Kaylin's Pursuit [The Black Iris Club 1] (Siren Publishing Everlasting Classic)

by Skye Michaels

  Del and Kaylin got a table at the popular Fort Lauderdale brewery and kitchen for a late lunch. As they waited for their burgers, they made a list of things they wanted to check and split the work up between them. They would probably need some clerical help to run down all the names on the tenant lists when they came in. That would be a major job. There had to be at least a thousand people, maybe more, in that building. And then there were the high-profile members of The Black Iris Club. That could be touchy, but they decided to try and honor Brown’s request for discretion. It didn’t pay to piss someone like him off for no good reason. They would see how the investigation went. Maybe Lucy Evans had a jealous boyfriend. Who knew at this stage? This could turn out to be easy, or it could turn out to be very difficult.

  Del and Kaylin spent the remainder of the afternoon going over crime scene photos and forensics. They ran background checks on Jack Dalton Brown, Mikaela Jones, Derek Smith, and the members on the list provided by Brown. Nothing popped. At six o’clock after a twelve-hour day, they called it quits for the night, agreeing to make an early start in the morning. So much for a quiet, peaceful Sunday.

  * * * *

  On Sunday night Kaylin made a quick salad for dinner, poured a glass of wine, and went out to her patio to eat. The evening was warm, the air heavy with the scent of the afternoon rain, cut grass, blooming trees, bushes, and border plants. Her backyard was a jungle with high Ficus hedges that closed it off from her neighbors like a stone wall. She had a covered outdoor kitchen complete with fire pit, grill, refrigerator, and storage space. It afforded her complete privacy, and she enjoyed it tremendously. The previous owners of the house, Lefty and Kevin, had redone the house and yard before she bought it. They had done a top-notch job. They had completely redesigned the 1920s bungalow, rewired the electrical, refinished the distressed wood floors, put in new air conditioning, the new kitchen, and completely remodeled the two baths. She had made few changes, only repainting some of the rooms. She and her friends often spent lazy afternoons drinking wine or mojitos, sunbathing topless, and swimming nude in the pool. As far as she was concerned, the backyard couldn’t be better.

  She watched some television and went to bed early. She hoped the effects of Saturday night’s partying would be all gone in the morning. Unfortunately, she couldn’t fall asleep. Visions of the delicious Jack Dalton Brown kept wandering through her head, chased out by visions of the dead Lucy Evans. Poor girl. She had been working hard to realize a dream, and someone had cut her life short in a very brutal way. Kaylin was determined that she and Del would figure this out.

  Chapter Three

  Office of Central Broward Homicide Division, Broward County Sheriff’s office, Broward Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Monday morning, July 7, 2014, 8:45 a.m.

  On Monday morning she popped out of bed with her customary energy, did some laps and some yoga, got dressed, and went into the station. She got down to work reviewing the background checks that had been completed to date. Nothing very interesting so far. They would need to schedule in-person interviews of all the people in the building’s offices. This was going to be time-consuming. Then she spoke to the Medical Examiner who confirmed their suspicions. Death was due to massive head trauma. Lucy was probably dead after her head hit the wall for the first time. She had no drugs or alcohol in her system.

  Just before lunch, Kaylin looked up to see Jack Dalton Brown approaching her desk carrying an envelope. She was surprised to see him there.

  “Mr. Brown…”

  “Jack, please. I’ve brought you the lists of employees of the building’s tenants that we discussed yesterday. It only took a little arm twisting to get them released without warrants. Everyone was fond of Lucy and very upset so they were disposed to be cooperative.” He handed the envelope over to her and said, “Can I take you to lunch and perhaps get an update of what you’ve found out so far?”

  “You know I can’t discuss an open investigation, Mr. Brown.”

  “You are stubborn aren’t you, Detective Gallagher?” She could see the interest flickering in his eyes.

  “You have no idea. I can tell you that we are going to solve this case, and sooner rather than later.” If he wasn’t involved in this investigation, she would be interested herself.

  “I’m glad to hear it. Are you sure I can’t take you to lunch?”

  “I don’t think that would be appropriate.” Damn and double damn.

  “Are you always appropriate?” He definitely had a sparkle in his eyes. When he smiled a dimple popped out on his right cheek and made him twice as attractive.

  “I try to be.”

  “What a shame. Well, I’ll be speaking with you. Let me know if there is any way I can help. Lucy was a sweetheart, and she didn’t deserve this.”

  “No one does, Mr. Brown.”

  * * * *

  A week later, Kaylin and Del met with Sergeant Kelly to go over the case. They had reviewed all of the background checks, and the uniforms had followed up with in-person interviews of almost everyone in the building. She and Del had spoken to Lucy’s friends and family. No boyfriend problems. No problems with co-workers. Uniforms had canvassed the area, going so far as to stop traffic at the corner of Broward and Federal on Saturday night to see if they could turn up a witness. Forensics had not come up with anything pertinent. There was no trace evidence, no fibers, fingerprints, or DNA. They had no leads.

  “One thing that strikes me as odd, or maybe not odd.” Kaylin paused. “I don’t know. I was putting a newspaper that I hadn’t had a chance to read since last week into the recycle bin. There had been a rather dramatic fall in the stock market on the Friday of the murder. I don’t know if there is anything there, but maybe we should pay special attention to the guys in the various brokerage offices in the building—see if anyone lost a bucket of money or something, had too much to drink. I don’t know. I just don’t have any idea of where to go from here.”

  Del chimed in. “One of the uniforms helping with canvassing the building got a possible lead. It turns out that the black carryall with the illegible logo is a ‘toy bag’ that the members of Brown’s club all carry their sex toys and stuff in. I think we should pay Mr. Brown another visit. What do you think?”

  “I think that’s a good idea,” Sergeant Kelly said. “Show him the blowup of the guy again, ask him about the bags, and see what he has to say.”

  “Let’s go over after lunch. We won’t call first to give him a heads-up. Let’s see how he handles an unexpected visit.” Del was frowning. Obviously he didn’t think much of Brown.

  Sergeant Kelly sighed. “Don’t forget he has an ironclad alibi, so be polite. The tapes and swipe records he gave us voluntarily were verified by the security company. And no—he doesn’t own it—one of the few things in this town he doesn’t have an interest in it would seem.”

  “Gotcha, Sergeant. Polite it is.” We’ll see about that.

  Chapter Four

  Jack Dalton Brown’s office at Brown Property Investments and Management on the 19th floor of the JDB Building, Downtown Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Monday, July 14, 2014, 1:30 p.m.

  Jack looked up when Kaylin Gallagher and Delaney Lord walked into his office on the floor below the penthouse. His secretary had buzzed him so he’d had a moment to cover his surprise. Kaylin looked good. If he was going to be fair and impartial, he had to say that she was pretty but not gorgeous. She bore a slight resemblance to Lucy Evans—coloring and body type, but she was several years older than Lucy. Kaylin had a great body, but not Victoria’s Secret level. He didn’t know why he found her so attractive. She wasn’t flashy. She didn’t wear too much makeup. She just had clean, healthy good looks. It was a nice change of pace. Most of the women he dated—and there was definitely a string of them—tried way too hard.

  “Mr. Brown, we would like you to take another look at the still pictures of the suspect taken from the video surveillance and see if there is anything familiar about him.” Kaylin handed the pictu
res across the desk to him. He looked at them carefully again. The guy was of average build and height. He was bigger than Lucy but didn’t tower over her. His face wasn’t visible in any of the pictures. He was wearing a suit, neither expensive nor cheap. “I’m afraid I can’t say I know him or don’t know him. There isn’t enough there to make a determination.”

  Kaylin seemed to wait a beat before she said, “And what about the bag with the logo of your club on the side? Does that jog your memory?”

  Jack took another look. “You’re right. I was so busy focusing on the guy, I didn’t notice the bag. That is one of ours.”

  “How many of those bags are there?”

  “We ordered a batch of a hundred of them last year. We give them to all members when they join the club. Some of those members have since left the club for one reason or another. They would all still have their toy bags.”

  “Is there any way to get a list of members who were given the bag?”

  “I’ll have my secretary begin putting a list together for you. Unfortunately, when they came in they were so popular everyone wanted one.”

  “Mr. Brown, can you think of any of your members, past or present, who might have had a reason to harm Lucy Evans? Maybe someone who was interested in her but who she didn’t care to see socially? Maybe someone she had a relationship with at the club that didn’t work out?”

  “No. I really can’t think of anyone offhand. Lucy was not a sub, and she didn’t participate in the BDSM activities. She was strictly front desk, a receptionist. As far as I know, she had no interest in trying the lifestyle. Hey, she was only twenty-two and my employee. A sweet kid. I put it out there that she was off-limits at the club. I think if someone had been giving her a serious problem she would have let me, or someone in security, know about it.”

  Kaylin continued. “I’ve had a thought. Maybe you can think about it also. There was a serious stock market crash the Friday of the murder. Do you know if any of your members are stockbrokers who took a big hit? Someone who might have been knocked for a loop by a serious loss? Something like that could be a stressor.”

  “Let me think about it.” He would look through the membership records when Kaylin and Lord left and see if anything struck him. In the meantime, he had an idea. He didn’t know if it would fly, if he could sell it to these two, but it might be worth a try—personally for himself and for the case as well. “Kaylin, do you think that it would be worth your time to come into the club undercover—perhaps as my sub—for a closer look around at the current members? I could…”

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea at all.” Del Lord did not look pleased. “Don’t even think about it, Kay. That is a totally harebrained idea and way too dangerous.”

  Kaylin looked intrigued. “It might not be so harebrained, Del. Let me think about it, Mr. Brown, and we can discuss it further. Thank you for your assistance. We’ll get back to you on that.”

  * * * *

  Kaylin turned to Del when they were sitting in Del’s Jeep in the parking garage near the murder scene which was still taped off. “Why did you cut him off like that? That might actually be a good idea. It would get me through the door with no one knowing I’m a cop. I didn’t personally interview any of the members. We know our guy was carrying one of their bags, and he was probably a tenant in the building or a member of Brown’s club.” She sat back in her seat and looked thoughtful. This really might be worth a try.

  “Yeah, he had a bag, but he still might not be a member. I just think it’s too dangerous. You wouldn’t have any backup.”

  “Jack Brown would be my backup. He looks capable, and he knows everyone in there.” Kaylin sighed. “We are getting nowhere on this case, and you know the longer the time after the crime, the less chance we have of getting the killer. They go to ground, witnesses forget, evidence gets lost or destroyed. I think we should consider his offer.”

  “Why don’t we talk to the Sergeant about it? He’s not in the office this afternoon, but we can catch him tomorrow morning after briefing.” Kaylin could see from Del’s almost smirk that he expected the Sergeant to back him up. Well, we’ll see. Sometimes the Sergeant isn’t a box thinker.

  * * * *

  On Tuesday morning, Sergeant Kelly sat back in his desk chair. He knew that this case was not moving right along, and they had to do something. He also didn’t necessarily like having one of his guys go in undercover in a dangerous situation without backup. To be honest, Kaylin Gallagher was not “one of the guys.” She was tough and smart, but she was still a woman under his command, and he sure as shit didn’t want something to happen to her. “Would you actually have to participate in this BDSM stuff? I don’t want to put you in that position.”

  “I don’t know, Sergeant. I have to talk to Brown a little more and get some specifics about his idea. I’m sure whatever I have to do could be convincingly faked. If not, I may have to suck it up and go with the flow.” Sergeant Kelly could see that Del Lord was chomping at the bit to say something. “What is it, Lord?”

  “I don’t like this, Sergeant. She would be out there with no backup. We don’t know that much about Brown—certainly not enough to trust him in a situation like this.”

  “I see your point, Lord, but this is too good an opportunity to just blow off without checking it out fully. Get Brown in here to discuss it with all of us. Maybe you can go in as a bartender or something.”

  “I’ll call him and ask him to come down here for a meeting, Sergeant. In the meantime, I’ll reach out to my friend, Chloe Carlton, in Strategic Investigations to find out a little more about the local BDSM scene. Our guy could be a member of another club who just happened to get his hands on one of the bags. Brown seems to keep a tight fist on that club.”

  “Do that, Gallagher. Let me know when the meet is set.”

  * * * *

  Kaylin was ecstatic but she had to keep a lid on her enthusiasm. She had known she could count on the Sergeant to give her some leeway. She didn’t want him or Del to know she had a personal interest in Jack Dalton Brown. She hadn’t been able to shake him out of her thoughts since last Sunday. She found herself rolling around in her bed at night unable to settle. Her fantasies were definitely colorful to say the least. She didn’t know what had captured her attention—was it the BDSM angle that had her fascinated, or was it the commanding presence of Jack Dalton Brown? The man dripped testosterone and charisma. One thing she knew about herself was that she could sleep through a hurricane. Not much kept her awake at night. She also wanted to solve this case—not only because it would be a feather in their caps but because she wanted justice for Lucy Evans who appeared to have been a sweet girl in a very wrong place.

  She walked to her desk, picked up the phone, and dialed Jack Brown’s personal line. “Mr. Brown. Detective Gallagher here. Do you think we could arrange a meeting at BSO to discuss your idea? My Sergeant wants more information before he authorizes an undercover operation. I have to be honest. Del is very much against the whole idea.”

  “That doesn’t surprise me at all, Detective. I probably would feel the same way if you were my partner. Maybe I was overenthusiastic, and this isn’t a good idea. I would not want to put you in any danger either—especially after what happened to Lucy.”

  “I like the idea, Mr. Brown. I want to explore the possibilities further.” What possibilities was she thinking about, she wondered—the personal ones or the ones pertaining to the case? She had better get her head in the game before this meeting, or the Sergeant would shut her down before she had a chance to find out.

  “In that case, Detective, I’d be happy to come in and talk about it with you all. What time is convenient for your Sergeant?”

  “How about this afternoon. Say two o’clock?”

  “I’ll be there.”

  Kaylin disconnected the call and immediately dialed another number. Chloe answered on the second ring. “Chloe, are you free for lunch? I have some questions and a case I want to talk to you abo
ut.”

  “That murder at the JDB Building?” Chloe was quick, and not much got past her.

  “Yes. How about that Italian café, Verdi, across the street from the library at noon, or a little before. I want to pick your brain about this BDSM thing.”

  “See you there.”

  * * * *

  At Café Verdi near the Broward County Library, Main Branch, at the corner of First Avenue and Broward Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Tuesday, July 15, 2014, 12:00 p.m.

  Kaylin walked up the steps to Café Verdi and joined Chloe at a sidewalk table. She ordered her favorite shrimp alfredo and an iced tea. It was hot and muggy outside, but they both wanted to be out in the fresh air for a while.

  “So what’s going on? Why do you want to know about BDSM?” Chloe looked a little hesitant.

  Kaylin filled her in on the particulars of the Evans case so far. “We don’t have any leads except that black ‘toy bag.’ Jack Brown offered to let me come in undercover, and I think it’s a good idea. I wanted to see if you know anything about BDSM before our meeting to discuss the possible op this afternoon.”

  “To be honest, Kay, I don’t want this to go any farther than this table. Okay?”