Lost Cause (A Daisy Dunlop Mystery ~ Book 1)

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Solomon sat with his back against the wall and pretended to doze. Toby paced around and around the room. Other than mumbling that they'd be rescued, he'd been less than forthcoming. Solomon wasn't giving up, though. He figured they'd brought Toby back about three hours ago.

He opened his eyes and shifted position. "Who did you have to call?"

Toby glanced at him and shook his head. "No one."

"Maureen asked me to try and find you. She's a brave girl."

"Leave her out of it."

"Do you think she'll stop looking for you? Do you even know how much she loves your sorry, uptight, upper-crust arse? She has absolutely no idea who you really are, and yet she's prepared to risk everything to get you back. Most women wouldn't give a toss about a man who claimed to be homeless and had a history like the bullshit you and your government puppet masters made up to hide your real identity."

Toby stopped pacing and stared at him. "I was homeless, and I did have a drug problem."

"But you're not denying someone's pulling your strings. So, who did you call?"

"Maureen. Told her I was fine and doing some work with Jason on my debut album. I thanked her for her help and wished her a happy life."

"She believed you?"

He shrugged. "Jason just signed on as my manager so I could be in the studio."

"She'd never buy you dumping her. She told me about the baby and the proposal. Does Jason know?"

Toby shook his head. "No. He suspects I'm the one who got her pregnant, but either way he doesn't care as long as I'm out of the picture."

"Did you mean it when you told her you wanted to get married? Because if you didn't I might feel compelled to punch your teeth down your throat."

Toby leaned with his back against the wall, shoved his hands in his pockets, and let his chin drop to his chest. "I meant every word. What a fucking mess."

Solomon sighed. No point in arguing with the truth. "Any idea what time it is?"

"Sorry, never saw a clock or even daylight."

"How long have they had you down here?"

"Two or three days."

Solomon chuckled. "And yet so far no one has come looking for you. Are you sure you're going to be saved by the cavalry?"

"I've got a meeting on Sunday, and when I don't show they'll start looking."

"Sunday? I was nabbed Thursday night. By my reckoning today is Friday. We could be dead before they even notice you're gone. It's not like these thugs haven't killed before. What are two more dead bodies added to the pile they've got so far?"

"Who the hell are you?"

"Solomon. Private investigator hired by an insurance company to look into suspected life insurance fraud. However, instead of finding apparent dead guys still alive and well, I keep finding more dead bodies. Maybe if we swapped notes we could work out what we've stepped into and then come up with a way to get out of here."

Toby slid down the wall and stared at him. "You could be a plant. I might have signed my death warrant by even admitting I had a meeting on Sunday."

"Did they toss you in here because they suspect you're undercover?"

Toby shook his head. "No, I told you, Jason suspects I'm involved with Maureen. He figures she'll turn to him for comfort when it becomes apparent I'm a scumbag. He'll use his position to persuade her to have an abortion and get back to her career and into his bed."