‘To whom are you referring, Mr. Yarmini, when you say you didn’t mean to kill her?’

His eyes flickered open only to study the ceiling tiles. ‘That girl that you found at the abandoned restaurant on Central. Meghan Jessup.’

‘Transported where and why?’ Cord asked.

Yarmini’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down. ‘She’d run her course.’ Finally, he brought his gaze down, though his focus skirted everywhere except on the detectives. ‘The girls there don’t last long. It’s a, uh, highly… specialized… sex ring. The clientele there are into certain… violent kinks. And because of that, the price is quite steep, and those guys you picked up at the house? They were regulars.

‘Anyway, once the girls can no longer perform to their satisfaction, they’re moved out to another buyer where they’ – he swallowed – ‘they’re sold into prostitution. I guess one of the clients became a bit… rough… and possibly overdid it when he was getting his freak on. When he finished, she was unresponsive at first. That’s when Tatiana – she’s the one in charge – called me up. She even joked about how much money someone might pay for a brain-dead bitch.’ From his face down to his neck, Yarmini flushed crimson. ‘Then she laughed and asked how soon I could get there for pick-up.’ The more he spoke, the quieter his words became, and the more his body vibrated in his seat.

The omelet Alyssa had eaten earlier threatened to make a reappearance. She really hoped there was a special place in hell reserved for people like Yarmini, the men who’d paid to torture the girls, and Tatiana Salazar, too. She shot a quick glance at Cord, knowing he had to be thinking about Shelley. Despite the way his fingers clenched into fists, he maintained his composure.

‘What about that brand on Meghan’s hip?’ Cord asked.

‘Tatiana wanted buyers to remember the girls came from her, so she chose the Rosenfelt logo since we both work for Rosenfelt Holdings. She found it amusing.’ His cheeks burned, and he dropped his chin to his chest. ‘She has a twisted sense of humor.’

‘Yeah, that’s some sort of humor. Kidnapping girls and collecting large sums of money so men can torture and rape them? Excuse me for failing to see the humor in any of that.’

The lines around Spencer McKay’s mouth tightened as he focused his laser stare on Alyssa. ‘Careful there, Detective. Remember, my client is choosing to cooperate. That could always end. Now, for the record, he never stated that this situation was funny; he simply theorized about this Tatiana’s personality.’

Alyssa matched McKay’s glare then continued with the interrogation. ‘So, you get the call that Meghan is no longer useful to this organization’ – her lip curled into a sneer – ‘you arrive at the designated place to pick her up, and then you transport her to the hotel. What happened after that?’ The underlying tremble in her voice hinted at the anger bubbling just below the surface.