Read Angel's Dance Online

Authors: Heidi Angell

Tags: #paranormal romance, #chicago, #detective book, #psychic abilites, #dance ballerina dance

Angel's Dance (21 page)

BOOK: Angel's Dance
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Tony chewed his lip, looking at Grant.
“You got a card or something?” he asked quietly.

Grant resisted the urge to smile. He
handed him a card. “Call my cell.”


I’ll call you tonight.”
Tony murmured. “We can meet somewhere else.” His eyes furtively
snapped back to the school and then he ducked his head and shifted
the gears. Grant stepped back watching the boy drive away. His
heart felt a little bit lighter. Part of him felt guilty giving the
boy hope that Bella would come home, but if his daughter came home
and they caught Bella’s killer; Grant decided he could live with
it.

Chapter 13

Clear was quite keen to start their
conversation with Mr. Lando again. When the receptionist came in
and announced that Mr. Lando had time to meet with them, Clear was
ready to jump at the chance. She could see that Detective Bryce was
not happy. He really thought he was on to something with Lando’s
wife and didn’t want to stop talking with Ms. Chofsky.


I could go,” Clear
offered. Bryce looked at her hard.


We need to do this
together,” he insisted. He looked a Ms. Chofsky, who had gone quite
rigid. The woman was probably terrified that they would be talking
to Mr. Lando right after her and if Bryce asked him about his
wife’s dalliances, he would know she was the one who said
anything.


Mr. Lando has a very busy
schedule,” the receptionist insisted. “This is the only time he
will have to speak with you today.”

Bryce did not like being
bullied. “He will meet with me when
I
say he will,” he snapped. “Whether
he wants to, or has time to, or otherwise.” He eyed Ms. Chofsky.
“And you will be available to talk when I decide as well,” he
snapped. “Come on Ms. Angel.”

She dutifully followed him out,
mentally deciding that she and Grant would be talking to Ms.
Chofsky again very soon. As they walked back into Mr. Lando’s
office, Clear tested the air. The man was no more concerned than
before. Bryce immediately grabbed the bull by the horns.


So, Mr. Lando. Tell me a
little bit about your wife’s relationships in the
studio?”

Mr. Lando glowered at the man, but
there was no surprise or even irritation in his emotional climate.
He waited for the receptionist to close the door and then leaned
back in his chair, resting his elbows on the arm rests and
interlacing his fingers in a decidedly villainous
manner.


You are quite crass,
aren’t you?” he commented. “What would my wife’s relationships have
to do with Ms. Johnson’s disappearance? Or are you no better than a
common yellow journalist? Digging up any dirt you can in hopes of
flustering anybody and everybody here?”

Bryce scowled at the tongue
lashing.

Clear smiled at Mr. Lando. “Forgive
us, Detective Bryce is not as understanding about the creative
world.” Clear was winging it, but suspected that their relationship
was mutually open. “Not everyone can believe that two people can
love and trust one another so very much as to understand their…
brief liaisons with others.”

There was a glint in Lando’s eye.
“Well, once again you prove that you should have been a dancer. You
truly missed your calling, my dear. Yes, my wife and I have an open
relationship. We are kindred souls. We both understand that
sometimes a young person’s genius and talent cannot be fully tapped
until they truly feel passion. We have found our own methods to
help bring out that passion in others. My wife has found that.. it
is… effective to engage a man in the way that a man is most engaged
to help them reach their full potential. And as long as she always
comes home, what harm is there in this?” He splayed his fingers.
“She did not employ the same techniques with the women, so again I
do not see how this is relevant to your investigation?”


Were there any other
instructors who might have used this technique?” Clear asked
casually.


If you are suggesting
that I seduced that young woman, you are sadly mistaken.” His face
said that he truly believed that. “I have a very strictly enforced
policy. Our younger dancers, male and female, are completely
off-limits to any of the instructors in this… method. I do not
encourage pedophilia.” he stated derisively.

Clear nodded. “Of course, and Ms.
Johnson was not 18 yet….” She looked to Bryce. “As a matter of
fact, didn’t she turn 18 during the Chicago trip?” She looked to
Mr. Lando expectantly.


I think she did,” Bryce
bluffed. Clear knew he had no idea when the girl turned
18.

Mr. Lando watched them both for
several moments. “If she had turned 18, then why would you even be
investigating? She would have been a legal adult.”


No sir, as long as she
was still in high school and living with her parents, she is still
considered a minor. We would investigate that,” Clear bluffed, not
knowing the legal implications.

Mr. Lando simply stared at them
expectantly. “Which of your instructor’s use this method?” Clear
asked again.

Mr. Lando threw his hands up and for
the first time Clear actually felt his emotional climate adjust
quite negatively. “How should I know?” he snapped. “I do a thorough
background check on every one of my instructors. Beyond that, we
have a very open policy at this school and any of the dancers know
that if they are having difficulty with an instructor, they need
only talk to me and things will be arranged. None have ever
complained about harassment of any kind.”


That open-door policy, is
that why Bella only spent a few months under Ms. Chofsky’s
instruction?” Clear asked. Again she felt his emotional climate
spike negatively. She was on to something and stuck to it like a
bloodhound.


As I recall, the young
woman did not feel that she had any more to learn from Ms. Chofsky.
She passed her exams and moved on to private
instruction.”


Yes, that is what Ms.
Chofsky told us. She said that Bella moved on to private
instruction with Mr. Lando. Would that be you, or your son?” Clear
probed. The man actually started to sweat.


Well, she would have
trained with one of us after the Chicago trip, but she did not have
time for private instruction as she was getting ready for the
show.”


Right, but she was
getting private instruction for the show,” Clear reminded him. “No
one seems to know who was working with her privately. Why is
that?”

Mr. Lando eyed her for a moment and
Clear resisted the urge to cringe. She had hit a nerve and this man
who wore emotional masks almost perfectly had lost his mask. The
predatory gaze was extremely intimidating, but as far as she could
tell Bryce hadn’t noticed anything. Suddenly Clear was very afraid
and wished more than anything that Grant was with her.


Ms. Angel, I am not sure
what you are thinking, but I believe that it has been quite
elaborately explained that she was working with her dance partners
under my supervision and that any other dance time was up to them.
I was the only one who would have been directing their rehearsals
as I was the director of the show.” In that moment Clear knew
beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was lying.

Grant had spoken to the Crime Scene
Investigator and was relieved that they were able to get up samples
of the blood in the floor boards. The CSI didn’t know if they were
too degraded to test, but seemed quite confident that they were
not.

He had watched them bag his daughter’s
backpack and several costumes from the performance night. He had
walked through the studios, watched the dance studio members
whispering amongst each other in confusion at all that was going on
around them, and had shown his daughter’s picture to several of
them. Each had answered with the same confused expression. None of
them recognized her, knew her, had any recollection of her at all.
He was beginning to doubt that Kat had ever been to this dance
studio. She must have gotten involved in Chicago and her bag had
come back on the cart, with the members of the troupe none the
wiser. Meanwhile, if the killer was in this group, he now knew that
they were looking for her and hard. He would feel the need to
dispose of any evidence linking him to Kat. An intense wave of
anxiety flooded him. He could not breathe. What if the man was
killing his little girl as he sat here chasing his own tail,
tracking leads that had to do with a girl who was already dead? The
thought left him frozen in indecision.

He jumped out of his skin when Clear
touched his arm gently. “We are done here,” she whispered. He
looked into her shining eyes.


We need to talk to Tony
again,” he muttered quietly. “He is going to call me tonight to
meet with him.”


We really need to talk to
Louis Lando.” Clear gave him a meaningful look. “Mr. Lando said his
son is still in Chicago. He has a loft studio there where he works.
I begged Bryce to take Mr. Lando into custody, but he won’t listen
to me. If we don’t arrest him and his wife, they will warn their
son. I don’t know how to tell you this, but… my gut says this is
our lead! I’m afraid….” Her eyes began to well up and Grant put a
reassuring arm on her shoulder.


I’ll talk to him.” Grant
followed Clear outside. Bryce was standing talking to one of the
CSI’s. Grant interrupted without a thought. “Bryce, you need to
take them in and hold them for 48 hours.”


On what?” Bryce
snapped.


Make something up!” Clear
snapped back. “Investigation of pedophilia or
something!!”


Can’t you hold them on
conspiracy? The bag was found in their business stashed away. They
have not been particularly cooperative. They can’t even help you
get in touch with their son. Who can’t get in touch with their kid?
I’m not buying it.” Grant raked his hands through his
hair.

Bryce chewed the inside of his cheek
for a moment. “And if you are wrong? Then when they come down and
sue the crap out of me, then what?”


I don’t think we are
wrong,” Clear insisted.

Grant held his hand up. “In my
personal life, I’ll admit, I am often wrong. But on the job when
have I ever been wrong?” Bryce stared into his eyes deeply and
Grant was almost sure that he had him.


But this isn’t the job,
man. It is your daughter. It doesn’t get much more personal than
that.” He turned and walked away. Grant slammed his fist into the
brick wall. He had been so close. Now what was he going to
do?

Clear was shocked when Grant slammed
his fist into the wall. It wasn’t like him to show violence. Not
that she really knew him that well. She sighed. How did she end up
in this insane situation? She debated chasing after Detective
Bryce, but Bryce already thought she was a joke. She couldn’t very
well amaze him with her abilities like she had done with the
sheriff back home.

Grant had slumped to the ground when
she made a quick decision. “I’ll be right back.” She said and ran
full-tilt after Detective Bryce. He had taken off pretty quick and
was already at the end of the block. She was surprised how far away
he had to park, but since he had called on the local cavalry and
they had gotten here first they must have really blocked traffic.
“Detective Bryce!” she called, pounding down the street. She knew
he was planning on staying to pursue this line of investigation.
She had felt the intent in his words to Grant. If he had heard her,
he wasn’t slowing down. She ran harder and yelled as loud as she
could. “Detective Bryce! Wait up!” When he did not acknowledge her
that time, she put on an extra burst of speed that left her unable
to call out to him.

BOOK: Angel's Dance
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ads

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