Night Watch (Kendra Michaels #4)(8)
“He is good-looking. It doesn’t mean I want to jump him. And it doesn’t take a schoolgirl crush to know that he’s a brilliant guy.”
“Of course. It’s just a vibe you put off.”
“No vibe. The man changed my life in a profound way, so naturally I’m going to feel a certain amount of…”
“Awe?”
Trust Olivia to zero in and strike home. How could Kendra help but feel a certain amount of hero worship toward Waldridge, who had not only given her a fantastic gift, but had been the only man in that first year to teach her, work with her, and chase away all the fear and uncertainty. Even Olivia would never realize what he had meant to her during that time. So don’t try to explain the unexplainable. “I was going to say gratitude.”
“Well, I’d sure feel awe.” Olivia felt the face of her Bradley touch-capable wristwatch. “We should start back. I have Reddit online chat in less than an hour.”
Olivia’s online Web destination, Outasite, featured articles, interviews, and product reviews, all geared to a vision-impaired audience who accessed the content via audio-reader software. Outasite had quickly become a very successful business for Olivia, and she spent many of her waking hours generating material for the site.
“Okay,” Kendra said. She looked down the sidewalk. “Clear!”
She had developed a verbal shorthand for guiding Olivia through a variety of terrain and conditions on their frequent runs together.
“Side!”
Olivia ran beside her as they continued their conversation.
“Will you see him again before he leaves?” Olivia asked.
“That may be up to him. I tried to call his cell phone this morning, but he didn’t answer.”
“Try him again.”
“I will.” She had no intention of letting Waldridge fly out of her life again and leave her with this feeling of uneasiness. He’d had a reason for contacting her yesterday, then had backed away. She couldn’t just let it go. “As soon as we get back.”
They ran through the Gaslamp District and cut down Fifth toward the five-story building that housed both of their condominiums. But as they neared the building, Kendra saw a police car double-parked outside with flashers on.
“What the hell?” she murmured.
Two uniformed officers stood on the sidewalk. One of them turned toward Kendra as she put her key in the front door. “Dr. Michaels?”
“Police,” she said to Olivia. She looked from one officer to the other. “You’re here for me?”
“Yes. Lieutenant Ortiz would like to see you at the station.”
“I’m not doing police consulting work right now. He usually calls me.”
“He did. There was no answer.”
“I never bring my phone with me when I run.” She stared at him quizzically. “So he sent a squad car to lasso me in?”
“He was concerned for your safety.”
“My safety? Why would he—?” Her brow furrowed. “What’s this about?”
“If you’ll come with us, Lieutenant Ortiz will—”
“Tell me now,” she said flatly. “Or I’m not going anywhere.”
The cop sighed and glanced at his partner before turning back. “Do you know a Dr. Charles Waldridge?”
Kendra felt herself tense. “Of course I do. What’s happened?”
“He’s missing under suspicious circumstances. And you may have been the last person to see him.”
*
“DR. MICHAELS, GLAD you could join us.”
Lieutenant Mark Ortiz entered the police-headquarters lobby and gestured toward the detective walking a few paces behind. “Detective Vince Halderman, Kendra Michaels.”
Halderman nodded his greeting, but Kendra ignored him and launched immediately into attack mode. “What happened to Charles Waldridge?”
“We were hoping you could help us with that. When was the last time you saw him?”
“We had dinner together last night. At Geoffrey’s, in Malibu. We left around 8 P.M., each in our own cars. So what’s the story?”
“Be patient. I have a few more questions.”
“No. I answer some, then you answer some. That’s how this will work. What happened to him?”
Ortiz turned toward his partner with a pained expression that Kendra knew she’d given a lot of other cops in her time. Then he turned back to her. “Dr. Michaels, I’m afraid the answer is that we don’t know. He was staying at the Huntley Hotel in Santa Monica. There was some kind of disturbance in his room, a lot of noise. Other guests complained, but by the time security arrived, no one was in the room. The lamp was broken, and the television screen was shattered. But all of Waldridge’s belongings, including his phone and wallet, were still there.”
Not good. Kendra cursed under her breath. What have you gotten yourself into, Charles?
“You were in a relationship with him?”
Kendra shook her head. First Olivia, now this clown. But she knew that the detective was merely fishing, straight out of the cop playbook.
“No, we’re good friends. We’ve known each other a long time. We hadn’t seen each other for a while and he met me at Pepperdine, where I was presenting at an academic conference, and we had dinner afterward.” She went on the attack. “How did you know I had any connection with him?”