"Come up here. Let me taste those magical lips of yours." She cupped her hands to the sides of his head and guided him upward to her mouth.
She grasped his cock and positioned it to her entrance while their tongues twisted and jousted with each other. A muffled moan tumbled from her lips when he slid into her.
"You're so incredibly gorgeous. So fantastically beautiful," he whispered.
Butterflies.
She laughed giddily. "So you keep saying. Please don't stop. I love to hear the words."
After making love several times, exhaustion overcame them and they fell asleep in each other's arms. When she awoke, it was light outside and Jeff was gone. She groaned in disappointment until she heard the coffee pot perking. Crawling from bed, she found him in the kitchen, pouring himself a cup. Without even turning, he took another cup from the cupboard and poured another one. Even though barefoot and silent, he had heard her.
Greta arrived later and Jeff stood at the door, ready to leave.
"So, when can I expect another nocturnal visit?"
"It'll probably be a couple days. I'll call, though."
She was certain the disappointment showed on her face. Standing on tiptoes, she gave him a kiss. "Take care of yourself, handsome. You know where I live."
"Yep. I know where. Bye, beautiful. See you later."
****
Jeff contacted a friend at the FBI and got copies of the ballistic reports on the bullets that had killed Shorty and Justine. He then contacted another friend for analysis of the reports. At the same time, he took the scrapings he had removed from beneath two of Justine's fingernails and took them to another lab. Just as he suspected, the same gun had been used to kill both Shorty and Justine.
The DNA test results of the scrapings identified Justine's assailant and Jeff's friend faxed him a picture of the man, a hood with a long history of brushes with the law. He took the picture and address then set out to locate Al. He found the house easily, secreted himself away and waited.
Al arrived home just after dark and let himself in. Jeff continued to wait until close to midnight. He walked to the door and knocked. From inside, he heard Al's voice. "Go away. I'm busy."
Jeff knocked again, louder this time.
"Oh, all right, already. I'm coming. This better be important or I'm going to beat the shit out of you!" Al yelled.
He heard the dead bolt rattle and saw the doorknob turn. When it stopped turning, he slammed his shoulder against the door, forcing it open abruptly.
In an instant, Jeff took in the scene. Al was sprawled on the floor. His gun had been flung further along the floor, just out of reach. No one else occupied the room. The television was on low volume and a can of beer sat on a table beside a recliner. The room was unkempt and contained no decorations on the walls. Two doorways led from the room.
He focused his attention to Al, whom he recognized from his picture. There were fresh scratches on the man's cheek. Al scrambled to his knees and headed for his gun.
"Don't even think about it, Al. I'll shoot you dead long before you reach it."
Al stopped and started to get up.
"No, on your knees with your hands on the back of your head. Do it now," he barked.
In a show of bravado, Al yelled, "You didn't even read me my rights, stupid. I wanna talk to my lawyer. I'm good friends with the assistant chief of police. I'll have your badge, pig."
"News flash, Al. I'm not a cop. There aren't going to be any lawyers. I'm tired of talking and getting no answers."
"I know my rights and I want my lawyer right now!" Al screamed.
For an answer, Jeff took two steps across the floor, placed the gun to Al's forehead, and pulled the trigger. Al closed his eyes and flinched when he heard the firing pin click. He opened his eyes wide when the gun did not go off.
"Geez, what an amateur. I coulda reached my gun after all," he spat out contemptuously.
"That was just for dramatic effect. There's a round in the chamber now. Should I pull the trigger again?"
"No."
"Is there anyone else here? Be careful how you answer, Al, because if someone rushes in, you're going to be the first to die."
"No."
"Good. Now you're going to tell me everything you know about Shorty and Justine. The man and woman you killed. I'm certain you know their identities. You're going to add your thoughts and suppositions, too. Start talking," he ordered.
"Not telling you a fuckin' thing," Al mumbled.
"What was that, Al? I thought you said you weren't telling me anything. If that's the case, I guess I'll just kill you and be done with it. Is that what you said?"
The man cringed. "Not what I said. What do you want to know?"
"We're going to have a question and answer session. I'll ask the questions and you'll supply the answers. Oh, and Al, I guess you do have one right, the right to die. I don't much care which you choose because you killed a friend of mine and the friend of a friend. Now I'll give you one last chance to start talking." He hoped his words and tone let Al know he was quickly running out of patience. He knew he had won full cooperation when he saw a large circular wet stain start to form at the front of Al's pants.
"But they'll kill me if I talk!"
"I'll kill you if you don't. The choice is yours. I'm here, they're not. So, if you talk to me, you'll at least have a head start at leaving town or even the country."
"I... I... I didn't kill anyone. Felix did. I swear," Al began. "He used my gun to kill the witch while I held her. He told me his had jammed."
"Your gun was used to kill a P.I. also." Jeff filed a new name into his mind along with the Assistant Police Chief.
Al gulped. "Felix used my gun to kill him too. He said his gun wasn't working."
"You're a fool. Can't you see that Felix has set you up to take the fall if what happened ever comes to light?"
Al blabbed everything he knew as he knelt with the gun barrel pressed to his forehead.
"Anything else, Al?"
"That's all I know. I swear, that's everything," he finished.
"Okay, you've been helpful, so I'm going to let you live. My advice is for you get as far away from here as possible. I'm going to leave now. Don't come outside for at least ten minutes after I go. Is that clear? Take my advice. Leave the country. If you don't, you'll end up dead."
Al nodded and Jeff backed to the open door. He stepped off the porch, ran down the street to his car and waited. Sure enough, ten minutes later Al hurried out the door, wearing a clean pair of pants and got into his car. He started his car and drove down the street, apparently unaware he was being followed. The man went straight to what Jeff assumed was Felix's house and when the door opened, he rushed in.
Jeff knelt outside the partially open door, peeking through the casing and listening to the conversation inside.
"Al, you actually told this person everything! You didn't even lie? How stupid can you get?" Felix clenched his teeth and squelched the obvious anger that wanted to burst from his mouth. Jeff watched the play of emotions on Felix's face and could almost read his thoughts. All his carefully laid plans to shift the blame from himself to Al had gone up in smoke. "You fucking idiot! You told this stranger everything?"
"But Felix, what else was I supposed to do? He had a gun to my head," Al whined.
Jeff was not surprised by Felix's behavior. Al had become a big liability. One he certainly intended to get rid of. Felix turned his back to Al in the pretense of getting his drink off the counter. Then he spun back and fired the pistol he had drawn, striking his accomplice twice, once in the throat and once in the chest. Al slipped to the floor, disbelief written on his face. He could not even speak because of the neck wound as his lifeblood poured out onto the floor. His hand was grasping his throat as he attempted in vain to hold back the flow. He looked up at Felix in shock.
"You shoulda lied, Al, or you shoulda died, just like you are now," Felix said in a controlled voice as he picked up the telephone
and walked into the other room.
Silently, Jeff pushed the door open and entered the room. He looked at the body on the floor then searched Al until he found the gun he was certain was there. He removed it and walked toward the other room to listen to Felix's conversation.
"Let me speak to Tom," Felix demanded.
Waiting for Tom to come to the phone, he walked back into the room. He had holstered his gun to use the phone and looked up just in time to see Jeff. He dropped the phone and grabbed desperately for his gun. He was far too late. Jeff's gun barked once, drilling a hole between Felix's eyes. Jeff watched as the man crumpled to the floor, dead.
Placing Al's gun on the table, he picked up the phone.
"Hello... Hello? This is Captain Bradford. Who's this?" asked the man on the other end of the line. Jeff pushed the disconnect button and placed the phone in Felix's dead hand. He walked over to Al, knelt down and placed the gun in his dead hand.
"I tried to tell you to leave, Al, but you didn't listen."
He searched through the house and after flipping on the light in one room, exclaimed, "Bingo!" He sat down at the desk and in a matter of minutes, hacked into the computer there. He located a blank CD and copied the files. He also found a slip of paper with scribbled passwords. You talk about Al being stupid. He added these to the CD and shut down the computer.
Jeff looked around carefully one last time to be sure no trace of his presence remained before leaving. When he got back into his car, he removed the latex gloves on his hands and stuck them in his pocket to be disposed of later.
As he drove back to his place, he was already planning his next step. The name Captain Tom Bradford was familiar. No wonder the investigation was going nowhere. The damned Assistant Police Chief, for Christ's sake. The deeper I dig into this case, the more it stinks. Well, Captain Tom Bradford, we'll just find out what you know.
When he got home, he put the CD in his computer and started opening files. One in particular contained photos that turned his stomach. He made some notes and looked at the clock. He reached a decision quickly and went back out to his car. For the first time in a long time he had somewhere to go for comfort. I hope she's up for company because I'm going to need her more than usual, and soon.
****
Gail was sleeping soundly when the doorbell rang. She got up and threw on her robe to cover her nakedness. Stepping into the living room, she found Greta already there with her gun drawn.
"Stay back," Greta ordered.
Gail stayed in the darkened doorway to her room. After looking through the peephole, Greta visibly relaxed, opened the door and ushered Jeff in.
"Sorry for coming over so late, Greta. I need to see Gail. You can go back to bed."
"Good night, Jeff. Good night, Gail," she said, turning to Gail. Greta went back down the hall to her own room.
Gail rushed across the living room and planted a big kiss on his lips. Jeff kissed her back but she could sense something was wrong. She stepped back and gazed at him. "Tell me what's troubling you."
"Just hold me... please."
Gail wrapped her arms around him and felt him shaking.
"What's wrong, Jeff? Please tell me," she pleaded.
"It's better you don't know right now. Maybe later when things are over."
"What things? Jeff, I'm getting scared. Tell me something."
Jeff acquiesced slightly. "The ball is rolling and heads are starting to tumble, that's all I'm going to say."
She noted bags under his eyes. "When was the last time you slept?"
"Uh, I don't know… a day ago, maybe more. I don't remember for sure."
Turning toward her bedroom, she led Jeff by the hand. She sat him down on the edge of the bed and told him to get undressed.
"Gail, I really don't feel like..." he started.
"Shhh, just do what I tell you to do," she ordered in a firm voice.
Jeff was too tired to argue so he started to remove his clothes instead. She helped him remove his holster and he watched as she carefully placed it on the nightstand within easy reach. She finished undressing him and helped him roll onto the bed. Shucking off her robe and throwing it on the edge of the bed, she curled up beside him, pulling the sheet up to cover them. She cradled his head to her breasts and ran her hand gently through his hair. Although she did not know what was going on, she knew instinctively he needed her comforting hands. Slowly his shaking subsided. Before long, his deep breathing indicated he was asleep. She continued to stroke her hand through his hair for a long time, lost in her own thoughts. Finally she also drifted into slumber.
****
Jeff woke with a start. At first he did not remember where he was, but as his gaze roved over the familiar room, he sighed in relief. He relaxed even more when he saw his gun on the nightstand. Throwing the sheets to the side, he realized he was naked. He looked around and found his boxers on the floor at the foot of the bed. He slipped them on and headed out of the room toward the kitchen. He smiled as he heard soft humming to a tune he was familiar with but could not remember the name of.
He walked softly into the kitchen and saw Gail with her back to him, doing something at the sink. She was wearing one of his white dress shirts. The tail of the shirt was just long enough to cover the sensual curves of her butt.
I wondered where that shirt went to. It looks good on her. He grinned.
"Good morning," he spoke softly, hoping to not scare her.
"Actually, it's evening." She turned to face him.
The front tail of his shirt covered her sex... barely. She followed his gaze downward, batted her eyes and said, "I borrowed it. I hope you don't mind."
"Of course not. Looks much better on you than me." His lips quirked in a smile.
He watched as Gail turned, stood on her tiptoes and reached for a glass out of the cupboard. The tail of his shirt pulled up, revealing she was not wearing any panties. Her curvy butt gave way to shapely legs and bare feet. He had little doubt his shirt was the only thing she was wearing.
Gail took a glass from the cupboard and poured him some lemonade. "I hope you like this, it's freshly squeezed." When he cocked his head, she added in jest, "Freshly squeezed right out of a can."
"Thanks, it's perfect." He took a long swig, set the glass on the table and sat.
"Greta?"
"She went back to her apartment to do some things. She thought it would be okay since you were here. She told me call when you got ready to leave."
"Fine."
Gail busied herself by serving up two plates of spaghetti for dinner. "I didn't know whether to fix breakfast or supper." She set his plate in front of him, went to the fridge and pulled out the two bowls of salad she had made earlier. "I finally decided on supper."
With him set up, Gail began fixing her own plate and took a seat across the table from him. She did not broach the subject of his activities or statement from the previous night. He asked about her work for the past week. After she told him about her week, he engaged her in other conversation while they ate.
"So are you going to stay again tonight?" she asked.
"I'm afraid not, but I'll miss that soft, wonderful smelling pillow I slept on last... this morning."
"Silly, those were my breasts, not a pillow, you slept on."
"Oh well, no wonder they were so soft and smelled so nice," he smiled. "I'm sorry I came over in the middle of the night and imposed on you. I should've stayed home."
"Nonsense. Your coming over was no imposition. I was glad to have you with me... just to hold on to. I slept great having you next to me."
"Thanks for understanding," he said and looked at his watch. "Damn. I need to go. Carefully, he avoided letting his gaze drift below her luscious lips. Instead, he let it fix on the fabulous depths of her green eyes. "I sure as hell don't want to, but I must."
He opened his phone and dialed a number. "Greta?"
"Hi, Jeff."
"I'm getting ready to leave."
"Be the
re in ten."
"Thanks." He broke the connection.
When Greta pulled into the drive, he headed for the door. "Sorry to eat and run."
Without saying a word, she walked with him, her hand in his. He pulled her close and kissed her. "Thank you for last night," he whispered against her lips.
"You're welcome." She hugged him tight while Greta watched him from the doorway. He waved to Greta and drove away.
****
Jeff drove to the police station, parked inconspicuously across the street and waited for Captain Tom Bradford to arrive. Through discreet inquires he had learned Tom's work schedule. I still find it hard to believe. A police chief! Mr. Bradford, you're going to get a visit from yours truly.
A Witch and Her Man (Jeff and Gail) Page 7
