One of Those Faces (44)

“Of course. I basically exist in this one-block radius, anyway.” He nodded to Tribune Tower at the corner across from us. “So, how can I be of service?”

I pulled a torn piece of paper out of my bag. “Is there a way to find out who lives here?” I slid it across the table toward him.

“Do they own the apartment?” he asked, picking it up.

“I don’t know. Probably not.”

He furrowed his brow. “Have you considered rummaging through their mailbox?”

I rolled my eyes and laughed. “Are those the kinds of tricks you’re learning these days? Whatever happened to journalistic integrity?”

He smiled wryly. “I’m giving you the illegal option, if you choose to use it. I mean, I can find out who owns the property, and then you may be able to find out from them who lives there, if the owner’s willing to disclose it or if you’re willing to bribe them.” He raised his eyebrows, waiting for my reaction.

“Okay, how do I find out who owns the unit?” The waitress was back and set down the two cups with cream and sugar. She had taken her hair out of its sloppy bun.

“Thanks,” Danny said as he opened his laptop. “Okay, so we’ll look up the Cook County real property records, and then we can verify that with the appraisal district records. That’ll give you a name and address. Are you looking for a phone number?”

No, I wanted the name. “Address is fine.” I cupped the warm mug in my hands and moved my chair beside his.

His fingers punched the keyboard at lightning speed. “What’s this all about?” He glanced down at the paper.

I took a sip. “What do you mean?”

He entered the search, and the next web page loaded. “I mean, come on, what’s going on here? Does this person owe you money or something?” He swigged the hot coffee without flinching and set it back down with a clatter.

My cheeks burned. How could I even begin to explain without sounding insane? How could I tell him that I’d followed that strange girl back to her apartment? The lighter? J. L. “I think I found a friend of mine who’s been missing, but I want to know if that was her.”

He clicked on a thumbnail on the screen, and it loaded a scanned document. “Missing, huh? Is it newsworthy?”

I shook my head. “If you’re looking for news, you’re hanging out with the wrong person.”

He looked at me from the corner of his eye. “Okay, so here’s the deed from when the current company purchased those condos in the ’80s, and that’s the latest one on record. It looks like the owner is Humboldt Edge Management LLC, and they have a corporate address listed in the same building.”

I sank into my seat. “There’s no way to see who lives in that unit?”

“Hmm . . . if I had a name, then I could find an address, but it’s hard to do it the other way around if they don’t own the property.” He glanced at me. “Do you want me to email you this copy of the deed?”

I sighed. “No, that’s okay. Thanks for your help.”

He shut his laptop and held the coffee to his lips. “I hope everything’s okay with your friend.”

“It’s okay. We’re not that close.”

He surveyed me through narrowed eyes. “I forgot how guarded you can be.”

How could he say that? He had seen me through some of the worst moments of my life. “I’m sorry, I—”

He shook his head. “It’s fine, Harper. I know what to expect from you by now. And you don’t owe me any explanations. Hell, we haven’t seen each other in years.”

He was right. What was I doing reaching out to him for a favor after all this time? You’re so selfish.

“But I’m happy I get to see you again.” He nodded out the window. “Do you want to take our coffee for a walk?”

I followed his gaze to the Riverwalk. “Yeah, that sounds good.”



“We didn’t get to really catch up last time.” He kicked a pebble under the railing and into the water. “So other than making it as a big-city artist, how are you?”

“Don’t get too excited.” I laughed. “I’m barely making a living.”

He shrugged. “Yeah, but you’re doing what you’ve always wanted to. And so am I. That’s pretty amazing, isn’t it?” He wandered ahead to a bench under the DuSable Bridge and sat down.

I sat next to him, with two hand’s lengths between us. “I guess it is.” It felt odd to be so close to him without touching. “So, what else is going on in your life now?”

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Nothing much. Work is my life. Tell me about your boyfriend.”

My body tensed at the thought of Iann. Danny was right. I kept everyone locked out. Everything I was hiding from Iann was beginning to pile up. “He’s great. He’s a grad student at DePaul.”

He nodded, staring straight ahead. “What’s he studying?” he asked half-heartedly.

“Psychology.”

This was the first time talking to Danny that his lack of enthusiasm was so obvious. I figured I’d try to redirect to a safer topic. “So, are you still sailing?”

He smiled, meeting my eyes. “Almost every weekend.” That explained the tan. “I got my parents to sell my boat in San Francisco, and then I bought one here recently. All the money I make here goes to pay the docking fee. You still won’t go near water?”