Page 64 of Drilled

“And how did you find this out again?” I asked, genuinely perplexed.

Nance shrugged, turning left. “He uses a basic, unencrypted Google calendar for HOA business. I just took a little purview of your HOA portal login and checked the master calendar metadata. It was right there, 12:00PM -K.H. brunch.”

My mouth fell open. I knew that Nance was amazing at her job and I always held respect for her resourcefulness and intellect. But this level of industriousness blew my mind and the respect I already had deepened.

“Very impressive, Nance,” I told her. “I’d be willing to bet there’s not a single paralegal in the entire country who can do what you do. And probably even fewer friends who’d be willing to try.”

She gasped, her hand flying to her chest. “Oh. Lane. Is that sentimentality I see leaking?”

I rolled my eyes. “No.”

Yes, actually. But I wasn’t about to start professing my platonic love for her out of nowhere. She’d probably drive me straight to the hospital if I did.

“You said the brunch was at twelve, though. What are we gonna do with the next three hours?” I asked.

She grinned. “Fuel up and wait.”

*

“This is significantly less exciting than it was made out to be, you know,” I said, nibbling on the last of my fries. The empty, greasy burger packaging had already been discarded.

Nance had parked the Camry in the perfect vantage point, close enough for us to have a decent view of Sandy’s pre-booked outdoor table—I didn’t even bother asking her how she managed to figure that one out—but far enough to not rouse suspicion. The cold outside meant that hours of cramped boredom had fogged up the windows.

“Patience,” she waved me off. “That’s rule number one. Sometimes all it takes is a little waiting period.”

“You should’ve considered being a PI. You’d make a killing,” I said, licking the salt off my fingers.

“Believe it or not, I was actually considering it before I started working at the Daley,” she shrugged.

“Really?” I asked.

“Yeah.” She paused. “Actually, I did apply for a fellowship program for legal investigators. But that’s been kind of dead in the water for a while.”

“Are you kidding me? Nance, there’s no one who’d be a better fit for that than you. Why the standstill?” I said.

“I was supposed to get a letter of recommendation from Judge Vance but I’ve essentially been ghosted,” she explained, crumpling up the last of her fast food wrappers. “And if I can’t get him to sign off the recommendation by Friday, then the application locks.”

I scoffed. “Vance? He’s not ghosting you. He’s just seventy, uses a desktop computer from 2004 and ignores emails that don’t have “Motion” in the subject line.”

Nance laughed, then groaned. “The man is scary.” She slouched against the steering wheel. “I’m not scared of much but there’s something about his scowl that just raises the hair on the back of my neck.”

“It’s probably indigestion.”

“Lane.”

I sighed, pulling up my legs and turning around in the seat so I could face her properly. “Okay. There’s nothing to be afraid of, I promise. Vance is harmless. And, he owes me a personal favor from the Lawrence appeal last winter. Give me your statement of intent. I’ll corner him in his chambers tomorrow before his coffee kicks in and have him write you that recommendation letter.”

Nance’s eyes lit up. “You’d really do that for me?”

“Given everything you always do for me? In a heartbeat. Besides, I think the Investigative Division could do with your skills and talent. I can’t be the only person who benefits from them. Screws up my karma,” I said.

Nance reached over and gave me a hug. I was startled only for a moment before my arms went around her. I’d never been someone who was very good at any kind of affection, physical or otherwise. But Nance was the closest thing I had to family left. I tightened my embrace.

“You’re actually a big old softie inside, aren’t you?” she teased as we broke apart.

“See, this is why I don’t do sentiment,” I said.

“I mean, if you really want to showcase your affection in other ways, feel free to finally fill me in on what’s been happening with the boys,” she said casually.