Save Me from Dangerous Men (Nikki Griffin #1)(59)

“Then it gets more complicated.”

I walked into the garage alone, weaving through rows of spotlessly washed cars until I found a Hertz employee near a little booth that was set up like a makeshift office with a desk and computer and phone. The main rental desk would be downstairs, but up here was this outpost to ensure that frequent travelers and rewards members could get their cars with a minimum of hassle. The Hertz kid looked like he was just out of college. He wore a white button-down and a red tie that had the paradoxical effect of making him look younger rather than older. The knot on the tie was off a little. It was cute. I wanted to adjust it for him. Instead I silently apologized for how much of a bitch I was about to be. “My friend recently rented a car here and forgot something important in it. I need to pick it up for her.”

He looked uncertain. “Is she with you?”

“No. I have her name.”

“I’m not sure if I’m allowed to do that.”

I smiled at him. “Where I come from, not sure usually rounds to yes.”

He rubbed his nose uncomfortably. “We really can’t confirm or deny customer information. They tell us that pretty much the first day we start training.”

“It’s important,” I insisted.

“I’m not sure,” he said again. His voice was hesitant.

Feeling guiltier, I added pressure. “I don’t have time to come back.”

The pressure had been a mistake, I saw at once. He bit his lip and tugged on his name tag uneasily as he edged away. “I should get a manager.”

I had nothing else to do, so I stood there watching the cars. A tall Indian man was trying to decide between a red Ford Fusion and a black Hyundai. A family dragged suitcases toward a beige minivan. An annoyed-looking businessman in a rumpled suit and scuffed wingtips headed toward a Chrysler sedan. Meanwhile other cars were lining up behind traffic cones for the return. People getting out, attendants moving down the line swiping handheld electronic readers over the vehicles. I wondered how many cars this place rented each day. Hundreds, at least. Seven days a week.

The kid was back, accompanied by an older woman. She wasn’t so cute. She had fraying, bleached hair and a set line of mouth framed with pink lipstick. She smelled like her last cigarette break had been about five minutes ago and looked like she’d been ready for the next one since getting out of bed. Her feet were squashed into stubby black pumps and her legs were stockinged. She didn’t even bother to play nice. “I understand your friend thinks she forgot something in one of our vehicles?”

I nodded. “Karin Li, L-I. She rented a car here between one and two weeks ago, I can get the exact date if you need it. She’s out of town so she asked me to check for her.”

“Your friend’s not with you?”

“No.”

“We don’t give out customer information, ever. Tell your friend to call us or come in and we’re happy to help.”

Nice clearly wasn’t going to cut it. I tried to look like the type of woman who billed six hundred dollars hourly. “I didn’t come here to waste my time. This is urgent.”

“So what are you looking for? Describe it and we’ll check.” She was tough. She could have pulled off the pumps and hit the beach at Normandy. The kid’s head was going back and forth, watching our exchange like a tennis match.

The question was the one I’d been hoping she wouldn’t ask. I had no idea what I was looking for. “It’s private,” I insisted, adding, “I wouldn’t want you to get into trouble.”

She didn’t even blink. “Lady, I haven’t been in trouble since the early eighties. Let’s not worry about me. No dice, good luck, and if you don’t plan to rent a car, the door’s right over there.” She was walking away before she finished the sentence.

I took the elevator back down. There was a bus stop with a bench down the street from the rental car facility. I sat on the bench and watched planes slide up and down from the sky.



* * *



Parking shuttles seemed to stop at the bus stop every eight minutes. I counted three of them, with a fourth in sight, when a silver Range Rover pulled up to the curb. The other two people waiting at the bus stop watched me jealously as I got off the bench and climbed in. I relaxed into the comfortable seat. Whoever had built the thing had ordered extra scoops of leather with generous sides of sleek aluminum trim and wood accents. It rode smoothly, the engine quiet. Beyond that I didn’t have much of an opinion. I’d always liked to hear my engines.

“Plan B,” I said.

“Plan B,” Jess agreed from the driver’s seat.

“How did it go?”

Not taking her eyes off the road, she smiled proudly. “Just like you said. After you left, the first thing she did was go over to a computer and then to this car. She tore through it with that kid for at least ten minutes.”

“They didn’t find anything?”

“Nope. Then I waited a bit, walked up, and did my best Valley girl voice. ‘Oh my god, I love that Range Rover! My boyfriend has an orange one just like it!’”

I winced. “I’m okay with missing that part.”

She took a ramp onto the freeway. “So this is what Karen Li rented?”

“I’d bet anything,” I said. “After my little scene, there was no way the manager wasn’t going to at least check and make sure no one had dropped a diamond ring behind the seat.”