“And as I doubt the good P.I. will simply sit back and allow you to protect her...” Gabriel’s voice trailed off.
Merda. Gabriel was right. Elizabeth would rush in where angels feared to tread. That urge to protect her solidified into something more, something deeply tied to the attraction he’d tried to deny for months. The Shem would not touch a hair on her head. Not on Dante’s watch. “I’ll take care of her.”
In more ways than one.
* * *
Beth was going to wind up in jail for murder.
“...and so I said, Marge, I said, if he really, really loved you, don’t you think he’d call or something?” The blonde flipped her hair in the classic bimbo move. “And she said...”
Candace “Call me Candy” Grahame was a petite woman with a greedy, sparkling blue gaze that devoured anything that looked like office gossip. She ate it up with a hunger Beth reserved for Sam’s homemade peanut butter brownies. Unlike Beth’s adoration of chocolate peanut-butter goodness, Candy was willing to share with anyone who stopped in front of her long enough for her to open her mouth.
Candy was also the victim’s secretary. If anyone knew what was going on in Mrs. Blake’s office, it should have been her. Which explained why Beth’s feet were currently nailed to the floor, listening to the inane chatter of the Queen of Candyland.
Why she was at the receptionist’s desk instead of in the back room, Beth didn’t know. She just wished the blabbermouth would shut up for two seconds so Beth could ask a god damn question.
“...and he was holding her purse, and it was so cute. So I told her...”
Beth was ready to drown Candy in her diet iced tea.
“...and I really think she needs to lay off the Botox...”
She wouldn’t be surprised if Candy was exactly the kind of woman Dante favored—pretty and brainless. She tried valiantly to hide a wince as Candy giggled again.
The offices of Todd Blessing’s political campaign were set up much as she’d expected. A few beige cubicles, a couple of doors leading to the back offices, and the reception desk where, lucky her, Candy sat, ready to spew anything and everything that entered her empty, useless head.
Shoot me now.
“...who does she think she is, Lady Gaga? Nobody wears that these days...”
All Candy needed was the snapping gum and the finger twirling in her hair, and the brainless bimbo image would be complete.
A tingling sense of awareness went through her, one that she felt only in the presence of a certain aggravating police officer. The warmth that swept through her was odd, considering the cold air that rushed through the open doorway. Shivering, she turned her head slowly and saw Dante enter the office, pulling off his thick gloves and looking around with a grim expression. She tried to ignore him and turned her attention back to what Candy was blabbing.
“...and so when I saw Jennifer against the window blind with another man, I was like, holy shit, little miss perfect is—”
“Whoa, back up. What was that about Mrs. Blake?” Suddenly, the frivolous Candy had her full attention.
Unfortunately, she no longer had Candy’s. The receptionist sat straight up in her chair, her gaze becoming wide and hungry. It looked like Candy had seen something she wanted to lick like a lollipop. “Well.” The blonde wiggled in her seat. “Hello there, sir. What can I do for you today?” Candy’s eyes gleamed as they ran over Dante’s form.
Dante held up his badge. “Detective Dante Zucco, New Castle P.D. I have a few questions to ask about Jennifer Blake’s murder.” Dante took a seat next to Beth and proceeded to charm the socks off Ms. Candy Grahame.
“Candace Grahame, Detective Dante.” The suddenly breathless quality of Candy’s voice had Beth rolling her eyes in disgust. “And I’m willing to tell you anything you want to know.”
That was it. Beth was gonna hurl from too much Candy.
Dante flashed a smile at the already smitten Candy. “Ms. Grahame—”
“Please, call me Candy.” Candy batted her baby blues at Dante.
“Candy, then. Candy, can you remember anything unusual happening around the office right around the time that Mrs. Blake was murdered?” Dante opened the ever-present notebook and looked intrigued as Candy broke into the same gossip Beth had been subjected to for the last half hour.
Dante, however, seemed determined to hear it all. He nodded in all the right places, shook his head in disbelief at some of the goings-on of her coworkers, and managed a sympathetic smile when Candy told of how she’d been all but ignored by the hunk of the office, Robert Kensington, in favor of plain-Jane Louise.
Beth surreptitiously checked her notes. Robert Kensington worked as the PR manager for the campaign. He was thirty-two years old, unmarried and had no children. According to Candy, he dated anything that would say yes, but Beth was inclined to take that with a grain of salt.
Beth sat silently and watched the play by play as Dante questioned Candy. She seethed, trying desperately to understand why Candy’s flirting bothered her so much, or why Dante’s polite response bothered her more. She felt much better when she pictured grabbing Candy by her blond curls and repeatedly beating her face into the desk. It might shut her up for two seconds.
Might.
“...and so when I saw little miss perfect with another man, I wondered if her husband knew about it or not.” Candy flashed a brilliant smile at Dante.
“Could you tell who the other man was, Candy?” Dante asked, his eyes intent on Candy’s face. Shockingly, they didn’t seem glazed at all.
Maybe he really did have a taste for Candy after all.
Blech.
Candy shook her head sadly. “Well, to tell you the truth, no I couldn’t. I mean, I wanted to keep my job, you know? I didn’t get close enough to see who she was with.”
Dante made a small note on his notepad. “Height, build, anything?”
Candy bit her full lip, making a big show of thinking back. She completely ignored Beth. “Um, taller than Jennifer by at least five inches.” She eyed Dante up and down appreciatively. “Kind of makes me think of you. You know, same build, same height.” Candy sighed dreamily. “Same broad shoulders.”
Dante made a big show of closing his notepad with reluctance. “I want to thank you for all your help today, Candy.” He stood and reached into his jacket pocket, pulled out a business card and handed it to her. “If you can think of anything else, anything at all you need to tell me, you can reach me at this number.”
Candy took the proffered card delicately, then put it into her bra.
Beth’s eyes nearly popped out of her head in disbelief. She forced herself to turn away before she burst out laughing.
“Thank you, Detective,” Candy said breathlessly, her hand slowly coming out of the top of her shirt. “I’ll be sure to call you if I can think of anything I want you for.”
Beth glanced up just in time to see the amusement on Dante’s face. “You be sure to do that, Candy. It was a pleasure to meet you.”
Dante held out his hand. Candy grasped it warmly and batted her lashes at him. “It was certainly a pleasure to meet you, Detective.”
Beth took a deep breath and decided it was time to move away. Far, far away. She was surprised to see Dante move with her. “Careful, Dante,” she muttered. “Too much Candy will give you cavities.”
She saw his lips purse out of the corner of her eye as he tried to suppress a laugh. “Ah, but what a sweet way it would be to go.”
She looked up at him in outrage before she could stop herself, and was surprised at the knowing look he shot her. She turned her head away and began to seethe all over again. “If you want to rot your teeth on Cotton Candy, go right ahead.” As nonchalantly as she could she flipped open her notebook. The next person on her agenda was Robert Kensington. He was the only m
an who seemed impervious to Cotton Candy, unlike some detectives she could name. She started to look around the office for Kensington, trying her best to ignore Dante as he stood silently beside her.
“I’ll make you a deal, Elizabeth.” His quiet voice sent a shiver down her spine, which she ruthlessly suppressed. “You talk to half the office, I talk to half the office, and we get together over dinner and compare notes. You don’t hold back, I don’t hold back, we halve each other’s legwork. Deal?”
Beth stared at him. She only had one answer for his abrupt one-eighty. He’d been replaced by a body-snatching alien intellect that was using him for its own nefarious purposes. “Why are you suddenly being nice to me? You hate the fact that I’m on this case.”
Dante shrugged. “Purvis. Besides, you’re already on the case. I can’t keep you off of it—at least legally—so it makes sense to utilize your skills as well as my own.”
She studied him. As annoying as he could be, he was a damn good cop. “Fine, but you’re buying.”
She couldn’t miss the triumph that flashed across his face just as she turned away.
Dante Zucco was up to something, and Beth was going to find out what.
Chapter Four
The stench of Shem was all over the building. It sickened him, the knowledge that a Shem was working so closely with unguarded humans. Unless the Nephilim caught him, the odds were that each and every one of these people would die by its hands.
There was one, however, Dante actually wanted to serve up on a silver platter with an apple in his mouth. He glared at where Elizabeth was questioning one of the victim’s coworkers and gritted his teeth.
If the figlio di puttana didn’t stop touching her Dante was going to rip his dick off.
Dante watched as Elizabeth handled the human octopus known as Robert Kensington. He was positive that if they hadn’t been in a roomful of people with a police officer standing right there, Kensington would have pushed Elizabeth onto the desk and tried something that would get him slapped with an assault charge at best.
If the man didn’t stop trying to chase his new partner across the desk, Dante was going to barbecue his ass.
Elizabeth managed to dodge yet another attempt to get her phone number, but Dante could tell her temper was beginning to fray. If this bozo knew anything at all about Jennifer Blake, he wasn’t talking. Odds were, in fact, that if Blake were cheating on her husband, Kensington would be at the top of the list.
Dante’s smile became more and more rigid as Kensington got more and more obnoxious. “I still can’t believe such a beautiful, intelligent woman is a private investigator,” Kensington said silkily as he ran a finger down the side of her arm. “What made you decide on such a hard, dangerous job when you could have been anything you wanted to be?” Kensington smiled winningly, obviously hoping to get somewhere with Dante’s partner.
Dante waited for the answer. It wasn’t long in coming.
Elizabeth stared blandly back. “I like big guns.”
Dante choked on a laugh. It wasn’t the answer he’d been expecting, and apparently neither had Kensington. The man looked shocked for a second before that same smarmy expression covered his face.
Jesus Christ, did anyone around here work, or were they all sex maniacs?
She flipped her notebook to a fresh page. “Now, about Jennifer Blake—”
“Ah, right, Jennifer.” Kensington shook his head sadly. “It’s a pity about her. You were hired by Jonathan, right?” Kensington watched her the way a Doberman would a large, juicy steak.
“That’s correct, Mr. Kensington. Do you know anything about Mrs. Blake that could help apprehend her killer?”
“I’ll have to think about it, maybe over dinner. Would you like to join me?” Kensington shot her a hungry smile that had nothing to do with food.
Dante’d had enough. “She’s with me.” He was getting supremely pissed off, but the surge of possessiveness that roared through him was unsettling. He stared Kensington down, gratified when the man blanched.
Elizabeth looked up at him in quick surprise before confirming his statement. “That’s right. We’re partners.”
“Ah. I see.” Kensington settled on the edge of the desk. “All I know is everyone in the office knew Jen was seeing someone else. Sort of a closely guarded public secret, if you know what I mean.” He winked and smiled at Elizabeth.
She ignored him. “Any idea at all who she was seeing?”
Kensington shook his head. “Nope. Sorry. All I know is she turned me down when I offered. But, hey,” he added, slightly maliciously, “some people don’t understand what they’re passing up, you know?”
Elizabeth looked at him in complete disgust. “Some people know exactly what they’re passing up, Mr. Kensington.” Dante could almost hear her ticking off the venereal diseases in her head as she closed her notebook with a snap. “Thank you for your assistance. If you can think of anything else that would assist in the apprehension of Mrs. Blake’s murderer, please contact Detective Dante Zucco at the New Castle Police Department. I’m sure he’ll be willing to leave you his business card.” Elizabeth turned away from Kensington’s outstretched hand and walked away to the water cooler.
Kensington whistled soundlessly. “Well, she’s a cold bitch, isn’t she?”
Dante slapped his card onto Kensington’s desk. He turned and walked without a word to the water cooler, thoroughly disgusted.
He stepped up beside Elizabeth. “What an ass.” He leaned against the wall, his gaze intent on her face.
She snickered. “As long as you aren’t pawing it like he did, you’re welcome to admire it as much as you want.” She rubbed her rear, glaring at Kensington before turning her gaze back to Dante.
He had a sudden yen for fried calamari.
“Don’t be too surprised if he and Candy wind up together,” Beth drawled. “Something tells me they were made for each other.”
Dante shook his head. “Nope. Candy would eat Kensington alive for breakfast.”
“And lunch, and dinner. She seems like the type who has a voracious appetite.” Elizabeth took a sip of water, then reopened her notebook. “By the way, are you beginning to detect a pattern, here?”
“You mean the one where Jennifer Blake was cheating on her husband?”
Elizabeth pushed her glasses back up her nose. “Exactly. Wonder who the guy was?”
“That’s something we’re going to have to find out.” Dante pushed himself away from the wall and scanned the room. “Okay, partner, who’s next on the agenda?”
“Let’s see.” She flipped through her notebook. “There’s Sylvester Oates, head of accounting, Delilah Messinger, Blessing’s personal secretary, and Bryan Cranston, who works with Oates. Then there’s Blessing himself, but it doesn’t appear that he’s in right now.”
He blinked. “You got all that from Mr. Grabby?”
“Please. While you were studying her cleavage, I was studying Candy’s appointment book. Mr. Blessing, in fact, is currently getting his hair done.” Beth rolled her eyes. “You get the names of the rest of the employees from Mrs. Messinger.”
He’d missed the appointment book, damn it, but watching Beth have a meltdown while he flirted with Candy had been worth it. Still, Dante was impressed. “You take Oates, then, and we’ll do Blessing together. Deal?”
“What about Cranston?”
Dante shrugged. “Whoever gets done first gets him.”
Elizabeth nodded. “Okay, partner.” She shut her notebook and strode toward the accounting offices.
Dante watched her walk away, her stride determined, the sway of her hips capturing his undivided attention.
Dante sighed and headed for the office of Todd Blessing. The Shem miasma was here as well, but it wasn’t nearly as thick as out where the employee
s sat.
At least Todd Blessing wasn’t the Shem. If he was, the stench would be thickest here, in his personal office. Dante’d have to check back where the accounting office was, see how thick it was there.
Damn it. This splitting up thing wasn’t working for him, but what else could he do? He doubted the Shem would make a move on Elizabeth in the middle of the day, in his own place of business and surrounded by coworkers.
A motherly lady in a no-nonsense business suit sat at a desk outside Blessing’s office, smiling sweetly. “Mrs. Messinger? I’m Detective Zucco with the New Castle Police Department. I’d like to ask you a few questions about the death of Jennifer Blake.”
“Oh, of course, Detective.” The smile faded to be replaced by a sad expression he’d seen far too many times. “Such a sad time for her family, and for all of us.” She gestured toward the chair near her desk. “Please, have a seat. I’ll answer what I can.”
Wonderful. Finally, something today was going to go right.
* * *
Beth poked her head around the corner of the accounting office. She saw one gentleman pouring himself a cup of coffee, and a young woman talking on the phone. She was willing to bet the short, dark-haired woman was Oates’s secretary. The tall, dark, handsome man was probably Oates himself.
Beth walked into the office and directly up the dark-haired man. He turned with a smile on his face. “May I help you?”
Beth held out her hand. “Elizabeth Rand. I’ve been hired by Mr. Jonathan Blake to investigate the death of Jennifer Blake.” The smile left Oates’s face, but his grasp was firm and unhurried. “May I have a few moments of your time?”
“Yes, of course.” He looked at the young brunette. “Barbara, hold all of my calls for me, will you?”
The woman nodded, and Oates led the way into his tiny office. He shut the door and motioned Beth into a chair in front of his desk. Placing his coffee cup down, he seated himself behind the desk. “What can I do to help you, Ms. Rand?” His tone was filled with concern.
“Just so you know, I need to ask these questions. You’ll get the same ones from the police, but I like to be thorough.” Beth had no doubt that Dante would come in behind her at some point and ask his own set of questions, but she wasn’t concerned about that now. She flipped open her notebook. “Where were you on the night Jennifer died?”
The Fire Within Page 5
