Sounding much like the detective he was, Hunt asked in a steady voice, “Do you know the woman?”
Zoey shrugged. “I have no idea who she is. I know her name is Hilary. Elise has been looking into her, but she had to work tonight, and things are moving slowly on learning more about this woman.” Her worried gaze connected with Rhys’. “I can’t figure out how she knew what happened.”
He took her hand and squeezed tight, noting the tremble of her fingers. “We’ll find out, believe me. But the question begs asking, did she know you confronted Scott and Jake at the club? Or is the timing just suspicious?” To Archer, he added, “Thoughts?”
Archer leaned his elbows on the table, gaze focused on Zoey. “It could be as simple as this woman went to the same university as you. She could have heard what happened directly. And that the timing of all this is a coincidence.”
Zoey shrugged. “That’s what Elise is looking into now.”
At that, Archer frowned. To Rhys, he still looked mildly annoyed at the mention of Elise, but he added, “More likely, she’s a member of the club and put two and two together when she saw Scott and Jake leave.” His gaze returned to Zoey, his voice softening. “Did she say what she wanted from you?”
“She wanted me to come forward,” Zoey answered. “To make Jake pay for what he did. To get justice.”
Archer’s jaw clenched, a telling sign he didn’t like what Zoey had said. “And you told her that’s not an option?”
She gave a slow nod. “I just…I—”
Hunt interjected, “Do not need to explain yourself or your choices to anyone.”
A look of pure relief washed over her face. “Thanks for that.” She sighed heavily and added, “All I want to do is put this behind me.”
Rhys had never been prouder of his group of friends. He hadn’t had a woman in his life for so long, he forgot what it felt like to not only protect her himself, but have his chosen family protect her too.
“You deserve to do that, too,” Archer countered. His head cocked as his stare became probing. “What did she do when you told her you wouldn’t come forward?”
“She gave me her card with her phone number and left,” Zoey said, voice thickening.
Rhys squeezed her thigh, the only comfort he could give.
“Did you enjoy the surf and turf?” the waiter asked, sidling up to their table once more.
Rhys nodded. “Dinner was excellent. Compliments to the chef.”
“I’ll tell him you said so, sir,” the waiter said with a proud smile. “Any dessert to cap off the night?”
Rhys looked to Zoey. She held her stomach. “I couldn’t possibly eat another bite,” she said.
Everyone at the table shook their head, so Rhys responded, “No, thank you. We’ll just finish our drinks.”
“Excellent,” the waiter said. “Enjoy them and the rest of your evening.”
When he wandered off to likely print off the bill, Rhys asked Archer, “Did any other victims come up in your investigation?”
Archer gave a slow shake of his head. “I didn’t dig that deep.” There will be more, his expression declared.
Rhys was determined to make sure Zoey didn’t feel pressured. Her choices were hers. Only hers. Always hers. “Did you feel threatened by her?” he asked, rubbing her thigh, not liking the tense set of her muscles beneath his hand.
“Not at all,” she replied after a moment of consideration. “I was shocked by her appearance, but not threatened. It felt like she wanted an ally.”
Rhys reached for her hand again, encompassing her fingers in his hold. The guilt, the pain, the loss of control in her gaze shattered him. He said to Archer, “Find out who she was. How all this is connected.”
“Elise is already on it,” Zoey said.
Again, Archer’s eyes narrowed, but his grin declared it was game on. He rose and was heading for the door a moment later.
Kieran chuckled. “Oh, that roommate of yours is getting under his skin.”
Zoey cringed. “I’m sorry.”