by T. G. Ayer
Vee sighed and waved a hand at the bathtub. “She ate a meal, then had a soak in the tub. The attacker entered the bathroom and surprised her. She fought him, and he reacted with a blow to her neck. Causing the bloodstain here.”
Monroe nodded. “That’s more or less what I thought. There was water at the bottom of the tub, along with granules from what looked like bath-salts, or a bath bomb.”
“Yeah, the bloodstain and the drag marks are pretty self-explanatory. She fought him though. He came up behind her, and she would have seen him in the mirror before he struck.”
Monroe frowned. “How can you tell that she was at the washbasin?” Her expression had begun to fill with suspicion.
Vee shrugged. “There is a blood droplet from a broken fingernail behind the faucet. You may want to get a sample.”
Monroe nodded, although the detective didn’t look pleased. “Yeah, the techs haven’t come in here yet. But a broken fingernail isn’t something they should have missed.”
“Not a fingernail. It’s a drop of blood.”
“And you noticed this how?”
“I considered various possible scenarios and checked the bathroom accordingly.” Vee gave a shrug and took a few steps back. “I’d guess he grabbed her from behind and she’d have kicked. Explains the bruises on her knees and toes—kicking out and hitting the cupboards.”
Monroe’s eyes were dark as she stared around the room, and then focused on the double washbasin.
Vee continued, “At that point, I’d guess she would have reacted with greater desperation. Probably reached out to grab him, scratch him, pull his hair. Anything to stop him.”
“And how the hell can you tell such a thing?” The detective’s brow furrowed as she scowled at Vee.
“I can’t tell. I’m thinking of possible scenarios. It’s possible she did nothing, but would that explain the bruising on her knees and feet, the bruising on her fingers and the broken nails. We should consider that a possibility. Not investigating all the possible scenarios and outcomes is reckless and lazy.”
Vee wanted to bite her tongue as soon as the words left her mouth. Monroe was a touchy woman, easily offended. And she had never been happy with Vee’s involvement. Vee didn’t need to alienate the woman by being insensitive. But when she looked over at Monroe’s reflection in the mirror, she found that despite the detective’s cold frown and stiff spine, the woman was nodding slowly as she scanned the room.
“I’ll have the team double-check her fingernails. That’s a standard thing anyway, but I’ll chase the results.” She looked up at Vee. “If we’re still helping you out.”
Vee pursed her lips. “Yeah. Just don’t let those two find out.”
Monroe nodded then retrieved her little notebook from inside her jacket pocket and began to scribble on it.
Vee glanced around for where she’d seen the golden chain fall, spotting a pair of hotel-issue slippers beside the counter. “Oh, and there is a piece of jewelry inside one of those slippers beside the washbasin.”
The detective paused in her scribbling and glanced over in the direction in which Vee was looking. “Don’t tell me…you considered all possible scenarios?” she asked, her expression bland.
Vee resisted the urge to roll her eyes, and instead turned and headed back into the bedroom. “Here he left her on the floor probably thinking she was done. But maybe she tries to move… to stand. He’s likely done. This is taking too long. He grabs her and pushed her onto the bed—”
“Grabs her shoulders which is evident by the bruising on her shoulders,” Monroe said with a nod.
“She lands and then he guts her. She’s still desperate to get away and tries to pull herself to the edge of the bed. But he finishes her off.”
“Yeah, that much I can see too. But my question is what the hell happened to all the blood. There isn’t enough here to warrant the kind of attack you are talking about.”
Vee lifted her hand, intending to dig into her bag for her evidence kits, but a small plastic bag was placed into her palm. She cast Monroe a grateful smile and held onto it as she crouched down beside the body and used the enclosed tweezer to remove the evidence.
The girl’s fingers were rigid despite the warmth of the apartment. Reaching out, Vee grabbed a hold of what looked like a long strand of dark hair. She drew the tweezer away, depositing the strand of black hair into the plastic bag. Vee scribbled the codes for her lab sample and then handed the bag to Monroe who was closest. Vee kept going, removing another strand of hair from beneath the victim’s body.
At last, Vee studied the body itself, lifting the sheet to inspect Susie in case of rape, not required considering what Vee had already seen, but she had to go through the motions of being a good investigative officer exploring all options. “The forensics team will do a rape kit, but she doesn’t appear to have been sexually assaulted,” Vee murmured, more to herself than anything. She got to her feet and stared down at the woman.
When she sighed, Monroe asked, “All done?” Vee nodded. “What you got?”
“I’m still not sure how the killer gained entry, but the victim had no other visitors until the killer arrived. She called for room service. The killer was already here, waiting for his moment to strike.” Vee mimicked the move in the specific spot that the killer had stood before he’d hit the victim.
“And the dine and dash?” Monroe cocked her head at the ravaged neck of the victim.
Vee made a face. “Looks a lot as though he bled her somehow.” Though Vee faked ignorance of the somehow, she knew all too well. The pit of her stomach burned at the thought, and she knew she had to get a report into Rossi ASAP.
Vee glanced at the detective who held up a hand. “I’m sure autopsy is going to confirm all those injuries exactly as you’ve described, but the forensics techs are going to ask what the perp did with the blood. Did he drain her elsewhere then return with the body or are we dealing with a vampire?” Monroe’s loud snort showed how little she believed in the supernatural. The woman liked her facts hard and visible.
Vee shrugged. “Whatever he did, you’re right. There’s a lot of blood unaccounted for.” Vee turned and looked at the picture window. “He was done here, so he left the room. Possibly he was looking for something.”
Vee moved out of the bedroom and traced the demon’s steps, stopping only when she got to the bloodstain on the carpet.
“We have a second victim.”
“This stain’s not Susie’s?” Monroe’s spine stiffened as she studied the blood.
Vee shook her head. “There isn’t anything to explain why he would have brought Susie out here.” Vee paused and waved a hand at the inner room. “When during his attack would he have had the time? Or the reason?”
“So someone else entered the suite and was attacked here.” Vee nodded as Monroe walked around the toppled end table to study the spatter on the window. “So, we have two murder victims.”
“No.”
“What do you mean?” Monroe scowled.
“We have one murder victim and one abduction victim.”
“Now how did you manage a conclusion like that?”
“Not enough blood spatter to indicate murder. And she’s not here. It’s possible he took her elsewhere to kill her, but that makes no sense, especially since he’d already begun his attack.” Vee motioned at the bloodstained carpet.
“The woman in there didn’t have enough blood to match the spatter and stains either.”
“Good point. I just think that the lack of a body implies he took her. And it’s likely that she’d been special enough to take her body away and not Susie’s. There’s something different about the second woman.” Vee was trying to find a way to come to that conclusion out loud without making the detective suspicious.
“What do you mean?”
“I think he may have changed his mind about killing her. He’d inflicted the first injury, but then he stopped and allowed her to live. Even took her away alive. There’s som
ething that he wants from her.”
“You think he’s a sex fiend or something? Get his rocks off on raping a dying woman? Blood fetish maybe?”
Vee shook her head. “Susie wasn’t raped. I don’t think this is a sex-related crime. Something else is going on here.” As Vee thought about it, she wondered if they could obtain enough evidence to test for pregnancy. She looked at Monroe. “I have a gut feeling but don’t laugh.” Vee felt bad about playing Monroe, but there was no other way to explain her reasoning to the detective.
“You want me to pinkie swear?” The woman snorted. “Tell me what you got.”
Vee shrugged and pointed to the bloodstain. “Let’s see how much blood we can sample for an HCG test.”
Monroe’s eyes winded. “You think she’s pregnant.”
“I think she is. But it would be nice to get some proof.”
“How in the holy heck did you deduce something like that?”
“Just a hunch. I’m trying to understand why he’d take her. What could she have had that he’d let her live? Pregnancy is a strong possibility.”
“That would imply they want the baby for something. Could it be possible that he was here for the baby in the first place and Susie was just collateral damage?”
“Possible.” Vee’s response was non-committal as she didn’t want to interfere too much with the detective’s own deductions. Vee’s own deductions were based on the hesitation the demon had experienced. She knew the abduction had been impulse-driven. But she wasn’t able to reveal that without blowing Monroe’s mind. “For now, let’s assume there is a pregnant woman missing. I’d also like to have the DNA compared for familial relationships. And get me what you have on Susie’s background and history.”
“Think they’re related?” Monroe nodded as she scribbled on her notepad.
Vee gave the detective an apologetic smile. “Gut feeling.”
Monroe looked up and grinned. “So far that gut of yours has proven correct. Let’s hope your track record can maintain its GPA.”
Vee rolled her eyes and received a snort from Monroe. Strange that the woman had actually begun to warm up to Vee. Monroe had always been testy and sharp, and Vee had often thought the detective had passionately disliked her.
“So, can I assume that you want our precinct to handle the case?” asked Monroe as she tucked her notebook back inside her jacket pocket.
Vee considered it for a moment. “Let’s leave it as unofficial for now. I don’t think the FBI has the power to pass judgment on a complicated jurisdictional battle—even if we supported your claim. You might want to verify with the chief. Either way, until I gather sufficient intel, I’ll mark this one as a joint effort.”
“Then you are going to eventually take it from us?” Now Monroe’s tone had turned cool.
Vee shook her head. “No. Even if we do technically, I’d still like for you to remain on board. I just hope that your jurisdictional battle doesn’t rule for the assholes. It probably won’t but the way things go, assholes may know assholes who may know assholes.” Vee shrugged.
Monroe grinned then suppressed her expression. The techs had returned and were back to being busy. “So, how do we find the abduction victim? We don’t even know who she is?”
“I’d start with finding out everything we possibly can about Susie, then check on all the people she’s interacted with in the last few months, track their movements, get in touch, see who’s been missing or who’s been acting weird,” Vee spoke without thinking, then realized that Monroe had been thinking out loud.
The detective grunted, and Vee glanced back to see anger and irritation flicker across her eyes.
Great. Way to go on destroying what little professionalism we had.
The whole afternoon had passed—evidenced by the weaker light outside, and by the low insistent throbbing in Vee’s wing where the wound was slowly healing. Deciding it was time she reported into her boss anyway, Vee turned to Monroe. “Keep me posted?”
Monroe nodded, pulling her cell phone from her pocket. She turned away to make her call.
Vee left without another word, pausing at the door to rip off the bootees and gloves and shove them into a waiting rubbish bag.
She had a few things she needed to get done today, and the day was already over. Funny she could get magical weapons from the gods and not extra hours in the day.
Be careful what you wish for.
Chapter 64
Inside the elevator, Vee placed a call to her boss.
“So, was it a solid lead?” was his first question.
“Yes, sir.”
“What species are we talking?”
“Pey. Same as this morning.”
“Coincidence?”
“Likely not. But this one is a little different. I’m sending some images through. Monroe’s got a bunch of evidence on hand. I’ve requested priority access, and she’s assured me I’ll have them, but Brent can do his thing already.”
“Debrief?” asked Rossi.
“Victim is a female, single from what I gathered. Booked into the hotel yesterday at 4.37pm. Ordered a meal at 5.03pm then relaxed. Meal arrived 6.12 pm. Intruder arrived during the meal at around 6.30pm. He watched and waited until the victim took a bath at 7.10pm. Intruder entered the bathroom at 7.40pm and proceeded to attack her. She put up a fight, so I think we’ll get DNA from her fingernails. Time of death 7.59pm. Body was unusually devoid of blood, so the Pey suits the MO.”
“Good. I’ll wait for your report then?”
“That’s not all, sir.”
“Oh?”
“There was another victim.”
“He killed two people?” Rossi’s voice rose. “But the report was one body discovered.”
“That’s because he didn’t kill the second woman. He took her with him.”
“So we have a missing person too.”
“Yes. And it gets worse. The woman is pregnant.”
“I see. I’ll have the team put an APB out on her. Do you have a description?”
“Short in stature, slight build. Pregnant.”
“That’s all you got?”
“Unfortunately, yes. For the moment. Monroe’s doing a background on Susie and everyone she associates with.”
“Good. So, Monroe is still on the team?”
“As long as the turf war is resolved and falls on her side. We can’t afford evidence going missing, and I wouldn’t put it past those two detectives to mess with the evidence just to show us a point.” The elevator dinged as she reached the first floor.
“Right. Keep me posted.”
Rossi assured Vee that he would pull a few strings to ensure the case fell into Monroe’s lap—if it happened that the crime scene landed in Gianni and Hasif’s jurisdiction.
Vee rang off and tucked her phone back into her pocket as she headed outside.
The last thing she needed was to cross paths with those two creeps again.
Vee smiled at the doorman and headed to the edge of the sidewalk. She waved a cab down and sighed with relief that one was actually coming her way on the first try.
What she didn’t expect was for the cab to speed up as he made a beeline for her. Instinct told her to use her wings, but she knew she couldn’t do that without jeopardizing everything, not only what she was but also the existence of the supernatural worlds.
But she didn’t need to make any decisions.
Someone slammed right into her, so hard that she and her attacker/savior went rolling over and over onto the sidewalk. As they went, Vee heard the cab’s tires screech as he tried to redirect his aim and follow Vee where she now lay on the ground, a little dazed.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the cab swerve, attempting to avoid a delivery truck that was parked in front of the hotel. The cab-driver failed and slammed into the rear fender of the truck, the loud pop of the airbag filling the street.
Vee grunted and looked up, curious who she had to thank for her life.
Her stom
ach swirled as she stared into Gianni’s eyes. He was smiling as he lay there on top of Vee, pressing against her chest and stomach and compressing her lungs, not to mention forcing her back against the irregular-shaped contents of her satchel on which she’d landed.
She lifted her head and shoved at his shoulders. “I need to breathe.”
The push got him to roll off her chest, and Vee sat up and took a deep breath, flinching as her cheek smarted. Just one more injury to add to her current list.
“That’s the thanks I get?” He stood, his cheeks red as he tugged at the waistband of his pants.
Vee shook her head. “I’ll thank you when I get to breathe. You were pressing all the air out of my lungs,” she snapped.
Vee boosted herself to her feet, shifting her messenger bag to her side. Around her, people were rushing about, someone yelled for the ambulance, while another voice called for the cops.
“Don’t go anywhere. I’ll check on the driver and be back in a second,” Gianni instructed. Moments later he yelled, “Where the fuck did he go?”
Vee frowned and walked closer to the damaged vehicle, and watched Gianni as he stared around the street, his skin blotchy with anger. She couldn’t tell him that with the driver’s seat empty, the chances were high her attacker had been a demon and would have merely vanished from the seat. Or turned himself invisible to then crawl out from the open door.
“Asshole thinks he can run down a lawman?” The detective stalked about like a frenzied rooster until another cop walked up to him and spoke into his ear.
Gianni nodded to the man then stalked away from the cab and came to stand by Vee’s side. She’d been tempted to leave, annoyed that he’d left her standing on the sidewalk as if she needed to remain out of harm’s way like a helpless female.
Same helpless female who’d almost been run down by a deranged cab-driver and who’d been saved by the very man who’d appeared to be concerned for her safety.
Vee gritted her teeth and waited for Gianni to reach her side, she folded her arms.
“Know anyone who’d have wanted to kill you?” Gianni asked looking Vee up and down.
