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get him out of her head. Several times she'd caught herself fantasizing about how his mouth would feel pressed to hers. And his hands… His hard body…
    Gable made a quick check of his watch, then got to his feet, chair scraping the floor. "Listen," he said, beginning to show signs of impatience. "I've got to pick up my daughter for an orthodontist appointment." He lifted his jacket from the back of the chair and slipped it on. "I'll file a missing person report, but unless something comes up, some tangible evidence of possible foul play, that's all I can do." He rubbed the back of his neck, looked up at the ceiling, then at Maddie. "You may not know it, but then again, maybe you do, but your sister is a prostitute."
    "And that makes a difference?"
    He looked at her in a speculative way, as if he wondered what she did for a living.
    "My sister is a person. She deserves the same attention you would give anybody."
    "I'm not dismissing her because she's a prostitute. What I'm saying is that your sister's lifestyle wouldn't be all that traditional. She's an adult. She doesn't have to answer to anyone. She can go away for a month, or six months, or a year without checking in with anybody. It's not like she's a teacher, or an anchor on Channel 6 News. Prostitutes have no commitments except to their pimps. They come and go."
    Maddie understood what he was saying. They were talking about Enid here. Enid who'd stolen her car. Enid who'd never felt a shred of remorse, who didn't have a conscience.
    Yes, Enid probably just skipped town. Met some rich guy and took off with him.
    But what if she hadn't?
    That's what Maddie had to find out. Even if she had to start the investigation herself. She couldn't ignore the feeling that something might really be wrong. And that Eddie Berlin might be in some way connected to her sister's disappearance.
    Gable left his little cubbyhole of an office. Maddie followed, practically running to keep up. "Can't you at least talk to him?"
    Gable stopped. "Okay. I'll stop by his place when I get the chance."
    Get the chance? He was brushing her off. He'd make sure he never got the chance. "When?"
    "When? Soon."
    "How soon."
    She wasn't going to stop, wasn't going to let it go until he gave her an answer.
    He must have realized how determined she was. "Three days. No more than three days, okay?"
    Not okay, but it would have to do. "Yeah. Okay."
    "I'm not promising you anything. Eddie isn't receptive to people. He just wants to be alone. People don't understand that. It makes them think he's strange. It scares them." He looked her in the eye, giving added emphasis to his words. "A man's entitled to privacy. It doesn't mean he's guilty of something just because he wants to be left alone."
    ~0~
    Sitting at Enid's desk, receiver to her ear, Maddie punched in the first telephone number in Enid's appointment book. It turned out to be her sister's pimp.
    "She owes me two grand. I loaned her the money to buy a car. When you find her, send her my way."
    A car.
    Enid hadn't changed.
    "Have you heard anything from her?" Maddie asked.
    "Not for a month. She owes lots of people money. I figured she skipped town. My girls do that all the time. Take off with a client and don't come back."
    It was beginning to look more and more like that's exactly what had happened. Maddie was just letting her imagination overrule common sense. But then she'd never had a whole lot of common sense.
    "Hey, you looking for work? I can use another girl, especially now, with Enid gone."
    "Actually I'm in the market for something I can do fully clothed."
    He laughed. "Everybody's bashful at first. But they come around. I've got an easy job to start you on. Recluse that lives outside of town. Just called me about a girl with dark curly hair and white skin. You got dark hair?"
    "Y-yes."
    "Don't matter. The only time Eddie calls is when he's loaded. Too loaded to perform. All he does is pass out."
    "I'll take it.”

Chapter 8
    It's Amazing
    Maddie