Bayou Heat

by Georgia Tribell

  Olson strutted around the room a couple of times, finally taking a seat at the table across from Tarrington. Rob took the empty chair to Eris’ right, putting her between him and Matt.

  “Ms. DuBose found the four known victims of our serial killer. If there are more victims out there, we don’t know about them,” Olson stated.

  “Serial killers normally work in a pattern or leave behind a signature piece. They want people to know it’s them,” Matt commented as he opened a notebook and started writing.

  “True,” Tarrington answered. “This one has left his calling card so to speak, but we aren’t at liberty to tell you what it is. We are trying to keep that piece of information away from the news media. The fewer people who know, the less chance of a leak.”

  “I can accept that, but how are we to protect Ms. DuBose if you don’t give us enough information to work with?” LD asked as he studied the two detectives and continued. “Knowing something about the killer will go a long way toward helping us protect her. Otherwise, we’re going to have to keep the entire population of New Orleans away from her and in the process of doing that, we’ll miss the obvious.” LD directed his statement to Olson.

  Reluctantly Olson slid an envelope across the table. “This is the FBI profile of the killer.”

  The group sat silently as LD reviewed the information then gave it to Matt, who read it then passed it to Rob. He started to read the contents but was distracted when Eris laughed. He glanced up and saw Matt and Eris with their heads bent together as they whispered like old friends.

  The pair didn’t seem to be having a problem getting along, which was great because Rob might be able to convince Matt to take longer shifts. At that moment, Eris leaned even closer to Matt and the man’s eyes dipped to the low neckline of her shirt.

  Rob forced his attention back to the papers in front of him and reminded himself that Matt was a dependable employee. He was the least likely to do anything against company policy, such as sleep with a client. Not that he cared, Rob told himself. Eris wasn’t his type.

  Rob pushed the thoughts to the back of his mind and did a quick read of the document then closed the file. “This could be any male who walks the streets of this town.”

  Olson rubbed the back of his neck with one hand while he tapped the fingers of his other on the table. “I know. It’s as if this guy appeared out of nowhere and started killing. The FBI doesn’t have any matches in their database. We’ve put out a bulletin to other police departments here in Louisiana and the surrounding states, but so far all responses have been negative.”

  “Serial killers normally take years perfecting their skills. Once their signature is identified, you can backtrack to earlier unsolved cases,” LD stated.

  “Believe me, we know that. We’ve tried to find any connection to old cases that we could. But it’s like this guy has been planning this for years then one day—bam, we have a fully matured serial killer on our hands.”

  “I worked a couple of these cases while I was with the FBI. If you’d like, I could review the files for you. A fresh set of eyes couldn’t hurt.” Rob noticed that his offer appeared to make Olson nervous.

  “I’d like that, but we’re under strict orders from the police chief to keep the extent of Titan’s involvement to a minimum. The chief doesn’t want it to look as if we’re outsourcing our work.”

  “We are hiring Titan to protect Ms. DuBose. Nothing more,” Tarrington said.

  “We’re qualified to do a lot more than look after one woman.” There was the slightest hint of agitation in LD’s voice.

  “We know that, but our problem at the moment is we don’t have the manpower to devote to guarding Ms. DuBose. More importantly, we don’t want the public to know we’re having her guarded,” Tarrington added.

  “What makes you think that Ms. DuBose might be in danger?” Rob asked.

  Eris turned and looked him directly in the eyes. “Orbit, the killer’s last victim, was my mentor and close friend. I’m going to see this monster captured and punished for what she’s done.”

  Rob turned to look at her. “She?”

  “The killer’s a woman,” she stated with confidence.

  Before Rob could reply, Olson continued. “We’ve agreed to allow Eris to continue working the case from a safe distance but only if she agrees to protection.” Olson made it clear he didn’t like the idea.

  Rob didn’t miss the look of loathing that Eris gave Olson. “It’s obvious that you don’t want our help, Ms. DuBose, so why are you agreeing to it?”

  “There are times when it’s best to go with the flow.”

  “Were you going with the flow last night at Indulgence?” Rob asked, and watched her eyes dart over to Olson.

  “This conversation isn’t about last night,” Eris replied in a terse tone.

  Olson fumed. “You told us you were staying in, that you wouldn’t leave your place until we came for you this morning. Do I need to remind you of the consequences of not following our mandate?”

  “You’ve already made that perfectly clear.” Eris turned away from Olson and gazed out the window.

  “You went out alone even after being warned of the danger?” Rob couldn’t keep the censure out of his voice and knew she heard it by the way she turned to glare at him.

  “I had my reasons.”

  “Now you see why we need your team to focus on protecting Ms. DuBose while she’s off doing her thing. While you’re doing that, those of us on the task force will spend our time searching for the killer.” Olson looked overly pleased about her reaction as Tarrington fidgeted with a folder that lay on the table in front of him. “Now who’s taking the day shift and who’s stuck with nights? Tarrington and I don’t have all day.”

  Rob’s palms became instantly sweaty at the prospect of being around this woman all night.

  “You said there was going to be someone with me during the daylight hours while I investigate the crime, not someone lurking over me 24/7.” Eris’ indignant voice broke the silence.

  “Do you think after last night’s escape we are going to trust you to stay put until morning?” Tarrington asked in a low-key, logical voice.

  Rob watched the muscles in her jaw work as she visibly forced her temper to stay under control.

  “Fine, I can deal with that so long as I don’t have to stay with him.” She pointed one perfectly manicured nail at Rob.

  He took exception to the way she emphasized her point and made it sound as if he were a plague to be avoided. Before he could add anything to the conversation, she kept going.

  “He cannot stay with me at night.”

  Yes, for once the woman was speaking clearly and they actually agreed on something. There was no way he could spend the night with her and keep his sanity.

  “Not a problem, Rob can stay with you for the rest of the day and Matt will relieve him at seven this evening. Is there a problem with either of you about this?” LD looked from one man to the other.

  “Not a problem for me.” Matt gave Eris his famous playboy smile.

  Rob sat there silently, wondering if he should take the night shift because the last thing their fledgling company needed was a reputation for seducing the clientele.

  “Is there a problem, Rob?”

  Rob pulled his gaze away from the couple whose heads were back together, busily holding a private conversation. He reminded himself again that Matt was a good employee and never once gave them reason to think otherwise. “No problem. It sounds like a workable plan.”

  “Yes, that will be acceptable.” Eris directed her words to LD.

  Rob arched an eyebrow at the woman and wondered if she ever kept her opinions to herself.

  Tarrington slipped a folder across the table toward Eris. “We need to get going, but we have something for you to look at, Ms. DuBose.”

  Eris opened the file and began reading the information. Her brows furrowed and she started worrying her bottom lip with her teeth.

  “Is
this another victim of the serial killer?” Rob asked as he watched her reactions to the information in front of her.

  “We don’t know, but she does fit the killer’s general preference. There was a missing persons report filed on her two days ago,” Tarrington continued.

  “You want me to find her?”

  “We want you to do your magic and let us know what you find,” Olson replied as he stood.

  Eris frowned at Olson but, to Rob’s surprise, picked up the file and walked out of the conference room without saying a word. Rob watched her go then stood and turned to Olson. “Does she always do this?”

  The detective laughed. “All the time. The two of you should have loads of fun working together.”

  Rob moved quickly to catch up with the irritating woman but figured with the wild hair he wouldn’t easily lose sight of her. The elevator doors were closing as he entered the corridor, so he hit the stairs and descended the three flights in record time. He entered the lobby expecting to have to chase the woman down. Instead she stood by the windows, gazing out.

  She turned as he approached. “Sorry I left so abruptly, but I had to get out of there. Detective Olson has a tendency to get on my nerves.”

  “Really? I hadn’t noticed.”

  She gave a small laugh as she pulled his jacket off and handed it back to him. “Thank you for the use of the coat—and you don’t lie well at all, Mr. Jackson.”

  He took the coat. “You’re welcome, and please call me Rob.”

  “Only if you call me Eris.”

  “That’ll work.”

  She smiled. “Good, now let’s get to work.”

  He slipped the jacket back on as Eris walked toward the entrance. The woman irritated and enticed him at the same time. He checked his watch. It was eleven thirty, exactly seven and a half hours to go until his shift was over.

  He could do this.

  The scent of warm vanilla and cinnamon drifted from his jacket…her scent. Between trying to figure out the mess LD had gotten them into and following this strange yet fascinating woman around, he was about to face the longest seven and a half hours of his life.

  * * * * *

  Eris stood in Debra Thorn’s apartment and looked around the room. It was shabby and small and carried an air of desperation. Debra obviously lived hand-to-mouth and at some point, that small thread would break and she’d no longer be living here but would become another street person.

  “I need something that belongs to Debra,” Eris told Sky, Debra’s gum-snapping roommate, who currently stood eyeing Rob.

  “Whatever. I don’t see what the big deal is. She’s only been gone a few days. Her parents are way overly protective. Debra is eighteen. There’s nothing they can do about her living here.” The girl picked up a shirt and tossed it to her.

  Eris caught and held it for a few seconds then placed it on the dining-room table. “Someone else has worn this. I need something that only Debra would have handled.”

  “Look, lady, I don’t got time for this shit. Every minute I’m with you, I’m losing money.” The girl turned to leave.

  Eris watched as Rob shifted his tall, broad-shouldered frame and blocked the doorway. “You either give the lady what she asked for or I’ll make a phone call to a friend, and then it’ll be a long time before you earn anything but extended time in the exercise yard. Get my drift?”

  The girl stepped back and Eris didn’t blame her. She would have moved too if Rob was glaring down at her with his ice-blue eyes, which looked cold enough to cut steel at the moment.

  “Okay, man. Don’t get so worked up. I’ll be right back.”

  The girl disappeared into an alcove that was divided from the rest of the room by a large yellow curtain. Eris turned to Rob. “I appreciate the help because I’m really not in the mood to have to body slam a person to get what I want.”

  He shrugged. “I didn’t do it for you. I want out of here as quickly as possible and getting you what you want is the fastest way to achieve my goal.”

  “This place bothers you?”

  “It reminds me too much of where I grew up.”

  That tidbit of information caught Eris’ interest, but before she could ask questions, Sky returned. “This should work. She only wore it on special occasions, said it belonged to her grandmother.”

  Eris took the delicate sterling silver heart pendant and closed her hand around it. The piece grew warm then gradually the heat spread up her arm and expanded until she could see its colors—Debra’s aura. Now she had something to work with.

  “I’ll need to keep this until Debra is found, so please let the police know if she shows up.”

  “Fine. Can I go now?” Sky asked in an impatient tone as she popped her gum.

  “Yes, I’m done.” Eris started for the door.

  “No, I’ve got a few questions,” Rob stated.

  Their words were said in unison and the girl looked at them and rolled her eyes. Rob didn’t move from his position in front of the door.

  “I’m finished here,” Eris stated between gritted teeth.

  “Well, I’m not.” Rob’s words left no room for argument as he turned toward Sky.

  “I don’t give nothing away for free, mister.” The girl moved close enough to Rob that she could run a hand down his arm. “If you’re willing to pay for it, I’ll give you anything you want.”

  Rob flashed a smile of pure devilment at Sky, making the girl blush as he reached into his pocket. Eris rolled her eyes.

  “It’s really hard to turn down such an offer, but I’m working at the moment.” He pulled a twenty-dollar bill out of his wallet and handed it to the girl. “Does Debra have a pimp?”

  “She freelances like me. We don’t see no reason to give no guy half our earnings.”

  “What about an unsatisfied customer?”

  “Debra always left her clients happy. The best advertisement is a satisfied customer.”

  “Did she owe money to her dealer?”

  “She don’t do that kind of stuff.”

  “When was the last time you saw Debra?”

  “A week ago.”

  “And what was she doing?”

  “Leaving for work.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yeah, ’cause that was the night I brought Tom-Tom up here.”

  “Tom-Tom?” Eris couldn’t help but ask, even though she was sure she didn’t want any additional information.

  “He’s a client that lives out of town. He makes it in a couple of times a month and pays well to stay here. I figure I might as well take his money instead of some hotel. That’s how I know when it was. Tom-Tom always brings some new toy that he leaves. That night he brought this whip and he wanted me to—”

  “Enough. I’m sure you’ve got the night right,” Eris said as she turned and caught Rob grinning at her from ear to ear. Apparently he enjoyed her discomfort. Well, she’d be sure that he didn’t see it again. “Can we go now?”

  “After you, princess.” Rob moved and opened the door.

  She kept one eye on him as she walked past, not sure what his next move would be and more than a little unnerved by the name he’d called her. Out on the street, Eris stopped and opened herself to the auras around her. Slowly she sifted through them, eliminating the obvious ones that didn’t correspond with Debra’s and then weeding out the near matches until she found the one she was looking for. Debra’s presence was strong here. She passed through these doors almost every day, so there was a large amount of collected energy.

  After another couple of minutes, Eris found the strongest of the residual lines. She now knew which path to follow.

  “The file states Debra works at the Red Light Cabaret,” Rob said from behind her. “Not surprising. Debra’s only eighteen and that place is notorious for hiring them extremely young.”

  She looked over her shoulder to see him closing the folder. “Okay, we need to go this way.” She started walking in the direction the aura told her to travel.r />
  “Weren’t you going to question Sky?” Rob asked as he caught up with her.

  “No. I didn’t need to.” Eris concentrated on keeping a bead on Debra’s aura as it wound in and out with others that were similar.

  “Thought you were helping the police?”

  “I am.” She really wished he would be quiet. She needed to concentrate.

  “How? By gathering old jewelry and wandering the streets like a drunk?”

  His hand wrapped around her arm, stopping her from stepping off the sidewalk and into the path of an oncoming vehicle. The sound of a blaring horn snapped Eris back to reality. “Damn.”

  “What the hell’s wrong with you?” His words were hard but his fingers lightly caressed the skin of her upper arm as he pulled away.

  Eris ran a shaky hand through her hair. “I’m sorry. Sometimes I have to concentrate so hard I don’t realize what’s going on around me or where I am.”

  “Concentrate on what—walking?”

  Eris kept her facial expressions as neutral as possible. “No, on following a person’s aura.”

  There, she’d said it. She’d put it off as long as she could, but now the words were out in the open. Now she would wait to see what kind of snide, crass remarks he made. Then she would promptly tell him she didn’t care what he thought.

  She watched a couple of emotions flicker over his face then he shook his shoulder-length blond hair and smiled.

  “Guess I shouldn’t be surprised. Not considering where we live and the fact that you were working with Orbit. She was a local legend. I’m sorry for your loss.”

  Eris was shocked into silence for several seconds at the honest sympathy she heard. “Thank you, Orbit was a family friend for years.”

  Her patience was stretched as she waited for the sarcastic, hurtful words that normally followed. “Well, don’t you have anything else to say?”

  “I’m sorry I broke your concentration. I’ll be quiet and watch for cars while you do your thing.”

  “Okay.” Eris turned and tried to pick up Debra’s aura. She slowed her heart rate and pushed the confused thoughts Rob created to the back of her mind. She couldn’t think about how he made her feel at the moment if she wanted to find their path.