Read Vanished (Private Justice Book #1): A Novel for Free Online

the sensitive type.”
    “You wouldn’t last a day around here if you were.” Cal grinned at her.
    “Too true.” She shook her head. “You guys all need to find a good woman and settle down. That would mellow you out—and maybe teach you to keep your offices clean.” She shot a pointed look toward Dev, which he ignored.
    But she was right, Cal conceded. A good woman could have a profound effect on a man’s life.
    Tamping down that melancholy thought, he opened the file folder. “Let’s see what you found.” He examined the data Nikki had compiled. All the blanks on the background sheet had been filled in, including Moira Harrison’s age. Thirty-three. Two years younger than him. Nikki had also clipped several printouts to the back of it. “Nice work. Fast too.”
    “I try. I printed out a few of her articles from the Springfield News-Leader and attached them. She’s a real crusader. Take a look at the first sheet behind the questionnaire.”
    Cal flipped over the form. It was an article dated a year ago, not by Moira but about her. His eyebrows rose at the headline.
    NEWS-LEADER REPORTER NOMINATED FOR PULITZER PRIZE
    He scanned the article. She’d been nominated in the Investigative Reporting category for a series that exposed two city council members for taking bribes, shaking down companies for political contributions, and creating ghost jobs for friends, family, and political cronies. Both had been indicted and were awaiting trial.
    No wonder she’d gotten an offer from a bigger paper.
    He turned the clipping around for Dev to see.
    His partner gave a soft whistle. “The lady’s no slouch, that’s for sure. And that lends a bit more weight to her story.”
    No kidding.
    “This is very helpful, Nikki. Thanks.” Cal set the clipped papers on his desk.
    “Well, back to the salt mines.” Dev stood and gestured for Nikki to precede him. “Will you work on my files if I say pretty please?”
    “I might be able to squeeze it in later this afternoon.”
    “I’ll throw in a latte from Starbucks tomorrow.”
    “Sold. And make it soy, no whip.”
    As the two of them disappeared down the hall, Cal leaned back in his chair, rested his elbows on the arms, and steepled his fingers.
    A Pulitzer prize–nominated investigative reporter had serious credibility. If Moira Harrison said she’d seen a person—or two—on the road Friday night, he was more inclined than ever to believe her. Even if she hadn’t been wearing her glasses.
    But believing her wasn’t enough to get to the bottom ofthis mystery. And unless he came up with more than he had now, there wasn’t a whole lot he could do to help her.
    Much as he wanted to.

    “Sorry. I burned the pork chops and had to start over. Thank goodness I married a patient man.”
    As Linda huffed out her apology, Moira shifted sideways on the bench to watch her friend approach. Some things never changed. Linda had been perennially late in J-school too. But she always showed five or ten minutes after the appointed time for their twice-a-week walk. Moira gave her watch a discreet glance as she rose. Today it was five.
    “No problem. Who could complain about waiting in a place like this?” She gestured to the ducks on the lake and the bed of tulips in front of the pavilion. “Thanks for telling me about it.”
    “Tilles Park is a gem.” Linda did a sweep of the picturesque setting. “And best of all, it’s almost in our backyards. So how did the meeting with the PI go?” She struck off toward the circular road that wound through the park.
    “Okay, I guess.” Moira fell in beside her. “The firm seemed more reputable than I expected.”
    “My guy at County gave it high marks. Cal Burke in particular. I got the impression they worked together on a few cases until Burke retired.”
    Moira sent her a questioning look. “He’s too young to be retired.”
    “Don’t be too sure. A lot of public servants can kiss off their jobs after twenty or twenty-five