“She was pissed. She told me she loaned him five hundred bucks because he told her he was river rafting, not gambling. If she would have known they were going to Reno, she wouldna lent him the money. But then she got up and started talking to Farley or whatever his name is. She started laughing and gave me a thumbs-up. I dunno. I still felt guilty. So I comped them both a few drinks.”

“Garth sounds like a real loser,” Marge said. “Any idea why she didn’t break up with him a long time ago?”

“Like I said, he’s cute. Better looking than Adrianna, honestly. And she told me that when they actually did it, he was good in the sack. So maybe that was enough. Or maybe he was good arm candy and that made her feel good. Some girls really like that kinda shit.”

Marge said, “Crystal, I want your opinion on something. After you told her about Garth’s deception, could she have called him up and broken up with him?”

“I dunno. Check her phone records.”

“We have,” Oliver said. “She didn’t call him, but she placed a call to two different people when she got off shift. One was Sela Graydon. The other number is a mystery to us, but we do know it’s not Garth’s cell phone.”

Marge said, “Maybe you can help identify it.”

When she read off the digits, Crystal shrugged. “Don’t know it. It’s not Greg’s number, that’s for sure. What happens when you call it?”

“The mailbox is full without any identification. Sounds like the person hasn’t checked for messages in a while.”

“Maybe that person is away on a rafting trip,” Oliver said. “What about Garth’s other friend—Aaron Otis.”

“I don’t know Aaron’s cell number. I could find it out for you. I have to make a few calls.”

“That’s fine. We’ll wait.”

“Why would she call Aaron?”

“To get to Garth.”

“Why wouldn’t she just call Garth?”

“I don’t know, Crystal. We’re just exploring all avenues right now.”

“You know even if Adrianna did call up Garth and break it off, I don’t think Garth would care. He wasn’t that into her, you know.”

“He might not care about her, but he might care about the money,” Oliver said.

“And you never know about people, hon,” Marge said.

“That’s true.” Crystal put her mug down. “It’s like what I learned in science way back in high school…that usable energy—you know, energy that does stuff—it wants to turn into chaos. Well, that’s real true with people, too. Sometimes we get it right and it all makes sense. Mostly we just screw up and everything turns to shit.”

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

OVER THE LINE, Marge said, “Crystal Larabee got us an ID on the mystery number. It’s Aaron Otis’s cell phone.”