies.

Midnight zoomies in a house the size of Matt's would be no big deal. Midnight zoomies in the RV, even with the generous slides open, was like being stuck in the middle of a Formula One race on a very small track.

We took care of Slim, Jayne on the inhaler, me on food and litter box duty, then played with him for a few minutes. I went straight for the fishing pole with a feather toy at the end. Slim went nuts for it. For a cat who was no longer a kitten, it was impressive how much air he got. After about ten minutes of jumping and running after it, he was done.

I snapped a picture of Slim and sent it to Matt, just so he could see his cat was doing well.

Back in the RV, I got the stroller out and opened it up.

Spider and Sugar knew exactly what was up. They were practically climbing all over me. Spider was especially excited. "Dadman, Dadman, Dadman."

"What is it, Spider?"

He stood with his front paws on my arm, his little face in mine. "Spider and Sugar going for walkies?"

Walkies. He'd picked that up from Jayne. "Yep, you guys are going for walkies."

"Will there be dogs?" Sugar asked. "Dogs are gross."

I kept my laughter to myself. "I know, baby girl. We won't let anything happen to either of you. Besides, the dogs can't get you if you're in your stroller."

"Yeah," Spider said. "Dogs are dumb."

I unzipped the passenger compartment. Spider was in it before I had it completely open. I picked Sugar up and put her in, then zipped it back up. "There you go."

Jayne came out of the bedroom where she'd been putting her sneakers on and using the bathroom again. She stuck one foot toward me. "I got them on, but it was too much work to tie them."

With a soft chuckle, I tied her sneakers for her. "There you go."

"Are we ready?"

"We're ready." I carried the stroller with the two cats in it down the steps and carefully placed it on the driveway.

Spider and Sugar had their little noses pressed against the black mesh. Jayne looked at them and laughed. "Look how much they love it. So adorable."

"So spoiled."

Jayne gave me a look. "Because they're babies."

I snorted. "Yes, they are."

"Walkies, Mama." Spider was pushing his head against the mesh as if he could make the stroller move through sheer determination.

"I know, baby." She wiggled her fingers at Spider. "No hissing at dogs now."

"But Mama, dogs are?—"

"Spider, be nice. That's how we make friends."

"Spider don't wanna be friends with dogs."

"I know." With a roll of her eyes, she put her hands on the push bar and off we went. At the end of the driveway, she turned left.

Didn't matter to me which way we went. I figured we'd just go a couple of blocks, then keep making lefts until we arrived back at Matt's.

But two blocks later, we were making a right. "Are we headed somewhere in particular?"

She pursed her lips. "Maybe."

I slanted my eyes at her. "Where are we going?"

"I thought we could just swing by Charlie's apartment building. Just to look. It's not far."

" Just to look?"

She lifted one shoulder. "Or whatever."

My brows went up as we kept walking.

"I'm being careful. I have you and the cats with me to keep watch, and it's practically dusk. Visibility is low."

I nearly tripped over a crack in the sidewalk. "Are you actually planning on going inside ?"

"I was. How else are we supposed to figure out what happened to her?"

"The police have already been in there."

"I know, and I have a lot of respect for the police, but we know they're overworked and understaffed and they might not have the time or manpower to dig into this like we can. Nashville's a pretty good example of what we can accomplish when we set our minds to it."

I couldn't argue that.

"Not to mention, Birdie is helping us and she's … police-adjacent."

I almost laughed. Instead, I frowned. "That is not the same thing."

"Do you have any better ideas?"

I shook my head, already knowing she was going to do what she wanted. "I don't like this. For one thing, how do you know it's safe to use that kind of magic when you're pregnant?" I was talking about a particular magical skill that came from her mother's side of the family. A little business known as the Santa Slide.

It allowed Jayne, or in the case of its namesake, Old Saint Nick himself, to access any space, locked or otherwise, so long as there was a small crack that could be used for entrance. It was how Santa got down chimneys and into houses that had no chimneys.

"I used it in Nashville, and I was pregnant then."

"I know, but?—"

"Anyway, it's perfectly safe. Uncle Kris has used it to take pets into homes. People get pets as Christmas gifts, you know."

A man on a bike rode past, giving us a nod.

I nodded back before answering. "Jack Jr. is neither a pet nor a Christmas gift."

"No, but he is half winter elf. He'll be fine. He'll probably be able to do it himself when he gets old enough."

I still didn't like it.

She must have read my mind because she stopped walking to look at me. "Sin, you don't think for a moment I'd do something to put our child in danger, do you?"

"No." Jayne might be fearless, but she wasn't reckless.

She put her hands on my arms and looked up at me, smiling. "I know you worry about me. I know I've gotten into some situations in the past, but things have always ended up all right."

It was hard to argue when she looked at me with such sincerity in her eyes. And was so beautiful. It wasn't fair. "You promise you'll be careful?"

"More than ever."

I sighed. "Fine. Where is this apartment building?"

Her smile got a little bigger. "Right behind me."

I had a look. The place was big. Three stories of dingy white stucco with brown trim. A big porch spanned the face of it, split by two front doors, each one with two numbers on it. A1, A2. B1, B2. The landscaping was minimal but tidy.

The driveway held three cars: a white Ford Edge, a black Kia sedan, and a gold Nissan Sentra, all a few years old. The white Ford Edge had a bumper sticker that said I Brake For Animals and a window decal of a paw print.

I tipped my head at the Edge. "Is that Charlie's car?"

"Yes."

"How do you plan on doing this? There are obviously other residents here."

"Charlie's apartment is A1. I figured I'd go around back and get in that way. Better than going in the front."

"Agreed. I want to do a quick look around first."

"Okay."

While she stayed with the stroller, I walked down the driveway. The property was divided from its neighbors by a faded wooden privacy fence, but the houses surrounding it were all two stories or better. Anyone looking out a window could see Jayne just as easily as she could be seen from the street.

For the moment, none of the windows that overlooked this house's backyard had lights in them. Hopefully, that meant the rooms weren't occupied and her entrance into the house would go unnoticed. The back of the house had another good-size porch. The roof on that porch might give Jayne some coverage, too.

It was better than going through the front.

I joined her on the sidewalk. "It might look odd if I'm just standing here with two cats in a stroller."

"Pretend to be on your phone. No one will question that. Lots of people stop when they're on a call. If you have to move, just go around the block and text me when you can."

"I don't like the idea of leaving you."

"I know. But I'm quick." She glanced down at her belly. "Quick-adjacent."

I snorted out a small laugh, but I still didn't like it. "If anything happens, you call me, and I'll be there."

"I will. My phone is in my pocket."

"Hang on," I said. "You know you can't touch anything in there. The police might come back at any time to look the place over again. Especially if they determine this isn't a suicide. Leaving prints is a bad idea."

She stuck her hand in her pocket and came out with a pair of purple latex gloves. "I'm prepared."

"Where did you get those?"

"Last doctor's visit. I grabbed a few pairs. Figured I might as well get my money's worth."

I shook my head before leaning in and kissing her. "Be safe."

"Promise." She turned and walked toward the back of the house.

I looked down both sides of the street. It was nearly dark and mostly deserted. Somehow, that didn't make me feel much better.