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“My gut says yes.”
“Your gut is enough for me, but we have to color inside the lines of the law. What else you got? Because we have no signs of the sister at the house.”
“I fucking know this. What I don’t know is how she isn’t clocked on any of the videos. That bitch is a lot of things, but a ghost isn’t one of them.”
“If Rylee Richards did this, she’d have to know when Willow wasn’t home and plan. I read Willow’s statement. Run through the day with me again, from your point of view.”
Robbie’s one of the best in his field. Intelligence, security, high-stake situations, there’s a reason people hire Hayes Security.
His request is normal, but it still pisses me off.
“I left here for the station around six. She left soon after to take Wolf home. Security monitors show her leaving her home at seven-thirty. She met Bex and Lucas for coffee before work. Her grandma, Rosie, came over at one to let Wolf out and stayed for an hour. Back camera shows her talking to the neighbor for most of that time. Couple of notifications throughout the day from the system—pest control, lawn service, mailman, a few deliveries for neighbors—nothing out of the ordinary. At five-fifteen, the asshole rang her bell, didn’t get an answer, and waited around. When she pulled into her spot, and I saw her reaction, I knew who he was and was already on the move.
“Got there, listened to his bullshit, and called him out. That’s when Lo realized Wolf wasn’t barking. We got into the house and you know the rest.”
“Any chance we can get our hands on that jar of peanut butter?”
“I think Willow threw away the jar the day she was released from the hospital,” I grind out, knowing our chance of testing it for evidence is probably gone. “It also means Rylee came prepared.”
“We didn’t itemize the pantry contents; I’ll go over and check,” Ace offers. “It’ll help a hell of a lot since there are no unusual fingerprints at her place.”
Robbie crosses his arms and glares at me sharply. “Finn has a point, albeit a stretch, but it is possible this was a random break-in. Willow didn’t dispose of the peanut butter, and the robber didn’t count on the dog. They used it as a distraction, having no idea it was poisoned.”
“This was no coincidence,” I repeat. “That was a huge fucking stretch.”
“Or,” he goes on, “this was personal as you suspect. Don’t know Rylee Richards but heard enough to know she’s irrational. Sounds like a spoiled little rich girl who had no qualms about fucking her sister’s man. But is she smart enough to pull this off? You got a profile?”
“Spoiled is an understatement.” I give him the rundown on Rylee, including what Willow and Chase have shared. “And she’s recently had a shitload of bad luck.”
Robbie’s eyes light with approval. “You have something to do with her losing her job and the rest?”
I shrug indifferently.
“Well, I have it on good authority that she showed at Clyde’s after the salon incident. Wanted to special order some high-dollar bridesmaid shit. Cruz and Ember politely declined her business. Somehow, word got out, and she was turned away from most reputable places in the city.”
For the first time in hours, I crack a smile. “Funny how that happens.”
“Now we need to figure out what provoked her today,” Finn chimes in. “She doesn’t strike me as a mastermind. Spiking the peanut butter for Willow happened a while ago.”
“Jealousy and insanity,” Ford adds his two cents.
“Wynn dropped her and she got desperate,” I state, my mind slapping it all together. “We need to talk to Sterling and Chase. Last I heard, Rylee was expecting her dad to help her out of the community service. He was coping with his obligation to both his daughters and carries a lot of guilt. Betting Rylee’s asked for money recently. If he refused, that could have set her off.”
“Sounds like a classic case of misplaced anger.” Ace locks eyes with me. “You gonna tell Willow this?”
“At some point. She’s been looking forward to tomorrow night’s party for weeks. Rylee doesn’t get to ruin it. I need answers from her dad to proceed.”
“Hayes Security is on this.” The authority in Robbie’s statement is matter-of-fact.
“I’m not standing down.”
“Not asking you to. But you’re in a uniform and your girlfriend’s at the center of an open case now. You want to take her down, you have to ride the line. We don’t. Our methods are much more productive without boundaries.”
It makes sense. Being a part of the Hayes Security team as a contractor last year was a sightline into the world of how the man operates. “I want in the loop.”
“You will be, but you’ll be free and clear of any gray area that could potentially affect your future. Take it from me, I’ve been there.”
“Fuck.” His words slice like a knife.