Camden sighed. “There are zombies in it, too, aren’t there?”
“I said it’s a horror movie.”
“And I’m betting part of the ‘horror’ involves the dead coming back to life and trying to eat people. Am I right?”
She spluttered. “Possibly. I don’t remember the movie all that well.”
Feeling his lips twitch, Camden shook his head. He would never understand her obsession with this stuff, nor would he ever share it or believe he needed to prepare for an upcoming zombie apocalypse. “You’re fighting a losing battle, babe. I’m never going to like that genre.”
She lifted her chin, looking all cutely imperious. “You will. I have declared it so. And it will be so.”
He felt one corner of his mouth kick up. “Right.”
Huffing, she jammed her spoon into the ice cream and stood. “You pick something while I use the bathroom.” She placed the remote control on the armrest. “Preferably something without organized crime syndicates in it.”
Camden watched her ass as she strode out of the room—he often did. It was a shame she was wearing jeans, because he wanted to get another looked at the very definitive brand her ass currently sported, since he’d bitten it hard last night. She hadn’t been impressed. In fact, she’d threatened to bite his cock at some point. And, despite her later assurances, he wasn’t altogether sure she was joking.
Hearing his cell ring, he grabbed it from the coffee table. Sheridan. Camden tensed in both surprise and annoyance. Cursing beneath his breath, he put the tub of ice cream on the table as he answered, “Yes?”
“Sorry to bother you, Camden, but I thought it best to let you know,” said Sheridan.
That voice alone made his inner beast’s hackles rise. “Know what?”
“Judith has gone missing.”
Okay, that wasn’t what Camden had expected to hear. “Missing?”
“No one has seen her since yesterday morning when she declared she was going to the mall. She’s not answering her phone—not even to take Gustavo’s calls. We found her vehicle. There’s nothing to suggest she was taken. There were no signs of a struggle.”
Nor was there any reason for Wayland to take her. She was no one to Camden or Aspen, so hurting Judith wouldn’t hurt them. But Camden didn’t say that, because he still hadn’t told Sheridan about Wayland. “Where exactly did you find her car?”
“It was abandoned near a car dealership.”
“Is there any reason for her to have fled? To have ditched her car, bought another, and headed off somewhere?”
Sheridan took a moment to respond. “I don’t know if I’d call it a reason to flee, but … Akio and I were talking about how elusive Julius has proven to be. I said I was just relieved it wasn’t one of our own. Akio said if it was an inside job, he would have put his money on the culprit being Judith. She overheard him. Raged at us. Insisted she wasn’t at fault.”
“When did this happen?”
“Seven days ago. If she’d left the day after the argument, I would say she could well have left out of fear that she’d end up being blamed for the vandalism. But a week has gone by.”
“Perhaps she waited a week so that you wouldn’t immediately assume she was fleeing.” Camden might have thought she’d fled because she was to blame … if ‘For T’ hadn’t been sprayed on Esme’s headstone.
Sure, Dirk could have told her that Julius once referred to Esme as ‘Tink.’ Judith might have hoped to pin the blame on Julius, when really she’d been the vandal. Judith made a good suspect, really. She hated Esme. She might even hate Dirk, to some extent. She could view him committing suicide as abandoning her. But ‘For T’ had also been scratched into the paint of Aspen’s old car—Camden didn’t believe the female tiger had had anything to do with the bomb.
A heavy exhale came from Sheridan. “I can’t imagine Judith ever leaving her mate. Who’s a mess right now, by the way.”
“She may not have wished to ask him to go on the run. She might have worried he’d stop her.” Camden paused to look up as Aspen re-entered the room. “She could intend to contact him some time in the future to arrange for them to reunite.”
Aspen’s brow wrinkled. She retook her seat but twisted to face him, draping her arm over the back of the sofa.
Camden splayed his hand on her thigh and mouthed his uncle’s name. She nodded, her mouth making an ‘O’ shape.
“Maybe, but I still think her going on the run would be a total overreaction,” said Sheridan. “Which is why I’m finding it difficult to believe that she did. Whatever the case, the reason I contacted you about this is that, although I doubt she’ll make contact with you, she has gone to your apartment building once before. And if Judith is our vandal, she must also be responsible for whatever happened around you that you haven’t yet told me. If you see or hear from her, please let me know. Don’t seize her. Don’t hurt her—we’re not sure she’s even done anything wrong. Just call me. Nothing more.”