No Limit

by L. P. Dover

  “Hey, peanut. Vegas treating you well?”

  “Somewhat. It’s been a trying case.”

  “No leads?”

  “We’ve had plenty, but they all ran into dead ends. Hopefully, we’ll figure it out soon.”

  “How’s it going working with that other agent? I know you were worried about his reaction.”

  I snorted. “It was hard at first, but now it’s going good. We haven’t killed each other yet.”

  He chuckled. “I’m just glad to hear you’re safe. I kept waiting on you to call and when you hadn’t, I started to get worried. You can’t do that to your old man.”

  It warmed my heart to hear him say that. “I know, and I’ll do much better from here on out. Did Adrian stop by to see you?”

  “He did and he left you a present along with a letter. I think he’s hoping you’ll visit him in New York.”

  “Yeah, that’s what he said when he called.”

  “Are you going to?” he asked.

  Sighing, I sat down on the bed. “I honestly don’t know. The last thing I want to do is give him the wrong impression.”

  “What’s changed? He’s a good man and he’ll take care of you.”

  Jason stood in my doorway, leaning against the frame. “Oh I know he would, but I’ve moved on. My feelings just aren’t the same as they used to be.”

  “I see. Well, you take care out there. I know you have more important things to do than talk to me. Be safe and I’ll see you soon. Love you, peanut.”

  I smiled. “I love you too.”

  Jason walked in and sat beside me. “What all did your uncle say?”

  I looked down at my phone and grinned. “Just scolded me for not calling him. He wanted to make sure I was okay.”

  “It sounded like a little more than that. I heard you mention your ex’s name.”

  Taking his hand, I clasped it with mine. “Adrian and my uncle grew close over the years. He was asking if we were getting back together.”

  He squeezed my hand. “I see. And when all of this is over . . . are you going to?”

  A knock sounded on the door before I could answer. “Ryan’s here. I guess we should get that.”

  He stared at me, then let go my hand. I followed him out of my room and leaned against the wall while he opened the door. Ryan walked in, wearing a baseball cap, jeans and a T-shirt. It was strange seeing the Chief of Police in normal clothes.

  “Good morning,” he announced. Jason shut the door and we followed Ryan to the living room where he sat down in one of the chairs. Jason and I sat across from him on the couch, waiting. He glanced back and forth at us, his face full of uncertainty. “I’m assuming from the phone call this morning that you have nothing. What do you think we should do at this point?”

  Jason looked at me and then back to him. “I think we need to hold out a little longer. The girls didn’t go missing on the nights they were with the suspects. I was looking at the timeline and the dates Aylee was able to get from Chatfield. The murders range anywhere from two days to two weeks after their interactions with them. The killer went after them on nights they weren’t accounted for. I’m assuming that’s what they’ll try to do with Aylee. Or worse, it could be someone completely different.”

  “Someone we’d least expect,” I added. It was highly possible and the thought terrified me. I’d never gone into a case not knowing exactly who I was looking for.

  Ryan let out a heavy sigh. “I will tell you one thing of interest. I’ve been doing my own digging and found something this morning.”

  “What?” Jason prompted.

  He leaned forward. “I found out who’s been bribing the news stations to keep quiet about the missing women.”

  Now it was my turn to ask, “Who?”

  “Drake Blackwell.”

  One Week Later

  We were heading to William Randall’s house for a celebratory dinner. Mark had procured him another team to own and apparently that team was huge. Diane had called to make sure I was coming and I hadn’t wanted to let her down. Besides, Drake was going to be there, and unfortunately¸ so was Chazz. A week wasn’t a long enough time to cool Jason’s temper.

  There were people everywhere when we walked in, and the first person I saw was Mark, surrounded by a group of people. He acknowledged Jason with a nod and threw a small smile my way.

  “Don’t know if I like him smiling at you,” Jason grumbled under his breath.

  “I remind him of his dead wife. My heart hurts for him.”

  Jason put his arm around me and steered me in another direction. “In that case, I’m keeping you away from him. Don’t need him imagining that you’re her.”

  Our first stop was the parlor where Diane was trying to herd everyone into the dining room. When she saw me, she smiled and rushed over, looking beautiful in her gold toned dress. “I hope you’re hungry. I had the chefs make broccoli and cheese quiche. It doesn’t really go with the menu, but William didn’t notice. He’s too ecstatic over this new team.”

  “Is everyone here?” I asked.

  She nodded. “Including Mr. Davies who seems a little uptight. You never told me what happened between you two.”

  I whispered in her ear, “I gave him a bit of his own medicine. I’ll spare you the details.”

  When we got into the formal dining room, the table was large enough to fit twenty-two people. Diane ushered me toward the end where she took a seat and I took the one beside her. Looking down the table, I caught Chazz’s gaze at the far end. He glared at me, but I quickly averted my stare, smiling wide.

  Once everyone was seated, William was on my opposite side with Mark beside him and Drake just a few seats down, sitting beside his wife. As soon as he was alone, I was going to make my move.

  Dinner ended up being four courses and it took two hours to get through it all. William and Jason conversed while I focused my attention on Diane. “Veronica told me none of her girls have been approached by anyone this week. That’s a good sign.”

  I finished my last bite of chocolate cake and leaned closer. “That’s true, but it also puts a damper on the investigation. I need someone to make a move. That’s why I’m going to corner Drake tonight. When the time comes, can you make sure Georgia is occupied?”

  She snorted and glanced over at the middle-aged beauty. “That should be easy. She doesn’t particularly stick to her husband’s side at these events. Personally, I don’t even know why they’re married.”

  Once dinner was over, everyone got up and milled about to different parts of the house. Jason and I kept our eyes on Drake and as soon as he separated from his wife, I went on the hunt. “Stick close to him and I’ll make sure his wife doesn’t stray,” Jason whispered.

  “How do you plan on doing that? Besides, I have Diane looking out for her.”

  “Diane can only do so much. But Mrs. Blackwell is a full-on cougar. She couldn’t keep her greedy eyes off me at dinner.”

  “Great! Now I have to worry about you getting attacked. She better keep her claws to herself.” Georgia was on the move so we parted ways. The house was enormous, with so many different rooms to explore. Drake disappeared around a corner, entering a room at the end of a hall and shutting the door. By the sounds of it, he was using the bathroom. Not exactly what I called a romantic situation, but I had no other choice.

  Leaning against the wall, I waited for him to emerge. When the door opened, I stepped forward. “There you are,” I murmured huskily.

  His eyes widened, but then he bit his lip, smiling. “What can I do for you?”

  “You can give me a good time again. You up for that?”

  Stepping closer, he brushed a finger down my neck. “I’ve been waiting on you to come back to me. Tired of us playing for you?”

  “A little. I don’t want to take a chance on one of the others winning. What do you say we forget the poker game and make our own plans? I don’t want Jason to know about this. It’ll be our secret.”

  He moan
ed and licked his lips. “I love secrets. How about next Wednesday night? My week is pretty hectic, but I can probably get away then.”

  “Where?”

  “I have a second house not too far away. My wife didn’t like it so I bought our current house. Be ready around six. I’ll text you and tell you where we can meet.”

  I gave him my number and he entered it into his phone. “See you then. I look forward to it.” He waltzed off and grinned back at me before turning the corner. I pulled out my phone and texted Jason.

  Me: Done.

  Jason: Where you at? I can’t find Davies.

  I was about to reply when a hand grabbed my wrist and I was shoved into one of the bedrooms. It was dark and I couldn’t see, but I knew who it was. I recognized the smell of his cologne. “Care to turn on the light, Mr. Davies? Or are you afraid to look at me?”

  The light shone bright and I squinted. He locked the door and stalked toward me. “I’m not afraid to look at you, whore. I’m here to warn you. If you so much as tell anyone what happened that night . . .”

  “You’ll what exactly? I’m not scared of you.”

  He got up in my face and stared me down, his expression hard. “You should be.”

  “Well, I’m not, so get the fuck out of my way.”

  “I’ll get out of your way when I feel like it.”

  “No, you’ll do it now,” a voice growled from behind. Chazz jerked around, pulling my arm with him. I hissed in pain and that pushed Jason over the edge. With a murderous glare, he shut the door quietly and locked it. “Let her go,” he demanded.

  Chazz released his grip on my arm and stepped to the side. “What is it about this whore that has everyone so hard up? You must be one whipped pussy to keep crawling back to her after she’s fucked half the men in Vegas.”

  Jason didn’t waste any time, punching him square in the jaw. But he didn’t stop there. Next, he kicked him in the ribs and slammed against the wall, knocking over the trinkets from the dresser. It was loud and I was sure any moment the door would burst open. Grabbing Chazz around the neck, he squeezed. “You don’t know the first goddamned thing going on here. Too bad I know . . . you’re the one who woke up with a red ass, almost drowning in your own jizz. How did it taste by the way?”

  “Fuck you,” he choked out.

  Jason squeezed harder, slamming Chazz’s face onto the dresser. “You need to learn some respect. I saw the marks you left on her body and if it was up to me you’d be dead right now. If you ever touch her again, I’ll rip your goddamn head off. You got that?” When Chazz didn’t answer, he smashed his face into the dresser again; his face was turning blue. “Answer me!”

  “I . . . got . . . it.”

  Jason tossed him to the floor and stepped on his hand when he walked past. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”

  “How did you know where I was?”

  Jaw tensing, he looked down at Chazz and then at me. “I just did. Now let’s go before I do something I’ll regret.” He unlocked the door, and surprisingly, there wasn’t anyone standing around in the hallway. Holding my hand, Jason squeezed it tight and he didn’t let go until we got outside and into his car. The farther away we got, the more he seemed to calm down. “Do you think I got my point across?”

  “I’d say so. I have to admit, you were sexy as hell kicking his ass.”

  His lips pulled up into a smirk. “Oh yeah? Did my ninja skills turn you on?”

  “I don’t know, you tell me.” I grabbed his hand and slid it up my dress, rubbing his fingers along my wet opening.

  His eyes widened as he looked down to my bared pussy. I grinned and brought his fingers up to my mouth, sucking them clean. Leaning over, I unbuttoned his pants, freeing his cock. It jumped in my hands and hardened as I massaged him.

  “What are you doing to me, firecracker?” he moaned, gripping the wheel in his strong grasp.

  I leaned over and bit his ear. “I’ve tasted me,” I sucked his lobe between my teeth, “and now I need to taste you, Mr. Avery. Drive safe and let me do all the work.”

  For the past few days, sleep was non-existent. I could feel the end drawing near and I didn’t like it. Something was off, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. It didn’t help that I couldn’t find a goddamned thing on Drake’s other house. Not even the Las Vegas PD knew anything about it. Another fucking dead end.

  “When do you think he’ll text you?” I asked. It was Wednesday afternoon, the day Drake wanted to meet with Aylee. I was on edge.

  Shrugging, she slid me a bottle of water and tossed an orange slice into her mouth. “I’m not sure. What I want to know is why can’t we find this extra house of his? This could be the place the victims were taken to.”

  “I know and I can’t find shit on it. When Blackwell calls you, I’ll get Ryan to get a group of men together. If he takes you to that house, I want to make sure we have the manpower to get you out unharmed.”

  Leaning over the counter, she shut my laptop and smiled. “I have no doubt you could storm the castle all by yourself.”

  I sighed. “I know, but you’re the one who’ll be inside. My only concern is for you.”

  For the rest of the morning and afternoon, we sat around the hotel mentally preparing for the unknown. Aylee was set, but I was nowhere near ready to let her go. This time was different. When her phone went off, we both froze. She walked over to it and sighed when she read the text.

  “He cancelled.” She threw her phone to me and I read it.

  Drake: Family emergency. Raincheck?

  I typed in ‘sure’ and sent it. Now we were back to the waiting game. “Why does it feel like every time we get close, something pulls us back?”

  She joined me on the couch. “I’m just ready to get this shit over with.”

  So was I.

  Two days had passed with no word from Drake. The last thing I was going to do was sit around on my ass and wait for him to make a move. Instead, I was going to take Aylee out for the night, hopefully to relieve some stress.

  “Where are we going?” she asked.

  Smiling, I pulled us into the parking lot of the Labyrinth. “Have you ever heard of this place?”

  She pursed her lips and then nodded. “Yeah . . . wasn’t the owner of this place investigated a couple years ago for murder, but turned out to be innocent? It was all over the news.”

  “He’s a good man.” We both got out and I put my arm around her as we headed toward the door. Her red hair was pulled up with several of her curls hanging down, framing her heart-shaped face. She was wearing a denim skirt and white top that looked sexy as hell. I loved seeing the real Aylee, the one who could joke around and have fun . . . the one I was in love with.

  “What exactly are we doing here?” she asked.

  “We’re going to have some fun.” Bypassing the people at the door, I walked right up to the bouncer with the shaved head, grinning wide; his name was Zane, an up and coming UFC champ. Holding out my hand, he shook it and slapped me on the shoulder.

  “It’s good to see you, Avery. I didn’t know you were in town until Andrews told me what he did to your girlfriend.” Aylee rolled her eyes and he laughed. “He and Megan are both inside. He’s getting ready for a fight.”

  “You’re not fighting tonight?” I asked him.

  “Nope, that’s tomorrow at the MGM Grand. You should both come. It’ll be one hell of a battle.”

  Glancing over at Aylee, she shrugged. “I don’t see why not. That’s if we aren’t chasing down the bad guys.”

  Zane chuckled. “I would’ve given my left nut to see you take down Andrews. The guys at the gym are still talking about it.”

  “I should’ve been kicking this one’s ass,” she said, elbowing me in the side. “He’s the one who doubted me.”

  Zane turned his sly gaze to mine. “I’m pretty sure he’s learned his lesson by now.”

  I snorted. “You have no idea.”

  Stepping out of the way, he waved his hand toward
the door. “Have fun. I’ll see you in there later.”

  We headed straight for the bar and ordered drinks. Once she had her screwdriver and I had my gin and tonic, I led her to the main attraction. In the ring, there were two fighters pummeling each other, one covered in blood while the other dominated. “Have you ever tried getting in the ring?” she asked.

  “I’ve thought about it, why?”

  Shrugging, she brought her drink to her lips, her eyes twinkling. “Just asking. I think you’d look pretty sexy up there kicking some guy’s ass.”

  “Maybe one day I’ll show you. Tonight, however, I want us to have some fun. And then when we get back to hotel, we’ll have an even better time.”

  She bit her lip. “Or maybe I won’t be able to wait until we get home. An awful lot can happen in a long car ride . . .”

  I groaned just thinking about it. She knew how to get me primed.

  “If it isn’t Little Red Riding Hood and the big bad wolf,” Kyle teased, walking up from behind.

  Shaking my head, I turned around and laughed. “I’m the hunter, not the wolf, Andrews.”

  Kyle stood there with his fists wrapped, with Megan by his side. She pointed at him and whispered loudly so we all could hear. “Don’t let him fool you, he’s the big bad wolf.”

  Picking her up around the waist, he kissed her and wouldn’t let her go. “Better watch out or I might eat you.”

  “Don’t threaten me with a good time,” she laughed making Aylee snicker. When Kyle sat her down, she held her hand out to Aylee. “I’m Megan. I heard about what this bonehead did to you. You’re Aylee, right?”

  Aylee shook her hand and nodded. “It was this one who instigated it,” she said, pinching my arm.

  Megan winked at me. “They like to underestimate us, but you showed them. I hate that I missed it.”

  “All right, I’d love to stay and bullshit with you, but my fight’s about to start. Drinks after?” Kyle asked.

  I shook his hand. “Sounds like a plan.”

  We all three took seats and Aylee held onto my hand, smiling wide as she glanced around the room. “I like it here. The energy is amazing. We don’t have things like this where I’m from.”