“I bet it’s the only Kalua pork you’ve ever had,” Chris said.
“Oh, leave her alone. Besides, your soon-to-be ball and chain is here,” May said as she tilted her head toward the door.
Chris glanced over his shoulder, and if a man’s face could light up anymore, Maria’d never seen it. She felt a small twinge that felt like jealousy. A slightly pregnant blonde was slowly making her way over in their direction.
“I’ll see y’all later.”
He turned and left and met the woman halfway across the room. He slipped his arm around her waist then led her to the back of the restaurant.
“That’s his wife?”
“Soon-to-be wife. They’re getting married next month. And they know who you are,” Dee said casually.
Maria sat back and frowned at the two women. “That wasn’t approved.”
“Oh, pooh. The problem is while Chris and Cynthia aren’t owners, they’re very close to us. We thought it best they know what was going on. They won’t be around the club at all right now. Ever since Samantha was killed, Chris has pretty much told Cynthia she couldn’t go. They really don’t play there much anymore,” May said.
“Do you two?”
“I work there of course, so I’m there a lot of nights.” There was something in Dee’s tone that told Maria that she wasn’t being completely truthful.
May took a sip of her drink and then smiled. “Micah has a secret room.”
Maria looked at Dee and had to swallow a laugh. The woman worked at a BDSM club, and she was blushing about a secret room. “It isn’t a secret room, like most people don’t know about it.”
Maria sighed. “What kind of secret room?”
Dee’s eyes widened. “Oh, nothing like that. It’s more like a studio apartment. When they first opened the club, Micah slept there a lot of nights. Most nights, from what he told me.”
“And now they go back there and play.”
“May.” Dee closed her eyes. “Good lord, you don’t have a filter on that mouth.”
Her friend waved it away. “Our agent here was wondering if she was wrong about you and Micah.”
Dee’s eyes popped open. “Is that true?”
Maria looked from one woman to another. “No. We checked all of you out. But, I would say that if people knew it was there, it could be a place to hide.”
“Ah, well, hard to get in there. Only Cynthia and I have been in there, other than when Dee and Micah get it on at work.”
Dee looked ready to kill her friend, so Maria changed the subject. “I want to talk about the four women.”
Both of their expressions sobered. Maria regretted it, regretted that she was the one who had to do this. She had really enjoyed the short interlude, but truthfully, she understood what was at stake. They had to catch this son of a bitch before he killed again.
“No problem. But I’m pretty sure the police and the FBI have been over that,” May said.
“What I want is things that might not be covered in that. I know they may have talked to people about their boyfriends, their Doms…anyone they were involved with. But can either of you think of anyone who had issues with them?”
May made a face. “Only one who had an issue with Angie, the second victim, was me. She had a thing for Evan. But I threw Kai at her for a while, and she was satisfied.”
“The last time I saw her was up at Ala Moana beach. She was pissed. Oh, man was she pissed,” Dee said.
“Can you remember about what?”
“Ticket. She said she got a ticket for speeding, then a fine because her tags had expired. She got in a little scuffle with the police officer, too.”
“You know, Devon had an issue, something with a neighbor. She’d made a complaint about the guy who lived above her.”
“Was she afraid of him?”
May laughed and a few of the patrons’ heads turned in their direction. “Sorry, but you didn’t know her. She was small, but she was a black belt.”
That caught Maria off guard. “I don’t remember that being in the report.”
May shrugged. “She didn’t hide it. I know most everyone knew she used to compete. She was damned good. That is always why it struck me as odd that she was one of the victims. It made me…”
Maria leaned forward, she couldn’t help it. “What?”
“It isn’t that important,” May said, waving it away.
“No, everything is important. You might even think it isn’t that important, but it is. So tell me.”
May shrugged. “I figured that the only way she would have been attacked and not prepared was if she knew the guy. She had to have known him.”