“Why don’t you join me?” he called out in a husky voice and patted the blanket beside him.
She sashayed toward him slowly, her eyes homing in on his pants and shirt. “You have on far too many clothes, darling.”
Ted lay back again, placing his hands behind his head. “Why don’t you take them off then?”
Wanda seemed surprised by his flirtatious attitude, but she recovered quickly and straddled him. She playfully unbuttoned his shirt one button at a time, then slipped it from his arms and tossed it in the sand. “Umm…” she murmured, as she slid slowly down his body and toyed with his belt. Her hot, wet tongue circled Ted’s navel until he groaned with desire. The sound elicited a short sultry laugh from her lips. She knew her power. He fought the desire to wrap his hands around her neck and end it quickly, forcing himself to wait until she slowly pulled his pants down his legs and over his feet. She moved to straddle him again, seeking to insert him in that warm, moist cave that drove him to the brink of insanity as she gasped out her fake orgasms.
Not this time. Moving quickly, he dislodged her, grabbed a handful of hair, and dragged her up beside him before he straddled her and wrapped his hands around her neck. He watched her eyes as they widened, and he felt the tremors shake her body. So this is where I’ve gone wrong for so long, he realized as she whispered, “Yes, please,” and hunched against him. For the first time, the bitch was truly excited. He squeezed harder and plunged into her as hard as he could. He pounded her head against the sand with every thrust until she gasped, moaned, and shook uncontrollably, able only to squeak out a small scream and arch her back in the sweet agony of orgasmic release. He smiled as he relaxed his hold and rolled off her. He refused to put his seed into such a vile creature ever again, and took his satisfaction from the fact her gasps for breath and moans were for once real.
“Oh, Ted,” she managed between gulps of air, “I don’t know what got into you, darling, but I hope it stays.” She rolled onto her side and let her hand glide down his chest to his still firm organ. “Oooh, can we do it again?”
He laughed, slapped her, and pushed her back onto the blanket as he once again straddled her. He wrapped his hands around her neck as her tongue came out and wet her lips in anticipation. “I have a question for you, darling.”
She arched her body, seeking release. “Anything, sweetheart, just please hurry.” She moaned.
“Where are the babies?”
Her body stiffened, and her eyes widened as his hands clenched tighter around her throat. “I told you, Carissa is taking us to see them tomorrow.” She gasped, her hands flailing against his arms. “Please, Ted, you’re hurting me.”
He released a hand and slapped her hard across the mouth, splitting her lip. Blood spread across her face. “I haven’t begun to hurt you yet, Wanda. That one was for Jennifer.” He tightened his hold again. “Where are the babies?”
She scratched at his wrists, feebly trying to dislodge his hands. “Okay. Please, I’ll tell you.”
He loosened his grip, leaving his hands around her throat. “Where are they?”
“Margaret Finley is watching them.” Her face twisted, and she spit blood on his chest. “Now get off me.”
“Where?”
“Fourteen Hundred Shadow Lane. Now get off me, you bastard.”
He tightened his grip and leaned forward to plant a kiss on her forehead. “I’ll get off in just a minute, darling.”
~ ~ ~
Ted stumbled to the edge of the water, fell to his knees, and vomited. He’d thought it would be easy, and up to a point, it had been. The more she’d struggled, the more pleasure he’d taken from watching her face become mottled and the tiny veins in her eyes swell up and burst. She’d lost consciousness far too quickly, though, and he knew from research that wasn’t a true sign of death. Sickened by his own perverse pleasure, he’d opted to simply twist her head quickly and break her neck. She was dead, and he would never have to worry about her hurting another child.
He crawled into the water, splashed his face and chest, and washed away the smell of her sex. He needed to get moving. He had a long night ahead of him before he finally stopped by the bank and made the transfer. He’d been surprised when Mr. Franklin had given him the key with a pat on the shoulder. “Just in case you need to get in quickly, son. Mr. DuPont is our largest depositor.”
Ted cupped handfuls of water and poured them over his hair and face. He wished he could be a fly on the wall when Franklin found out DuPont was behind all of this. He stood and walked back to his clothes, careful to avoid looking at Wanda’s body. He’d grieved the loss of his child, and for the next few hours, he would grieve the loss of his wife, too. He’d loved her—worshipped her even. Somewhere deep inside, he’d known all along the evil that ran through her core, but he’d chosen to ignore it. He slipped on his pants then buttoned his shirt. The world was a better place because of his actions. He would have to be content with that.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
“Frost kind of took over back there. Hope you don’t mind.” Crimshaw broke the silence that had permeated the car since they’d left the Martin residence.
“Not at all,” Alex said, reading a text on her phone. “Gabriella says Nobby came home with Cinders. He’s going to be okay.”
“Best news we’ve had all day.” Crimshaw turned to give her a grin. “Wish we’d thought to move the animals to the house earlier. Never figured Anders would hit you at home.”
“Neither did I. At least I know now what a coward she really is. She picks on babies and innocent animals.”
“We’ll get her, Alex.”
“I know. For the first time since coming to America, I feel like I’m part of something bigger than just putting on my uniform every morning.”
“What was it like in England?” Crimshaw asked.
“Except for what you call the rookies, pretty much like what we’re doing. We were a team. The detective inspector ran the show, though, much like Patterson.”
“Hope he had more brains than Patterson.” Crimshaw scoffed. “How that man ever made commander is beyond me.”
Alex nodded her agreement, still uncomfortable with the American ease of expressing displeasure with their leaders. She’d been shocked at first, having been brought up to believe that no matter what a person thought or felt, the title deserved respect, and only very close friends were ever included in a disparaging remark about authority, and only then with an apology attached to it.
“Is it true you guys don’t have guns or weapons?” Crimshaw asked.
“We do have a special armed force, plus some officers are now Taser-trained, but mostly, my unit had pepper spray and sometimes a baton.”
Crimshaw raised an eyebrow. “You’re jerking me around, right?”
Alex frowned. “I haven’t touched you.”
Crimshaw pounded his fist against the steering wheel as he laughed so hard, tears ran down his cheeks. He pulled to the side of the road, parked, and climbed out. Leaning against the car, he gasped for air between guffaws.
“Blimey, Crimshaw, are you all right, man?” Alex asked, unfastening her seat belt and opening her door.
Crimshaw bent at the waist, slapping his knees. “Damn… it… Fox… you’re killing… me,” he managed between belly rolls. “If you could have seen your face.” He slapped his knees again as his laugh grew louder. “I haven’t touched you,” he mimicked. “Oh, God.” He leaned against the hood of the car and swiped at his face.
“But I didn’t touch you,” Alex said, confused by his reaction. “I didn’t jerk you around, either.”
“It’s slang, honey. Like the shoot comment was.” Finally under control, he climbed back behind the wheel. “If we’re gonna ride together, you’re going to need a little American 101, and I need your British dictionary.”
Alex fastened her seat belt and stared out the window, still a little flustered. Frost was right. If she hadn’t had her head up her arse for the last year, she mig
ht understand such things a little better.
“Hey,” Crimshaw said softly, “I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. We’re just in such a tense situation, and to be honest, you caught me off-guard.”
“It’s okay.” She grinned at him. “You should have seen Patterson’s face when I told him Graves was ‘off with the fairies’.”
Crimshaw laughed again but controlled it. “I hope that doesn’t mean what I think it does.”
Alex shook her head. “Probably not. It means off in his own little world, daydreaming about the woman he’s ogling instead of keeping his mind on the business in hand. I think sometimes I use my British terms just to wind him up.”
“I’ll teach you if you’ll teach me. I love your accent, even when I don’t understand it.”
“Deal,” Alex said. “You’ll have to ask Nobby for his dictionary. He’s always writing down words and what they mean so he can use them.” Her voice turned more serious. “You need to turn right at the next intersection.”
Crimshaw made the turn and slowed as the road leading up to the cabins twisted and swerved. “We’ll find him, Alex.”
She had her doubts but kept them to herself. “Pass all the main cabins and keep going all the way to the end of the road.”
Crimshaw cursed silently as the road became rougher and bounced them along. “Who the hell would buy a cabin way out here?”
“Someone who wanted complete privacy.” Alex pulled her gun and checked the clip. “Might be a good idea to park here and walk the rest of the way.”
Crimshaw pulled to the side of the road and parked. “We got a plan?”
Alex exited the vehicle, gun held firmly in her hand. “Thought we’d play it by ear.”
Grass rustled in the slight autumn breeze, creating an eerie feeling as all other audible sounds were suspiciously missing. An owl hooted close overhead, and Crimshaw stumbled. “Shit. I hate the damn country.”
They rounded a bend, where a lone cabin stood. “I don’t see any lights,” Alex said.
“No car, either,” Crimshaw replied. “Hate to think we wasted a trip.”
“We might as well check it out since we’re here.”
“You want to take the back and I’ll take the front?” Crimshaw asked.
“Let’s try the easy way first.” Alex pulled her gun, approached the front door, and tried the knob. “It’s locked.”
Crimshaw peeked through a window. “Looks like it’s empty.”
Alex holstered her gun. “Guess we did waste a trip.” Her eyes surveyed the area around them as moonlight glinted off something white in the distance. “Or maybe not.”
She found the trail easily enough and sprinted along it until the trees parted and her feet hit the sand.
“Jesus,” Crimshaw said, breathing hard as he finally caught up with her. “Is that who I think it is?”
Alex crossed the sandy stretch of beach until she stood only a few feet from Wanda Martin’s body. The angle of the head told her there was no need to go closer. She bore little resemblance to the woman Alex had met a few days earlier, and Alex tore her gaze from the bulging eyes and swollen tongue.
“I’ll send a snapshot to Morgan,” Alex said. “We need to search for Ted’s body. He may be here, too.”
Alex snapped two shots of the naked body and e-mailed them. Her cell rang almost instantly.
“You two need to get out of there,” Morgan said. “I’ll have Tamara send in a crew and keep it under wraps for a few hours.”
“We need to comb the area, search for Ted,” Alex said.
“I doubt you’re going to find him, Alexandra. Anders didn’t do this.”
“What makes you so sure?” Alex asked.
“There’s no ligature marks around her wrists or ankles. And the bruising around her neck didn’t come from a rope. Someone with large hands choked her. Most crimes of passion are committed by a spouse. As I said, you two should get out of there. I’ll talk to you later.”
Alex studied the scene and forced herself to look at the face and neck. Damn it, Morgan was right. She nodded to Crimshaw. “Looks like we were worried about the wrong Martin,” she grumbled. “Let’s go.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Sabrina stared at the door for more than a minute before raising her hand to knock. It was almost two o’clock in the morning, and Carissa was a bitch even when she’d had a full night’s sleep. Sabrina waited a minute and pounded again.
“Hold on. I’m coming.”
The door swung open, and Sabrina pushed Carissa aside and scanned the room. “What did you do to her?”
Carissa closed the door. “What did I do to whom?”
Sabrina took a step toward her, heat flushing her face. “Don’t play games with me. Where’s Wanda?”
“I would assume she’s in bed,” Carissa said, glancing at the wall clock. “Where you should be, and where I was.”
Sabrina paced the living room. “She was supposed to call at midnight. When she didn’t, I drove by her house, but there’s nobody home.”
Frowning, Carissa crossed to the bar, poured two drinks, and held out one. “Are you sure?”
Sabrina took the drink, downed it, and wiped her lips. “As sure as I could be. Spotted a couple of cops watching the residence, so I couldn’t stop.”
“You fool.” Carissa marched to the door and opened it. She glanced up and down the street. “What if they followed you here?”
“I made sure I wasn’t followed.”
Carissa slammed the door and turned on her, lips compressed into a thin line. “I told you what would happen if you messed up again. You’re supposed to be home, grieving the disappearance of your sister and niece and watching Nicholas.”
“I don’t give a damn about Nicholas,” Sabrina cried. “Wanda is missing.”
She realized too late that perhaps she’d protested too much. Carissa’s dark eyes studied her before she shrugged. “So it’s like that.”
Sabrina backpedaled, hoping to undo the damage. She laughed shakily. “It’s not like that. You know Wanda and I have been friends since grade school. I’m just worried about her.”
“Her job is to keep Ted happy until Monday morning. I assume she’s off somewhere, doing that.”
Sabrina walked toward the door. “You’re right, of course. I should have thought of that. Silly me.”
Carissa moved quickly, blocking the door. “You’re here now, and I’m awake. You might as well stay.”
“I should probably get back and keep an eye on Nicholas,” Sabrina stammered. “We can celebrate when this is all over.”
“I find myself rather tense tonight, Sabrina.” She reached up a hand and stroked Sabrina’s right cheek. “You know how I get when I’m tense. If you do your job right, it won’t take long.”
Sabrina swallowed hard as Carissa placed her hands on her shoulders, forcing her to her knees. Carissa opened her robe before she placed a revolver to Sabrina’s temple. “Since you caused the tension, you can relieve it.” She laughed cruelly. “And be gentle, darling. I’d simply hate it if this thing were to go off before I do.”
~ ~ ~
Tamara placed her phone back in her jacket and yawned. “That was Reefer. Crimshaw and Alex found Mrs. Martin’s body on a beach behind their cabin. Looks like Mr. Martin killed her. We’re sending a crew in to investigate. They’ll keep it quiet as long as they can.”
“Did he say how the animals were?” Frost asked.
“Yeah, in fact, Nobby came in a little while ago with Cinders. He’s going to be fine, and Dixie is back to her old self now that Nobby is home.”
Frost turned and stared out the window. “I’m surprised you didn’t ask to go with Crimshaw.”
“Figured I had to face the music eventually. Might as well stay with you and get it over with.”
“So how did somebody get past your guys and into Alex’s apartment?” Frost asked.
“That, we don’t know.” Tamara chewed on her bottom lip, as she’
d seen Alex do several times in the last few days. Gabriella was right—they did deserve to know as much of the truth as she could give them. “You know why you’ve been watching Alex for the last year?”
Frost turned from the window, one eyebrow raised. “Yeah, I do.”
“He’s resurfaced. We raided a house last month and found pictures of Alex, Nobby, and the dog and cat. We also found pictures of her at work. He’s been following her for quite some time. The chief has been playing it down, trying to keep a lid on it until he got his new unit set up. This is the trial run everyone will be watching.”
“What has that got to do with Alex and the rest of us?”
“Come on, Frost. You’re smarter than that. Do you really think Alex wouldn’t have run into someone so far that knew she was suspended and sent that information back to Patterson? Or that FBI wouldn’t have been around when she was questioning the parents? For that matter, or that the FBI wouldn’t have totally taken over this case on the DuPont baby by now?”
Frost placed his hands on the wheel. His knuckles turned white as he gripped it tightly. “So we’re all a bunch of guinea pigs, and if we don’t find the babies, they’re just collateral damage or acceptable losses? Is that what you’re saying?”
“You and Crimshaw were unexpected. It’s mostly me, Gabriella, Reefer, and Alex.” She grinned. “And Nobby, of course.”
“This is bullshit,” Frost snarled. “So what happens to Alex if it fails?”
“I’m not going to let that happen.”
Frost simmered in silence for a few minutes. “So the animals, was that Anders or this guy?”
“I’d be lying if I told you we were a hundred percent sure either way, but we think it’s Anders. The photos were photoshopped, which means that wasn’t the first time they were in Alex’s apartment. They had to come in, take the photos, go back to wherever to fix them, and bring them back.”
Tragic Deception (Deception Series Book 1) Page 14
