Chapter 4

"So what can you tell us about Diane?" 

Noah sat down in the armchair and clasped his hands together. "We dated for three years. She's a pretty girl, a nice one too. Diane would come over for dinner with my family. We'd go on a date every week. She really likes going to Sin City on the weekends and I'll always pick her up after."

Charlie kept her expression suave, noticing his use of present tense. This is the reaction of someone who lost his beloved. But then, it could be all a trick. 

"In the last few weeks, did she act out of ordinary?" Charlie asked, meeting his gaze. 

"No. Not that I would know. We had a falling out right before she disappeared."

Charlie leaned forward. "What happened?"

"My sister caught her with some guy at Target like two months months before. When I asked her about it, she brushed it off or changed the topic entirely. Then after work one day, my friend, Harry, and I were going home from work when we saw her with the same guy my sister described. I waited until she came over to confront her about it. We argued and I wanted a break."

"Why didn't you confront her right there?" Jake asked.

"I was really mad. I loved her and treated her right. Then I see her with some white guy, kissing and shit in public. She told me it didn't mean anything. She told me he was her cousin. Who does that kinda shit with their cousin?"

"That's a bad word, Uncle Noah," the little girl said, shaking her head in disappointment. 

"Sorry. I should have introduced my niece earlier. Agents, this is Nikki, my sister's daughter. Nikki, greet the nice people."

"Hi, I'm Nikki Carlyle." The girl beamed. Every slight movement seemed to make her curly hair bounce despite it being bound in a bun. 

Cute, Charlie thought as she held back a smile. Nikki climbed on to her uncle's lap, suddenly interested in the adults' conversation. 

"Did you break up with Diane?" Jake brought them back to focus. 

"I told her I needed a break. I was hurt, man."

"Did she ever call?"

"Only once. She left a voicemail apologizing, saying that she was coming over but she never did. When I didn't see show up, I went to her apartment and place of work. When one had seen her, I reported her as missing."

"Was she ever mixed up in anything shady?"

"Not that I know of. I do know she went to rehab six months ago to get clean at my insistence. She used to pop pills of different kinds."

Charlie made a mental note to confirm that piece of information. "Do you know Joel Peters?"

"Who?" Shaking his head, he said, "I don't know who that is."

"Could you describe the man you caught Diane Wilson with?" Jake asked Noah.

His gaze grew unfocused as he tried to picture the man. "Normal white guy, brown eyes. Tall like five foot seven. He had tattoos along his arms and looked unsteady on his feet."

Jake dug into his suit pocket and brought out a five by seven picture he had printed of Joel Peters. "Is this him?"

On seeing the picture, he began to nod vigorously. "Yeah. Did he have something to do with her disappearance? Did he kill her? I knew that guy was shady."

"We will let you know what we find. In the meantime, please let us know if you remember anything else."

"Sure." 

When they returned to the seclusion of the vehicle, Charlie relaxed and replayed the entire conversation through her mind. 

"He doesn't sound like he's lying," Jake said. 

"I think the same to. But it looks like he has a motive for killing her. A cheating dead girlfriend and her kind hearted boyfriend. It's the perfect storyline."

"Let's find Joel Peters."

"The CCTV recordings arrived." Charlie nudged Jake with her elbow as she stared at the device in her hand. 

While Jake searched for a spot to park, Charlie played the first video. Diane Wilson stepped into view, wearing the same clothes she was found dead in, leaving her apartment in a hurry. She would look at her phone every few moments and then down the road. She took a cab ride to Sin City, went in the club and exited thirty minutes later. Charlie noted how Diane would look around warily every few minutes. 

Was she running from someone? Was she looking for someone? 

The longer Charlie looked at the screen, the more her eyes and head hurt. What exactly could have sent Diane Wilson in such a loop? Perhaps it had something to do with Joel Peters? The man cut off all contacts around the same time she did. Or was it, as earlier suspected, a ploy by Noah Carlyle? 

In the next video, Diane waited by the roadside. The street seemed quiet but not empty. She would look at her phone every few moment. Charlie raise the Tab closer to her face, noticing something else. There was someone else there, watching and following her. Charlie went back to the previous videos, noticing how the hooded man lurked around her and followed her from her apartment. Diane seemed to be aware in this video and began to walk down the street. 

The video cut to another angle as Diane flagged down a vehicle. The van blocked off Diane's figure from the CCTV. It was easy to presume she got in. Or rather, pushed in, Charlie thought to herself as the stalker disappeared with her. The vehicle sped away with Diane and the stalker. 

"Looks like she was targeted," Jake said. 

It was then Charlie realised how closed he leaned towards her and how he had already parked the car in a safe lane along the busy street. 

"By who? And for what?" Charlie questioned. 

She knew cases like this didn't come readily with answers. But that didn't make it any easier on her. 

"Could you get one of the guys to find out where this van went? What about the plate number? Is it checked?" 

"On it." Jake placed a call to the hackers down at the base. 

"So tonight," Charlie began. "It's off the records and personal but I am going on a date."

The call connected as Jake stared at her in surprise. "What?!"