Page 17 of Girl, Empty (Ella Dark #27)

Ella’s office now consisted of two women and several mountains of paper that were growing fast. They’d requested all of the security documentation for Morrison half corporate consultant speak, half carnival barker.

With decades of unparalleled experience on the world stage, David Lorraine understands that what you see is never the full story.

Witness how David can transform your risk profile with a proactive, holistic approach to penetration testing that will simply astound you.

Don't just secure your assets. Let David show you the secrets that turn every lock into a mere suggestion. The impossible is his specialty!

‘What the hell is he talking about?’ Ripley asked over Ella’s shoulder. ‘This is nonsense.’

‘It’s typical corporate jargon. Let me check his social media.’

Over on David Lorraine’s personal profile, a different picture emerged.

The banner at the top of the screen showed David Lorraine – the same silver-bearded consultant from the professional page – holding a playing card that was on fire.

Ella checked his most recent pictures, and all of them showed him leaning over various tables with playing cards in his hands.

‘Hey, he’s a magician,’ Ripley said. ‘Maybe we should hire him.’

The term magic had been rolling around in Ella’s head since this case began, but she’d avoided going too deep down that route because it simply felt foolish.

But then she thought of Mark Miller’s words from earlier that day.

It’s like some kind of… illusion. And now, looking at the words plastered below David Lorraine’s pompous gesturing on the banner in front of her – Nothing Is Impossible – she figured it was time to entertain this train of thought.

She scrolled past David’s most recent photos, down to his newest posts. The top one had been posted three hours ago: Magic Afternoon at Murphy's Pub on Walker Boulevard. 3 PM Today! Come And See Close-Up Miracles and Mind-Bending Illusions!

‘We don’t need to hire him. He’s doing a show in…’ – Ella checked the time – ‘one hour.’

‘Ugh. I hope he’s good.’

‘I hope he’s a murderer. Should we take backup?’

Ripley was already grabbing her coat. ‘To arrest some wizard-looking guy in a bar? No chance. We do this ourselves.’

Ella idly wondered whether a professional magician would be able to slip the handcuffs should she have to slap them on him, or whether that was a myth.

Then she burned David Lorraine’s face into her mind’s eye and asked herself whether or not this man could be the phantom that drifted through these corporate buildings unseen and left two people for dead.

She wasn’t sure.

‘Hey,’ Ripley said, ‘didn’t Michael Rankin’s daughter say something about a magician? One named David.’

A violent surge of self-recrimination slapped Ella around the face. Her perfect memory had definitely taken a hit recently, and Emma Rankin's mention of David – her mom's apparently magic friend – should have registered immediately. ‘Good catch. Can’t believe I missed that.’

‘Don’t sweat it. Ready to see some miracles?’

Ella had grabbed her things and placed her hand on the door. She had a good feeling about this, but she knew it was best never to put all of your eggs in one basket, especially in this game.

So there was something she needed to do before they left.

‘Go ahead. I’ll meet you outside. I just need to speak with Riggs real quick.’