Sweet Vibrations

by Melinda Barron

  “Let’s get some food inside you,” Lake said. “Then we can tell you what we found.”

  “Can I pee first?”

  “Sure. Second door on the right. Holler if you need me.”

  “I think I can handle it on my own.”

  “I meant if you get dizzy.”

  She went down the hall and quickly took care of business. She washed her hands and looked in the mirror. All she could think about was Fred. If it hadn’t been for him, she would more than likely be dead right now. Fred had fought off her attacker. She said a silent prayer that her dog would survive, then went back to the dining room.

  Both Lake and Eric stood as she neared the table. When she sat down, she realized she was starving. Lake placed a breakfast burrito loaded with eggs, sausage, and cheese in front of her. He put a jar of salsa on the table.

  “Guess we’re not worried about cholesterol, huh? Eating eggs two days in a row.”

  “Just eat,” he said, placing a plate in front of Eric and taking one for himself.

  They ate in silence for a few minutes, and then Eric cleared his throat.

  “Tell me, Lucy, while you were going through your uncle’s papers did you find a rental agreement for Hungry Hippo Storage in Santa Fe?”

  “No. Why would Craig store stuff in Santa Fe?”

  “That’s a good question,” Eric said. “But according to the manager that I talked to a few minutes ago, Craig came in about a month before his death and rented a unit, paying cash for two years’ rental.”

  “You think the key goes there?”

  “I would say so,” Lake said.

  “And, I’m thinking the numbers are the building and unit number, with the four digit code being a way into the gate,” Eric said. “The manager says each customer has his own code to get inside. That way he can come and go after hours.”

  “Then let’s go,” Lucy said, standing quickly.

  “Hold on, sport,” Eric said. “This is a police matter now.”

  “I don’t care what you think. Craig left it for me.”

  “Lucy,” Lake said. “This isn’t a treasure hunt. The person who broke into the house was looking for that key. Craig obviously knew something that person didn’t want known.”

  “Do you think…oh my lord. Craig. They killed him.”

  Lake’s eyes were full of sorrow. “We don’t know that, baby.”

  “No, it makes sense. Craig never went without a helmet, until the day he died. He would never drink and ride his bike, yet the police said he was drunk. They killed him.”

  Lake quickly stood and took her in his arms, holding her close. She wrapped her own arms around his waist and cried into his chest.

  “Lucy,” Eric said. “I’m sure you’re right. And if they killed once before, they’ll do it again. The man who attacked you last night may have thought you were dead when he left. Your neighbor sure thought you were.”

  Lucy nodded, sniffling. “We have to go there, though.”

  “Not you,” Lake said, his voice full of authority. “You need to stay here and rest. That’s a pretty big bump you took.”

  “Yes, me,” Lucy replied, pushing away from him. “I’m not going to sit here while you two run off and play Rambo, bump or no bump. I’m coming with you.”

  “Lucy…”

  “Don’t argue with me, Lake. I may give you control over my body, but not my actions when it comes to things like this. If I don’t go with you, I’ll go in my car, by myself. Either way, I’m going.”

  “She’s a feisty one,” Eric said, humor in his voice.

  “You have no idea,” Lake replied.

  Chapter Eleven

  Lucy twitched as she sat between Lake and Eric, who piloted Lake’s huge truck down I-25. She couldn’t believe what had been happening. In less than twenty-four hours her world had been turned upside down.

  The silence was thick in the truck. She knew Lake was angry with her for not sitting calmly on the sidelines like a good little girl. She took a drink of the soda they’d bought with their fast food lunch and stared straight ahead.

  Lucy shifted nervously in the dress she was wearing. She wasn’t used to dresses, unless she was going out, but Lake had grabbed clothes for her before they left after the break-in. She wiggled a little and her clit twitched against the ball of her piercing.

  “Who did you call yesterday?” Eric’s voice sounded somewhat distracted, interrupting her thoughts.

  “Excuse me?”

  “Yesterday. Who did you call about the key?” He glanced at Lucy, then turned his attention back to the road.

  “How did you know?”

  “Something set the thief off, and the only thing that would do that would be a call from you about what he wants. The key. He probably thought he had it made, and your call shattered his world.”

  “Two of Craig’s friends, and his boss. When we didn’t find information in the boxes, I thought maybe one of them would know.”

  “Names.” Eric pulled out his cell phone.

  “Rodney Baker, Jeff Black, and Alan Malfee. Malfee was Craig’s boss, and the other two worked for Roadrunner. Jeff was also a poker buddy.”

  Lucy glanced at Lake, who sat ramrod straight as Eric called the police station and asked a cop to run the three names for him.

  “Rodney was out of town,” Lucy said. “Jeff thought it could be to a woman’s house, and Alan wanted me to bring it to him.”

  Eric’s eyebrows lifted.

  “Start with Malfee,” he said. “Send a uniform out to see where he was last night.”

  The sound of the phone closing echoed in the small space.

  “Would Fred have known him?”

  “Fred would have known all three of them,” Lucy said.

  “Figures,” Eric replied.

  Lucy put her hand on Lake’s knee and squeezed, running her fingers up his thigh toward his crotch.

  “You can’t be mad at me for this.”

  “Not as a Dom, maybe, but I can as Lake. You should be sitting at home, resting.”

  “My head doesn’t hurt nearly as bad as it did. I’m fine.” She caressed him gently.

  “Maybe. But that doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

  “All right,” Lucy replied. She pulled her hand away from him and turned her attention to Eric. “How can we find Craig’s killer?”

  “We have to make certain that his accident was no accident,” Eric said. “I’ve asked for the files to be put on my desk. I’ll look at them tonight after we get back.”

  “I can’t believe a friend of his would do that to him.”

  “People with secrets to hide are desperate, Lucy,” Eric replied. “If this secret was something illegal, Craig’s death would have assured his silence.”

  “But why wait until now? Nothing happened when Craig died.”

  “Maybe the person thought they were safe,” Lake said. “It wasn’t until yesterday that you started making phone calls about a key. Like Eric said, that would have set them off.”

  “Exactly,” Eric said. He turned the truck onto the Cerrillos Road

  exit and turned back under the highway.

  The car grew silent as Eric navigated the Santa Fe traffic and Lake and Lucy searched for the building. Lucy found it first, and Eric turned into the lot. She read off the numbers to him and then watched while he punched them in and the gate swung open.

  “Building eight,” she said as Eric pulled through the gate. “Unit thirty-two.”

  When they pulled up in front of the building, Eric stopped them from getting out of the car.

  “Just hold up a second. I’m going to call a tech friend of mine to come and take fingerprints and document evidence, just in case we find something.”

  “No!” Lucy shook her head, then moaned as dizziness took over.

  “Easy,” Lake replied, lifting her face to his own and searching her eyes.

  “Yes, Lucy,” Eric said. “If there is evidence of a crime here we need a tech to
document it. If not, lawyers will find a way around using it in trial, and Craig’s killer could go free. Do you want that?”

  “Of course not.”

  “Then just sit tight.” Eric got out and dialed a number on his cell.

  While he talked, Lucy leaned into Lake, who wrapped his arms around her.

  “You owe me an orgasm,” she said softly. “I missed mine last night.”

  “Vixen.” Lake shook his head. “I’d thought you’d stood me up. When Eric called, I was so worried.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s not your fault, baby. I’m just saying that I was really worried.”

  “I, um, I…” She took a deep breath. “I was so happy to see you.”

  He kissed her forehead and held her close.

  “Don’t be afraid, baby.”

  “I’m not. I don’t think they’ll be back.”

  “That’s not what I meant. Don’t be afraid that you need me, Lucy.”

  Their gazes locked and her heart went into overdrive as the meaning of his words sank in.

  “I’m trying not to be. I know I can trust you, it’s just…”

  “I know. And I’m here to help with that.”

  He kissed her gently, his lips tracing over her own before he pushed down harder, strengthening the connection. They broke apart long enough to take a deep breath before their lips melded together again.

  It was the first time he’d actually kissed her, and Lucy’s senses reeled. Her toes curled and her heart raced. It felt so wonderful, felt so right to be in his arms. How had he wormed his way inside her heart in such a short time? They hadn’t even technically had sex, but yet she wanted to stay in the safety of his embrace forever.

  “Ahem. If you two are through playing kissy face, Diego is here.” She could tell that Eric was holding back laughter.

  They exited the truck quickly, and Eric introduced her to Diego Fuentes, a medium-built Hispanic man with short black hair and warm brown eyes. Lucy liked him immediately.

  “So, we have a warrant?” Diego asked.

  “Don’t need one,” Eric replied. “Lucy’s uncle was the renter, and when he died she inherited everything.”

  “Good enough for me,” Diego said. “If you’ll give me a minute, I’ll print the lock and the clasp on the mechanism. Then we can open it up and see what we got.”

  Lucy admired the way Diego made quick work of taking fingerprints. He seemed very competent.

  “I guess you work with the Santa Fe PD often?” She lifted her eyebrows at Eric.

  “Some. Actually, Lake and I met Diego at Tygers, where he was helping train some new subs.”

  Diego turned a wicked grin on Lucy and she blushed furiously.

  Lake pulled her into his chest and chuckled evilly. “You’re surrounded.”

  “So it would seem,” she replied.

  When he was done with his work, Diego took the key from Lucy and removed the lock, placing it in an evidence bag along with the key. He lifted the hasp and pushed the bar open, allowing him and Eric to raise the door.

  Lucy stared inside in astonishment.

  “It’s empty. We drove an hour for an empty storage unit.” She stepped inside and walked toward the center, her hands on her hips. She heard movement behind her and knew the three men had followed.

  “Um, baby?” Lake’s voice held a tinge of excitement. “Look behind you.”

  Lucy turned toward the door. There, taped to the wall near the door was a large manila envelope, with her name written across it in bold, black lettering.

  Chapter Twelve

  “What’s taking him so long?” Lucy chewed on her thumbnail and tapped her foot.

  “Stop that.” Lake pushed her hand away from her mouth. “Relax. Diego’s doing it by the book.”

  “I want to read whatever’s inside.”

  “You can’t read it if you faint from hyperventilation,” Eric said, smiling at her. “Lake’s right. Relax.”

  The sound of tape being pulled from the wall made her straighten her shoulders. Diego walked toward them, the envelope in hand. When he was near, he handed Lucy a pair of gloves.

  “I really should open it, but I guess we can forgo protocol just this once.”

  When Lucy’s hands were gloved, he handed the envelope to her. She took Lake’s pocketknife and slit the seal, blowing the envelope open to peer inside.

  She pulled out a single sheet of paper and started to read. Seconds later, her eyes welled with tears and she handed the sheet to Diego.

  “You read it.”

  He nodded and cleared his throat.

  “Sweet, Lucy. I’m so sorry it had to come to this. I thought I could handle what I found out, but if you’re reading this I was wrong. Do you remember the trip we took when you were twelve? You and me on one bike, your mom and Pat on the other. Go there now, Lucy. I’ve left something for you. Don’t let them get away with it. All my love, Craig.”

  “Where, Lucy? Where did you go?” Lake asked.

  “Chama. We went to Chama, but I don’t remember the cabin exactly. It was Patrick’s cabin, and I would never be able to find it again.”

  “We can call Patrick.”

  “If you can find him. I talked to him after Craig’s funeral. He was so pissed that Craig didn’t leave him his bikes he threatened to sue. Then he fell off the face of the Earth.”

  “Tax records,” Diego said. “Call the county offices. You can find the cabin from there.”

  “True,” Lake said. “Patrick must still own it if Craig went up there not even a year ago.”

  “OK,” Eric said. “We’ll find it from there and head up that way tomorrow. It’s a little over three and a half hours from Albuquerque.”

  “Only two and a half from Santa Fe,” Diego said with a laugh.

  They closed the storage unit and Diego put the letter and envelope in separate plastic bags.

  “Lucy, it was a pleasure to meet you. Hopefully we can all meet under more pleasant circumstances sometime.” He winked at her and gave the bags to Eric.

  The three of them loaded into Lake’s truck and went to the gate, then exited onto the busy street.

  “I’m hungry,” Lucy said.

  “Burgers? Fries? Tacos? Soft drinks?” Eric asked from behind the wheel. They decided on burgers, and pulled into a small restaurant with an outdoor eating area.

  While Lake and Eric went inside to order food, Lucy sat on the bench and put her head in her hands. Things were moving so quickly that she felt like she was shooting through space.

  She’d finally let Lake inside, admitted to him that she needed him. That was something she hadn’t done in quite a while. It had been so wonderful to have him there last night, holding her as she cried about Fred. She’d felt protected and safe, even if she had still been frightened half out of her wits.

  The image of the intruder flashed in front of her. Whoever it was hadn’t planned on killing her. If he had, he wouldn’t have bothered to cover his face. It was hard to imagine one of Craig’s friends doing something to harm him, much less kill him. And it was harder still to think that Craig had discovered something illegal and not gone to the police about it.

  It seemed as if that would have been the first thing that he would have done. Craig had always been honest about everything. What had kept him from disclosing what he knew? Had he been involved in whatever activities had gotten him killed?

  Lucy shuddered at the thought. The Craig she knew wouldn’t have done anything illegal. Of course, the Lucy she knew wouldn’t have flat out lied to someone, either. Yet she’d done it not twenty minutes ago when she’d told Lake and Eric that she didn’t know where the cabin was. She knew exactly where it was, could remember every detail of that trip because it had been one of the happiest times in her life.

  She and her mother were actually taking a vacation with a man that her mother seemed destined to stay married to. Destined until three months later, that was. Still, the trip was etched on Lucy’s
brain, and she knew that she could find the cabin easily.

  She just had to figure out a way to get past Lake and Eric. Guilt tore at her heart, and she hadn’t even done anything wrong. Yet. But she knew she would, tonight. Somehow she needed to find a way to distract them so she could get away long enough to start for Chama without them knowing about it.

  Tears welled in her eyes. She knew that when she did this, it would forever break any chance of a relationship with Lake. He would never trust her again. Could she give all that up? Maybe she should tell him now that she’d lied, and they could start for Chama right now, see what they could find together. After all, they were an hour closer here in Santa Fe. They could be there before nightfall.

  Lake’s approach pulled her back to the present. She shook her head to clear it. She had to do this, for Craig. He’d always been there when she’d needed him. He’d left the letter for her. He’d expected her to right the wrongs that had resulted in his death, and she planned on doing just that. Alone.

  * * * * *

  The idea came and went quickly, then came again. Lucy wasn’t sure it would work, but she had to try. They were on their way back to Albuquerque. This time, Lake was driving, but she was still sandwiched in between them, their muscular thighs pressed against her own flesh, solid from years of riding motorcycles.

  When they were a half hour out of Santa Fe, Lucy called the vet to check on Fred. She laughed happily when the vet said he was doing better, then riled the dog up enough so that he gave a hearty bark.

  “He’s going to be fine,” she said. Both Lake and Eric expressed their relief.

  Lucy knew, though, that she had to put her new plan in motion. She pushed away the regret she felt over what was about to happen, then put her fingers on the bottom of her skirt and started to inch it up. Eric noticed first, his eyes widening before he gave her a curious look.

  When the skirt was almost to the juncture of her thighs, she pushed her hand inside and moaned softly.

  “What do you think you’re doing,” Lake asked, his voice low.

  “Playing with my pussy.”

  “So I see. Did I give you permission for that?”

  “I didn’t ask. I need an orgasm.”

  Lake let out an angry growl and Eric whistled softly.