Page 24 of Dangerous Deviance

“Look,” Derek said, interrupting my internal rant, “I agree. Muro has never been trustworthy. But we’ve got to know what he’s up to before we do anything that might affect the family.” He tilted his head. “Because I’m not going to let anything happen to our family.” He straightened. “We’ll send Ethan to spy.”

Ethan? Our half-brother who skipped out on us for a woman?

“You’re kidding me,” I said.

Derek shrugged. “He’s been good to us. He’ll do the job.”

I sighed. A few minutes passed. Though Sage City and Brackston were the two biggest cities in our state, there was a two-lane highway between them. The car’s engine hummed, filling the silence. This deep into the state, you couldn’t see or smell the coast, and it didn’t drizzle with rain. It was just dry.

“Anything new with Ellie?” Derek asked.

I shook my head. “Still doesn’t remember anything.”

“You put any thought into contacting Kiley?”

Kiley was a genealogist back in Las Vegas. At least, that’s what her business card said. In reality, she was somewhat of a personal detective and a hacker, and so skilled at it that her name often came up in business discussions. She could find anything about anyone; she only needed a thread or two to get started. We knew her through our contacts in the area, and though she was one of the best at her job, she wasn’t the easiest person to be around. This is coming from me, a man who can smooth talk with almost anyone… Except Muro.

I couldn’t shake that feeling of distrust with Muro, which meant I had a hard time faking the charm.

And Kiley. She wasn’t my favorite person to contact either.

“You think that’s a good idea?” I asked.

“You said it yourself. She’s the best.” Derek shrugged. “If anyone can do it, she can.”

I sighed and dialed her number right then. Screw it. Why not, right? I had promised to help Ellie, and Kiley was my best shot at keeping that promise.

“Yo, asshole,” Kiley said.

I shook my head. “Look,” I said, “I’ve got an issue I need help dealing with—”

“I don’t get a ‘hi, how are you?’ No excuse, like, ‘I’m awful at keeping in touch but I never stopped writing you letters, Kiley?’”

I held back a sigh. She could be difficult, and this wasn’t even Kiley in her prime.

“What’s up, Kiley?”

“Thanks, asshole,” she said. “Now, that wasn’t so hard, was it?”

“Anyway,” I said, pausing, waiting for her to interrupt me, but when she didn’t, I continued: “I’ve got a situation. A woman was gifted to me and she has a pretty bad memory.” And by that, I meant almost nothing. “Doesn’t remember where she came from. She just knows she’s looking for her sister. Can’t remember where her sister went though.”

“Huh. Amnesia. Haven’t dealt with one of those in a while,” Kiley snickered. “What’s her name?”

“Ellie.”

“Is that her nickname or her first name?”

I thought it over. Had Ellie mentioned that? “Not sure,” I finally said.

“You got a last name?”

“No.”

“Then figure it out. Bonus if you get the sister’s name too.”

“I thought that’s what you do,” I said. “Youfigure it out. That’s your superpower.”

“Cut the crap, Wil. It’s not like I’m asking for much,” she argued. “I need her name.”