On Friday, almost three weeks after the murder, Cade sat on pins and needles waiting for the anvil to drop. Leigh sat around with him all day trying to piece together evidence of his innocence.

His body hurt from the stress and lack of running. Suddenly agoraphobic, he feared going outside. He stretched, but it didn't help. The sofa contributed to his aches, but he wasn't about to complain. Then there was the guilt, because Leigh had put her career on hold for him. The firm would never make her partner after a leave of absence.

She stood with her hands on her hips. "Let's put your blankets in my room." He studied his sister's face. "Do you like this guy?"

"Jason? Yes, but I'm not sure if we should tell him we're related."

Cade smiled slightly, but it was enough to hurt his face. He never smiled, not since that night. "If he's a good investigator, he'll figure it out."

She nodded and looked thoughtful. Cade pictured an ex-cop with a donut body and mustache. He started sketching. Hopefully, he hadn't been in with the Boston force, because they were out to get him.

Drawing was the only thing that kept his mind off his impending doom. He jumped when the buzzer sounded. Leigh greeted the guy through the intercom and let him in. The security in her building gave Cade some comfort.

Jason Prichard didn't look like Cade's drawing. At about forty-five, he was in top physical condition. His suit wasn't cheap either.

He shook Leigh's hand. "Your call surprised me. I'm curious what was so important you took time away from the firm. No one works harder than you."

"I trust you completely. This is my brother, Cade Maloney. I'll start with some history. When I was in law school, our mother found a new husband. After our dad, she couldn't pick a good man if there were nine in a room of ten men."

Cade snorted. Jason nodded. "I know the type."

"This is something I've kept secret, but she married Vinnie Pacheco. I cut ties with her. Cade, the good son, calls and visits occasionally."

Cade added, "I hate Vinnie. Unfortunately, every time I go over his thugs let the boss know, so he shows up. He controls her. She can't leave the house without his permission."

"Is this about freeing your mother?"

Leigh shook her head. "She got what she asked for. I told her not to marry him. She thinks he's upstanding. I have yet to figure out how connected he is."

Jason nodded. "You're not alone. He's slippery."

"Like an eel," Cade added.

Leigh took a deep breath. "My brother stupidly sold his condo with no place to live."

Cade glared at her, but it turned out to be a fateful decision. "I was staying at the Copley."

Jason whistled. "Pricey."

Cade had heard it before. "You got kids?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Have you heard of CEJ Games?" The guy nodded. "I'm the C and we just sold the company, so I wasn't pinching pennies."

Jason nodded. "Seriously? Well, okay."

He approved. Cade felt sarcastic and spiteful. Leigh continued, "There was a murder on March thirty-first..."

After the explanation, Jason took a long look at Cade and nodded. "You don't look like a guilty man. If you worked for Pacheco, he would protect you."

Cade scoffed. "I'm hiding from him, afraid to leave this apartment."

"What does your mother say?"

Cade shook his head. "She doesn't know. I haven't called her. Let Vinnie wonder what happened with his setup."

"Who is the girl?"

Cade shook his head. "I don't know. We were hoping you could help us find her and build my defense."

"I'm particular about the cases I take. I left the bureau to help innocent people. Leigh knows not to call me if they're providing defense for a guilty person."

"I swear to you I'm innocent. I've never even touched a gun."

Leigh nodded. "I made them test his hands. We gave them his clothes. They did a preliminary search of this hotel room without a warrant. That's a catch twenty-two, because it's in our best interest for them to admit they didn't find anything." She cleared her throat. "I got a used condom, but we doubt she's in the database."

"We can use it to prove he wasn't alone."

"The hotel gave me some tape. The guilty guy dressed like Cade."

"Let me see."

Cade didn't need to see it. So he picked up his tablet. He tried to picture Meg and sketched her. It wasn't quite right, but he would keep working on it.

He turned his attention to the other two when Leigh said, "How do we prove he doesn't have boots like that?"

"Because he isn't a construction worker. This guy works with cement."

Cade cringed. "Jesus!"

Jason looked at him. "You sold your condo?"

"Yeah."

Jason turned to Leigh. "Bring up the listing."

The guy whistled. "And this was before you sold the company?"

Cade didn't want to look at his belongings which he had in storage. The realtor had him take down his framed game designs, but he replaced them with some designs he did in school. The decor screamed artist, not gangster.

"There." Jason smiled.

"His closet." Leigh smiled.

Cade could picture his organized walk-in closet. He had a nice wardrobe packed away. His original plan was to find a rental in San Francisco, but once the sale went through, he had second thoughts. If his life hadn't imploded, he would have a new place. Instead, he was living out of a suitcase and sleeping on his sister's couch.

"There are no work boots. No work clothes of any kind. Character witnesses can corroborate. Former neighbors?"

He nodded. There were a few women who paid attention to him. He breathed a little easier. Jason turned back to the screen. "This guy looks shorter. I have guys who can do the calculations. All this is important, but we need to find the woman you were with. Go over the details again."

"I was late for dinner with my best friends and business partners."

"The E and J."

He nodded. "Eden and Joe. She walked right into me."

"Could she have been planted?"

"No, Leigh and I hashed that out. It's too far-fetched." He held up his tablet. "This isn't right, yet."

Jason studied it. "She looks as wholesome as you."

Leigh said, "We think she's wealthy. I've been searching for online pictures from the club."

Jason nodded. "Can't hurt. What are the police saying?"

"Nothing. I assume they are waiting on DNA." The weight of the situation painted dark circles under Leigh's eyes.

Caden looked up. "That night I thought they were going room to room, but they weren't. Someone tipped them off that I was connected to Vinnie."

"And the girl just disappeared?"

"They denied they saw anyone in the room with me."

"Something's fishy. Assume someone is working for Pacheco." Pritchard said it like he was mentioning a mundane trip to the store.

Cade felt tension pinch at his temples. "That doesn't give me confidence."

Jason said, "Look at me. This is what I do. Trust me."

He nodded. "Yeah, okay."

"Good. I would give Leigh's brother a deal, but you can afford me. First, I find the girl. It's the priority. The rest is easy. We'll have so much that Leigh can go to the DA before they charge you. No DA wants to look like a fool."

When Jason left, he felt a little better. He would give him every penny he owned if it meant his freedom.

Leigh looked at him. "I feel a lot better. Do you?"

"You can go back to work now."

She shrugged. "Maybe. We should invite your gang over. Get pizza and play games."

"Yeah, maybe, but you know my gut doesn't do well with cheese."

"Fine. Chinese then."

The following evening, Joe and Renee arrived first. She hugged him. "You look like shit. Did you lose your razor?"

He shrugged. "Why bother? It has grown in."

Joe slapped him on the back. "Trim it up and you'll be ready for the cover of a magazine."

Cade felt the heat in his cheeks. Embarrassed, the buzzer interrupted his response. Eden arrived with Kevin. At least her budding love life didn't shrivel and die.

As they sat and ate, Cade tried to count his blessings. Leigh looked from Cade to Joe. "Maybe Joe can help get your drawing right."

"What drawing?" Eden asked.

"Of Meg."

"That's a great idea. I can look too."

Kevin said, "I got the newest Beantown. There's an article on the Boston mob."

Cade replied flatly. "Not interested."

Leigh said, "I am."

Cade rolled his eyes as they discussed the mafia. Boston's most famous mobster was from the Winter Hill Gang. They were the Irish mob. Vinnie was Italian. Even though his parents were born in America, he acted like he had just stepped off the boat from Sicily.

The business partners worked on the image. Eden thought her face was narrower. He had it too round. Cade took the stylus and tweaked here and there. When they were done, the image matched his memory.

Leigh smiled back. "Good, let's play a game."

After a few rounds, they packed up the game, and the four friends left together.

Leigh asked, "Do you like the picture?"

He nodded. Seeing Meg in front of him brought back multiple images of her. When she laughed, but then he remembered when she came. Absolutely beautiful. If things were different and he had her number, he would have asked her out.

Thanks for voting ⭐️