Page 46 of Gator

I wandered around, taking a closer look. There was one of a buffalo out in a field. One of a river that was running through a tree-lined swamp, the branches reaching all the way down to brush the top of the water. The one that gave me pause was a stunning shot of a mountain lion that was standing on a large rock overlooking a canyon. He was silhouetted by the sun setting behind him, and it looked like it belonged on the cover of a magazine.

“How close did you have to get to take that picture?”

“Not as close as you might think. I have some really good equipment.”

“Wow, Gator, I don’t even know what to say. You’re a man of many talents.”

He winked at me. “We haven’t even scratched the surface of my talents yet,mon petit. Now, where should we put this cage? I was thinking right over there.”

“That would work. It would give her a great view out the window.”

He pushed the cage to the spot he’d indicated. “Let’s go get you a key card that will get you up here and in the condo, then we will get the rest of your stuff from the apartment. Once we have Trixie situated, I’ll give you a tour of the rest of the condo.”

“The rest? You mean there’s more?”

“Yes, there are two spare bedrooms, a study, and of course, my favorite, the owner’s suite. If you like this, wait until you see my bathroom.”

“Well, I can’t wait.”

We took the elevator down to the eighth floor and walked over to Kat’s desk. I realized that a lot of the people who worked here lived in the building, but I swear she lived at her desk. I’d never been down here when she wasn’t sitting there.

“Hey, Kat,” Gator said, sitting down in the chair next to her and motioning for me to sit in the one opposite her desk. “Anything to report?”

“Nothing so far. Chance wants to do this all by the book, so they’re waiting on a warrant to search Wade Roarke’s place.”

“But isn’t there some rule that if someone is in danger or being held there that they can go in?” I asked.

“Sure, if they have evidence someone’s being held on the property, but they don’t have that. The odds of them keeping anyone captive in a place we can trace back to them that easily is highly unlikely.”

“I’m sure Chance is doing everything he can,” Gator said to me before turning to Kat. “Can you reprogram Julius’s card so he has access to the tenth floor, my condo specifically?”

“Sure, do you have it with you?”

“I do.” I pulled my card out and handed it to her. She popped it in a slot and then went to work on her keyboard. It didn’t take her but a second before she handed me back the card.

“And, Kat, can you get me some trackers for Julius?” I looked at him. “Just until this is over. It would make me feel better if I knew I could find you if something happened.”

“Tracker?” he asked.

“Yes, it would be something no one would suspect was a tracker.”

“Maybe a diamond stud,” Kat suggested. “That seems to fit your vibe. And a bracelet of some kind. You seem to always have on plenty of jewelry, so it wouldn’t draw attention.”

He looked at me, concern in his eyes. “You really think it’s necessary?”

“I don’t know, but it wouldn’t hurt.”

“Okay, but just until this is all over.”

“I can have that all ready for you by the end of the day.” Kat gave Julius a reassuring smile. “You’re in good hands.”

“Thanks, Kat. I’m not sure how Gator and the guys would run this place without you.”

“We don’t either,” I agreed. “And we don’t want to find out.” Kat just rolled her eyes at the praise. “You’re all set. And, Julius?”

“Yeah?”

“Gator’s right. We’re all doing everything we can to find Noah.”