Page 53 of Wild Sentinel

He laughed. "I’m squeaky clean.”

"I see that."

"Look, it was great meeting you. Do you want an autograph or anything?”

I forced a smile. "No. Thank you.”

Nick started away, but I caught up to him. "Just one more thing. Where were you the night Vivian was murdered?”

He scoffed, "What!?"

"You heard me.”

"I don't have to say shit to you.”

"Would you prefer to go to jail for felony possession of narcotics?”

Nick frowned and glanced around, looking for someone to save him. "I was with some girl.”

"I’ll need her name.”

He scoffed again. "You expect me to remember these sluts’ names?”

I dug into my pocket and handed him a card. "In case you suddenly remember."

He took the card, looked at it, and tossed it on the ground before walking off.

I rejoined Flynn, JD, and Scarlett.

Flynn was giddy. "Did you see the look on his face when you flashed your badge? I thought he was going to have a heart attack.”

"I see why nobody likes that guy,” I said.

“People have a lot of money invested in him,” Flynn said.

“I think Vivian knew where all his skeletons were buried. I bet she threatened to wreck the whole deal and drag him through the mud.”

"That might be motivation to shut her up," Jack said.

I called Isabella and asked her to do a deep dive and look for anything that could corroborate my theory. Nick Shaw had jumped to the top of my suspect list, but anybody involved in his six-picture deal could have had a hand in Vivian's demise.

We mixed and mingled and stepped poolside, enjoying the evening. Flames in the fire pit flickered, glowing faces. The sea breeze drifted across the cliffs. It was a beautiful evening.

Nick didn't stay long. He got the hell out of there.

Joel arrived and greeted us with a handshake and a bro hug. I caught him up to speed on everything.

"I told you, they’re covering something up," he said, feeling somewhat vindicated.

"I don't have proof of anything yet," I replied. "But I'm working on it.” After a pause, I said, "Did Vivian mention anything to you about Nick?”

"Only that she felt betrayed. The guy was a nobody when she found him. He'd still be a nobody.”

"What kind of dirt did she have on him?"

Joel shrugged. "Vivian took all of her secrets to her grave."

My phone buzzed with a call from Isabella. I answered and held the phone to my ear. "What have you got?"