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them to spend time on a missing person when they have rapes and murders to deal with.” I thought quickly. “There’s not enough of me to do everything, but what about I bring in another PI agency just to do a missing person check on Troy? I can brief them and keep it very separate from everything else, so there should be no problem with any confidentiality issues. They might find him, or find some clues as to what happened that might get the police to concentrate more on it.”
    She gave it some thought. I could imagine her sitting in her executive chair in her fancy office, and I wondered which cogs were turning in her mind—how much this was going to cost or how quickly Troy could be found.
    “Okay, Amber,” she said. “I’ll go with it. What do I have to do?”
    “Come down here. Make the call from the apartment, make the police come to you.”
    “On my way.” She hung up.
    I flipped through my contacts and dialed. The Georgia voice that answered was beautifully deep and gravelly, like smooth river rocks grinding together. We had worked with each other before and I would keep him on my list just to get that Dixie molasses poured in my ear from time to time.
    “Victor! How goes it, Mr. G?”
    “Well ’nuff, Amber. Whatcha doing calling me while I’m off work and restin’ at home?”
    I laughed. “You’re never off work. And you know that little button on the top of your cell? It’s called an off switch.”
    “Uppity like always. Whatcha need, girl?”
    Victor Gayle ran the biggest small PI firm in town. His specialty was more along the lines of security and bodyguards, but I rated his team as good investigators as well.
    “I need a missing persons investigation, Vic.”
    “Oh, you want me to find why you got no clients?”
    “Ha ha, so funny, big man.” I grinned anyway. “No. I’m working a related investigation and I can’t quite cover this as well. The police are going to be involved but I don’t think they’ll treat it seriously enough unless some more evidence turns up. Or alternatively, we find the guy and we can close this part of the case.”
    I ran through a quick account of Troy’s details, and what I had found or not found at the apartment. I could tell Victor was curious as to how this linked with my case, but he didn’t pry. He said he would email me a reminder of his terms and promised to get someone on it in the morning.
    Shortly after I’d hung up, the lobby door buzzer sounded. I checked the image—Jennifer and her driver—and let them in the building. It would be worth checking if the video intercom system stored images as well. I unlocked the door to the apartment.
    “Amber!” Jennifer came through the door and looked at me, appalled. I hadn’t forgotten the fight, but I had forgotten that I would be showing signs of it. The bruises hadn’t matured yet, but my chin was raw and scraped and my lip was split.
    “Ah, yes.” I rubbed my face gently. “I took a short cut through an alley on the way here and a couple of guys attacked me. It’s nothing.”
    She stared at me. “Hardly nothing.”
    I shrugged it off and, after warning them not to touch anything, I led her around and showed her the details I had seen and the conclusions I had drawn. I handed her back the keys along with Victor’s contact information.
    “Time to call the police, Jen. And time for me to go. The police may see me on the security footage and if they ask you about it, you’ll have to say I’m investigating. Until then, play it that you just came here and were concerned by the things I’ve pointed out.”
    An odd little smile flickered over her face as she got her cell out.
    Her call connected and she said brightly, “José, hello! It’s Jen.”
    I did a double take. Surely, she wasn’t calling Captain Morales?
    “Yes, I’m fine,” she said. “I’m so sorry to disturb you at this hour, I know how hard you work, but I just don’t know who else to turn to. You’ve already helped me