“Two tickets. So maybe-”
“Hayley’s alive. Exactly.”
“Okay, while you work the airport angle, I’ll see if we’ve got a line on the aunt or the mother.”
We ran down the escalator and all the way to the car. Bailey pulled out of the underground parking lot to a spot on the street where we could get a signal and work the phones.
I got a number for the aunt, Janice Maher-which meant she was either unmarried or not willing to change her name-but got no answer, so I left a message. A records check by one of our DA investigators revealed that Brian’s mother, Estelle, had died of a heart attack three years ago.
When Bailey ended her call, I told her what I’d learned.
“But if the aunt’s in pocket, we’ll catch up with her soon enough.”
It felt like we’d been running for the past two days straight, and I was a little high on adrenaline. I wanted to do something.
Bailey saw my agitation and gave me a firm look. “Now we wait, Knight. Not your strong suit. But we need some answers first and that may take a day or so.”
I nodded and sat back, letting my jets cool. “May as well make the best of it-”
“Yeah. Call Toni.”
I pulled out my phone, but the battery was almost gone, so I borrowed Bailey’s cell.
Perch was a bar and restaurant that occupied the top two floors of a building that overlooked Pershing Square, which was across the street from the Biltmore. Both floors had rooftop bars, and especially in the summer, it was heaven to have drinks up there at night. A summer day in L.A. can be hot as blazes, but it’s a semi-desert, so at night the temperature can drop as much as thirty degrees. That can make outdoor dining a chilly affair. Not tonight. Tonight the air was so soft and balmy, it almost felt tropical. A perfect night for martinis on an open rooftop, where we could watch stars twinkle above and the city lights sparkle below, all around us. As we sipped our drinks, Bailey and I brought Toni up to speed on the case.
“So, girl hates dad and wants to pay him back for dumping mom and going for a younger version,” Toni said. “Girl meets boy who also hates her dad and wants to pay him back for stealing a script from his father. It’s a match made in heaven.”
“Young love is a beautiful thing,” I said.
“Think they’re having a blast in the Big Apple on daddy’s ransom money even as we speak?” Toni said.
“We don’t have confirmation that they actually boarded a flight yet. But I’m hoping-”
“It’d be the best thing if that’s how it works out,” Toni finished.
