Garrett rolled his eyes to the ceiling before they rolled back to me and he demanded, “Just finish telling us what you found.”
“Not until you apologize for being rude.”
If I didn’t dislike this woman for obviously knowing Garrett well, I would’ve liked her.
“That shit might work on the boss—God knows you’ve got him wrapped around your sassy little finger—but you know that shit doesn’t work on me.”
“Okay. Have a good day. Talk—”
“Stop fucking around and finish,” he growled.
“Damn, you’re grouchier than your normal grouchy,” she muttered. “Take a joke.”
“I’ll take a fucking joke when my old man’s not recovering from an accident that nearly took him from my mother and I’m not standing in the living room of an old friend who’s sticking her neck out there investigating Slater while at the same time trying to help her parents get custody of her niece and nephew. So do me a favor, yeah, and just tell me what you found.”
That was harsh.
True, but harsh.
However, I was having trouble breathing after Garrett had plunged a knife into my heart so I couldn’t say anything.
An old friend.
That’s what I was? An old fucking friend. Not his ex-fiancée. Not the woman he’d asked to marry him. Not the woman who he’d planned a future with. Not the woman who had at one time loved him beyond measure.
I was a fucking friend?
“Right, Sorry, G.” She sounded sorry and when she went on, she was all business. “Slater collected on the life insurance. It went into his bank account and within a month it was gone. All cash withdrawals. Some ATM. But the larger sums were done in the bank.”
What? All of Analise’s life insurance was gone?
“Where’d the money go?” I asked.
“That’s gonna be harder to trace,” Kira told me. “But from what I found and this hasn’t been verified, he gambles and he’s not very good at it. Do either of you know Steve Metzbower? He lives in Blackhawk.”
Steve Metzbower was almost as much of an asshole as Slater was.
“Yeah, that’s Slater’s friend,” I answered. “He was the best man at my sister’s wedding when she married Slater. He’s also Christian’s godfather, that’s how close Slater and Steve are.”
“I don’t remember a Steve Metzbower,” Garrett said.
“Sure you do. He was two years older than you in high school. He’s the idiot that got drunk the night of your senior prom and drove his truck onto the football field and did donuts,” I reminded Garrett.
“Bowser?” he sneered.
“Yeah, that was his nickname.”
Garrett’s brows pulled together, and his lip curled. “He had a reputation for chasing freshman.”
“Yep. His first wife was about five years younger than him. But his second wife was eighteen when he married her, and he was thirty-two. He’s a dick. Him and Slater are a match made in hell. When the two of them are out together there’s gonna be trouble.”
I could hear what sounded like typing in the background before Kira asked, “Has Steve or Slater ever mentioned betting on sports?”
I didn’t have to think about my answer, but I did have to shove my hands into my pockets to stop them from shaking so hard.
“Yeah,” I mumbled, not wanting the memory to take root.
“Mellie Kate?” Garrett called. “Need more than that, baby.”
Baby.
An old friend.
Mellie Kate.
I wish he’d stick to Melissa instead of twisting his blade.
As much as I didn’t want to talk about how I knew Slater gambled nor did I want Garrett or this Kira person in my business, I needed anything I could find to help my parents get the kids from Slater.
It was with that in mind—and my negative bank balance meaning I couldn’t afford to hire the private investigator our attorney had recommended—I begrudgingly answered, “The first time I ever saw Slater get into my sister’s face and scream at her it was because she was upset they were going to be late on their rent because he lost money betting on a Raiders game.”
I watched Garrett’s jaw get tight but that was not what held my attention. It was the tension in his frame, the way his fury seemed to suck all the oxygen out of the room. It was overwhelming and scary and had me taking a step back.
Which turned out to be a good thing when he exploded, “He did what now?”
There had been a time when Garrett was close to my family. Well, not my brother but he’d had a friendly relationship with my sister before she’d turned wild. I knew her turn had worried him, then the longer it went on it annoyed him. But more than a handful of times he’d talked to me about his unease, especially when she hit her twenties and hadn’t snapped out of it.
“Mellie?” he growled.
“He got in her face a lot, but that was the first time I saw it. After that…he…well…” I stumbled over my words not wanting to further enrage Garrett.
“He what?”
“He didn’t hide he was a verbally abusive dick. Though he never did it in front of Mom and Dad.”
Garrett opened his mouth to say something, but Kira cut in and hissed, “What an asshole! I’m gonna look into Laurie McCabe and see if makin’ an approach would be something she’d be receptive to.”
“Who’s Laurie McCabe?” I asked.
“The woman who refused to press charges after Slater Boone beat the shit out of her.”
Well, that explained why our attorney didn’t find anything on Slater when he ran a background check.
“Send cash.” Garrett’s demand made my shoulders tense.
“Why do you need money? Are you going to pay this woman off?” I asked.
“Cash is a person and I’m gonna need him out here to help me look into Slater while I’m taking care of my dad. Once he’s home and no longer terrorizing the nurses at the rehab center I’ll be able to devote more time to this. Until then, I need to make sure Dad doesn’t get kicked out, meaning my mom will lose her mind and she’s worried enough as it is.”
Marion.
Damn, I needed to call her and ask her to lunch. But first I needed to put a stop to this.
“I can’t afford—”
“You’re not paying.”
My mouth must’ve dropped open or my throat closed—one or the other happened since I couldn’t get either to form an argument. Which was unfortunate when Garrett continued to give his directives.
“Get Cash out here and dig deeper into the gambling angle. With Analise being gone it’s gonna be impossible to prove the abuse. The Rivers family needs to prove Slater is unfit to raise his children. I’m not sure if a gambling addiction will stand up in court but it will if they can prove he’s putting his children in danger because of it. Get whatever you can on Steve Metzbower—anything you can find on him. And Kira, if you feel up to taking a trip out to Montana, I’m thinking it would be best for you to approach Laurie.”
“Already booked Cash on a flight leaving tomorrow morning flying into Glacier Park International,” Kira started. “I’ll talk to Coop when he’s out of his meeting and see if he wants to come with me. Him being an ex-cop might come in handy if we have to deal with the local law enforcement. Either way, I’ll be out in the next few days, too.”