Page 113 of Unbalanced

“You want to hire me?”

I pick up the dollar bill. Is she serious with this shit?

“Your meter has already run out.”

“I don’t want to hire you. But anything I share with you today has to stay between us.”

I narrow my eyes at her.

“I don’t share case information with anyone, ever. You’re off to a great start insulting me again.”

She plucks the money from my fingers.

“Fine, I’ll trust you. But I don’t think I should.”

Jen places the folder on the desk and opens it. The top image is of a woman, clearly dead, lying on a hotel bed with some sort of flower in her mouth.

“Okay, what is this?”

She cocks an eyebrow at me.

“You’re either the best liar in the world, which is saying something, or you really don’t know.”

I push the folder toward her.

“I don’t know why you’re showing me this.”

Jen licks her lips, and I tap the Rolex on my wrist.

“Your time is running out.”

“This is the Dahlia Killer case. This is what Rob and I were working on when he was killed.”

I remember some mentions of a new serial killer, but I haven’t been following the story. What does any of this have to do with me?

“Rob texted me saying that he had a lead on the killer.”

She pulls her phone out and shows me.

Rob: Just talked to my girlfriend, and I have a major lead on the killer. I’ll tell you all about it when I get back from my brother’s party.

Jen: Tell me now.

Rob: No, I’ll see you tomorrow night. Can’t wait.

I roll my eyes at the Can’t wait. So this is why she’s been pressing Emily so hard. But if Emily really does know something, why not just tell Jen so she leaves her alone?

“Okay…and?”

“Not only is Emily lying about not knowing anything, but…”

Jen starts flipping through the pictures, laying images of dead women out on my desk, each one at a different point of decay. The last one shocks me to the core. Camille and Malcolm, lying side by side, glass all around them, and the same flower in their mouths.

I pick up the picture and stare at it. There is no love lost between us, but I just saw Camille the other day. Malcolm is an asshole. I’m surprised he’s lived this long.

“When did they die?”

“Their bodies were found this morning. The coroner approximated three days ago.”