Page 4 of Solid as Steele
“And did it?”
“More than you can know.”
“Which is why you’re suspicious of me.”
“That and you could snap my neck without breaking a sweat.”
“Yeah, there is that.” He took a long pull on the earthy coffee. “But I wouldn’t. At least I don’t think I would.”
“Any memories come back yet? Like your name?”
He shook his head.
She lifted a delicate eyebrow. “Can I make some observations?”
He reached for the other half of the bagel. “Sure.”
“No wedding ring or telltale ring from wearing one. Probably single. Your clothing and shoes are top-of-the-line. Your haircut isn’t a cheap one. You reacted to my touch like someone with martial arts training or military background. Maybe even law enforcement training.”
He swallowed. “Which could mean I’m a good guy.”
“Or a successful criminal.” She wrinkled her cute nose and smiled.
He laughed. Man, what a good feeling to lighten up here. With this beautiful woman.
“I’ve been thinking about it since I first saw you,” she said. “You could be from anywhere. Even out of state. We need to look close first then expand our search if needed. I want to call OSP. I have plenty of contacts there and can get what I need without many questions.”
He might agree to let her do that. Actually, if she wanted to make the calls, he wouldn’t stop her. That would take physical restraint, which he would never do. “What will you tell them?”
“Nothing much. Just ask if there are any missing person’s reports for men fitting your description.”
“Okay. I guess.” He took another bite of the bagel that now tasted like the dust swirling in the dry desert landscape.
She set down her mug and used her cell phone to make the call. “Jeffers, hi. Mackenzie Steele.”
“Steele!” The responding voice boomed over the phone.
Mackenzie held her cell away from her ear. “I have a favor to ask.”
Jeffers muttered something.
She explained her need. “I’ll hang on while you run the search, if you don’t mind.”
She looked at him. “He’s running a check in the Oregon database. If he strikes out then he’ll move on to NaMus. National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. A database of missing people searchable by law enforcement. With all the records, the search could take some time.”
“There are that many missing people?”
She nodded. “Estimates say nearly eight million people around the world go missing every year. Ninety percent or more are found, but still, that’s a huge number.”
She turned her attention back to the phone. “No. No facial scars or visible tattoos.”
She cupped her hand over the phone. “Can you check for tats elsewhere?”
He ripped off his sweatshirt and found a shoulder tattoo. A black cross. He ran a finger over it. Scar tissue. He covered up a wound or surgical scar. Maybe the cross meant that his faith had a part in that. But what?
He leaned closer to display it for Mackenzie. Her eyebrows lifted but she didn’t say anything other than to relay the information to this Jeffers guy.
Okay, she wondered about the tat too. Maybe this tattoo held the answer to his memory loss and injury and knowing about it would help him recover his identity. Maybe.
