Chapter 36

chapter

thirty-six

Gage didn’t want to acknowledge that what Nia had said made sense.

But it did.

Those men who had followed them . . . they could have simply wanted to grab her.

Scenarios played out in his head as he tried to make sense of the situation.

If someone had killed Rob and left Nia there . . . why hadn’t they killed her? They wanted her alive for a reason. Was that because they wanted someone to blame Rob’s death on?

Possibly.

But if that was the case, wouldn’t they have sent the photos to the police instead of taunting her with them?

It seemed as if that was the case.

So maybe someone had left Nia alive in order to use those images to manipulate her into getting information on Rob .

Maybe there was more to it than that, even. Maybe this person wanted to manipulate Nia into doing something.

But what would that be? Nia was smart. Really smart. And she had a successful company. She most likely even had a great deal of money.

But those guys didn’t seem to be going after any of those things. So what would they want from Nia?

Then there was a third scenario. The one that Nia had just suggested.

The one Gage didn’t want to believe.

What if Nia had had some type of mental break, and she had done this? Gage didn’t see her as that type. But people in high-pressure situations could do things they didn’t normally do.

If Nia had killed Rob, why? To keep the app for herself? Because she didn’t want to pull out of their deal?

And now maybe these men wanted that information?

No . . . that didn’t make sense. There was nothing special about Rob’s app. It helped promote relaxation. Gage couldn’t see where that had anything to do with this.

Yet Rob had discovered something urgent enough for him to ask Gage to come. What could that have been?

His thoughts continued to swirl.

“You want me to leave?” Nia asked.

Her voice pulled him from his thoughts.

Gage stared at her face. Her dark, rich eyes. The slight frown on her full lips. The way her curls had seemed to lose some of their luster and bounce.

He swallowed hard before saying, “No, I don’t want you to leave.”

“I wouldn’t blame you if you did.”

“We’re going to figure this out,” he assured her. “We’re only just starting.”

“I have no recollection of what I was doing twenty-four hours ago. But according to the video footage, I was in Rob’s apartment with him. Sometime in there, he died, and we’ve found no evidence that anyone else was there.”

Her words echoed in his mind.

Now more than ever, they needed to figure out what had happened.

And he still had other questions . . . maybe less important questions.

But he still wanted answers.

He turned to her, hoping the subject change might be good for both of them.

Then he asked, “What’s your past with Mario?”

Nia swallowed hard at Gage’s question.

She knew it was coming. Gage was a perceptive guy. No doubt he’d picked up on the bad vibes between her and Mario.

“We dated,” Nia started .

Gage’s eyes widened, but he said nothing, just waited for her to continue.

“It didn’t end well,” she told him. “He wasn’t the person I thought he was.”

“What do you mean?” Gage asked.

She glanced at her hands, wishing sometimes that she could erase the memories. But they were a part of her. Her relationship with Mario was something she simply needed to learn from. It was the only way to put a positive spin on the situation.

“The two of us met at a benefit for a children’s hospital about a year and a half ago,” she said. “He was charming and made me laugh. When he asked me out, I didn’t hesitate to say yes. Our first few dates went really well. I thought maybe we had a future together.”

“I’m assuming something changed.”

“I guess you could say I changed. I realized I didn’t like the way I was living. I didn’t like the partying and the jet-setting lifestyle. But Mario did. In fact, sometimes I think that’s what he liked more than he actually liked me. He saw me more as an opportunity. I only wish I had seen it sooner.”

“I can see why things didn’t end well.”

Nia shook her head as she remembered. “He came across as someone who was so noble. But the truth was, how he acts is all a facade. He’s a master at those things.”

“What did he do?”

She rubbed her throat, thoughts racing. “I knew his family had a place down in the Keys. He wanted me to go down there with him, but I couldn’t. I had something pressing at work and couldn’t get away.”

Nia licked her lips, taking a moment to compose herself.

“Then my meeting was canceled,” she continued. “I decided to surprise Mario. But when I showed up, he was with someone.”

“ With someone with someone?”

Nia nodded. “Even worse, it turned out the woman was a prostitute. I was horrified. But apparently, Mario had a long history of doing things like that. Many of his cronies knew about it, but they were loyal to him and stayed quiet.”

He grunted. “What happened next?”

“I confronted him. He made excuses. But I knew the truth. I left, totally blindsided by all of it. Before I drove off, he begged me not to tell the mayor. Told me no one would believe me anyway. Then he said if I did tell anyone, he’d ruin my reputation.”

“Did you tell anyone?”

She licked her lips as that horrible period in her life flooded back into her thoughts. “It’s a huge liability having a police chief who sleeps with prostitutes. It’s how people become crooked. The wrong person can use those things as leverage to get what they want—including dropped or lessened charges. Besides, if Mario was hiding his involvement with prostitutes, what else was he hiding?”

“Good point,” Gage said.

“So I went to the DA.” Nia swallowed hard as she remembered. “He didn’t believe me and totally dismissed what I said. Honestly, I think Mario had something on him and that’s why he acted the way he did. Mario found out what I’d done, however. That’s when he started spreading rumors throughout the department that I had cheated on him . That I was making up rumors to cover up what I’d done. Most people believed him.”

“That’s dirty.” Disgust rippled through his words.

Nia nodded. “I know. He even sent officers out to harass me. They’d drive past me when I was walking down the street and give me looks. I got parking tickets for no good reason. Got pulled aside for an extra security check at a ballgame. I knew what it meant. It was a warning.”

“Did you press the subject anymore?”

“I wanted to. I thought about it. But Mario insisted no one would believe me, and I think he was right. Eventually, I came to accept the fact that one day he’d mess up. I needed to step back and wait for him to get caught in his own lies.”

“Probably wise.”

Their gazes met.

Gage opened his mouth as if he wanted to say more.

But then he shut it again.

Which was better.

She’d already shared too much. She never talked about the Mario situation anymore. It was too painful. Too frustrating.

But somehow, telling Gage had felt like a relief—especially since he believed her .

She had the crazy desire to reach for him. To fall into his arms.

Or, at least, to dream about what that would be like.

The feelings felt foreign. She had no idea where they came from.

Emotions suddenly seemed to seize her, and she stood. “Well, I should get to sleep. It’s been a long day.”

Gage stood also and nodded. “Of course. You should get some rest.”

But she couldn’t ignore the tension stretching between them as they said good night.