by A Lexy Beck
His hands were under my hair, unhooking my bra deftly with just one try. I shimmied out of my panties and helped him out of his trousers and underwear. Cain was all man, with a firm, flat stomach and strong legs. I ran my hands across his abdomen, surprising him with my intimate touch. He gasped a little and kissed me deeper, showing his approval. I backed slowly onto the bed and pulled him to me. Tonight, he wasn’t rushed; I wasn’t either. I wanted to enjoy him—every inch of him.
We touched one another with long strokes and gentle rubs. His fingers intertwined with mine as our bodies came together. I caught my breath when he entered me. “Cain…”
Cain moved slowly and steadily, but after a few minutes, I wanted more. My breath came faster and faster as my body rose to meet his movements. My hands reached for his hips and I urged him on. “I want all of you…” I whispered brazenly. He responded to my urging and soon we lay limp on the bed, lying spent next to one another. I absently stroked his arm and he toyed with my hair. For a long time, we didn’t talk, just listened to the silence.
He kissed me gently. “Stay with me tonight.”
I rolled to face him and smiled. “I planned on it.”
Cain slowly drifted off into a deep sleep, the stress, excitement and exhaustion of the last few days finally catching up with him. I stared at the ceiling, my mind racing with a million thoughts. Thoughts of everything I should do, and everything I shouldn’t do.
Finally, and without hesitation, I slipped out of bed and got dressed, leaving Cain to enjoy his peaceful slumber. I climbed into my car and tapped the number into my phone. “Hi, Dylan. This is Jennifer. We need to talk…”
Chapter Fifteen
It was eight o’clock and I had been receiving calls and texts from Cain since seven. He was upset when he woke to find me gone. I knew if I spoke to him on the phone he would see through my lie; I texted back that I had an early meeting I had forgotten about, and would catch up with him later.
The knock at my apartment door caught me off guard, even though I was expecting it. My nerves had gotten the better of me and adrenalin was coursing through my veins, pumping my heart faster.
I looked through the peephole, surprised that Dylan had actually showed up. “Here we go…” I whispered. I swung the door open and stood staring at Dylan, unsure of my next move, or his.
“I’m really surprised you called me, Jennifer.” Dylan looked tidy, much tidier than the last time I had seen him. He had shaved and was wearing clean clothing. He looked much more like the confident, swaggering man I had first met.
“Dylan, come in.” I didn’t bother giving him a fake smile; it would never have been believable. He walked in and grabbed me around the waist. I was surprised and caught my breath, I lifted my arms and let him pat me down. He reached for my breast and I smacked his hand. “You’re going too far.” I warned him. He gave me a glint of a smile but didn’t say anything. Instead, he walked around my apartment, first in my bathroom, then my office and then my bedroom.
“It’s just us.” I closed the door.
Dylan walked back to the living room. I sat down and invited him to do the same. He didn’t. Instead, he stood by the window, peeping out from between the blinds.
“What is it we need to talk about? I’m not sure why I’m trusting you, Jennifer. You certainly haven’t been very welcoming until now.” I could see the doubt and edginess on Dylan’s face.
I sat on the couch, leaning forward. My body was open and hair pulled back so Dylan could clearly see my face. “The other night, when you were here, you warned me about Cain. What exactly should I be afraid of?”
“What’s wrong? Are you starting to see the real Cain? The greedy, hungry, Cain? I heard the two of you pledged your undying love to one another the other night. Did he change his mind after he conquered you?”
I could only assume that he had spoken to Ashley since last night. “I don’t know what you’ve heard, but that’s just not true. I think you’re being played, Dylan.”
“That’s possible. My source isn’t very trustworthy at times.”
“Your source or your partner?”
“I certainly don’t need a partner. I’m more than capable of getting things done myself. Although I have found it useful to have people that have their own agendas unknowingly take care of things for me, from time to time.” Dylan gave a grim, sly smile and sat next to me on the couch.
“I’m sure you can. Is that how you figured out how to break through that Pegasus software? Have someone else do it for you?”
Dylan’s smile faded and an angry seriousness took over. “I’m a master locksmith, there’s no website or firewall that can keep me out – not if I want in.” Dylan’s stroked his fingers over my cheek and I tried not to pull away. “It didn’t take me long to break through that software and get the information I needed. I altered it and made it my own. Better.”
“But Pegasus knew, they even called you out on it. They saw you were going around their software and causing problems.”
“That bitch Alice? All she wanted was for us to spend more money with her company. When they found out what I was doing, she wanted a piece of the action. She threatened to go to Cain.”
I sat, dumbfounded at what I was hearing. I had heard exactly what had happened from Alice Bennett and knew Dylan’s spin on it wasn’t true. I needed to feed into his ego to get more; I now had no doubt he was involved in Alice’s murder. “I talked to Alice, that’s not the story she told me.”
“Oh, I’m sure. She was looking out for herself, it’s unfortunate she isn’t here to set the real story straight.” Dylan reflected on the statement for a minute. “Cain… he’s another greedy bastard. I can see how he and Alice got together. Always looking out for themselves.”
“But Dylan… Cain and his family always looked out for you. His dad…” I looked deep into Dylan’s eyes, trying to connect. “His dad loved you like a son…”
“Bullshit! His dad used me to make himself feel better. To pretend he still had two sons, except he seemed to forget me when he was dying. When I needed him. When I wanted to be there. Him and Cain, they both pushed me away. They used me.”
Dylan was becoming more of a loose cannon, and the more unraveled, uncontrollable personality from the other night appeared. I questioned my next move, as I extended my hand to his leg. “Dylan, you’re smart, successful…” I searched for more words that wouldn’t contradict our previous conversations. “…you have so much going for you.”
“It would have been so much better… so much easier… if I had that cushion that Cain had. The money, the power, the recognition of the name. I didn’t get any of that, and I certainly don’t have that Parker name to fall back on. So I just took what I needed and did what I had to do to tarnish being a Parker.”
“You mean…” I knew I had to be careful putting words in Dylan’s mouth and he easily took me off the hook.
“Let’s just say, I now have more than enough money to be happy and free of Cain. It’s funny how these greedy, rich people want their affairs and secrecy and are willing to pay anything to keep it quiet. A few throw away cell phones, some left in people’s desks…” Dylan smiled. “The Arena was the best idea Cain ever had, and I simply turned it into my money machine while I carefully set him up for the fall. He had it coming.”
My stomach sank and I could feel my hands begin to shake when the words finally registered in my brain. I faked a smile and tried to think of what to do next. “Ingenious, Dylan, you are definitely much smarter than Cain.”
“Jennifer, come with me. Let’s get out of here. I see the way your father looks at you. The tension, the disappointment. We even talked about it, on our date at the coffee shop.” Dylan placed his hand atop of mine, still resting on his leg.
I slowly slid my hand from underneath his and stood next to the couch. “You know, Dylan, you’re right. All of this greed, secrecy, drama. It makes me want to get away. I would love a day off.”
“I’m
not talking about a day, Jennifer. I’m talking about a lifetime. Us.” Dylan stood and reached for my hands, but I stepped away, putting space between us.
“Let’s start with a day and take it…”
The front door crashed open, catching both Dylan and I off guard. I screamed and ducked into the kitchen as Dylan spun to see the police officers entering the apartment with their guns drawn. “On the ground, now!”
Detective Jackson, Reese and Dad followed the armed officers into the apartment and watched as Dylan was cuffed. I cautiously entered the room and was met with an evil glare from Dylan.
“You bitch! I should have known… just wait!” Dylan twisted and thrashed as the police escorted him out of the apartment.
“I would love a day off… wouldn’t we all?” Reese laughed. “I wondered how you were going to work that into the conversation.”
Dad approached and put his arm around me. I could tell the conversation he had heard between Dylan and I was difficult for him. “I’m sorry, Jennifer.”
“Dad, don’t. It’s Ok.” The last thing I wanted to talk about now was our relationship. Detective Jackson thankfully interrupted us and asked for the mic I had been wearing.
“Damn it, Jennifer!” Cain bolted through the door, past the few lingering police officers. He had luckily just missed Dylan’s exit. “I told you not to do this!”
“Cain! How did you…?”
“I called Reese and when he lied and told me you overslept and were coming in late, I knew something was up. I headed over here and found the barrage of police cars.” Cain subdued his anger and resentment and roughly hugged me, pulling me in close. He kissed me hard, in front of the small audience, including my father. “If anything had happened to you…”
“It’s Ok, Cain. We got him. It’s done.”
Chapter Sixteen
A few hours later, my father called me and invited me to the police station. The detectives were going to interrogate Dylan, and Dad wanted me to monitor the interview. I agreed; this was something Cain and I had to see. I fixed my makeup after all my crying and we headed to the police station. We were ushered into the viewing room to watch the interview. We weren’t alone; Reese, Dad and few other detectives, including Detective Jackson, were already there.
Dylan looked confident, even cocky, as he sat across from the interviewer, a young female detective. The red camera light blinked in the room as she began her interrogation.
“I just want to ask you a few questions and then we’ll move you along in the process, Mr. Rogers.” The attractive young detective told him.
Dylan slumped back in his chair. “I’m done answering questions today, especially from women.”
“I think you should reconsider your attitude. If we can get some of this cleared up, it might be better for you. It’s always in your best interest to cooperate with the police.”
He paused. “You don’t have anything on me.” Dylan’s smirk was matched by the detective’s bright smile.
“Well, we have enough evidence to hold you for extortion, embezzlement, blackmail and wire fraud. I’m guessing if we keep digging, we can find a few other things. So, why don’t you just tell us how you’re connected to Alice Bennett?”
“I’ve worked with her. She worked with Vawter. That’s it.” Dylan scratched his nose with this cuffed hands and shifted in his seat.
I tried to whisper to Reese, but the utter silence in the viewing room made my voice seem much louder. “He’s lying. He’s playing with his face, his nose…and look how quickly he’s blinking.”
I saw a quick smile from one of the older, more senior detectives in the room. “Nice catch, Ms. Dunning.” I returned the smile and refocused on the action in the interrogation room.
“Ok, so it would surprise you if I were to say we found your fingerprints at her house?” The detective pushed on, but I could tell by how she delivered the news that she was bluffing.
“Actually, yes, it would, detective. I mean, I’m no criminal, definitely not a murderer, but even I know if you’re going to commit a crime like that you should wear gloves.” Dylan sat up straight in his seat. He had thrown the detective a curve ball and she wasn’t expecting it.
She gathered her thoughts and flipped through the pad of notes in front of her. “Other than the night you were at her house, when was the last time you saw Ms. Bennett?”
“Detective…again, I wasn’t there the other night, and the last time I actually saw Ms. Bennett was months ago, when she came to the office to discuss a contract.”
The detective continued to hammer away at Dylan about his contact with Alice Bennett, but Dylan refused to be broken. His resiliency showed that he had prepared for this very moment. She continued to flip through notes and files, giving Dylan the upper hand. She glanced toward us through the mirror glass and continued.
“Okay, Dylan. Let’s talk about something else. What about Rachel Murant? Would you like to talk about her?”
“I cared for Rachel and she cared for me. But she was pushy. Bossy. She weaseled her way into our business and Cain allowed her to push me out.”
“And that’s why you killed her as well as Ms. Bennett? To protect yourself?” The detective was floundering and it was obvious.
“If you checked your facts, you’d know I was out of town when Rachel died, and I have to live with that. I wasn’t even in the country. I saw her just before she died and caught a plane to a conference in Amsterdam. I got a call from Cain when I landed and turned around and came straight back home.|” Dylan was shaken and upset, but held his ground, not letting the detective get the better of him.
I squeezed Cain’s hand and glanced over at him. He met my gaze with a faint smile and a nod. “I remember that. He was the last one to see her alive.”
“That’s it! I’m done. I want to see my lawyer. As far as I can tell, you have nothing on me.” Dylan clasped his cuffed hands together and leaned back in the chair. He stared into the mirrored window as if he could see through it, right at us.
The detective slammed the folder shut angrily, looked toward us and left the room.
The young detective joined us, looking embarrassed. “I’m sorry I couldn’t get a confession out of him. He’s a jerk, that’s for sure.”
“I thought you did great, thank you, detective.” I smiled at her.
Detective Jackson approached me. “Where did you learn all that lie detector stuff? You knew she was bluffing about the fingerprints and the other stuff. How?”
“She’s actually very good. Her chin tilted away from him slightly and her finger tapping was rhythmic, not random.”
“Well, I’m not one to go for all this psychology stuff, but you did a great job calling these lies out.”
“Thanks.” I beamed at him.
“You know, right now we really don’t have much on him other than those files, the first recording and the tape from today. We can’t tie him to the murder yet. The other things—the extortion, fraud—are pretty small. Now that he’s lawyered up, we’re going to have to really get going on this. We do have some fingerprints from the scene of Ms. Bennett’s murder, and they aren’t Mr. Parkers. Until we get the results back, we can’t hold Mr. Rogers for that.”
“When were you going to share that with us?” Dad jumped in, looking at the detective and then fixing his gaze on Cain.
“Right now.” Detective Jackson smiled apologetically. “We’ve had a lot of things going on. I just got the results from the lab.”
“Alright, everyone. It’s been a long day already. Until Mr. Rogers speaks with his lawyer, we’re done here. I’ll let you know what else we hear.” Detective Simmons cleared the room as we watched Dylan, sat at the cold metal table in the interrogation room. It seemed a fitting end, for now.
Chapter Seventeen
“Jennifer! Can I talk with you for a minute?”
“Sure, Dad. What’s up?” Cain continued walking to the car and waited for me, leaving Dad and I alone.
He touched my shoulder, a move he often used when he was trying express himself. “I wanted you to know that I recognize you have a great talent for what you do. I am glad I got to see you work in person.”
“Thank you. That means a lot.” I reached up and patted his hand.
“I am very proud of you, Jennifer. I hope that you stick around and help on other cases, although I think we’ll be mopping up this one for a long time.”
“Let’s just get through this one, Dad. I love doing what I’m doing, but I want to make sure this will good for me, and us.”
“Well, keep up the good work.” He started to leave but turned back. “Oh, for the record, I like him.”
A warming sensation flooded through me and I didn’t know what to say. “Thank you.” My heart was full and I truly meant it. Dad’s acceptance of Cain was important, and it wasn’t until he voiced it out loud that I realized how much I needed it.
I walked carefully across the gravel parking lot in my high heels to join Cain. My phone dinged and a text message popped up. Three small words. This isn’t over!
I stared back at the police station, wondering how Dylan could have sent me a text. My heart sank, but I reassured myself it would be fine. I slid the phone in my sweater pocket and slid into Cain’s car.
Chapter Eighteen
I loved the smell of the seats in Cain’s expensive car, and the way the soft leather felt against my body, the way the shape hugged it. I sank deeper into the seat and closed my eyes for a moment.
“Everything Ok?”
“Yes!” I lied, grateful I knew how to lie when I needed to.
“Another step, right, Jennifer?” Cain seemed pleased with the outcome, even if it didn’t tie Dylan to Alice’s murder yet. “Dylan’s behind bars, you’re safe, and now we can focus on us and let the police do their job. Right?”
Cain was searching for confirmation that I was finally going to stop trying to play detective and fight crime. “Right. Another step in the right direction. I’m sure the police will do their job and get the evidence they need.”
