When their boss was gone, Tom Lester kicked his chair into the table. “I’ll bet they have something to do with it.”
Vivian shook her head. “You just heard the boss. Point the anger elsewhere. I don’t want to get busted down to paper pusher because you’re carrying a grudge.”
He stared at her. “You too? You’re going to take their side now also?”
“I’m going to obey a direct order and listen to my boss. Besides, my gut says they’re innocent.” They protected her, now she was going to return the favor. “Let it go, Tom.”
He crossed his arms as she walked out. Lester was disappointed in his partner. “Yeah, no way in hell, kid.”
It was a short walk down the hall and out to the waiting area. Justin was relieved when he found his brother and Tori waiting for him.
“Whatever you did, thanks,” he stated, laughing.
“Two words will sum it up. Elizabeth Blackhawk,” Julian stated.
Justin would kiss the woman next time he saw her, that was for sure. “When you talk to Tex, you tell her that I miss her.”
Tori was amused. “When she finds out you only had that tattoo drawn on, she’s going to be pissed. In fact, she’s going to make you get it placed somewhere far more visible.” She was referring to the one he was required to get thanks to losing a shooting bet.
“You swore that you’d never tell her. How’s she going to see my ass and ever know?”
Julian handed his brother his jacket and keys. “You think she won’t have the balls to just ask you to drop your pants to see it?” Now, he was laughing. “I’m pleading ignorance on this whole scheme.”
Justin glanced over his shoulder at Vivian and wished that he could go to her. When no one was looking, he mouthed ‘I love you’ to her.
She only nodded.
Yeah, that didn't bode well for his heart.
“Where to now?” Justin asked, as he followed Julian and Tori outside.
“Your truck is back at the office. We’re heading to the bar to interview. They just opened up, and we need to talk to Stephen Coltrane about Tawny.”
“The case has been bumped to homicide,” whispered Tori. “We heard the conversation when two detectives came in to get the files.”
“Damn! Then Vivian can’t get the autopsy results for us,” Justin said.
“Probably not. We’re going to drop you at work. Lay low for a few hours, okay? I don’t put it past Lester to put a tail on you or follow you himself.”
He agreed with his brother on that. “He’s not real big on ‘Indians’ so watch your back too, Jules.”
That didn't really make Tori happy. “Yeah, well, I’m not real big on assholes, so he better not come near my husband, or I’ll be doing the scalping personally.”
Justin grinned. “Your wife is all riled up.”
What could he say? “Yeah, I like her that way…” he began and stopped. “Holy shit! We have company.”
They stared out the tinted windows. Their parking lot was full of people. Most of them were holding cameras.
“This one’s mine,” Tori stated, getting out. Of the three of them, Justin was more confrontational, Julian was reserved, and she was the one who was used to press conferences with the media.
“I love watching her in action,” stated Julian. “Put on your sunglasses and say nothing,” he ordered.
“I always wanted to be famous,” he teased.
“Especially don’t say shit like that,” he replied, as they followed his wife into the fray.
God, he hoped it didn't get messy.
Tori handled them with ease.
She explained that they weren’t working on finding Tawny James. They had just offered their services and had been the ones to locate her body.
The media had gone in for the kill, most likely expecting that she would be green and bend under their pressure. What they got was the exact opposite. Tori Littlemoon knew how to work a crowd. She smiled at the reporters and fielded all of their questions. When they went too far, she threw out the ‘client confidentiality’ excuse, and unlike when she was a Fed, it actually worked.
When the media pushed the issue of them finding the body, she simply pointed at the window under their names.
‘Littlemoon Investigations.
We find what you’ve lost.’
That seemed to mollify almost all of them. This was their business and what they did best. As far as anyone was concerned, their cover had held. They were just taking care of their community and volunteering to bring home someone’s loved one.
Yet, Tori wasn’t afraid to promote their business and give it a positive spin. She was absolutely sure that someone would have a negative report, but by playing the media game, they’d come up on top.
Or so she hoped.
As they all left, both men followed her into the building. Before anyone could say a word, Julian immediately pulled her into his arms and kissed her lavishly. It was quite the lip lock, and even their administrative assistant clapped.
When they broke apart, she stared into his eyes. “That was pretty amazing, babe.”
Julian shook his head. “Oh, well there might be more where that came from later.”
“If that’s the case, I can’t wait.”
Justin groaned at the innuendo. “Come on!”
It made Tori giggle.
Julian pointed at his brother. “You stay here until later.”
Lena couldn’t help but bust his ass. “You want me to tie him to a chair or hold him at gun point?”
Oh, he wasn’t going to let her get a comment in without a few of his own. Justin enjoyed their verbal sparring way too much to let it go.
“If a woman is going to tie me up, it’s going to be Vivian, but thanks for the offer.”
“Well, if she’s doing the tying, sign me up.”
Justin stared openmouthed, unable to even come up with a reply to Lena. He was too appalled at the visual.
She started snickering. “I’ll keep Justin company. Be safe out there,” she added, blowing Tori a kiss.
Outside, even Julian was worked up. “Can I file a sexual harassment claim against one of my own employees?” he muttered.
Tori looked over. “Babe, she was blowing that kiss at me.”
“Yeah, I know. I just witnessed her hitting on my wife.”
She couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it all. “Mr. Littlemoon, you’re too much.”
* * *
It was hard to stay calm as he watched the news.
When they had found the body, he nearly shit himself. He honestly believed that the water would suck her away to some other location and buy him time.
This wasn’t good.
Immediately, he stood and began pacing.
What was he to do?
He glanced over at his mother, and she had a disapproving, shriveled up look on her face. “Shut up,” he muttered and then stormed from the room. “The last thing I need to hear is your bitching!”
As he kept moving, his mind spun a mile a minute. What should he do? He wasn’t sure if he should stop with his plans and get rid of the first woman too, or keep going?
On one hand, he felt the need to flee, but then he thought about his collection downstairs. This had been years in the making, and he didn't want to quit.
He needed to see it completed.
Then, he could move on if he had to.
Taking a deep breath, he thought about the next woman and decided to make his move sooner, rather than later.
It would catch the cops and those damn private investigators off guard.
Besides, he lost his blonde, and now he needed to add a new one at the back of the list.
For now, he’d push forward.
He couldn’t let himself down.
Besides, Melissa must be getting lonely. This time he would bring the next one home, and most importantly, control his temper.
It wasn’t like he had an endless supply of perfection, in to
wn, to choose from.
* * *
Julian and Tori sat at the bar. They were waiting on the bartender to come over and refresh their drinks. Then, they were going to start the questioning. Normally, they wouldn’t drink on the job, but the day’s events had them frazzled.
It wasn’t quite busy yet, but they were sure it would pick up shortly. It was almost close to happy hour on a Friday night. That meant drunken people and loud music for sure.
As the man crossed to them, both Littlemoons could feel eyes on them. Glancing over, Tori could see the waitresses checking out her husband. Yeah, she’d kick each one of their asses if they even pursued the thoughts going on in their heads. It wasn’t going to happen.
“You look like you’re about to kill,” he stated, glancing past his wife at the women not far away. None of them had anything on Tori. They were too heavily made up and looked like they were on the hunt for some man. Yeah, he would stay far away from that action.
“Maybe,” she replied.
Before he could reassure her, Stephen Coltrane was there with two more beers. “I saw you two at the search today and on the news. You look just like the guy that found Tawny.”
Julian nodded. “He’s my brother.”
“What did you need to talk to me about?” he asked. “I told the other guy everything yesterday.”
Tori took over. “So, we just found out that Tawny was in here the night she disappeared, just like Melissa Lagerfeld.”
His body went ridged. “Are you implying something?”
She shrugged. “No, I’m stating a fact. They were here. Did you see them?”
Again, he told them the story about Melissa and it matched what Justin had shared with them. Then, he went into the details about the night Tawny was there.
“She looked bored. The whole night, she kept looking at her watch. I ended up leaving first, since my shift was over, so I can’t tell you more.”
‘Couldn’t or wouldn’t?’ Tori wondered.
“If you need more, you better talk to Devon. She was here the rest of the night. I headed out around ten and didn't look back.”
“Thank you for your help, Stephen,” Tori said, as she grabbed her beer.
Walking over towards Devon, the woman wasn’t even trying to hide the lustful stares at Julian. Tori managed to stay calm, but in her head, she was picturing herself slapping the woman senseless. Man, she had some anger issues, or that’s what her shrink would tell her.
“Hey,” Devon purred, touching the Native man on the arm. “What can I do for you?”
His nerves were starting up, as he tucked his hair behind his ears. Tori’s body had gone poker strait beside him. It was as if she were bracing for a brawl.
“Yes, can you tell us about this woman?” He pulled out the picture and handed it to her.
“Sure can, sugar. She was in the other night, ordered two beers, drank them in a little less than two hours, and stuck to her friend. That’s about all.”
“When did she leave?” Tori asked.
“It was maybe about a quarter to twelve. I can’t be sure. It got busy in here when some college kids arrived, and when I looked around midnight, she had left me a good tip and was gone.”
“Okay, was anyone bothering her?”
Devon shook her head. “A few men stopped by the table, but they just smiled and walked away. No one was harassing them, if that’s what you mean,” she answered. “Although, you can harass me all you want.”
Julian stayed very still. “Uh, no thank you, I’m married.”
Tori added, “In fact, he’s very married to me.”
“Oh, well then maybe you can set me up with the other guy who looks just like him. You two are very sexy.”
Over Tori’s dead body.
“Yeah, that’s not happening either. He’s not available, but thanks for your help, Devon.”
She grabbed Julian’s beer bottle and handed them both to the waitress before heading out the door.
Once in the car, Julian began laughing. “I love when you’re all aggressive.”
She stared over at him, with zero emotion on her face. “Then you’re going to love when we get home.”
He swallowed. “You’re not teasing me, are you? That would be incredibly cruel to get my hopes up like that.”
Tori leaned over and kissed him hard. Her hand buried in his hair and held her mouth to his. When she was suitably happy that he got her point, she finally released him.
“Back to the office?”
Julian couldn’t speak.
All he could manage was to nod.
Justin had looked down at his watch every five minutes for the last four hours. Lena had gone home three hours ago and Kane and Christina weren’t far behind her.
Since he was bored out of his mind, he opted to text Vivian.
When she didn't reply to a single one, he already knew what was happening. She was pulling away from him, and he needed to stop it.
Thinking about an escape route, he messaged his brother and headed out the back door. If the place was being watched, it was likely at the front. So, he opted to take the private alleys to Vivian’s place.
He didn't care if she was there or not, he was going to wait her out.
The walk didn't take much longer than if he walked straight down the main street to get there. Once inside, he rode up to her floor and plunked himself down outside her door.
If she was going to make a break for it, Vivian was in for a huge surprise. Justin was more than willing to give chase.
He was taking a lesson from his brother and not letting this little bump in the road stop him from getting the girl.
He’d already made up his mind.
As he crossed his ankles and leaned back against the wall, he prepared to wait her out.
For as long as it took.
* * *
She opted to take the stairs up to her place. She was glad to get home, and as of yet she had managed to avoid Justin.
It wasn’t that she wanted to, but what choice did she have? It wasn’t fair to make the Littlemoons cover for her. They had to lie in a police investigation because of her, and that went against everything she believed in.
She couldn’t do this to them. The Littlemoons were really decent people, and she’d find a way to make this all work.
When she opened the door to her floor, Vivian knew Justin was there before she even saw him.
The scent of his cologne lingered in the air.
“Hello, Justin.”
He didn't move. “I see you planned on hiding out and not facing me.”
She took out her keys and stepped over his legs to get to her door. “I can see that was useless,” she stated, hoping that he would get mad and go away. If she could just make him leave, then he would be safe and not pulled into this mess.
“Pretty much.”
She opened the door and went inside. There was no doubt in her mind, that if she tried to close it, he would kick it in.
“I missed you today,” he stated, calmly. He would let her get it off her chest, and then cage her in for the long haul. Justin had plans, and they didn't include a life without her.
“What do you want?” she asked, trying to put as much chill in her voice.
“You.” He noticed her entire body went ramrod straight, and she wouldn’t look at him.
Vivian would have faced him down if she thought she could actually stand up to him. If she turned, then there would be tears. What she wanted was to run and kiss him. She had missed him more than anything today.
The distance between them broke her heart.
“I see,” he replied. “So, you don’t love me anymore? You can actually shut it off and push me away like I never mattered, Vivian?”
The words were daggers right to her heart. God, if he only knew the truth. She still refused to look at him.
“If you never cared about me, look me in the face and tell me. I’ll walk out this door and never bother you again. I love
you too much to make you suffer by being with me. If what you feel is gone, or never existed, just tell me, and I’ll set you free.”
Okay, he was giving her an out. All she had to do was look him in the face. Vivian turned and stared at him. The pure hurt on his features was evident. He was waiting for her to break his heart.
“Go ahead, Vivian. I gave you the weapon. Make the kill shot.” He prayed she couldn’t do it. This was the biggest gamble of his life. A part of him wanted to hold on and believe that she was just afraid of what was to come.
Vivian opened her mouth and instead of telling him she wasn’t in love with him, she tried to get him to understand. “I love you, and this is for you. Why can’t you just go and leave me alone? I’ve made you a target for my partner and the media. He’s going to try and bury your brother’s business, and it’s all because I told you my secret.”
His heart began beating again. This was a start. “Vivian, we’re going to be fine, and so are you. We’ll keep you safe and protect what you’ve told us.”
Her eyes filled with tears, and they began to slide hotly down her cheeks. “I don’t want to watch you be hurt. I couldn’t bear it, Justin.”
“Come here,” he said, opening his arms and waiting for her to cross to him. If she didn't, he would go to her.
Vivian didn't walk to him, she ran. When he caught her against his body, she let all the emotion free.
“Shhhh baby, it’s going to be okay,” he promised.
“I feel bad that I’ve made you lie for me,” she whispered against his neck, as she clung to his body. “This isn’t the way to start a relationship. I just wish my life was completely normal, and I wasn’t this mess.”
He pushed her back to stare into her face. “You’re perfect for me. If you believe you’re a mess, then I’m one too.”
She stared into his eyes. “I love you,” she whispered. “I couldn’t ever look you in the face and say otherwise.”
He kissed her on the tip of the nose. “I was betting on that,” he answered. In fact, he had placed his whole heart in her hands, and she didn't take the easy way out by hurting him.
Blood Red Rage (LIttlemoon Investigations Book 1) Page 21
