Deadly Rumors

by Cheris Hodges

  “Shut up,” she said.

  “We had to light a fire underneath them to even look for Jessica. They didn’t want to alarm people when they found out there was a serial killer in town.”

  “Sounds like someone didn’t want to do their job. Anytime black women go missing, no one cares.”

  “That’s true,” he said. “Thank goodness for you.”

  Zoe rolled her eyes. “The FBI isn’t any better. Look at how many black and brown girls went missing before you-all even started an investigation into sex trafficking? And all you got was Natalie. Do you-all even have a clue who the big bad wolf really is?”

  “Do you?”

  “Yes. Joseph Singletary. He’s been trafficking girls for the past ten years,” she said. “I know if I have a file on him, the FBI should as well. When I talked to Natalie, she was the one who talked about him and how he forced her into the business. She was one of his first victims. Now, I believe everything she said is bullshit, but it was the promise of a glamorous lifestyle behind the whole thing. Those girls thought they were going to be models or actresses. She married my brother to get access to the powerful people he worked with.”

  “How did she trick him?”

  Zoe raised her right eyebrow. “How do most men get tricked? Big butt and a smile. When she told me that she was working with Singletary, I tried to let one of your agents know, but he waved me off, and then I was arrested.”

  “Sorry about that, but I arrested you hoping to crack Natalie. But she never opened up to us, and that’s why she’s doing all that time. What else do you know about Singletary?”

  “When I was a cop in the Bronx, I stumbled across a young girl who’d met one of his guys online. He tried to turn her out, but my superiors didn’t follow up with her. By the time Singletary got on the radar, I was on my way out the door. I did save that girl, though.”

  Carver smiled with pride. Of course she saved the girl. “What was her name?”

  “Why is this starting to feel like an interrogation?”

  “I’m just curious,” he said. “We are trying to stop him, and getting inside that organization is like trying to break into Fort Knox.”

  “I know. Singletary is dangerous and doesn’t take betrayal lightly. I think Natalie was genuinely scared when she got caught, not that I care. But something spooked her, because she was going to testify against him before you guys got to her. Who is Smallwood?”

  “I know him. What about him?”

  “That night I found her, she called him. He met us at the police station and then she changed her story, fell on her sword, and that was supposed to be the end of everything. But when you came to the press conference, you didn’t say anything about Singletary.”

  “No one told me that Smallwood talked to her that night,” Carver said.

  “Not saying Natalie shouldn’t have gone to jail, but why did she go down and Singletary is still out there lurking? Do you think it’s possible that there is a leak inside your investigation? Maybe even Smallwood?”

  “No,” Carver said. “But I’m curious as to what he and Natalie talked about that night.”

  “Why are we even talking about this? We’re supposed to be looking for Jessica Dolan. Do you think she might have been a part of the sex trafficking ring?”

  “I’m sorry I even brought it up,” he said.

  She rolled her eyes, slowly beginning to realize why they could never work out. This man thought he knew everything! “When we get to Santa Fe, I’m going to talk to the police on my own.”

  “All right,” he said.

  Zoe opened her bag and pulled out her tablet. She pretended to be looking up information, but she was just doing everything humanly possible to ignore the sexy man sitting beside her.

  Chapter 7

  When the shuttle arrived downtown at the train station, Carver could tell Zoe was simmering with anger. He just didn’t know why. The last thing he needed was for her fake investigation to kick the hornet’s nest.

  If she strolled into the Santa Fe Police Department and started asking the wrong questions, she could lead the wrong people right to her. Carver was going to let her have her anger and wallow in it for a while, because he had questions for Smallwood.

  If his superior officer had talked to Natalie and knew about Singletary’s organization, why hadn’t they done more to stop him? When Zoe walked to the front of the train and took a seat, Carver stayed behind and called Smallwood.

  * * *

  “Why is this bitch still breathing?” Joseph growled at his men. “When are you motherfuckers going to get the job done?”

  “She’s slippery, boss,” one of the men said. “And she has a lot of security cameras around her house and office.”

  “Do you think I give a shit about that?” He rose to his feet and grabbed the man by his collar. “She cost me millions, has the FBI breathing down my fucking back, and she thinks she is just going to skip around with no consequences? No! I want her to suffer, and the bitch has to die.” He threw the man to the floor and turned to his other two foot soldiers. “Fuck y’all standing around for? Find her and bring me her head!”

  The men scurried out of the room and Singletary picked up his phone to call the one person he knew wouldn’t let him down.

  “Hello?” she said when she answered the phone.

  “Hello, beautiful.”

  “I really can’t talk right now, I’m trying to—”

  “I know what you’re doing, and I appreciate what you did for me in LA. But I need your help getting—”

  “Yeah, about that. I can’t really talk at this moment. Call you in about an hour,” she said.

  He ended the call and glared at the phone. What in the hell was wrong with people? They seemed to forget that he was the man in charge, and they were all breathing at his pleasure.

  * * *

  “What do you mean, Smallwood isn’t available?” Carver growled into the phone.

  “Agent Banks, he’s heading to LA because of intel he and Covington received. That’s all I know,” the woman said. “I can send a message to him, but I don’t know what else you want me to do.”

  “Sorry, Phoebe. I just have some important questions. I’ll call back later,” he said when he saw Zoe coming his way.

  “Carver,” she said as she plopped in the empty seat beside him. “I’m sorry if I was a little harsh earlier.”

  He placed his hand on her knee and shook it. “That’s just your way. I came to you for a reason, so I guess I’m going to have to let you do your thing.”

  “Thanks,” she said. “Have you gotten any information from the Bureau about the interviews with the parents?”

  “Nothing yet.” He grinned at her, hoping she wouldn’t ask him another question. How could he keep lying to her when he had no clue if he could trust the people who were supposed to be protecting her?

  Zoe relaxed in her seat and watched the passing landscape. The Southwest was beautiful, and part of her wished she was sitting with Carver on a vacation trip. He isn’t your man and never will be. Good sex doesn’t make a good relationship. She stole a glance at him and realized he’d been staring at her the entire time.

  “What’s with that look?” she asked.

  “What look would that be?”

  Rolling her eyes, Zoe sighed. “You love to split hairs, don’t you? Carver, what’s going on with us?”

  “According to you, nothing, but we both know that isn’t true.” He took her face in his hands. “Zoe, there’s a sizzle between us and as much as we try to fight it, it’s growing hotter and hotter.”

  “We’re not on some romantic getaway, we’re supposed to be finding closure for a family. Why don’t you keep focused on what’s important? Maybe I should’ve taken this trip alone.”

  “Because you can’t control yourself? I know what’s at stake here, Zoe. I’m not going to do anything to put you in danger.”

  “Put me in danger?”

  “You know what
I mean,” he said, then quickly looked away from her. “Zoe, trust and believe when the time is right, I’m going to make love to you, and you won’t forget how I made you feel.”

  Shivering, she rose to her feet. Then the train jerked and she fell in Carver’s lap. Right time be damned. He brought his mouth down on top of hers, kissing her with a hot and deliberate passion that made her weak.

  His tongue explored her mouth, staking his claim on his woman. Carver wanted Zoe to realize that no other man could kiss her this way, make her moan with such a melody or heat her body like an oven.

  She pressed her hands against his chest, pushing him away. “Carver.”

  “I’m not going to apologize, if that’s what you’re looking for.” He ran his index finger across her kiss-swollen bottom lip. “You taste delicious.”

  “You’re not making it easy for me to focus. And that’s a big problem.”

  “Zoe, you plopped down in my lap, making things really hard for me. So, you got what you deserved.”

  “Oh my God, you should take your act to the Apollo so that Sandman can usher you off the stage. I didn’t plop. I fell. You took advantage!”

  Carver folded his arms across his chest. “Isn’t that what you do when opportunity falls in your lap?”

  “I can’t with you.”

  “You can, you just keep fighting it.” Winking at her, Carver knew he had to get his hormones under control if he was going to have a chance to be with Zoe. Keeping her alive had to come before anything else.

  Zoe was about to move away from Carver when her phone rang. She hoped that it wasn’t a client looking to hire her for another case when she saw the 718 area code.

  “This is Zoe.”

  “Zoe, how are you? I bet you will never guess who this is.”

  “Probably not, and I hate guessing games, so just tell me.”

  “Lewis Martinez,” he said.

  “Lew, what’s going on? And never in a million years would I have ever expected to hear from you.”

  “I know. I need to talk to you. Are you in your office today?”

  “No. What’s going on?” Zoe knew she and Lewis hadn’t seen eye to eye in a long time. According to the rumors around town, he thought she was the cause of his career ending.

  “I’m thinking about suing the NYPD, and I know that’s something you’re good at. I want you to help me.”

  “Are you serious?”

  “Very.”

  “What are you suing for?”

  “The loss of my pension. It’s tough out here, and I need my money to survive. It wasn’t easy for me to get another job with what they have on my record.”

  She sighed into the phone again. “Don’t you think this would be a conflict of interest?”

  “Despite what happened, I trust you.”

  “Let’s set up some time next week to get together,” she said. Carver glanced in her direction with his eyebrow raised. When she hung up the phone, he asked, “What was that all about?”

  “Nothing that involves you.”

  “It does if it is going to take you away from the case I paid you to solve.”

  “Probably won’t because this is a guy . . . my former partner says he needs my help. I’m just going to meet with him out of professional courtesy.”

  “Why waste your time?”

  “Because it’s my business and I will do what I want to do with it.”

  Carver threw up his hands. “Whatever you say.”

  She narrowed her eyes at him and forced herself not to curse him out. “You don’t dictate how I run my business, and until you drop a million dollars in my lap, you don’t own what I do.”

  “You treat all of your clients like this, or is this just reserved for me?”

  “It’s my understanding that my client is the FBI and not you. I can treat you any way I choose to.”

  “Zoe, you have a hell of a mouth,” he said as he shook his head.

  “I can quit. Because, remember, you came to me.”

  “Not going to let you do that. Zoe, I need you.”

  “Start acting like it, because I certainly don’t need you.”

  If only you knew how wrong you are, he thought as he turned toward the window.

  * * *

  Finally, she had a moment alone and she could call Singletary back. He wasn’t going to like what she had to say, either.

  “Yeah?”

  “Joe, it’s me.”

  “I know. What was going on earlier when I called you?”

  “Trying to explain why our witness ended up dead. That little girl was about to tell everything, and I couldn’t have that,” she said.

  “How did you cover it up?”

  “Overdose. If I were you, I’d pull up stakes again. Someone in the Bureau has found your current location and we’re waiting on a warrant from a federal judge to come raid you.”

  “Come on, this place is actually clean. Besides, I’m tired of running and there’s something I need from you.”

  “Anything, baby.”

  “Zoe Harrington has to die. She’s the reason I’m living like a fucking nomad. Where is she?”

  “Right now, she has protection from . . . I have to go.” The call ended and she stuffed her phone in her pocket.

  “Ready, Agent?” Smallwood asked.

  Wendy smiled. “Yes, sir.”

  Chapter 8

  Zoe stretched her arms above her head as she stepped off the train. She wanted a nap, but she needed to contact the police and find out if they had uncovered any dead Jane Does who could be Jessica.

  “Let’s get some food,” Carver said, breaking into her thoughts.

  “You eat, I’m going to go to the police department. The sooner we get started on finding out information about Jessica, the better.”

  “You’re not going to be worth much if no one can hear your questions over your stomach rumbling.”

  As if on cue, her stomach did growl. “I guess you’re right.”

  “There’s a spot right here.” Carver pointed to a beautiful art deco building. “Smell that? We just need to follow that scent.”

  Zoe inhaled and nodded in agreement. “Fajitas!”

  “Excited even though you didn’t want to eat.” Carver shook his head.

  “I hope they have Wi-Fi. That way I can eat and do a little research on Jessica’s disappearance and what happened in Santa Fe with the killer. Where was this guy captured again?”

  “In Baton Rouge. He went home, took a couple of bodies with him, and that’s when the carnage was discovered. Can we eat, then talk about this later?” he said as he turned her toward the restaurant. When they walked in, Zoe wasn’t happy to see there was a twenty-minute wait. She guessed that everyone on the train had been just as hungry as she and Carver were.

  “While we’re waiting, you can call your field office and find out about getting those transcripts from Jessica’s parents’ interviews,” she said as she plopped down on the wooden bench across from the hostess station.

  “You just don’t stop, do you?” Carver pulled out his flip phone and Zoe shot him a questioning look.

  “Really?”

  “Doesn’t drop calls,” he mouthed. He walked outside and hoped Smallwood would answer the phone. Nothing. He hung up and started to call Wendy, but he decided against it. Since Zoe was under the assumption that he wasn’t able to get the transcripts from the office, he could tell her that nothing had changed. Returning inside, he sat beside her and smiled.

  “Anything?”

  He shook his head. “Still waiting for someone to get the files.”

  She rolled her eyes. “How are we supposed to get anything done without all of the information we need?”

  “There are several things that you need, and I’d be more than happy to give them to you. But keep in mind the time difference and the fact that I’m tired. And I know you are, too, even though you want to pretend you’re Superwoman. We can take a little time to get our bearings before jump
ing into this case headfirst.”

  “Maybe that’s how you work, but I didn’t travel across the country just for fajitas.”

  Before he could reply, his phone buzzed. Checking the message, he frowned at Smallwood’s response.

  Singletary got away, again.

  “What was that all about?” Zoe asked, noting the scowl on his face.

  “Another case,” he said.

  “That bad?”

  Before he could reply, a waiter approached them to take them to a table. “Welcome to our dining room,” the man said. “Would you-all like a window seat, or first available?”

  “First available,” Zoe said, causing Carver to laugh. She shot him a silencing look. Throwing up his hands, he shook his head, then followed the waiter and Zoe to a table in the corner of the restaurant.

  “I’ll be right back with chips and fresh salsa. Would you like to order your drinks now?”

  “Just water for me,” Zoe said.

  “I’ll have the same.”

  When the waiter walked away, Carver leaned across the table and smiled at Zoe. “I thought you weren’t hungry,” he quipped.

  She crossed her legs and forced herself not to think of the wetness pooling in her panties. Why was this man so sexy just doing something regular? “Just hush.”

  “You’re the one who said you weren’t hungry, but you wanted this table in the middle of nowhere when we could’ve waited and had a view.”

  “Don’t need a view, I just need food,” she said, and leaned back in her chair. Turning away from him, she forced herself to focus on the menu and not the man sitting across from her.

  His lips made her think of how they felt against hers, how good they felt between her thighs, and how he’d kissed her senseless in her office and on the train. What had she gotten herself into?

  “Zoe?” Carver’s voice snapped her out of her wanton thoughts.

  “What?”

  “Where did your mind go?”

  “Was thinking about the case,” she lied.