by Gerri Hill
“That’s San Bernardino County?” She seemed to recall the big truck stop as they’d driven down I-40 on the way to Barstow.
“Right.”
“So really, Needles isn’t that far from here,” Cameron said.
“Not far, no. Head up Highway 95 from Blythe. It’ll take you right into Needles. You thinking trucker?”
Cameron hesitated, wondering if she should voice their suspicion this early in the case. Yet it was obvious that a trucker would be a prime suspect. “If this girl worked the stops, then yes, a trucker,” she conceded.
CHAPTER EIGHT
“I feel like we’ve left Lola alone too much,” Andrea said. The kitten had been all over them when they’d stopped at the rig to shower and change before heading to Palm Springs to meet Reynolds and his team.
“I know. It’s tough working a case that’s all over the map.”
“Maybe when this is over, Murdock will give us some time to go back to Sedona. I can clean out my things and we could park for a week or so,” she said, envisioning hiking the red rocks.
“Maybe so,” Cameron said. “Do you miss it?”
“Sedona? Some, yes. Jim and Randy. I miss the routine,” she said.
“Second thoughts then?”
“About this? Oh, no. I wouldn’t go back, if that’s what you’re asking. You were right. I was stagnant there. But it was what I needed at the time,” she said. “Of course, I didn’t count on falling in love with you,” she added, watching a slight blush cross Cameron’s face.
“You know, if you ever do have second thoughts, I want you to tell me. The constant travel, no place to put down roots—I’m used to that. If you need a home, solid ground, then you—”
“I have a home,” she said, stopping Cameron. “It’s not something I’m used to, no, but it’s home. You and Lola make it home.”
“And the job?”
Andrea smiled. “The job is perfect. I have a great senior agent showing me the ropes.”
Cameron laughed, then reached over and squeezed her thigh. “Thank you.”
Andrea captured her hand, holding it lightly as Cameron drove. They slipped into an easy silence, their fingers caressing. A simple touch, but one which served to reinforce the bond they had. Partners and lovers—a pairing that seldom worked out. But right now, she had no fear for either. They worked well together despite using nearly opposite means to achieve their goal. They were good partners. But they were better lovers. The fact that they separated the two as easily as they did gave her hope that they could make this work long term. She brought Cameron’s hand up, kissing her knuckles gently before lowering it again.
“I love you,” she whispered.
Cameron squeezed her hand but said nothing. And that was okay.
She watched the desert flash by them on her right as they drove the Redlands Freeway, the interstate bouncing from Indio to Thousand Palms and on to Palm Springs, the cities all flowing together. Cameron followed the GPS to the hotel where Reynolds was staying. It seemed he had taken her advice and secured one on the east side of the city.
“This is nice,” she said. “Fancy.”
“Taxpayer dollars at work,” Cameron said. “Apparently Murdock’s budget hasn’t been cut.”
Cameron held the door open for her and they bypassed the lobby, heading to the elevators instead. Reynolds said they had five rooms on the third floor.
“Do you know anyone on his team?” she asked.
“Murdock said he kept Jack Temperton from Collie’s team. Jack’s been around longer than anyone. Don’t know about the rest,” Cameron said, pausing to allow Andrea to exit the elevator first.
“This way,” Andrea said when she saw the room chart on the wall. Their shoes sank into the plush carpet and she felt terribly underdressed. They were both still in jeans and boots, although she’d chosen a button-down shirt instead of the T-shirt Cameron had sported. She glanced at Cameron now, the deep blue T-shirt tight against her skin, her sandy blond hair a nice contrast. “You need a haircut,” she said absently.
As if on cue, Cameron ran her hand through her hair and nodded. “Too unruly for you?”
“No. You do unruly well. It’s bordering on shaggy.”
A few more steps and Cameron stopped. “Here we are,” she said, rapping her hand loudly on the door.
It opened quickly and Reynolds flashed a brilliant smile at them, his teeth inordinately white against his ebony skin.
“You made it. Come in.” He nodded as Andrea passed. “Deputy Sullivan, good to see you again.”
“Agent Sullivan,” she corrected. “Thanks.”
“Of course.” He directed his gaze to Cameron. “Very Special Agent Cameron Ross,” he said with a smile. “Come meet my team.”
Sprawled across the suite were three other men and a woman. The men all wore suits and ties and the woman—a strikingly attractive brunette—was in a skirt that showed off long, well-toned legs. Andrea felt uncomfortable in her jeans, but Cameron looked as confident as ever. The woman stood and walked over, glancing once at Andrea and dismissing her, her eyes focused on Cameron instead.
Andrea arched an eyebrow at being overlooked so easily by the beautiful woman. Dark skinned, sharp features—she didn’t appear to be American.
“Cameron,” the woman said, the name rolling off her tongue with a slight accent. Italian, Andrea guessed. “Our paths cross again. How lovely.”
Andrea watched Cameron’s reaction, wondering if this woman was friend or foe.
“Carina,” Cameron said rather formally. “How are you?”
“Much better now,” she said with a flirty smile. “Hopefully we will have time to reacquaint, yes? It was so much fun the last time we were together.”
Andrea’s eyes narrowed at the obvious innuendo. Not friend nor foe. Just an old lover. She felt the stirrings of jealousy, and she had to remind herself of the warning Cameron had issued earlier. Nonetheless, she had to bite her tongue as the woman leaned closer, kissing Cameron on both cheeks in greeting. She finally cleared her throat, her gaze now locked with Cameron’s, who had the grace to blush.
“This is my partner, Andrea Sullivan,” Cameron said. “Carina Moretti.”
The woman studied her—Andrea assumed she was trying to decide if they were lovers or not. Andrea politely stuck her hand out which Carina reluctantly took.
“A pleasure,” Carina said and quickly turned her attention back to Cameron.
“How do you two know each other?” Reynolds asked.
“We had a joint mission,” Cameron said evasively. “Years ago.”
“Five, to be precise,” Carina added.
He nodded. “Well, let me introduce everyone. Cameron, you know Jack, of course,” he said. “Sullivan, this is Jack Temperton. That’s Eric Scales and then our computer expert, Rowan Casper.”
Andrea nodded at them. Jack was an older man, his hair graying at the temples. Eric Scales was almost too pretty to be an agent. Dark hair and eyes, smooth skin, he wasn’t shy about letting his gaze travel across Andrea’s body with a bold smile. Rowan Casper was painfully thin with dark glasses and wispy blond hair. His features appeared almost delicate compared to that of the handsome Scales.
“Quite a team, Reynolds. Five of you?”
“I started with four, but Murdock urged me to add my own computer guy. Jack, as you know, is a weapons expert. Eric is my undercover guy. He’s quite talented. And Carina speaks five languages besides being somewhat of an explosives whiz.”
“Yes, I remember you had a fondness for blowing things up,” Cameron said dryly.
Carina laughed, making her appear even more beautiful. Andrea hated her.
“So dinner first? Or do you want to get down to business?” Reynolds asked.
“Business. We’ll skip dinner,” Cameron said, surprising Andrea. “We’ve had a really long day and we’ve still got to drive back to Indio tonight.”
“Murdock strongly suggested dinner,” Reynolds reminded h
er. “A chance for us to get to know each other since we’ll be working together on this one. A bonding if you will.”
“You’ll only be assisting on this one, Reynolds,” Cameron countered. “Our rig is in Indio. That’s why I suggested you put your hotel base there. It’s more centrally located than Palm Springs.”
“Rig?” Scales asked.
“Motor home,” Andrea supplied.
“Really?”
“It’s FBI custom built,” Cameron said. “A traveling office.”
“So you won’t be staying here at the hotel with us?” Carina asked. “Pity.”
Andrea tried not to scowl. Pity, my ass.
“Did Jason Tremble really design your computer setup?” Rowan asked, his eyes lighting up as if Jason was a rock star.
“He really did,” Cameron said. “I didn’t realize he was so famous,” she said. “Next time I talk to him I’ll—”
“You talk to him?”
Cameron glanced at Andrea with an amused smile and a quick roll of her eyes.
“I’ve emailed you both coroners’ reports from the first two victims,” Andrea said, speaking to Reynolds. “The body that was found today, we should have the post by midday tomorrow.”
“But you think it’s the same killer?”
“Yes. Everything was the same. We’ll just have wait on tox.”
“We’re going with prostitutes,” Cameron said. “The first two victims are unidentified, but this last one’s prints got a hit.”
“Monica Riddle,” Andrea supplied.
“Last known address was in LA. We don’t know where she worked. Our thinking is truck stops.”
“Why?” Carina asked. “That’s hardly glamorous.”
“And prostitution is?” Andrea asked.
“Agent Sullivan found a pattern from about eight years ago that matches this one,” Cameron continued. “Victims were wrapped in a sheet, not a tarp. Phenobarbital wasn’t used though. There were four bodies in all. Two were identified by fingerprints, both worked as prostitutes.”
“That’s a stretch, isn’t it?”
Cameron stared, one eyebrow raising. “Jesus, Reynolds, you learn that line from Collie?”
“He taught me not to assume,” he said.
“Yeah. He also told you Patrick Doe was only a figment of our imagination and didn’t believe our theory then either. But, oh, guess what? He’s dead now,” she said.
“Come on, Ross, there’s no need to bring Collie into this,” Jack said. “He was a good man.”
“Right. Was. So quit acting like he’s still here. If you want to work with his mindset, then get the hell out of my case,” she said loudly. “We can do this ourselves. But I won’t have you questioning every goddamn thing we bring up just because that’s what Collie used to do.”
There was silence in the room, and Andrea watched their faces as they stared at Cameron. It seemed even from the grave, Collie could push her buttons.
“That was uncalled for, Ross. Collie was our colleague and team leader,” Reynolds said.
“Yeah? He was also a jerk.”
Carina’s eyebrows shot to the ceiling then a slow, sexy smile formed. “Oh, Cameron,” she said, “you still have that fire within you. It’s so attractive.”
Eric spoke for the first time, his glance going between Carina and Cameron, a smile growing with each pass. “Just how well did you two know each other?” He laughed. “Because I’m getting a visual and it’s looking pretty good.”
Cameron’s blush confirmed Andrea’s suspicion that they were lovers, but she couldn’t help smiling at Eric’s playfulness. Thankfully, that seemed to ease some of the tension in the room.
“Okay guys, can we get back to the case, please,” Reynolds said. “I’m sorry, Cameron. Continue with your...theory.”
Cameron glanced at her and Andrea thought there was a bit of an apology in her eyes. She wondered if it was because of her outburst...or because of Carina.
“If we can pinpoint where she worked—Monica Riddle—then that might give us an idea of her killer. Our thought is it’s a trucker, but that’s pure speculation. If Monica worked a truck stop, then speculation becomes probability.”
“We have an unusual tattoo on vic number two. A lion’s head,” Andrea said. “If I could get all of your email addresses, then I’ll supply each of you with a copy of it, as well as the coroners’ reports. I’ll also include the file I put together of the murders eight years ago.
“Since phenobarbital was found in the victim, I’ve asked Murdock to run down any vet clinics that may have reported a burglary recently. They would have been required to list any drugs that were missing. Not sure how much that’ll help us, other than to get a better location.”
“It could always be someone who works at a vet clinic,” Jack said. “An assistant or someone who is stealing.”
“Maybe someone pays him for the drugs,” Eric added.
“Of course those are possibilities,” Cameron said. “And if that’s the case, then it’s a dead end. Patrick Doe not withstanding, serial killers normally work alone. If you’re buying phenobarbital and the media is reporting that these girls were injected and killed with phenobarbital, then don’t you think your supplier is gonna throw up a red flag?”
Reynolds sighed. “So, I see that you really don’t have anything then,” he said. “Speculation only.”
Before Cameron could speak, Andrea came forward. “We have what little evidence there is,” she said. “Actually, there is no evidence. We have matching tarps with no prints. That’s it. We have ID’d one victim, so that’s all we have to go on. Trace her whereabouts and try to determine where she was last seen. That’s our course of action.”
“If your computer whiz here could locate truck stops within, say, a hundred-mile radius, then that gives us someplace to start. Since her body was found in this area, we’ll concentrate our search here,” Cameron said. “There are seven of us. We can break out into two or three teams, show her picture around as well as the tattoo.”
“I’ll be happy to join your team, Cameron,” Carina offered.
“I already have a partner,” she said, glancing at Andrea. “If Rowan can email us the list of truck stops, then we’ll head out in the morning. There’s a large one near Needles that I’m really interested in.”
“I guess we’ll concentrate in this area,” Reynolds said. “And I suppose you were right. Palm Springs is a bit out of range. Perhaps we should relocate to Indio.”
Cameron nodded. “Yes, you should. Enjoy your last night of luxury then. We need to head back,” she said. “We’ll be in touch tomorrow.”
“I’ve set up a group email,” Rowan said. “I’ll add you and Agent Sullivan to it, then send it to you. We can communicate that way. I’ll also list everyone’s cell numbers. If you’d reply with yours, that would help.”
“Sure.” Cameron made a show of glancing at her watch, then she flicked her eyes at Andrea. “Ready?”
“Yes.”
“We’ll let you get on to dinner then,” Cameron said.
“Good to meet you, Ross,” Eric said. “And you, Agent Sullivan,” he said, walking over and taking her hand. “It’s going to be a pleasure getting to know you.”
He was simply too pretty and charming to be offended by him so she smiled good-naturedly. “Likewise,” she said.
“Me, too,” Rowan said without looking up from his laptop.
Reynolds held the door open for them and she noted Carina’s eyes never once left Cameron. Oh, this is going to be so much fun.
They were silent as they waited for the elevator and Andrea wondered if Cameron was going to explain Carina or if she was only going to offer an explanation if Andrea asked.
Once inside the elevator, their eyes met and Andrea raised hers questioningly. Cameron let out a heavy breath.
“What do you want to know?”
“Lovers?”
“Yes.”
Andrea nodded but said nothing.<
br />
“You’re thinking I make a habit of sleeping with everyone I work with, right?”
“I was thinking no such thing. But now that you mention it, do you?”
“No. Carina and I worked together for nearly a year in Rome. She’s...well, flirtatious.”
“And beautiful.”
“Yes, she is. We slept together. That’s it. There was no emotional involvement for either of us,” Cameron said. “I haven’t seen her since.”
“And she assumes you two will pick up where you left off?”
Cameron smiled. “Is that what you inferred from it all?”
“Yes. Didn’t you? She dismissed me very easily. I doubt she thinks we’re lovers,” she said.
“Oh, I’m sure she suspects it.”
Cameron motioned for Andrea to exit the elevator ahead of her, then guided her out to the parking garage.
“Is that why you changed your mind about dinner?”
“Partly. But I could see she was making you uncomfortable. And of course she was doing it intentionally.” She held the door open to the truck and Andrea got in. “Besides, I’d rather pick up a pizza and have it back at the rig.”
Andrea laughed. “Of course you would.”
CHAPTER NINE
The truck stop was as busy as Deputy Morales had said. Literally hundreds of big rigs filled the fuel bays and parking lots, the smell of diesel thick in the air as engines rumbled.
“He wasn’t kidding,” Andrea said, her gaze going from one end of the parking lot to the next.
“It’s like a small city. Restaurants, laundry, showers. Grocery store.” Cameron had no idea where to start. She looked at Andrea. “What do you think?”
“Obviously the main hub is the convenience store and fuel. They’re also open twenty-four-seven. Let’s start there.”
“If they support these women, they might not be willing to talk,” she said.
“She’s dead. They’ll help us,” Andrea said as she headed inside.
Cameron let Andrea take the lead. They waited until one of the clerks finished up with the customer in front of them. The smell of freshly baked pizza wafted through the air and Cameron’s stomach did a roll.
