Give Me Grace(146)

Travis rushed over and Mitsy ran for cover, hiding beneath the dining table at the far end of the huge space.

Casey shoved him away, his expression confused. “I need to find Grace.”

Travis opened his mouth to speak and I shook my head, silently telling him to let me handle this. He shut it quickly.

“Casey, do you remember anything about last night?” I asked.

Ignoring me, he grabbed for his phone and began dialling. “I don’t …” He put the phone to his ear, shaking his head at me. “Nothing. Not after leaving the bar.” Casey looked at Travis. “Is Grace at the duplex? We had a fight. She … Oh God.” He ran a hand over his face. Pulling the phone from his ear when it went unanswered, he tossed it on the coffee table. “I need to get over there.”

This was not the Casey I knew. The Casey I knew had it together. If someone asked me to name the coolest guy I knew, I would instantly say Casey Daniels. The guy in front of me was shaking and incoherent like he was coming down from a major high. His clothes were a rumpled mess and his eyes bleary and red.

If he was being set up for this, being drugged would make sense. It would explain his actions at the party last night and the memory loss. Tate and I shared a quick glance and I mouthed, “Roofied?”

Roofies were the street name for Rohypnol—a drug easily slipped into someone’s drink when they weren’t looking. I’d come across its use more often than not in the homicides I investigated. It had no colour, no smell, and no taste—making it popular. After a half hour, the drug had you in its control, making you weak, confused, and by all appearances, drunk. Your speech would slur, you would black out, and when you woke, your memory was wiped.

Tate nodded his agreement.

“Casey, when was the last time you saw Grace?” I asked.

“Why?”

I cursed under my breath. There was no easy way to say this. My eyes flicked to Travis where he stood next to Casey. His jaw was clenched, his eyes bleak, but he was holding it together for his friend.

I looked back at Casey. “Grace is missing.”

He froze. “What do you mean, missing?”

I held his eyes as I spoke, willing him not to lose it. “I mean she disappeared last night and hasn’t been seen since.” Casey’s chest started rising and falling and I knew panic was setting in. Keep it together, I pleaded silently before speaking past the lump in my throat. “I’m sorry, Casey, but we have evidence that suggests her disappearance may be a probable homicide.”

“What the fuck,” he breathed, his eyes searching my face. Then he roared it, shoving me in the chest. “You fucking liar!” He swung at me, clipping me in the jaw before Travis locked him down.

Casey struggled, but he was in no state to break the hold. It didn’t stop him trying. “She’s not dead!” he shouted, his voice breaking. A sob forced its way from his chest. “You fucking cunt!” came his hoarse cry. “You goddamn …” Casey pulled free and Travis grabbed at him again, locking his arms around his friend and holding on.

“Casey, I’m sorry.” Then I said the words that killed me the most. “We have to bring you in.”

He froze against Travis, his eyes narrowing with fury. “You think I killed her? You think I killed Grace?” He started struggling again and I could see the strain starting to wear on my brother. His jaw was tight and there were tears in his eyes. He was about to lose it right alongside Casey. “She’s not dead!” he yelled. “Damn you, Mitch! Fuck you. Fuck all of you. She’s not …”

Casey trailed off, his head tipping to the ceiling and his chest heaving as Travis kept hold of him “Let me go, Trav,” he said softly. Too softly.

“No,” he grunted.

“I don’t want to hurt you so let me go. Right now.”

“Let me say one thing, Casey,” I interrupted, taking a step towards the both of them, appreciating that Tate had kept quiet and let me handle the situation. “Then Travis will let you go, okay? One thing.”

“Spit it out,” he growled in reply.

“Grace is out there, and if she’s still alive, then she’s hurting and she needs you. She’s counting on you to stay calm, to keep it together, and find her. So help us find her. Help us by letting us bring you in. The sooner we can do that, the sooner we can get you cleared, the sooner we can get her back and find out who’s behind this.”

“Fuck,” Casey whispered, sagging against my brother.

I reached slowly for the cuffs dangling from the back pocket of my jeans and Travis tensed, his eyes going flat and hard. “Cuff him and I will beat you so fucking hard you won’t move for a week.”