Murders of the Zodiac Boxed Set

by Paris Morgan

  “We’ll stand, thank you.” There was no need to be rude, but it wasn’t polite to keep the police or the FBI waiting. I’d done too much sitting in the past few days.

  Ryan was facing the opposite direction from me, but I turned quickly when he muttered, “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

  Striding toward us was Noah Preston. Either he’d come up in the world and was now an executive, or he was the least powerful and had to pay his dues first.

  “Ah, it’s my two favorite detectives. Are you here to harass me again?” He smirked as he approached.

  “No, we’re here to see your boss.” I went with the assumption that he was our escort.

  He tilted his head and motioned for us to follow him. “He doesn’t like to be kept waiting.”

  Ryan and I exchanged glances as he hit the button to take us to the top floor. This could be interesting.

  The conference room was more like a smoking lodge than the normal table with chairs around it. This is where deals were agreed upon with a handshake—no signatures necessary.

  I was really uncomfortable, but Ryan came in, taking a seat as if he frequented rooms like this on a regular basis.

  “Mr. Reed will be with you in a moment.” Noah backed out of the room and closed the doors behind him.

  “This room is crazy. I’m not psychic, but the hairs on my arms are standing up. Whoever this CEO is, he’s evil. The wrong kinds of things happen here.” I shivered, and gingerly sat on the edge of the tall leather seat.

  “Relax and smile. I’m pretty sure that we’re being watched.” He spoke very softly.

  That just confirmed my feelings of unease, but I held still and refused the urge to fidget.

  A side door opened and Mr. Reed, his secretary, and Noah entered the room.

  “To what do we owe the pleasure of a police, or is it an FBI visit? Noah wasn’t exactly clear on the details.” Mr. Reed sat in the chair that looked almost like a throne, and the other two sat on either side of him.

  “It’s really a joint task force of the FBI and two police departments working together. The problem has gotten serious enough that we needed more manpower and the special toys that the FBI has available. Which is why we’re here, sir, for your help.” Ryan leaned forward, eagerly answering his question.

  “How, or may I ask why would we help the FBI with any type of investigation?”

  “Well, sir, there’s a serial killer targeting people that are or have been associated with your company. That’s how we met your man Noah back in January over a case that appeared to have connections to your corporation,” I chimed in nervously.

  “Why would a serial killer be bothered with my company?” Mr. Reed lit a cigar without asking if we minded. I had the feeling he knew we would, but didn’t really care.

  “Sir, this is the fourth hired killer that mentioned or made use of your company. In January, they made it appear that your employees were the ones doing the killings, but we were able to see through the charade. February’s hired hand actually attempted and carried out the murders of the Wisconsin’s CEO and one of their main shareholders.”

  “Ah, yes. I do remember something of that nature being discussed at one of the meetings. Since I don’t even know their names, they must have been inconsequential to the company.”

  His arrogance that he was the most important part of the company really bothered me. He was acting like this was all beneath him.

  “In March, the hired killer was using property that had been purchased through this company, and most recently, someone has been targeting your business employees with fake reward trips to go whitewater rafting and then drowning the entire party. We feel that it’s in the best interest of your employees’ well-being that we try to stop any other trips that are planned for the next few weeks until the killer is caught,” I urged, knowing that I was wasting my breath with Noah grinning happily at Mr. Reed’s right.

  “Why should we do your job for you? I have no interest in helping the police. If you can’t do your job, then maybe you should be replaced. Come, Noah.” He rose regally from the chair. “My secretary, Jane, will see you to the lobby.” Then he disappeared with Noah following right behind him.

  I kept my temper in check until we reached the lobby and were out of hearing on our way to the car.

  “How could anyone be that horribly evil?”

  “He was testing you. You gave him the reaction he was looking for.” Ryan opened his car door and slid inside, watching me fume.

  “He’s behind this, isn’t he?” I couldn’t believe how calm Ryan was acting about this man’s horrible regard for others. “Now, I see why Noah has risen so quickly in the company. He probably got a promotion simply because he was a suspect in our investigation.”

  “I’m very upset, but letting it show on the outside is just going to make that old fool and his minion feel justified in their response. He’s not doing it, but he’s the reason this is happening. We need to have Kevin and his team focus on this man and what his connections are. He might even be one of the founders, which would explain his attitude.”

  “The Zodiac Master is nipping at his company like a little dog with his recruits. This guy is acting like he’s shooing a fly away, or can’t be bothered with little details.” My eyes widened as the ramifications of what we’d discovered hit me. “The Zodiac Master is going to end with taking down Mr. Reed and all the others who are corrupt. It’s his big plan. He wants to see if we can figure out what’s going on with a little game first before he has the grand finale.”

  “That would be my assumption as well. I think that Kevin is going to find a lot more than we’d bargained for,” Ryan agreed.

  “I was looking for a cult or society of killers, but I think I had things backward. I think this group of zodiac killers is going against an evil company.”

  “Are you on the side of the killers now?”

  “Absolutely not. They’re killing innocent people, and that’s not how justice works. That said, it doesn’t mean that we can’t shine a light on the company. It may just be Mr. Reed and a few men who are rotten. Nevertheless, what the Zodiac Master is doing is awful, but that doesn’t mean we can’t make their deaths mean something if we can put someone like Mr. Reed in jail.”

  “You’re making a lot of assumptions with this line of thought. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I’m on board with doing some deep digging to see what we can uncover, but he’s going to be expecting us to check out things on the surface. We have to remember that our main priority is finding Dana and the Zodiac Master. After they’re in jail, we can see what else is going on with the Urban Energy Company,” Ryan advised.

  “He just made me feel that the evil in the room was going to come up and suck me into the floor.” I gave an embarrassed laugh. “I know it’s something out of a horror movie, but that’s how being in his office felt. It was an evil vibe.”

  “Did you ever think that you might have sensitive abilities like Flora? It could be why you were drawn to her in the beginning, and why Adam questioned you the other day.”

  “Do really think so? Three months ago, you didn’t even believe that psychics were real. It’s not like there’s a test to discover if you’re a psychic. I don’t have any family that’s got this kind of gift,” I protested.

  “Just because you haven’t considered it before, doesn’t mean it isn’t true. That might be another reason for the Zodiac Master’s obsession with you—a psychic connection.”

  “I don’t think I’m quite ready to go down that route. I think there’s definitely a connection between Mr. Reed and our Zodiac Master. I just want to know more. It’s really going to keep me up at night worrying about it,” I confessed as we returned to FBI headquarters.

  “That isn’t a problem when I’m home in my own bed. I can sleep. Well, that is until I got this threatening text. I may never sleep again.”

  “Let’s hope Kevin’s got something for us.”

  Chapter 9


  Leslie

  It had been two days since our visit to Urban Energy, and I was headed to Jerome’s for the evening for what was becoming our weeknight routine. Dinner, a movie, and then a great session in the bedroom were probably the only things helping me to relax as another day went by with no real leads.

  “Hey, babe, you got off early again. Is the case not going good?” Jerome met me at the door.

  “So frustrating.” I slipped off my shoes by the door and threw myself into his waiting arms.

  “Mmm, this feels so good.” I snuggled into the comfort of letting him hold me.

  That was what Jerome brought to my life, a chance to let go of everything happening every day and enjoy what was right in front of me.

  “I slaved over dinner.” He grinned as the timer went off, and he released me to rescue the food. “It’s a difficult dish of baked chicken and veggies that I picked up.”

  “Shh…you’re not supposed to tell me you bought it. I can’t be amazed at your skills if you tell me all your secrets.” I playfully swatted at him as I joined him in the kitchen.

  “What I can’t believe is that we’ve had three nights together and it wasn’t in a hospital setting. Not that I didn’t love getting to know your sister, it’s just not the same as having alone time with just you.”

  “It was so sweet of her to come and take care of me.” I placed a finger over his lips to stop what I knew he wanted to say.

  “You could have protected me, but it was safer for both of us to have her there. She’s trained to watch for anything that might have escaped your notice. Personally, I think you would’ve done an amazing job of keeping me in bed, but you don’t heal by lounging around no matter how much fun it would be.”

  “Ugh. Why do you have to be right about these things?” He kissed my forehead. “Your shoulder is healing nicely, but I can’t say I love the scar yet. It’s a reminder that you do a very dangerous job. I’m working on it, though, and maybe when it’s completely healed I’ll find it as sexy as I do the rest of you.”

  “Sexy, huh?” I moved just out of reach and shook my hips from side to side. “What are you going to do about it?”

  “Turn the oven on low to keep the food warm.” He pulled me toward the bedroom without any resistance.

  ***

  After we’d actually made it through dinner, which still tasted really good, I wanted to let him know what I was thinking.

  “So we’ve had a great couple of days, and unless we get called out before then, I was hoping that I could skip coming over tomorrow. I need to have dinner with Flora and get in some girl time. Are you okay with that?” We didn’t get as much time together with me running around the country, but I felt that we still needed to have time apart on occasion.

  “Yeah, I’m good with that. Just make sure that you text me if you fly off somewhere again. Having three days in a row is more than I’m used to, and hopefully we’ll get a few more.”

  “Well, I’m here for the rest of the night, and I didn’t see any dessert planned.” I winked at him as I loaded our plates into the dish washer.

  “I might have some whipped cream in the refrigerator.”

  ***

  Dinner with Flora was something that I really needed, because I had been mulling over the things both Ryan and Adam had said about psychic gifts. I needed to get a few things talked through for my peace of mind.

  She’d offered to cook dinner so that we could have a private meal without a restaurant kicking us out at some point.

  “Oh, it’s so wonderful to see you with such a healing glow about you. Before I forget, here’s a lotion that you can put over the wound now that it’s closed over. It will help with scarring, and has the medical and spiritual properties for healing.”

  She handed me a small jar of green cream which smelled nice when I opened it.

  “You were expecting some horrible smell because it’s a natural green cream, huh?” She laughed at the guilty look on my face. “No worries, you’re not the first with those expectations. Now, come in and tell me what has you calling for a girl’s night. Everything okay with Jerome?”

  “It’s been a dream. After that last talk he and I had, he’s just been wonderful, even with my injury. There’s something else that’s come up and—”

  She cut me off. “You’re wondering if you’re psychic like me?”

  “How did you know?” Then I giggled at my own question. “Never mind.”

  “Come and sit. We’ll drink some tea and discuss if it’s possible.”

  That was the thing with Flora, I felt so comfortable and welcome when I was around her. She didn’t judge me for my job or the fact that I carried a gun. Many people I’d met over the years considered what I did for a living to be violent, but in reality, it was to keep violence from happening.

  “There’s this guy on our team named Adam Dalca, who is in charge of the Unusual Crimes Division. They specialize in crimes that have ties to ghosts, the occult, psychics, and other things that aren’t cut and dry.”

  “Oh, I’ll bet Ryan just loved meeting him.” Flora grinned, taking a sip of her tea.

  “He’s coming around to the idea of psychic activity. Adam, and then Ryan both mentioned that I might be a sensitive person. I met someone the other day on the case and felt like I was in the presence of pure evil. The room where he held meetings just gave off the vibe that something terrible had happened there.” I shuddered as the impressions washed over me again.

  “You certainly have an intuition that gives you an edge over your partners. That’s why you were so open to me when we met. Our spirits knew the trueness of each other and were drawn to create a bond.”

  “I don’t know of anyone in my family that has this type of gift or intuition, though. Is it something I’ve always had, or a recent development due to the work we’re doing?”

  “I can’t say whether you’ve always had it, but probably. You just weren’t aware of how it worked. When you would go to a scene, you’d get an impression of the crime and what happened, but it was just your feeling, right? You then had to get the evidence and proceed with making the truth come out.”

  “Now, that you mention it, yes. I just never thought of it. I’ve always kind of known who was only being nice on the inside or were planning to hurt someone. I didn’t realize that I was sensing the emotions of people. I thought of it as more of reading people,” I acknowledged for the first time.

  “When I first learned of my abilities as this all started, I knew I was psychic sensitive. What I didn’t know was how to hone that and use it to help people. Now, I’ve had a little training, and it’s like working a muscle—it grows when you use it. I’m going to challenge you to sense people’s emotions when you’re reading their body language. I want you to ignore that part and focus on their energy.”

  “I think I can try that. It should be fun in the FBI headquarters where everyone is trying to hide what their feeling and you don’t have all of the body language that normal people do.” I finished my tea and placed the cup back on the table.

  “There is one thing you need to be warned about. When you open yourself up to the emotional impressions of others, you can get hit with more than you bargained for. You have to picture a shield around yourself where you reach out to feel the air around you. When you start reading other’s emotions, it can affect your own moods without you realizing it.”

  She picked up my cup and I knew that she was going to read my tea leaves.

  “Well, what does it say?” I prodded.

  “You’ll be travelling again in just two days. Something will happen that will change your future. You’re going to feel like the world is ending for a short time, but once you process it, you’ll be okay,” Flora answered hesitantly.

  “Let’s put that aside and eat dinner. Healing this wound has changed my appetite, so food is calling to me.” I couldn’t deal with her reading right now. It was too overwhelming.

  ***

  When Flora’
s number flashed across my phone two days later, I knew that we were about to head out. Her reading hadn’t included a location, but I was willing to bet that we had one now.

  “Flora, what’s happening?”

  “I’m supposed to tell you now that the woman you’re looking for is in Hawaii. I can’t tell you which island, but it’s feels like one of the bigger islands. If you do the normal police work and try to track her, I believe that you’ll see that she’s on land there.”

  “What am I going to tell Agent Watson? Is there anything specific that I can give him to make him believe that we should fly out to Hawaii?”

  “Tell him he needs to be more careful when he gets dressed in the morning or he won’t have any ties left if he continues to get them caught in the toaster.”

  “He’ll think you’re stalking him, not giving him evidence for finding Dana.”

  “Leslie, trust me. He’ll know that I’m on the level,” Flora urged.

  “Well, you’re information has been spot-on for everything else, so I’m not going to leave this to chance. Ryan and I will be on a plane in the next few hours.” My mind was racing on how to get started on the plans to get to Hawaii.

  “Hey, remember when you get done with this trip and need a shoulder to cry on, I’ll be here.”

  “I’ll call when we get things wrapped up.” I wasn’t going to promise more than that because I didn’t have a clue what I was walking into.

  Adam met me in the hall on my way to find Agent Watson. “You know where Dana is, don’t you?”

  “Yes.” I eyed him curiously. “You’re not just part of the Unusual Crimes Division because you’ve studied. It’s because you’re psychic as well, aren’t you?”

  “Shh…” he whispered. “The normals might hear you. We can discuss this at a later time, but we need to let Agent Watson know the location now. Welcome to the world of unusual happenings.”

  “Crap. Can you sense the gift in others?” I whispered back as we walked toward Agent Watson’s temporary office.