by Becca Van
He glanced at Scott when he came into the bathroom and turned the water on to fill the tub. His brother had a sappy look on his face and when he glanced in the mirror he realized that he had the same expression on his face, too. He glanced back at Scott and didn’t have to ask why his brother nodded.
They were in agreement. Lori Shea was the woman meant for them. Now all they had to do was try and catch this asshole serial killer before he got to her. Fear like he’d never known pierced his heart and when he met Scott’s gaze again he saw the same terror in his eyes.
As much as he wanted to spend all his time with Lori, they had to concentrate on the case and getting the fucker off the streets and behind bars.
Colby came into the bathroom with Lori in his arms. She looked so peaceful and happy curled up against his brother’s chest and her arms around his neck. He vowed then and there that he and his brothers would do anything and everything they could to keep her safe. Colby handed Lori over to Scott and dealt with the condom before stepping into the tub with them.
Ward was about to do the same, anticipation of washing their woman making his cock twitch, but before he could get in he heard his cell phone ringing in the bedroom. With a sigh of frustration he glanced at the display screen and saw that it was Darius calling. His gut churned with dread and even though he didn’t really want to take the call he did.
“Darius, what’s up?”
“There’s been another murder. I need you all at the crime scene.”
“Lori, too?”
“Umm…no. I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
Ward could hear the fear in Darius’s voice.
“What?”
“The same MO but this time he left a photo of Lori on our victim.”
“Fuck!”
“Yeah,” Darius sighed. “But what worries me is that the picture he left is of her naked in the shower.”
“Son of a bitch. He’s watching her. Colby swept her place and didn’t find anything.”
“Obviously he’s missed something,” Darius said. “You need to look again.”
“Yeah, but we’ll have to do it after.”
“Where was the body found?”
“Near where the last victim was left.”
“Do you have an ID on our victim?”
The pregnant pause made Ward’s gut churn, but he stayed silent while he waited for the answer and tried to brace himself for more bad news.
“She was a female cop in our precinct.”
“Shit.” Ward turned when he heard a noise and found Lori and his brothers standing behind him all wrapped in towels but still dripping wet. How long they had been there he had no clue, and from the scowls on his brothers’ faces they had tried to stop Lori from coming out but hadn’t been able to talk her into staying in the bath.
“What’s going on?” Lori asked.
“I’ll tell you in a minute.”
“She heard?” Darius asked.
“Not really.”
“Shit. You may as well tell her, she’ll find out on her own if you try and keep this from her,” Darius said.
“I know.”
“How long before you can head out?”
“Ten.”
“I’ll meet you there.” Darius disconnected the call and Ward stood staring at Lori. How the hell was he supposed to tell her one of their own had been targeted by the serial killer?
Ward just hoped she didn’t know who the uniform officer was. She’d kept to herself mostly and hadn’t really interacted with her work colleagues that much, other than the occasional drink after work every once in a while.
“There’s been another murder,” Ward finally managed to speak in a calm voice. He didn’t want to show Lori how upset he was and it had taken a few minutes to get his emotions under control.
“Where?”
“Close to the same place as last time.”
Lori’s expression grew grim and then determined. She pulled the towel from her body and started drying off and then she began searching for some clean clothes.
Ward stepped forward and nudged her chin up after she’d finished buttoning her jeans. “You aren’t going, Lori. There is no way in hell I’m letting you out in the open. He could be holed up somewhere with a long-range rifle and try to take you out.”
“That won’t happen. It’s not his MO.” Lori stepped back, pulled a T-shirt over her head, and then sat down on the side of the bed and started putting her socks and shoes on.
“You’re still not going. You’re supposed to be taking it easy. Darius will use my guts for garters if you arrive on the scene.”
She stopped in the middle of tying her sneaker lace and stared at him. Her voice was so quiet when she spoke Ward had to strain to hear her. “Darius is going? What the hell is going on?”
He should have known she would pick up on his slip-up. She was a trained detective and very good at her job. Now he was going to have to tell her and his heart ached.
“The victim was a cop.”
“Shit, this bastard is getting cocky.” Lori jerked on the laces and did them up before tying the other one. “Which precinct was she from?”
Ward swallowed audibly and opened his mouth to reply but when he saw the blood drain from her face he knew he didn’t need to. She rose to her feet and grabbed at his forearm. “Who was it?”
He glanced toward his brothers and saw that they too had taken the time to dry off and get dressed. He’d been so intent on Lori he hadn’t even noticed.
“Answer me,” Lori demanded in a hard voice, and when he looked back at her face she’d wiped all expression.
“Jodie Jones.”
Ward wrapped an arm around her waist when she swayed and pulled her against his body. She gulped in breath after breath of air as she rested her forehead against his chest and he knew she was trying not to cry. He had no idea how long they stood that way. It could have been hours but he knew it was probably only a couple of minutes, but they had been the longest minutes of his life. He could practically feel pain radiating off of her, but when she finally pulled back, again her expression was stoic. But when he looked into her eyes he could see the moisture she was trying to hold at bay.
“Get dressed,” she ordered him. “We need to get going.”
“Lori, you can’t—” Colby started but she interrupted him.
“I’m going and there is nothing you can do or say that will stop me. You can tie me up and lock me in but I will find a way out and to that crime scene.”
Ward hated hearing her voice crack on the last two words and even though he didn’t want her going, he could see by the implacable resolve on her face that she would do what she’d said. He didn’t want her traipsing about by herself and knew the only way to keep her safe was to take her with them.
He glanced over her head to his brothers and they both nodded at him, letting him know they’d come to the same conclusion. He’d rather get his ass reamed by Darius for going against orders than have her alone and in danger. For all they knew, this asshole was watching every move they made and if they saw him and his brothers’ leave, it could be the perfect opportunity for him to make his move.
Ward hurried to the bathroom and after cleaning up and drying off, he dressed in record time. He and his brothers checked their weapons and Ward handed Lori hers. Minutes later they were in their car en route to another murder scene.
Chapter Twelve
Lori tried to push all her emotions down deep as she walked toward the banks of the OC Fisher Lake. Ward and Colby walked on either side of her and Scott was behind her. She glanced up toward Bart, who was standing off to the side of the crime scene. When she was closer, she could see the moisture in his eyes and he was grinding his teeth. He didn’t speak to her and she realized he was afraid he would crack up and so she just nodded to him and then stopped about ten meters from where Jodie’s naked body was set out exactly as the other women had been, but when she looked up at her face, her legs nearly buckled when
she saw that Jodie’s eyes were open.
Bile churned in her stomach and started to rise up her esophagus but Lori wasn’t about to vomit when one of her friends and work colleagues was lying on the ground naked, dead. She swallowed and ruthlessly pushed the emotions bubbling up in her chest back down and moved closer. When she saw the naked photograph of herself in her own shower right next to Jodie’s head, fear like she’d never known permeated her body right to her heart and soul, but she had a job to do and couldn’t let anything stand in her way. She owed it to Jodie and the women before her to catch this bastard and put him behind bars for life.
She ignored the Stanford men as she lowered her kit back to the ground and pulled her digital camera out and even though she heard Darius cursing behind her and asking the men why they had brought her to the scene she ignored them all.
Lori took picture after picture and she zeroed in on the small masculine symbol just inside her hip bone. She took photos from every conceivable angle and magnification she could. By the time she was done, she was exhausted but she wasn’t about to show how tired she was. She walked back over to her kit and pulled evidence bags as well as test kits and fingerprint dust out, but as she turned around to get back to work she saw that Ward, Colby, and Scott had beat her to it.
“Lori, you should be resting,” Darius said as he moved closer to her.
Lori cleared her throat before she tried to reply and even though it was tight with emotion she managed to speak in a calm emotionless voice. “How do you expect me to rest when…” She stopped when she couldn’t finish her question without her voice cracking up.
Darius pulled her into his arms and she hugged him tight and buried her face against him as a tear leaked from one of her eyes.
“Have you called Waco to find out where Geoffrey is, or was, at the time of death?”
“We won’t know that for sure until the coroner arrives.”
“You and I both know that it hasn’t been more than three hours. Make the call, Darius.”
Darius released her and then dialed. He moved away from her as he spoke to his friend in Waco. When he was done he stood staring at her but didn’t speak as if he didn’t know what to say.
“What?” she asked, not really sure she wanted to know the answer.
“Geoff has been in the station all afternoon and night. They made a drug bust this morning and he and his colleagues have been interrogating their perps for hours.”
Lori’s mind began to whirl. That meant that Geoff couldn’t be their suspect. Not unless someone had gotten wind of their killer and was copying him. A shiver wracked her spine when the hair on her nape stood on end and she scanned the trees and banks of the lake, hoping to catch sight of whoever was watching her, but the bastard was hidden well and she couldn’t see anything.
“We could have a copycat on our hands,” she said as she turned to face him again. Darius was also scanning and she wondered if he felt what she did, but then his gaze connected with hers.
“No one but my boss and other cops know we have a serial killer on our hands, Lori. Not even the press have gotten a hold of this. You’re grasping at straws.”
“Are you sure that Geoff didn’t slip out at some stage? He could have left the station, kidnapped and killed Jodie, and gone back without any even knowing he’d gone.”
“Do you really believe that?” Darius asked.
“No.” Lori sighed and pushed her hair back from her face. “Who else could it be? Maybe my profile is wrong. Maybe we’re not looking for a cop after all.”
“Don’t do that to yourself, honey. I’ve never known you to be wrong on your profile yet.”
“There’s always a first time. We could be looking for a doctor for all we know. A medical professional would know not to leave any DNA at the scene.”
“So do a lot of other people, Lori. All it takes nowadays is to look up stuff on the internet. Nearly everything a person wants to know is at the tip of their fingers. It doesn’t take a genius to find what they need.”
Lori watched as Ward, Colby, and Scott finished up taking swabs, dusting for prints, and collecting any evidence they could which may lead them to their killer. The coroner arrived and then Jodie’s body was gently placed into a body bag and carried away.
“Do you want me to tell her next of kin?” Lori asked.
“No, honey, I’ll do it, but thanks for offering.” He glanced over her head as Ward and his brothers came closer. “You three need to get this little lady home to rest and make sure she doesn’t do anything else tonight. If the department doctor found out we let her work while she’s supposed to be on leave, I could end up getting axed.”
Ward nodded and then handed the evidence bags he was holding to Colby. Darius reached out and took them from him. “I’ll take them up to forensics myself. I have to stop in at the office to get Jodie’s parents’ address. You three can e-mail me your report in the morning.”
Lori placed a hand on Darius’s forearm when he started to turn away. “Please let me help finish this case up? I promise to take a full month’s leave when we have this fucker behind bars.”
Darius shook his head, but Lori continued to press. “You know damn well I’m not going to stop. Let me help catch this bastard.”
“Shit, Lori. You haven’t stopped helping. I know you won’t leave this alone, but if you could see how tired you are, the dark smudges beneath your eyes, and the fact that you’ve started losing weight, you’d be riding my ass, too.
“I’m not pulling you off this totally but you need to back off before you make yourself really sick.”
“Is that an order?” Lori asked.
“Yes, it is,” Darius replied in a firm voice. “Take her home, make sure she goes straight to bed. She looks like she’s about to pass out.”
Lori hated being talked about like she wasn’t there, but didn’t dare open her mouth to say anything. She was so wired with adrenaline, anger, and emotion right now she was scared that if she started arguing she would end up screaming and breaking down. She knew that Darius was right about limiting her work hours because she was so close to the edge right now she was scared she would snap. But she had always been in control where work was concerned and wasn’t about to make a fool of herself by collapsing now.
She spun on her heels, nodded at Bart, and then trudged quickly back toward the car. As she walked she went over the killer’s profile she had compiled after the second heinous murder and wondered if she had somehow fucked up. But the more she thought, the more she knew she was right.
They were looking for a cop, but now that her ex-partner had an alibi, she had no idea which one. She’d been so sure their murderer was Geoff when she’d seen the minute man symbols on the victims, but that had been blown to hell and back after Darius’s call to his friend in Waco.
She wanted to go back to the station and look each and every cop in the eyes, but knew that Darius, Ward, Colby, and Scott would pitch a fit if she even suggested it.
Lori hated it that women were being raped, stabbed, and killed because she couldn’t work out who the killer was and now even her female work colleagues weren’t safe. Guilt roiled in her stomach and her gut churned again as all the emotions she’d kept tamped down surged up in a tsunamic wave.
She clutched hold of the car and lowered her head as the tears spilled from her eyes and down her cheeks. Great heaving sobs erupted from her mouth and even though she tried to contain them she couldn’t. She stumbled over to the grass off to the side of the road and sank to her knees. Her stomach rebelled over and over again, feeling like her insides were trying to turn inside out, and her stomach muscles got sore. Finally her stomach settled and even though she tried to stop the tears from flowing she couldn’t.
The sick bastard had killed a woman she had worked with, shared drinks with, and it was all to get at her. She knew how it worked but that didn’t help lessen her feelings of guilt. This fucker wasn’t going to stop until he had her but she couldn’t de
al with having another woman’s death on her conscience. It was time for her to lure this bastard out into the open and take him down.
As far as she was concerned, there were no other options.
* * * *
Colby rushed over to Lori’s side when he saw her kneeling on the ground. He rubbed his hand up and down her back as she was sick, but he didn’t think she even knew he was there. When she’d finished vomiting, she continued to sob and he couldn’t take it anymore. He lifted her up into his arms and carried her over to the car. After carefully placing her on the back seat, he pulled a bottle of water from his kit bag and placed it to her lips. He nearly sighed with relief when her tears slowed and when she looked up at him he could see she was finally back with him and not just staring into space without seeing anything like she had been.
She pushed against his chest and slid from the seat and he was about to grab her and put her back in the car, but when she spat the water from her mouth, he realized she was rinsing her mouth out. When she reached for the bottle of water he handed it to her and was pleased when she drank deeply that she was able to keep it in her stomach. But he began to get really concerned for her mental well-being when she climbed back in the unmarked police car and shut the door.
He looked over at Ward and Scott and saw they were just as worried about Lori as he was by the concerned looks on their faces, but now wasn’t the time or place to talk to her. Hopefully when they got back home she would open up with them.
Colby knew she was hurting and grieving over her friend’s death and mentally castigated himself for letting her come with them, but there wasn’t a chance in hell he and his brothers were going to leave her by herself when there was a serial killer after her.
