Brandon and Antonio followed him into the late-day sunlight. The sidewalk in front of the bar was busy, and Jason sidestepped a guy on a motorized scooter as he led them around the side of the building. The alley smelled of piss and garbage. Jason pulled a cigarette and a Zippo lighter from his apron and lit up.

“I’m Detective Reynolds.” Brandon nodded at Antonio. “And this is Detective Peña.”

Jason squinted at them through a stream of smoke.

“Pruitt says hi,” Antonio said, referring to Jason’s probation officer.

“Yeah? Good for him.” He looked at Brandon. “What’s this about?”

“We’re investigating an abandoned vehicle,” Brandon said.

“What’s that got to do with me?”

“It’s registered to Vanessa Adams.”

He squinted tighter. “Don’t know her.”

“You sure?” Antonio pulled a folded paper from his pocket and handed it over. The printout showed a copy of Vanessa’s driver’s license photo.

Jason sucked in a drag. Blew it out. “Yeah, okay. Vanessa. I didn’t remember her last name.” He handed back the page.

“So, you know her?” Brandon asked.

“I met her at work.”

“When?”

“I don’t know. A while ago. I was working at Decker’s Pub as a barback. She and her friends used to hang out there.”

“They still hang out there?” Brandon asked.

“I don’t know. I switched jobs.”

“Which friends?” Antonio asked.

“I don’t know. I didn’t talk to her friends. I talked to her.” He sounded impatient, and he looked down the alley as though he wanted to be somewhere else.

Antonio crossed his arms. “So, how did you first meet?”

He took another drag, blew out the smoke. “The usual. She flirted, gave me her number. Later, we hooked up.”

“You two hook up a lot?”

“You know, on and off. It was casual.”

“And did you go to her place or yours?” Brandon asked.

He hesitated a beat. “Hers.”

“She ever been to your place?”

“No.”

Brandon eased closer, encroaching on his space. “When was the last time you saw Vanessa?”

He stepped back and flicked his ash. “I don’t know. A few months, maybe?”

“When?”

He rubbed his chin, as if trying to remember. “May, I think? Somewhere in there.” He flicked the ash again. “I was working at Decker’s, so it was before summer, when I started here. Why? What’s the deal?”

They waited, studying his reaction, watching for any tick of deception.

“Vanessa’s missing,” Antonio said finally. He looked at Brandon. “How long has it been now?”

“Four days.” Brandon kept his gaze trained on Jason. His shoulders were tense and practically hunched up around his ears, but his face looked unchanged.

“Are you sure you haven’t seen her?” Brandon asked. “She didn’t stop by the bar, maybe? You didn’t go by her place?”

“No, man. I told you. I haven’t seen her in a while.”