Strong, Sleek and Sinful

by Lorie O'Clare

  His sister watched his actions. “You really like her, don’t you?”

  “Doesn’t matter. She’s not sticking around.”

  He hated the way his sister studied his face whenever she decided he wasn’t telling her everything she seemed to feel she had a right to know.

  “Is she really a college student?” Megan asked.

  Perry didn’t answer but set his cup down and sat, returning his attention to his food.

  “Seems to me if she were, you would be willing to say so,” Megan said, apparently content to carry on the conversation on her own. “I haven’t seen you worked up like this in a long time.” She held up her hand, as if he would actually comment. “And I know you’re worked up over this murderer. We all are. But more than that has you bugged, Perry. You forget how well I know you.”

  “I told you it doesn’t matter. She’ll be leaving.”

  “How soon?”

  “I don’t know.”

  Megan nodded, placing her cup on the table and leaning on her elbows. She stared ahead, letting the silence grow for a few seconds. “There are days when I really miss David.”

  Perry wasn’t ready for that one. She hadn’t mentioned her husband in ages. Perry knew the love between the two of them was something unique and special that few ever got to experience. He leaned back, studying her for a moment.

  “He was one hell of a guy,” Perry said finally.

  “Seems to me, if someone has a chance at what David and I had, they should go for it, no matter what stands in the way.”

  Perry should have known she was setting him up. He returned to his food. “I’m sure you’re right,” he mumbled, knowing she would press until he said something.

  “I like Kylie.” Megan was watching him. He could feel her gaze burning into the side of his head. “The girls like her, too. Dani doesn’t think she’s a student, though. She’s pretty perceptive. You’ve said so yourself.”

  “Yup.”

  “Fine.” Megan stood, moving behind him in the kitchen as she started acting busy, although it was her way of preparing for her next attack. “Let’s say she isn’t a student. Just for the sake of argument. And let’s say she is going away, for whatever reason, from here soon,” Megan mused, obviously content again to carry on the conversation by herself. “I bet if you made your feelings known, and I know you, Perry, I bet you haven’t told her how you feel about her, the two of you could work something out.”

  Perry stuffed the last French fry into his mouth and stood with his plate, bringing it to the counter. Then downing his milk, he set it next to his plate. Grabbing his sister’s shoulders, he turned her around, staring into her concerned expression. “Thank you for supper. You’re a jewel to feed me like that. I’m going to go watch TV and try to calm down a bit. This conversation is over.”

  She nodded once, looking anything but done with what she might want to say. Footsteps sounded on the stairs.

  Perry let go of his sister and tapped her nose. “Enough talk of this, okay?”

  His phone rang again as Dani appeared in the doorway, looking at both of them as if she suspected they had quit talking because she joined them.

  Perry shifted his attention to his phone and looked at the small screen. Kylie’s name glared at him. He flipped the phone open, turning from the two of them and heading into the living room.

  “Why the hell haven’t you been answering my calls?” he demanded, hissing into the phone although too aware of Megan and Dani following him.

  “I’ve been busy.” Kylie’s cold tone twisted his stomach into a mean knot. “There’s a meet behind the bowling alley at ten o’clock. I’m supposed to go with him this time. Be there. I want this bust to be yours.” She hung up before he could say anything.

  “Goddamn it,” he howled, hurling his phone at the couch.

  “Perry,” Megan said cautiously.

  He sprung around, glaring at them. Dani edged closer to her mom, looking wide-eyed at him. Megan’s expression wasn’t much different.

  “Sorry,” he grumbled, turning his back to them and pacing the length of the living room, dragging his hand over his hair. “What time is it?” he asked, but then walked over to the couch and picked up his phone to check the time.

  “Quarter till ten,” Dani said. “What’s wrong, Uncle Perry?”

  “Megan,” he said, adjusting his gears quickly. It wasn’t the first time he’d been sent out without knowing shit about the scene. And he’d done just fine under those circumstances. “Call Diane. I want her home now.”

  “She’s supposed to be home at ten.” Megan tilted her head, this time looking as though she wouldn’t press.

  Damn good thing.

  “Call her and tell her to get home now,” he ordered. “I want all of you upstairs. No matter what, you will not answer the door or come downstairs. I’ll lock up before I leave and I have a key. I’ll come back when I’m done.”

  “Are you going to go catch him, Uncle Perry?” Dani asked, her eyes suddenly moist when she took a cautious step toward him.

  “I sure hope so, baby.” He reached for her, pulling her into a tight hug.

  Megan hurried into the kitchen and he heard her talking to Diane in the next minute.

  He’d driven over to his sister’s in his squad car, and took off toward the bowling alley a few minutes later. After putting a call in to Carl, filling him in on what was going on and struggling to answer his questions about Kylie being FBI as quickly as possible, he could get off the phone. Perry slowed and turned into the small strip mall parking lot across the street from the bowling alley. It was almost ten.

  Parking alongside of the narrow, long brick building, Perry cut his lights but left the squad car running as he got out and popped the trunk. He grabbed a flashlight, continually shooting furtive looks across the street where he had a decent view of the entire lot on both the front and back sides of the bowling alley. It was set off the road far enough, though, and the parking lot surrounding it large enough and not well enough lit that movement could occur in the shadows and he might miss it. His position was temporary.

  With his hood as a shield, Perry placed his flashlight on the edge of the car and pulled out the bulky body armor. Memories of wearing it over to Kylie’s, of the look on her face when she first realized he had it on and then her failed attempt to appear uninterested when he stripped out of it in front of her, came to mind as he ran his fingers over the thick, heavy protective wear. He didn’t bother putting it on under his shirt this time. This wasn’t undercover work, and he wasn’t trying to impress anyone.

  Was he out to impress Kylie that night?

  God, it seemed centuries ago when he broke into her home. At the time he’d thought only of proving to her that no alarm system would keep him away from her. He was pulling macho bullshit, which now almost proved an embarrassing memory. It had proven effective that night, though. What he wouldn’t do to turn back time, remove himself to a period when his heart didn’t weigh so heavily in his chest. If they played their cards right, even though he hadn’t seen the entire deck, tonight was the night.

  Kylie could very well be on a plane tomorrow heading out to her next assignment.

  Perry fought the overwhelming urge to hurl the protective armor across the dark lot.

  “Focus, motherfucker,” he growled. Shut down. Turn all emotions off. He’d pulled off not feeling for years, acting like a machine, taking care of his family and his city. He would keep doing just that.

  Something stirred behind him and he grabbed his flashlight, unclipping the holster snap on his belt that secured his gun at the same time as he turned around. Two teenagers, a boy and a girl, appeared from behind the adjacent building, squinting and covering their eyes when he flashed the beam in their faces.

  “Head home, now,” he growled.

  “We weren’t doing anything wrong.” The boy had his arm draped around the girl, both of them looking not much older than Dani.

  Perry ached to
knock some parents upside the head for allowing their kids out this late, and obviously unchaperoned enough they could wander this far from a residential area or any business that was open.

  Perry breathed in the smell of pot and lowered the beam enough to allow them to focus. The teenage girl wouldn’t meet Perry’s gaze, but the cocky boy, obviously thinking his idiocy would impress his girlfriend, stared at him boldly with bloodshot eyes.

  “You don’t do as you’re told right now, that will change.” Perry made a show of taking a step toward them, which was obviously enough to break the bravery in the boy. He hesitated. Perry nodded toward the street. “Head home and walk along the sidewalk instead of in the shadows. Or do the two of you not know about a killer who loves little girls like your girlfriend there?”

  That snapped the girl’s attention to Perry’s face. She looked shocked and then tugged at her boyfriend. “Let’s go,” she whispered.

  “I’m not scared of the asshole,” the boy announced, but was already heading away from Perry to the street.

  “But you better be scared of me,” he muttered under his breath.

  He needed a fucking vacation. When did he get it in his head that bullying children protected them? Probably when they started acting like morons.

  Shrugging into the bulletproof vest, he pulled the Velcro tight around his front as a patrol car slowed in front of him and signaled to turn into the parking lot across the street. The two teenagers started walking faster away from him and the other police car. Perry ignored them and focused on the number on the squad car.

  “Franco, I’m going to take you down, motherfucker,” He scowled and reached inside the vest into his shirt pocket to pull out his Bluetooth. Perry placed a call into Dispatch while closing his trunk and walking around to the driver’s side. “This is Unit Number Seven. I’m returning to duty.”

  “Ten four,” the dispatcher said. “Please hold, will advise.”

  He started to tell her he’d received a tip but was put on hold. He shifted into drive and pulled out of his semi-secure hiding place, glancing at the clock on his dash. It was just after ten. If Franco was Peter he couldn’t believe the guy would use one of the city’s squad cars to commit such a heinous crime.

  “Unit Seven, what is your ten twenty?” Dispatch asked when Perry pulled out into the street and cut across to the bowling-alley parking lot.

  As he turned in, he spotted Kylie’s hybrid entering from the side entrance at the other end of the lot.

  “This is Unit Seven,” he said, searching the lot for Franco’s squad car. “I’m at the bowling-alley parking lot. I received a tip earlier—”

  “Unit Seven, report to the station, please,” she told him, cutting him off.

  “Is Unit Six on a call?” Perry asked, ignoring her request. He wasn’t going anywhere.

  “Stand by.”

  His phone beeped in his ear, and he picked up the handheld, checking the screen to see who the caller was. Then not waiting for Dispatch to return, he switched over.

  “Tell me what’s going on,” Perry demanded, relieved as hell Kylie was calling him.

  “Get the hell out of sight,” she hissed.

  “Where is your meeting point?” He turned and drove along the side of the building, cutting his lights and crawling toward the other side.

  “I called you so you could get your arrest. You deserve that much. So just stay on your toes.” She sounded so cold, so distant.

  He hated thinking she had shut down because she knew she was heading out. It was one thing knowing he needed to shut down just so he could handle her leaving. But for some reason it hurt like fucking hell knowing she was capable of the same coldheartedness.

  “Kylie,” he growled, creeping around the building and spotting Franco parked on the other end, his lights also cut. At Perry’s distance, he couldn’t tell if Franco was even in the squad car.

  “Save your speeches for your lady cop friend,” Kylie snapped, the coldness in her tone increasing and so noticeably bitter that Perry brought his car to a stop.

  “What lady friend?”

  “The one you were hanging all over last night at the crime scene. You know, I thought I knew you better. Funny how well I can profile, yet I nailed you so wrong. Personally, I can think of a lot more romantic locations to flirt with someone than a scene where a young girl was killed.” She hung up on him.

  “I wasn’t hanging on her—” Perry slammed his dash when he heard the click in his ear.

  Suddenly it was clear as glass why Kylie hadn’t answered his calls all day. He had seen her leave the crime scene last night and apparently she had seen more than he wished she’d seen. Fucking little mousy bitch. Perry was disgusted by the female cop’s behavior as much as Kylie was. And any other time he might have found some warped amusement in learning Kylie got so pissed when she was jealous.

  At the moment, though, he didn’t find any fucking humor in it.

  His phone beeped in his ear again and he accepted the call. “I want to know right now—”

  “Perry, this is a secure line,” Rad growled into Perry’s ear. “What are you doing?”

  “Rad, I got a call earlier from Kylie.”

  “I just got a phone call, too. Why the hell are you horning in on Unit Six’s beat?” Rad demanded. “He’s got backup in place and calls complaining you’re running with lights and messing up their game plan.”

  “Like hell I am.”

  “Report to the station now. We’ll discuss this when you get here.”

  Perry frowned when he got close enough to Unit Six to tell there was no driver in it. A quick glance around the parking lot showed no other cars, marked or unmarked, anywhere around him.

  “There’s no backup. Unit Six is unoccupied.”

  “Flynn, report in now or I swear to God I’ll—”

  Perry would take his reprimand later. He hung up on the Chief, red flags popping up all over the place as he pulled up behind Unit Six. Franco was moving in on Kylie. Perry didn’t know what the hell the bastard had told Rad to convince him to yell at Perry, but he had to be pretty damn convincing. And a psychopath getting ready to make the cut could convince God to his knees if he wanted.

  Perry had thrown his car into park, opening his door, when his phone made another sound, informing him he just got a text message. Reaching over and grabbing the phone, he pushed the button to take the text and read the block letters on the screen.

  If I call again, start recording. Kylie had sent him the message.

  “Crap,” he hissed, impending doom closing in around him as he dove at his glove compartment and yanked everything out of it until he found the small device he could hook up to his phone to make it record conversations. Then snapping it to his phone, he jumped out of the car. As he gripped his phone in one hand, sweat drenched his palm. He slapped his gun at his waist and sprinted around Unit Six.

  His phone started ringing in his ear again. Perry glanced at the screen in his hand. It was Rad calling him back. Perry knew it wasn’t the first time he’d been insubordinate when he sent the call to voice mail, and if he was wrong, he would take whatever disciplinary action Rad wanted to dish out to him, but if he was right, he was about to take down Franco. It would get really fucking ugly before it got better.

  Perry reached the front of Franco’s car when he spotted Kylie’s hybrid. She was parked where she’d been parked the last time. Again a flashback of interrupting her meet, not understanding what it was she was about, hit him as hard as if a flood had just released. It didn’t knock him off his feet with the clarity of it. This time Perry saw the reality in the situation. Kylie sat, planted as bait, ready to take on a monster. And it appeared she was fucking alone while doing it.

  There better be FBI agents sitting and waiting, or he’d take down that field office, starting with fucking Athey.

  A dark shadow appeared in the bushes behind Kylie’s car at the same time sirens sounded in the distance. Hell, maybe Rad was quicker than Pe
rry gave him credit for. The chances were strong the sirens were unrelated, but Perry would love an audience when he nailed Franco to the fucking wall.

  The shadow moved quickly, coming up alongside Kylie’s car at the same time the black Suburban appeared at the other end of the parking lot.

  “Fucking hell! There are two of them.” Perry barely grunted out the words when he heard Kylie cry out. Whoever was alongside her car had just dragged her out of it as the Suburban pulled up alongside her car.

  Her cry was stifled quickly when the person in the shadows shoved Kylie into the back of the Suburban and slammed the door shut. Perry damn near ran backward when Franco bolted to his squad car. The motherfucker had just abducted Kylie and would now run to his car and make a show of trying to catch her.

  Perry turned, hauling ass back to his car. His phone rang before he reached it and he pushed the button, willing it to be Kylie.

  “Why are you doing this?” he heard her wail.

  “Shut the fuck up, bitch.” The outraged male voice sounded too fucking familiar.

  Perry leapt into his car at the same time that Franco squealed out of his hiding place. His phone beeped, indicating another call, and Perry cursed. He couldn’t take a call while recording. Glancing down, he saw it was Carl.

  “Where the hell are you, man?” Perry asked the darkness of his car as he left his lights off and followed Franco around the corner of the building. He could really use his partner right now, or that supposed backup to truly exist. This was going to be one hell of a bust, and witnesses were always good, especially when taking down a cop who’d been on the force for as long as Franco had.

  Perry would kick himself in the ass later for not noticing an insane child molester walking among them, right under their fucking noses, all these years.

  Carl pulled into the parking lot in his own car when Perry made it around the corner. Franco was ahead of him and the Suburban was leaving the lot. Perry struggled to listen to the noises he heard in his ear while cutting across the dark lot and pulling up alongside Carl. Fortunately, he knew to ask questions later. Carl parked his car, jumped out, and climbed in on the passenger side, barely managing to shut the door before Perry hauled ass after Franco and the Suburban.