“Would you like some wine or a beer?” offered Elizabeth.
Tori was pulled back to focus on her boss. “Beer would be perfect.”
Elizabeth grabbed a beer from the refrigerator and popped it open for her guest, walking it over to her.
“Thank you,” she said taking it. “Can I be blatantly honest?” Tori asked.
“Please do,” answered Elizabeth.
“Your house it gorgeous, but I wasn’t expecting it to feel warm.” Then she realized that may have come out wrong. “I mean…”
Elizabeth laughed. “You thought we’d live in a house with black furniture, chrome and hard angles?”
“Yeah, this looks lived in, comfortable, and easy going.”
She patted her agent on the shoulder. “I hope it’s a pleasant surprise. Feel free to wander around and explore. When I first went to Ethan’s grandfather’s house, he offered me the same thing and I was so glad. I tend to be a curious person.”
“Me too.”
“I’ll go work on dinner and we can talk while you look around.” Elizabeth went back into the kitchen and started chopping veggies.
Tori first went to the bookshelf and checked out all the pictures of the family there. Inside she felt loss, because she didn’t have a big family. Her brother was killed and her father died shortly after. As for her mother, Tori didn’t know where she was living. When they were kids, she was unhappy and left the family one day on a whim.
Never to return.
The pictures on the shelves were of happy smiling people. One had Elizabeth in her husband’s arms, and the other had her in the same position but with Callen Whitefox.
Then there was the three of them, holding a little baby. “Your son is really adorable,” she called over her shoulder to her boss. “Why am I not surprised that he has a mohawk?”
Elizabeth laughed. “Yeah, believe it or not, he was born that way. Now that his hair is growing in, it’s straight like Ethan’s.”
Next Tori stopped in front of the display case holding the headdress. “This is really pretty,” she said.
Grinning, Elizabeth was overwhelmed by emotion. “That was Timothy Blackhawk’s warbonnet. When he was a boy he started to earn the feathers. It took him over sixty years to get it that grand.” She paused. “We lost him three months ago.”
Tori turned around at the sound in her voice. “I’m so sorry for your loss.” It was something that she understood.
“Ethan and Callen’s grandfather was a special man. I fell madly in love with him the day I met him.”
Next Tori went to the mantle. “You went to Cornell?” she asked, shocked and astonished.
Elizabeth began laughing. “Surprised that I didn’t go to a state school?” she queried. “Everyone’s always shocked when they find out that I went Ivy League,” she stated, seeing the look on her agent’s face. “Don’t worry, it doesn’t bother me. I’m used to it. It’s a misconception that I’m a hick from the backwoods. I think it’s the boots and the bad attitude that gives that impression.” She laughed, hoping to relax her agent.
Tori didn’t know what to say. “It says linguistics, how many languages do you speak?” she asked, curiously.
“I only speak around five; French, Italian, English, Spanish, and now a Native dialect too. When our grandfather died, he wanted us to all learn his language and we put the warbonnet up as the prize. After Christmas we have the final test by Wyler. Winner takes the headpiece. I plan on smoking both men.”
Tori laughed, wandering back over to her. “Do you need any help?”
Elizabeth shook her head, but pointed to a stool. “I don’t often get to make dinner. Ethan usually does it for me. I do breakfast, Ethan does dinner, and Callen… he just burns things to an unrecognizable crisp.”
Tori laughed. “It has to be interesting living here,” she said, alluding to the relationship.
“I wanted to talk to you about that.”
She looked surprised. “Okay.”
Elizabeth tossed the veggies into the pan and began sautéing them. “Thank you for not spreading the gossip and rumors when we came back from the swamp. Both you and Julian were privy to that big explosion between Callen and Desdemona, and you could have told everyone. It was a very raw moment in Callen’s life and I’m glad it died there in the bayou.”
Tori shrugged. “I may not get your relationship, but it doesn’t mean it’s my job to share it with the world. What happens in your life is private, and that’s your business.” Tori understood the lure of a sexy Native man. There had been one in her life, briefly. She pushed the emotion down to not relive it again.
She smiled. “Julian is coming in tomorrow to help us with the assignment.”
Shit! So much for not reliving the pain.
Elizabeth watched as Christensen almost dropped her beer bottle. “I know there’s something between you both, and I’m not going to pry, but I need to know if it’s going to distract you and cause us issues.”
“If I said yes?” Tori tried to compose herself. Christ, Julian was coming back, and that was going to be tough. She thought about him constantly, and wanted to call him every day she’d been away from him. Yet she didn’t have the balls to do it. Deep down, Tori knew she wasn’t worthy of anything he was offering.
Her heart couldn’t handle getting hurt and losing love again. It was best it just stayed blocked out. “I won’t be distracted,” she answered. What a complete and total lie that was.
Elizabeth nodded, knowing the woman wasn’t being honest. “So, what do you do for Christmas?” She switched it up.
Tori shrugged. “Nothing.”
“Great. Dinner is at four on Christmas day. I’ll expect you a little before, because we have drinks and get tipsy beforehand.”
Agent Christensen’s mouth dropped open. “I don’t really do Christmas.” How was she going to tell the woman in front of her no? This was her boss.
Hell!
“You’re doing it this year,” Elizabeth insisted. “Do it for me. I’m the only woman in a house of men. If you don’t come, I may get cranky and bitchy.”
Tori laughed not wanting her partner to be in a bad mood. “Okay, I’ll come. What can I bring?”
Elizabeth tossed the stir-fry and looked at her watch. Wyler just pulled in, and that meant dinner and little man kisses. “Nothing. I have a giant turkey.”
The kitchen door opened, and Tori looked over. There was a man standing there holding the little Blackhawk in his arms. Immediately, Elizabeth went to his side and kissed him on his cheek. “Tori, this is Wyler.”
It didn’t take long for Christensen to figure it out. The man looked just like Ethan Blackhawk, but older. Standing she offered her hand. “You must be Director Blackhawk’s father.”
He laughed and took the offered hand. “That’s what they tell me. I guess I must be. We look alike.”
“Dad, dinner is in five minutes. I’ll hold CJ while you get ready.”
“Thank you, sweetheart,” he stated, running up the stairs.
Elizabeth noticed her agent staring at the man. “It’s off settling isn't it? Ethan looks just like, him and yet Callen not so much.”
“I’m sorry, but yeah it is.” Tori watched her boss holding her son, and she was kissing his cheeks and holding him pressed to her body like a mother would. This woman was definitely not the same as she was in the office. This entire world was completely different than their work personas.
“Can you hold CJ? I need to keep stirring the food.”
Tori stared openmouthed. “Uh, yeah I guess.” Taking the smiling boy from her, the woman tried to remain calm. She loved little kids, but dropping her boss’s pride and joy would be a bad thing.
Immediately, CJ grabbed a handful of hair and played with it.
Elizabeth laughed. “He gets it from me. I have a hair thing,” she said winking. “He likes you. When he doesn’t like the energy of the person, he screams bloody murder.”
Tori sat on the
stool, staring down at the little boy in her arms. He was really cute, and she felt her heart melting a little bit. He was very sweet, as he looked up at her and chewed on her hair. “What does CJ stand for?”
“Callen James. He’s named after his uncle.”
Tori laughed. “So your son is named after your boyfriend and husband’s brother, who you also have a relationship with too? I have to say Elizabeth; you have a very interesting life. Here I believed you just came home and killed things after beating them up.”
Elizabeth snorted. “Don’t tell them at work that I lead a normal life, well minus the men issue.” Elizabeth began plating their dinner, and grinned up at the woman. “I’m also fairly easy to work with too, but people assume I’m tougher than I am.”
Agent Christensen laughed. “I saw you take a gunshot to the center of your chest, fall into a swamp and then pop up ten seconds later to kill the guy. You’re pretty damn tough. I’ve seen men run screaming from gunfire and you taunted a woman to shoot you. You’re either crazy or tough.”
“Most people say crazy. The men in my life would vote for insanity too.”
When her phone beeped, she read the display and grinned. Her mind began to wander, and she couldn’t wait to tell both men that they were going to be having a baby. Chris had given her the timeline according to the HCG levels too.
Elizabeth’s heart skipped in her chest at the idea of another child in their family. The tears came even though she fought valiantly.
“Hey, are you okay?” asked Tori, concerned. Maybe she said something that upset her. “I didn’t mean to cross a line.”
She shook her head, wiping the tears from her eyes. “I just received some good news. I’m just hormonal.” Elizabeth took the chance, since the woman didn’t spread gossip, her secret would be safe.
It took Tori a few seconds before she got it. “Oh, well congrats?” She wasn’t sure if they were good tears or bad.
It was what she needed. Elizabeth began laughing, and moved past the tears of joy. “It’s a very good thing. I’ve just been waiting all day to find out. Please don’t say anything; I haven’t spoken to Callen or Ethan yet. They’re both coming home any day. I may surprise them for Christmas. Wyler too.”
Tori looked down at the little boy. CJ had laid his head on her shoulder and was getting comfortable. “He’s hard to not like, and oddly I think I may love the smell of baby lotion.”
Elizabeth began carrying the food into the dining room, and placing plates on the table. “I love the smell of baby. I want to eat him,” she said laughing.
“Then we better feed your momma,” she whispered to CJ. “I have a strong stomach, but baby eating may even break me.”
She laughed and walked over to the stairs, calling up to Wyler. “Dad! Dinner!”
The man bounded down to the first floor, grinning. “I’m ready sweetheart. Can I feed CJ?”
Ever since they lost Timothy, Wyler had immersed himself with the little boy. It was his way of getting over losing his father. Elizabeth wanted to cuddle her son, but conceded. “Absolutely, Dad. Have at him.”
Wyler happily pulled his chair closer to the highchair and began feeding his grandchild. When his sons were little, he missed out on being a father, because he’d been selfish and only thought of himself. Now he’d been given a chance at redemption and wasn’t taking any chances. This might be his last opportunity in life to make amends.
Elizabeth and Tori pulled out files, scanning them as they ate. Normally dinner was a no work zone, but they were burning daylight and needed to prep for the next day.
“Chris is processing the bodies. He didn’t get to them all tonight. By tomorrow afternoon we’ll have a better idea regarding the women that died.”
Tori sat back in her chair and chewed. “Victim two was escalated.” She was trying to find a way to talk about dead bodies at a table with her boss’s father-in-law.
Wyler spoke up. “Feel free to discuss it without worrying about me. I’m not bothered by death. It’s merely a crossing to the next step, even if it’s violent.”
Elizabeth nodded, urging her to continue.
“Okay, so I’m looking at the victims. The killer’s first one was covered in alcohol, but as he progresses through the killing, the accelerant changes. By victim three he’s gone violently towards gasoline. Alcohol is flammable, but with gasoline, you’re looking for a big burn.”
“Why?” asked Elizabeth. “Is he trying to hide something or is he just addicted to the flame?”
Tori shrugged.
Elizabeth flipped to victim two. “Female and this time we’re looking at a little older. The ME has her listed as early thirties. Her hyoid was snapped, and he believes COD was strangulation. Our vic was found in a different field.”
“Do we have a COD with victim one?” asked Tori, flipping through the papers.
Elizabeth shuffled through hers too. “I don’t see one.”
“Me either. How can it not be included in the report? Isn’t something like cause of death a pretty standard thing to list?”
“It certainly is, and this is why I wanted Chris Leonard to redo all the autopsies. I have a sneaking suspicion that these women weren’t given top priority thanks to their social status.”
Tori looked at the notes. “At least they have a name for the victim. Christiana Dempsey was a prostitute. It says no family claimed her. The prior arrest record is about as tall as you.”
“That’s sad,” said Wyler. “Sorry.”
Elizabeth smiled at him. “It’s okay, Dad. There’s no need to apologize. I happen to agree that it’s very sad indeed.” The Blackhawks were a very family centric unit. To them, there was nothing more valuable or important. To die and not even be missed was something that none of them would ever get. All four remaining members would take a bullet, kill someone, or die for their loved ones. They’d already proven that theory repeatedly.
Tori continued on. “Victim three was younger. The ME has her down as early twenties again. She shows fractures on the back of her skull, but no damage to the hyoid. We know her name, only because the killer put her in her car and lit it on fire. Jessica Arturo also had no family to claim her.”
“It’s odd that our killer is strangling and then skull fracturing.” Now Elizabeth sat back. “Unless he was choking her at the time of death. Maybe bashing her head against the ground and the skull fractures did her in and he gave up on strangulation.”
“We need to find out if he strangled her first.”
Wyler spoke up. “Wouldn’t the skull fractures be enough to kill her?” he inquired.
Elizabeth looked over. “They could have killed her. Caused her brain to hemorrhage, but it wouldn’t have happened instantaneously. That means if she wasn’t strangled, he could have lit her on fire while she was still alive.”
“Oh God, that’s awful!” Wyler was horrified. “I don’t know how you, Ethan and Callen don’t have nightmares every night, Lyzee.”
She shrugged. “I have them most nights, Dad. You can’t walk through the shit we do and not be affected. The worst for me was the assignment where I met Callen. Those dead pregnant women still haunt me.”
Tori studied her boss carefully. Nightmares were common in her life too, and maybe she wasn’t alone. It gave her some hope that she wasn’t the only one chased in dreams.
“If you need to talk about them, sweetheart, you can always come to me,” Wyler offered. “I’ll listen.”
Elizabeth grabbed her plate to start clearing the table. “I knew you were my favorite Blackhawk man,” she said, dropping a kiss on the top of his head. “Can you give CJ a bath and get him ready for bed?”
Wyler grinned excitedly. “I can and will. You sleep tonight sweetheart. I’ll take care of him if he wakes up.”
“Thank you, Dad,” she said, grabbing his plate. “Come on Tori, you can read to me while I load the dishwasher.”
The woman grabbed her own dish and followed her boss, carrying all their files
. It was still odd that she was spending time with her, and actually enjoying it. Elizabeth Blackhawk was nothing like she was at work. It was turning out to be a very enjoyable evening.
“Give me victim four,” she stated, as she scraped dishes into the garbage disposal.
Tori scanned and read. “This one is listed as late thirties and down as tortured.”
Elizabeth looked over. “Seriously?”
She nodded. “They have the injuries listed. It looked like someone tortured her long term. Almost all the bones in her feet were fractured, reknit, and then refractured.”
“Pre or post mortem?”
Christensen flipped. “No idea. These ME notes really aren’t what we usually work with.”
“If that’s your way of saying their ME is incompetent, then yeah, I’m with you there. I prefer working with our team whenever possible. I’m going to text Tony Magnus and bring him in to help us out. I want him to look at the victim’s feet tomorrow.” He was their anthropologist and one of the best in the business.
“Probably a good thing. If he’s torturing the victims, that’s a big sign of escalation.”
Elizabeth knew that to be a fact. “How well do you profile?” she asked, hoping that the woman could bring to the partnership what Ethan generally did.
“Not my thing. I’m the bomb and fire expert.”
“Well I can do a basic, but we may need to ask Ethan for help on this one. He generally handles the profiling for me.”
Tori laughed. “His thing? At Quantico in the training classes, he’s listed as the standard of excellence. They want to study his thought processes because he’s genius!”
Elizabeth laughed. “Please don’t use those words around him. He’ll be on an ego trip for a month and I’ll have to ass kick him back to reality.”
Tori snickered. “I swear, I won’t say it out loud.”
Back to work. “What do we have on the last victim?”
She flipped through the pages and studied the information before reading it to her boss. “The last victim was either beat, or she put up one hell of a fight. Her body showed multiple fractures.”
Fire Burns Hot ((An FBI/ Romance Thriller~ (Book 5))) Page 7
