“Sorry, Sir. We don’t have a guest by that name.” The receptionist behind the front desk smiles.

“You can’t miss the guy. He’s tall, in his early thirties, probably wears business suits all the time. He looks like this.” I prop my phone up on the granite surface of the counter and show her a picture of Caine Foster.

“I apologize. I don’t recognize him. We have many guests coming and going all the time, Sir.”

Motherfucker.

Jessica told me this is the hotel where Caine is staying. I could’ve figured it out myself because this is the best hotel in this small town, and he seems like the kind of guy who travels in style.

And yet, he’s gone. Disappeared like a ghost. It’s like he was never here.

I look around the hotel lobby, hoping to spot him sitting in the corner with an empty box of rat poison.

Yeah, I know that’s not likely, but I don’t know where else to look.

I tried asking Matt for help, but it’s no use. A guy like Caine values his privacy, and he has the money to protect it. There’s nothing I can do to find him.

It’s possible the receptionist is lying to me. I hate being lied to, but maybe it’s hotel policy to never reveal their guests’ details to strangers.

It’s also possible Caine has left town.

Based on Jessica’s story, even though Caine claimed he wanted to talk, he treated it like business. He gave and received information, then left when he was done. Like he was running on a tight schedule. He probably wouldn’t stay in town longer than he has to.

So that leaves Steve.

In the hotel parking lot, I hop onto my Harley Davidson and quickly check his address on my phone. Matt sent it to me when he first looked into the guy, thinking it might come in handy.

It doesn’t take me long to find Steve’s place. He lives in the nice side of the town where all the big houses are.

Well, big by small town standards. It doesn’t have a mile-long driveway or anything like that.

I park on the street and walk right up to the front door.

“Can I help you?” A woman opens the door. She’s probably in her fifties. Steve’s mom, maybe?

“Yes. I’m here to see Steve, Ma’am.” I want to beat the shit out of Steve if it turns out he’s the one responsible for poisoning Max and distressing Jessica, but I can’t be impolite to a lady. Call it a bad habit from my military days.

“Oh, he told me he’s waiting for a friend from Vita-ments.”

“That would be me.” I smile confidently, although I have no idea what she’s talking about.

“Come in,” she says, pulling the door open a little wider.

“Oh, no. I’m actually in a bit of a rush, Ma’am. I’d like to see him here if that’s okay.” I don’t want to break this nice lady’s antique vase with a stray punch, or stain her marble tiles with his son’s blood. If we’re going to fight this out, I’d rather do it outside.

“You’re asking so nicely I can’t possibly say no.” She smiles. “Wait here, please. I’ll get him.”

“Thank you, Ma’am.”

Steve looks exactly like the pictures I got from Matt. Which is to say, he looks nothing like his dating profile pictures. That must’ve been a surprise for Jessica.

“My mom said you were looking for me?” Steve frowns as he approaches the door. He looks apprehensive. People often find me intimidating due to my size, so that alone isn’t strange. He also looks genuinely confused, like he can’t possibly guess why a guy like me would be here looking for him.

“You’re Steve?”

“Yes,” he says.

“Then you’re the guy I’m looking for. Can you tell me where you’ve been all day?”

“Sorry, but what is this about?”

“I’m a private investigator. My client hired me to look into an incident involving her dog,” I say, drawing my inspiration from Matt’s work. If Steve has anything to do with poisoning Max at all, just the mention of a dog should be enough to make him nervous.

“Oh, no. Something happened around here?” Steve looks troubled. If he isn’t actually concerned about the safety of his neighborhood, then he’s a damn good actor.

“I can’t disclose the identity of my client. I hope you understand that. Can you please tell me where you’ve been all day?”

“Am I a suspect?”

“Perhaps you were in the right place at the right time and saw something.”

“I was home all day, working on the new presentation materials for Vita-ments. You can ask my Mom.”

“Vita-what?”

“Vita-ments. They’re supplements that contain vitamins and other good stuff that your body needs. They’re really good for your health. I can see you’re the kind of guy who cares about your health. You probably work out, right? I can tell by all your muscles. But your body could be lacking some nutri—“

“Thank you for your help, Steve. I don’t have any more questions.” I flash him a polite smile in an attempt to end the conversation. I can tell the guy wouldn’t stop unless I cut him off.

“Oh.” His face falls, but he’s not done trying. “Would you like to know more about Vita-ments anyway? You can come inside and we can have some drinks while we talk.”

“No, thanks. I have work to do. Maybe next time. Have a nice evening.” I turn to leave.

“Wait!” Steve grabs a small business card from his pocket and offers it to me. “Here’s my number. Call me whenever you want to chat.”

Damn. This guy is persistent. I take his card and walk away as quickly as I can, before he has a chance to start blabbing again.

On the ride home, I think about how badly I’ve handled this.

Obviously Steve has no fucking clue what that conversation was really about. And Caine? Even though he could still have possibly done it, it’s unlikely.

In other words, I’ve just wasted my time riding all over town, just to confirm all the things Jessica has already told me.

Fuck.

I guess I feel guilty because Max got poisoned under my watch. I should’ve kept an eye on him. I should’ve known something like that could happen.

And if it could happen to Max, it could happen to Jessica.

Obviously Jessica wouldn’t chow down on some weirdly colored mystery meat someone throws over the fence. But if someone could harm Max under my watch, then he could do the same to Jessica. That thought makes me really uncomfortable.

I’ve also been thinking about what Jessica said, about how all these things only started happening since I moved into town.

I wonder if I’m a trigger, if I’m the reason Jessica’s being intimidated. Maybe the guy is jealous of me. Maybe he wants Jessica for himself.

If I’m responsible for putting Jessica in this situation, then I should also be the one to get her out of it.

As soon as I get home, I park my bike in my driveway and walk to Jessica’s place.

Her home is still dark, which means she’s still out, but I can let myself in tonight. In her panic and confusion, Jessica left her house keys on the dining table, and I have them in my pocket now.

As soon as I’m inside, I take my usual spot on the couch and call Jessica, but all I get is her voicemail. I hang up and text her instead.

Jacob: where are you?

I guess I should collect the poisoned meat in the backyard for evidence. Maybe a lab can conduct some tests on it and figure out what really happened.

Or maybe I should just sit here in the dark and fucking think before I do anything.

Jessica: At the vet

Jessica: Not that you’d care, but the vet said Max may recover

Jessica: No thanks to you

Jessica: Where were you?

I hesitate. Jessica doesn’t sound too happy. I have a feeling telling her what I did wouldn’t improve her mood, but lying is not an option. Not if I want Jessica to trust me.

I type the words, stare at them for too long, then press the Send button.

I hope this is the right thing to say.

Jacob: I went to look for Steve and Caine

I wait with bated breath for the screen of my phone to light up with new notifications. I don’t have to wait long.

Jessica: I called the cops, so I don’t need you to do any more investigating

Jessica: Don’t sleep at my place either

Jessica: It’s not like you ever prevented any attacks

Jessica: Thanks anyway

Okay, I definitely did not say the right thing.