People walked through the lobby in groups of varying size, chatting, watching their phones, or simply silent as they went about their business. Rico watched them casually, checking his watch to monitor the time. It was nearing the moment Jett was supposed to meet him and Rico found himself growing antsy as the minutes ticked by.

Jett’s face appeared in the sea of people shifting around the lobby and Hernandez felt his body tense. Bewilderment flushed through him as he spotted the familiar magenta weaving around Jett as he walked over. If he had been confused when the aura was missing at their last meeting, Rico was even more confused to see it had returned. The aura around soulmates didn’t simply flicker on and off whenever it felt like it. It was always a constant presence when the two people were around each other, yet Rico was witnessing the impossible.

Jett stopped in front of Rico, peering up at him with a raised brow. “You look like someone just snuck up and smacked you in the back of the head with a frying pan.”

It pulled Hernandez from his confusion with a snort. “Do you live your life as if it were a cartoon skit?”

“It certainly helps to get through life sometimes, but no, I live my life as if I were on a stage at all times. It’s way more fun,” Jett answered with a grin.

Rico shook his head, turning to push the call button for the elevator. “Somehow, I don’t have a hard time picturing it. I imagine you even have a spotlight on you in your mental picture.”

“I’m just amazed you have an imagination at all,” Jett said from beside him.

Rico looked at him askance. “And I’m amazed you spare a thought for anyone but yourself.”

Rather than looking insulted, Jett looked delighted. “Oh ho! There’s the wit and almost a sense of humor I thought I spotted earlier. It does exist!”

Rico snorted, stepping into the elevator. “Mr. Richards, if you could manage to maintain the appearance of being capable of seriousness, I would appreciate it.”

“I am the absolute embodiment of professionalism. And for the love of God, call me Jett. Mr. Richards was my dad,” Jett retorted as he followed.

Rico glanced at him, trying not to smile. “Let me guess, your father was a perfectly respectable man who worked a nine-to-five and you grew up absolutely hating the normalcy of your life.”

Jett snickered. “You know, normally, I would take offense to someone trying to sum up my life so short and sweet, but I won’t even try to deny it. My dad was so much like you, straight-laced and uptight. I loved the man, don’t get me wrong, but there was only so much ‘normalcy’ I could take before I felt like I was going insane. What about you? Were you the type to grow up on a base and loved it so much you fell into it, or were you raised in an environment which was the total opposite of the rigorously regimented life you set up for yourself now?”

Rico pulled the card necessary to reach the 83^rd floor and slid it through the card reader. “Somehow, I get the feeling no matter what I say, you’ll have your own version of events written and sent out to the publisher by the time I’ve finished.”

“I notice you’re avoiding answering the question, Detective,” Jett said, waiting until the 83^rd button lit up and jabbing it.

“If you expect me to refer to you on a first name basis, then you might as well call me by mine.”.

Jett grinned. “And how am I supposed to, when you haven’t even told me your name?”

Rico raised a brow. “Do you expect me to believe you didn’t read the identification you stole from me?”

“Stole infers I had no intention of returning it, I borrowed it, Rico,” Jett said, humming to himself suddenly.

Rico snorted. “Going straight for my nickname?”

“I think Rico sounds more fun than Ricardo. Why, do you take offense?” Jett asked between the notes of the song.

Rico didn’t reply, choosing to face forward silently in an attempt to ignore the flip of his stomach. The aura around Jett was strong, even more so now that the two of them were pressed close together in the confines of the elevator. It wasn’t thick enough for Rico to miss the easy smile on Jett’s face, though, and he didn’t like his body’s reaction to the sight. Internally, he chided himself for being willing to be charmed so easily by a handsome face and a good smile. He made a mental note to let off steam soon. It had been too long since the last time he had been with someone.

When the doors finally opened, Rico stepped out, pointing to the overhead camera. “Here is the camera I mentioned.”

Jett stepped out, sidestepping to the left, to the right, and in a small circle. “It follows movement whenever someone comes within its viewing angle. Makes it tricky to fool.”

Rico nodded. “They haven’t skimped on state of the art security in the hotel. Miss Morgan informs me the updates have come courtesy of Mr. Herrington. Apparently, he’s fonder of gadgets and the latest and greatest than she is.”

Jett nodded, looking around the small entryway and nodding toward the double doors leading into the suite. “Lead on, Detective Hernandez.”

Rico led him through the double doors, which opened into the immediate sitting area of the suite. The sitting area stretched to the left, toward the well-stocked kitchen and bar, continuing into the dining area. To the right, the sitting area opened up into what Rico assumed was meant to be a living room of sorts, which continued until it hit a wall, on the other side of which lay the bedroom. The entire outer wall of the suite was lined with panes of glass, a view of the city stretching out in every direction.

Jett whistled as he stepped forward, running his hand over the back of a richly decorated chair. “Now there’s a view for you.”

Rico nodded. “The entire suite, and I believe the apartment above, are on motors which allow the suite to be turned in a complete circle at the guest’s discretion.”

Jett stopped, peering down at the space before the windows. “And the pool?”

Rico chuckled, having been bemused by the suite’s version of a pool when he’d first seen it as well. It ran the perimeter of every part of the suite, save the bedroom. Rico had followed it from end to end, discovering the bordering pool ended before the bedroom, in a semi-circle before the hot tub. On the other end, it widened into what Rico would consider a true pool, a wide circle of clear water rather than the ‘river’ the pool made around the perimeter of the suite.

“Yes, the pool,” Rico repeated.

Jett glanced between the water and the windows. “How the hell was that a good design? If you’re paying the sort of money to rent the suite, you should be able to enjoy the view up close without having to soak themselves.”

Rico led Jett along the edge of the pool, gesturing to where the pool arched away from the wall, where a ledge sat against the wall of windows. Before Jett could ask, Rico moved over to one of the nearby panels on the wall, fingering a few lit buttons and waited. The soft noise of a motor could be heard, and a small band of carpeted metal extended out from the living room area over the water. It stopped at the small platform, forming a walkway.

Jett let out a delighted laugh. “Now, there’s the kind of quality I was hoping to see when I came up here.”

Rico snorted. “There are other platforms along the rest of the suite with similar walkways. The panels are all over the suite and control everything from the walkways you see here, the temperature, the hot tub, the lights, and even the windows.”

Jett looked up the tall expanse of glass. “The windows?”

Rico tapped another series of buttons until the glass began to darken. “Shadeless windows.”

Jett gave another noise of delight. “Well, would you look at that? The windows would be the absolute best part of the whole suite if it wasn’t for the giant blood smear over them.”

“The forensics team doesn’t clean up. The suite will be closed off to the public until the department thinks we’ll no longer need it for our investigation. Afterward, it will be cleaned, and Miss Morgan can have full use of it again.”

Jett looked over his shoulder, grinning. “And I’m sure Stephanie is absolutely thrilled at the idea of losing her best suite to a blood smear.”

“She lost it because someone was murdered. Miss Morgan is fully aware of the seriousness and has been very helpful in the investigation.”

Jett nodded, turning back to admire the wall of windows again. “Oh, I bet she is, anything she can do to get her precious suite back. Don’t get me wrong, I understand. I bet she put a lot of money into the windows alone. She’ll want to get her money back and then some with a place like this.”

Rico stepped away from the panel after making sure the windows were transparent again. “The sort of material used to create windows of this size and with this feature would probably have cost more than all the furniture they’ve put in this place, including the monster bed.”

Jett turned to him, eyes wide. “Ooh, now I have to see the bed.”

Rico obliged him, shaking his head without a word when Jett cooed over the bed. In Rico’s approximation, the bed was larger than it had any business being. It looked as if someone had taken two king sized beds and shoved them together. He hadn’t checked, but he imagined there was no noticeable seam in the sprawling bed.

Jett was apparently impressed enough with the opulence for the both of them, running his hands all over the furniture and walls. The place was a little too rich for Rico’s taste, but he acknowledged it had its own beauty. There was certainly enough to appeal to someone, if only for the various controls the panels all over the suite provided. Even he had been impressed by the windows.

Jett turned, eyes glittering. “I won’t lie, this is the first time in a long time I’ve really felt in awe. They put a lot of time and effort into making this suite as spectacular and awe inspiring as possible.”

“And more money than most people will ever see in a lifetime,” Rico grunted.

Jett shook his head. “Even you have to admit it’s impressive.”

“You don’t strike me as the type to be awestruck by a shiny hotel room.”

Jett laughed, peering up at one of the overhead vents. “I work in a career which relies on illusion and grandstanding. After a while, you start to lose some of the wonder so many people hold onto. But when I’m standing in the middle of a place which represents the technological accomplishment of mankind wrapped up in their clever eye for detail, I can’t help but be impressed.”

Rico hadn’t quite seen it that way, having been distracted by the gold gilding on the furniture and the sparkling, probably crystal, glasses on the bar. When he thought about the thrill of excitement which had run through him as he watched the wall of windows shift to dark, he could understand Jett’s point a little better.

Jett seemed unaware he had made a thought-provoking comment and continued. “By the way, it’s okay I’ve been touching everything, right?”

Rico shrugged. “Forensics already combed the place as thoroughly as they could. Probably should have given you gloves, but they opened the crime scene for me to bring you here, so it’s fine.”

Jett nodded. “Good, because I want to give it a better look over than I’ve been doing.”

“By all means.”

“The problem is, this check isn’t going to do a whole lot of good,” Jett said as he crouched out of sight on the other side of the bed.

“Why?” Rico asked, craning his neck to catch sight of what Jett was doing.

Jett popped into view again. “Well, because there’s no way there’s a trap door or secret entrance around here.”

Rico crossed his arms over his chest. “I’ll admit, I’m a little surprised. When you told me your theory, it sounded the most logical.”

Jett nodded, moving to leave the bedroom and heading out into the living room. “I said it before I’d actually seen the place though. You were right about the vents, they’re too tiny for anyone to slip through. We could always move the furniture to check for a door, but I can’t imagine that’s the answer.”

Rico thought about it. “How would there be a door beneath the furniture without being noticed? Someone leaving through the door would have to have a way to place the furniture back in its place.”

“Which could be done of course, but I didn’t spot any of the telltale signs. There’s no way beneath the bed either. I checked everywhere. Pretty sure the bed’s foundation is thick wood surrounding a solid base of some sort,” Jett mused as he walked to the inner wall.

Rico watched him run his hands over the wall, knocking occasionally. “So, the next step would be the floors and walls, correct?”

“If there really is a motor built into the bottom of the suite which allows it to turn, it would be quite the feat to build a trap door in it. Between the machinery needed to turn the floor, and the supports they’d need to build to keep the floor steady and safely in the building below it, someone would have to be very careful when constructing a way out through the floor. The kind of careful where there’s no way someone could get away with it without being noticed. And you’re sure Stephanie doesn’t know of any secret ways in and out of here?” Jett asked, all the while bending and stretching to tap the wall.

“Miss Morgan was absolutely adamant there has been no remodeling to the suite to create any other entrance or exit other than the elevator.”

Jett sighed. “Well, then there is no secret entrance. These walls are way too thin to give way to a secret hatch of sorts. They would have to build supports to keep it from falling in on itself, and again, you wouldn’t be able to get away with it without someone having noticed at some point.”

Before Rico could reply, his phone buzzed in his pocket. “Ah, the coroner’s report.”

“Anything fun and gory?”

Rico shook his head, frowning as he read. “Cause of death was a single gunshot wound to the chest, which we already know. And the coroner reports the time of death as being at eleven PM, give or take fifteen minutes.”

“Didn’t you say Oliver was seen leaving at eleven thirty?”

“11:24 PM precisely,” Rico said, sliding his phone back into his coat.

“Well, now, that creates quite the little conundrum doesn’t it?” Jett asked with a thoughtful look.

Rico watched him, letting the man think without interruption. All things considered, Rico was impressed by Jett’s attention to detail and his complete breakdown of the suite. Rico hadn’t realized Jett had been analyzing the room while he was walking about, admiring the suite’s features. While Rico had been patiently waiting for Jett to begin, the magician had started working the moment he had exited the elevator, all while appearing to do otherwise. It was Jett’s first sleight of hand that he was genuinely impressed by.

With a grimace, Rico forced himself to be honest with himself. The truth was, between looking like he hadn’t been working while actually thinking hard and the neat breakdown of facts, Jett had managed to turn Rico on a little. He was an absolute sucker for someone with a quick and able mind, and beneath all the ego and glamor, Jett apparently had it in spades.

Jett was lost in a world of his own, one Rico recognized. He imagined it was the same expression he wore when he was puzzling over a case. While he certainly appreciated the man’s help, Rico felt a small twang of discomfort run through him as he watched Jett’s mind work. Jett appeared to think hard. He already knew Jett was a showman, and a very convincing one to boot. Everything Rico was seeing could all very well be the work of a skilled actor, one who might not be analytical, but would appear to be because he had the knowledge of the crime scene. The kind of knowledge someone would have if they were guilty of the crime.