His smile was tight. “You’re such an untrusting fellow, Sheriff.”
I shrugged. “Maxwell is missing. I can’t afford to trust the wrong people.”
“Of course.” He sighed. “The strip club is called the Pink Thong.”
“Thanks. I’ll give them a jingle.” I studied him. “Why are you here at the station?”
“When River told me you’d searched his home, I figured I should talk to you.” He glanced around, as if scanning the shadows for anyone who might belurking. “We’ve always had a good rapport, you and I. Maybe we can help each other out and find Maxwell in the process.”
Tired of the cat-and-mouse nature of our conversation, I demanded, “You know where Max is?”
He grimaced. “Um… yes.”
“Where is he,” I growled. “Is he okay?”
“He’s fine.”
I slumped, relief swamping me. “Tell me where he is.”
His eyes flickered with uneasiness. “I… I’ll tell you, but we need to make a deal first.”
“A deal?” I hissed, bunching my shoulders, “Where the hell is Max, Lucas? Tell menow.”
He held up his hands in a placating manner. “Now, calm down, Royce. I’m here to help.”
“Thisisme being calm,” I grated out. “And you can help by telling me where Max is immediately.” I had to stop myself from grabbing hold of him and shaking the information out of him.
“I’m telling you, he’s fine. We need to work out a few things before we go any further.”
I narrowed my eyes, taking in the sheen of sweat on his brow. He was nervous. Worried. He wasn’t concerned for himself though; he was trying to protect someone. Someone precious. Someone he was always there for, like a loyal collie.
River.
My mouth hardened. “River has him, doesn’t he?”
He winced. “I promise you, Max is fine.”
“I don’t need your empty assurances. I need to see that for myself. I want to know exactly where he’s being held,” I hissed. “He wasn’t at River’s house, so where is he?”
“I will tell you. I promise you, I will.” Lucas raked a hand through his dark hair. “Please understand, Royce, I don’t want either of them to be… damaged by this unfortunate situation.”
“Unfortunate situation?” I lifted my brows in incredulity. “This is called kidnapping, Lucas. You can’t protect River from this one.”
“I get that you’re pissed. I realize all you care about right now is finding Maxwell and punishing the person who took him.”
“Damned straight.”
“Well, I need to shield River, just like you want to shield Maxwell. I don’t want this ruining River. I need you to try and meet me halfway.”
I blinked at him like he’d lost his mind because I suspected he had. “If River kidnapped Max, it’s already too late for him. He’s going to jail, Lucas. That’s just a fact.”
He winced. “And I want to figure out a way for him tonotgo to jail.”
“You’re dreamin’, buddy.” I was shaking with anger. “It will be my pleasure to send River to jail for kidnapping.”
Frustration shimmered in his eyes. “River has suffered a mental breakdown. He needs psychiatric help. Throwing him in jail won’t help him; it’ll make him worse.”
“I have little doubt River is nuts. Kidnapping Max proves that. But that doesn’t make what he did okay. Sorry, Lucas. Now, tell me where he’s holding Max.”
