So much for him admitting to it.
“Who was your favorite hooker?” she asked, trying to figure out if he’d be helpful at all.
“I don’t know.”
“Think hard,” Kaleb stated.
He did.
“I liked the one blonde. She was pretty. She had nice feet.”
Elizabeth lifted a brow.
“I like feet. When toes are all painted and pretty, it gets me off. Are your toes painted?” he asked, staring down at her cowboy boots.
“No. I don’t have toes. I have pointy boots that will take your nuts off with one shot. Eyes up here, asshole.”
That wasn’t the first time she’d had to redirect a look, but it had never been about her feet. It was always about her chest.
Today was an odd day.
Kaleb kept asking him the same questions over and over again, and each time, he kept giving the same answers. They never wavered.
They never changed.
Finally, Elizabeth patted him on the arm.
It was time.
“We’re taking your plant,” she stated. “It’s going to the shredder.”
“Please don’t take it. I need it. I can’t afford to buy drugs on the street. The dealers are greedy. I need it.”
That was funny since he was always trying to buy hookers.
“Maybe you should use your sex money to get help so you’re not addicted to sex or drugs.”
He stared at her like she was crazy.
Of course he did.
“Please don’t take it. I’ll do you for free!”
Kaleb started laughing.
“Yeah, that’s not incentive, my friend. Trust me on that one. The plant comes with us.”
Really, they had no choice. Granted, there were no buds on the plant, and it was only a baby, but it was pot.
“Are you going to arrest me?”
“No.”
Honestly, they didn’t really have a warrant to search his house—which Kaleb kindly forgot about, and they found a plant, not actual bud.
This was their call.
For now, this man was free. They didn’t have anything major to tie him to the case. He’d be out of jail in an hour, and that was a waste of time.
Outside, they destroyed the plant. They dumped gasoline from Kaleb’s ride on it.
“Please don’t tell me you’re going to light it up,” she said, laughing.
“Nah. Who wants to have that much fun at work. All the druggies this side of the block will be trying to toast marshmallows over the flames.”
She snorted.
“What did you think?” he asked.
“I don’t know. I wish we could bring him in or watch him. I don’t know what to think about him. He’s nutty.”
“What if I had someone who could ‘babysit’ him?” he asked.
“Who?”
“Glen.”
She stared at him. “You told me your boss benched him.”
“Yeah, well, he needs to keep busy. Besides, we’re vice. He’s growing pot.”
She laughed. That was one hell of a stretch, and he knew it. Besides, she had a bad feeling about letting the man help, but she understood what it was like to be judged.
“If this gets me in trouble…”
“I know. I know. You’ll kick my ass.”
Well, at least he wasn’t clueless.
“Call him. Tell him lay low, and if Rodney leaves—follow him.”
“You won’t regret this.”
Yeah, unfortunately, she already was.
* * * E l i z a b e t h L a R u e * * *
He placed her in her apartment. It was easy to get to her. She didn’t even ask any questions. It was as if he belonged there. He wanted to make sure she was afraid the entire time.
So, he raped her.
He’d become so wrapped up in the whole thing that he lost control. They were filthy, and he knew better.
He couldn’t help it.
He was just so damn angry. He could feel it bubbling up in his gut, clawing its way from his body. The need overwhelmed him, and he’d crossed the line.
Her whining made him insane. It infuriated him to the point he needed to stop it.
So, he fucked her.
It was rough.
Brutal.
Destructive.
He hated and loved it at the same time. With each drive into her, he prayed.
Over and over, he whispered the same words.
‘I’m sorry, Father.’
His weakness made him angry. When he was driving himself into her body, he stared into her tear-filled eyes.
It pissed him off.
She’d pushed him past his limits.
Reaching into his jacket pocket as he pummeled her body with his softening erection, he grabbed the garrote. When she closed her eyes, he wrapped it around her throat and pulled.
He got hard again, the second he saw the fear, the pain, and smelled the blood.
She scratched at her neck, his shirtsleeves, and finally, his covered shoulders.
She was trying to save herself.
Only it wouldn’t work. There was no way to escape this. She’d earned her death.
While she begged with dying eyes, he didn’t care.
She had to die—not only for being a whore, but also for making him no better than them.
He was angry.
Very.
Very.
Angry.
She’d done this to him. She’d damned him to this hell.
He knew who had to pay.
And she would…
Chapter Eleven
Sunday Mid-Morning
H arvey Wellstone, unlike Rodney Cole, lived in a nice part of the city. He was in the center of Georgetown, and his place was plush. Elizabeth had seen that wealth before. Chris Leonard had that kind of money.
Immediately, she could tell that Harvey was going to be interesting. Why was a rich man buying hookers? When he was arrested the first time, why didn’t he stop?
Certainly, that had to be one hell of a deterrent.
Only, according to his arrest records…not so much.
Her searches on him showed that he’d been busted three times—the first time with Wyanet Weston, then with Naima Abad, and finally with Bao Yu.
“Know what has me scratching my head?” Elizabeth asked, glancing over at her temporary partner.
“What?”
“Naima had a blackmail list. She’d been busted with this guy, he’s obviously rich, and she didn’t blackmail him. Why? He was a walking cash cow.”
He got what she was saying. “Maybe he was a nighttime trick. Maybe he didn’t go to her place, or when they were busted, he moved on.”
She didn’t feel right about this one.
Something was off.
While she hadn’t been a Fed that long, her gut was screaming. Her daddy always said to trust her gut, and she did.
Elizabeth was like a hound on a scent. She would get to the bottom of this if it was the last thing she did.
Together, they headed up the steps and knocked on the door. It didn’t take long for a man to answer.
“Yes?” he asked.
“We need to see Harvey Wellstone,” she said, flashing her badge.
The man checked out the credentials.
“He’s not accustomed to seeing people at his home, ma’am,” the man offered.
She looked over at Kaleb. “Ma’am? What the hell? Did I wake up on the wrong side of thirty today?”
He laughed. “Well, in his defense, LaRue, that blazer looks like something an old lady would wear to bingo.”
She stared down at it. “Really?”
“Yeah, it does. You should shop at better stores. It’s quality over quantity.”
The man got impatient. “Excuse me.”
They looked over.
It was hard not to laugh. They were trying to irritate the man. Kaleb and Elizabeth had that chemistry in the field. Here was the proof
. They went into their act without saying a word.
“Can we see your boss? You’re obviously the help.”
“That’s offensive,” Kaleb stated. “I think they like butler or man on the door.”
“You’re so gay I don’t even have a reply for that,” she teased, keeping a straight face. “He’s clearly the help. Look at the white gloves.”
The man cleared his throat. “Give me your credentials. I’ll see if the master is available.”
He took their badges and left.
“Want to come over later and call me master?” Kaleb teased.
She snorted. “Not if your penis was the only one left on Earth, and I had an itch I couldn’t reach.”
He started laughing. “Ouch. Someone is over me.”
“You think?”
It didn’t take long for the door to open.
Elizabeth checked out the new man standing there. He was rich. She could tell by his clothes, the watch on his wrist, and his shiny shoes.
And he was a total geek. He must have weighed one hundred and twenty pounds soaking wet. He made Chris Leonard and Tony Magnus look like buff beach bums.
Kaleb did the introductions.
“What can I do for you?” he asked, staring lecherously at Elizabeth.
She wanted to poke out his eyes, but that wouldn’t fly, and she knew it. It was time to play nice.
“Mr. Wellstone, we’re working a case involving some dead hookers.”
“Wow! I hope it wasn’t the girls I bought.”
Well, someone wasn’t shy about how he liked to spend his after hours, now was he? Apparently, he was proud that he’d been hiring women of the night.
Yeah, that was just wrong on so many levels.
“Actually, it was, sir.”
“Oh no. Why don’t you come in?” he offered, stepping back so they could pass.
He pointed them toward a sitting area in his luxurious brownstone.
Kaleb glared at the man as he ogled Elizabeth’s ass as she walked past him.
“Have a seat,” he said, joining them as he took his position in a high back leather chair.
“I know what you’re thinking,” he said.
“Do you?” Elizabeth asked. “Does it have anything to do with you staring at my breasts?”
He laughed. “I like you. You’re blunt. That’s how I like my women.”
She laughed along with him. “Yeah, I’m never going to be one of your women. So, you’re wrong. That wasn’t what I was thinking.”
He winked at her and played with his gold watch.
“Rolex?” she asked.
“Yes, are you a fan?” he asked.
“My best friend is. He has one.”
That intrigued him. “You like men with expensive tastes?” he asked.
She knew where this was heading.
“Actually, I prefer broke ass cops like my partner here.”
Kaleb stared at her. “Really? Ouch, LaRue.”
She snorted.
“Back to you, Mr. Wellstone. Let’s focus on the hookers, if you don’t mind.”
“You wonder why I’m so blasé about hiring prostitutes,” he offered, sitting in a wingback chair.
“Yeah, we are.”
“I like them. They put out, they get me off, and I don’t have to worry about lots of issues arising later.”
“You were arrested three times. That’s one hell of an issue,” Elizabeth offered. “That’s more than ‘liking’ hookers. That’s an obsession. Most men, who get caught, would stop there. Yet you didn’t.”
He laughed. “No, I didn’t.”
“Why?” she asked.
He pointed at Kaleb. “Do you hire prostitutes?”
“Uh, no. It’s against the law, and I’m a cop. We have to follow the rules—not just enforce them.”
“But if you weren’t a cop, would you?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“I pick up my babes the old-fashioned way. I go to a bar, strike up a conversation, and then get laid.” He glanced over at Elizabeth.
“You’ve slept with her. I can tell. When she walked in here, you were crowding her. Then I was looking at her…assets, and you weren’t happy. That, to me, means you hit it, or you plan on hitting it.”
“I hit. I hit really hard,” she stated.
He found her charming. “Yes, and there is a time and place for that, sunshine.”
She stared at him.
“I’m not like you. You’re handsome and ethnically appealing. Geeks like me don’t get girls like her. I’m betting the person you’re bedding down with is built like him—if it’s not him.”
She didn’t look over.
Elizabeth wasn’t falling for this game. “Actually, he’s not. He’s very smart. I like my men to have really big brains. Their body size isn’t important. Most women feel that way.”
Both men laughed.
She stared at Kaleb. “Really?”
“See? The arm candy has no clue,” the man stated.
Kaleb glanced over at Elizabeth. “What does he mean by that?”
She tried not to laugh. “That you’re sexy and should be on some old rich bitch’s arm as her boy toy.”
“Thanks for the translation, and no thank you.”
She snorted.
Wellstone leaned forward. “I can’t pick up women, so I buy them.”
“But you were arrested. No one likes that,” Elizabeth offered. “As far as I know, that’s not a fetish.”
“No, but I wasn’t in jail more than an hour each time. Money talks, and my lawyers are really good at what they do.”
Yeah, they had another winner here. What was with all the people willing to break the law?
She hoped this wasn’t a trend.
Then again, it was job security. If only he wasn’t so smarmy about it.
He believed he was above the law.
“So I hired women and got caught. I paid my fines, did my service, and here I am.”
“Someone killed all three women you were arrested with,” she offered.
“I’ve been with a lot of hookers, Agent. Let me assure you that I hire a new woman every other day or so.”
She stared at him. “You hire three hookers a week?”
“Yes, or four if the mood suits me. Granted, if you moved in, I wouldn’t need to do that. I have a feeling you’re super bendy in bed.”
Seriously?
Was this guy for real?
Jesus.
This man had a death wish, and she wasn’t talking about her desire to castrate and then feed him his nuts. Hookers carried diseases, and he didn’t seem to care. She had news for him. Being rich wouldn’t protect him from one hell of an STD.
He picked up the photos she had brought with her. “I liked Wyanet Weston. She was feisty in the sack. I liked her spunk.”
Elizabeth made notes.
“Then there was Naima. She offered up all kinds of fun things that made my heart pound. She came with a menu. You picked, mixed and matched, and then…”
Elizabeth held up her hand. “Please no details. I don’t want to be sick. You don’t want me tossing my cereal all over your carpet.”
“If it’ll get you on your knees to clean it…”
Kaleb pointed at him. “Knock it off, perv.”
“Yeah, he’s hit that.”
Elizabeth didn’t make a comment. She wasn’t falling for it. She was smarter than that.
“Keep going,” Kaleb stated.
“Anyway, Naima offered herself up at all hours. She even offered to meet me at her place.”
That piqued Elizabeth’s interest.
“Did you go?”
“No, I didn’t.”
“Why?”
He thought about it. “She seemed needy. It was as if she wanted to make a connection or she was desperate to get me there. I’m not interested in finding a companion. I wanted to get off.”
He lecherously stared at her. “Until now.
Want to come over tonight and see what a smart man can do?”
“Denied. I have plans.”
Elizabeth and Kaleb stared at each other. This man didn’t know how lucky he’d gotten. Naima had set the trap, and her prey had avoided it.
“What about Bao Yu?” she asked.
“I always wanted to be with an Asian woman. They say they’re submissive in bed, and they were right. She let me do anything I wanted to her.”
Elizabeth rolled her eyes.
“You’d let me, too, I can tell. You love sex. I bet you enjoy rolling around with men.”
This guy was a dick.
“Actually, I’m a lesbian.”
He stared at her.
Then he began laughing. “Liar.”
“Can we move on?” Elizabeth asked. “My sex life isn’t the issue here. Yours is.”
He was collecting hookers as if they were wines of the world. Someone should give him an STD and put him down like a rabid dog.
“Do you recall this woman?” Kaleb asked, sliding Cathy’s picture over.
“I’ve seen her, but I never used her. In fact, I don’t use that batch of hookers anymore.”
“Why?” Elizabeth asked.
“I use a madam.”
“Is it Noor Blackburn, by chance?” she asked.
“Yes, it is. She has a fresh batch of pussy every so often, and I’m looking for something unusual. Agent, you’re quite lovely. Care to make a house call and…?”
She cut him off. “I will remove your dick, make a pencil holder out of it, and then shove it into the side of your skull for safe keeping if you finish that sentence.”
He smiled. “You’re a tough one. I bet you’d be hard to control in bed. You have gorgeous breasts. Are they real? I’ll give you one hundred bucks, just to let me feel them.”
She stood and flipped open her holster on her gun.
He raised his hands.
“Okay! Point taken. I was just trying to offer you some off the clock work.”
“How long have you been using Noor Blackburn?” Kaleb asked, before Elizabeth killed the man. No woman liked to be treated like a hooker—especially ones who weren’t hookers to begin with.
“About two months. I worked my way through that other group.”
“You’re a piece of…”
Stalked by the Past: An FBI Flashback Novel. (An FBI Romance Thriller Book 17) Page 33
