Croft pointed out the obvious. “Was she alive when he scalped her?”
“No. She would have bled all over. There’s some, but her heart was stopped at the time, UNLESS,” he began, pausing before continuing, “she was scalped, cleaned up, and transported here.”
They looked around.
It was a church, and there were likely no cameras to monitor the place. In fact, this was a residential area, so there was likely none anywhere that would be helpful.
“Thanks, Doc,” she stated.
“I’ll do her autopsy as soon as we get her in-house,” he offered. “Give me an hour to transport, and we’ll get Lidia started.”
As Croft was busy scanning the area, he saw his agent and Emma’s partner hustling their way.
Both looked worse for the wear.
“Are you two okay? We don’t need anyone drunk on the scene,” he stated.
Neither spoke up about being married. They were both too shocked.
“I’ve had better days,” Curtis stated.
“What can I do?” Brynn asked.
“Can you help Tessa canvas and interview? Curtis, you can head over to Paris and give him tech help while he works on a profile,” Emma suggested.
Brynn rushed away, and both of them stared at Curtis. They knew him well enough. He looked…freaked out.
“What’s wrong?”
He shook his head. “Later. I can’t even wrap my head around it,” he stated, right before heading off to do what his boss had asked.
Emma glanced over at her partner as she began interviewing the priest.
“She looks off too.”
Croft had to agree.
“They were supposed to go out and have fun,” she stated. “What could have possibly happened?”
Greyson thought about his partner, and all the potential issues that could arise. Curtis was young, so the possibilities were endless.
“Who knows? I just hope they didn't break up. I hate having to deal with that relationship mess. It makes me a nervous wreck.”
Emma glanced over. Curtis was watching her.
Yeah, something was definitely wrong. She could see it in his eyes, right before he averted his gaze.
There was no doubt.
Bad things had gone down.
~ Chapter Ten ~
Saturday Mid-Morning
LVPD Offices
Reconvening was the best possible solution so they could work on their game plan and go from there. They needed a definite way to approach this. As they left the church, there was a flurry of media waiting for them.
Already, word had spread.
And the spectacle had begun.
Not answering questions, Croft recalled his promise to the male reporter, who was desperately trying to get his attention. He made the motion for the man to call him later.
Obviously, he got the signal, because he looked infinitely grateful.
Once at the LVPD, locked away in the conference room, they began setting up for the long afternoon that was on the agenda. They had a fresh victim, and that gave them better odds of finding the killer.
“We know that our fourth victim liked kink,” stated Curtis. “She wasn’t a member for very long, but when she went there, she had fun.”
Croft took a seat. “Explain.”
He sent it to the wall. “This wasn’t her first church liaison,” he stated. “You can see in her profile by the notations. She labeled herself a ‘Heaven High’ club member.”
They all looked confused.
It was Paris who let them in on it. “That’s someone who gets off on sex in a church or with worshipped icons, statues, or religious individuals who work there. It’s like people who like to do it on airplanes. You know--the mile high club.”
Croft lifted a brow, still stuck on the first part. “Statues?”
Paris shrugged. “Do you want me to explain? If you think about it…”
“NO! I got it. Is this a popular kink?” he asked, trying not to think about the statues.
“Yeah, it’s up there.”
Curtis flipped through her profile. “It mentions that her first time was good, but she was looking for a killer meet up.”
None of them missed that those exact words were what she got. Ask and ye shall receive…apparently.
“What did she do for a living?” Emma asked, glancing over at Tessa and Paris. They were sitting close, and she wanted to smile. They were obviously in a good place. When she shifted focus to the other couple, they looked the exact opposite. It was odd since they were happy just the day before.
They must be sporting one hell of a hangover.
Paris had the information first. “According to our friends at the IRS, she was a dog walker and babysitter.”
Croft shook his head. “In my day, people left their dogs at home when they went to work.”
When Curtis didn't make an old comment, he glanced over at him. Something was definitely wrong. The man never missed a chance to take a shot at him. It was like his mission in life. Even Emma was waiting to scold the man.
Still, nothing.
“Well, she wasn’t making a lot of money,” Tessa stated.
Emma pointed at her address on the driver’s license photo. “She lived in a decent apartment. If she was living alone, dog walking wouldn’t cover it. What do we have on roommates?”
They all came up blank.
“Okay, well that’s one of our first trips today. Someone has to do the interview.”
“I want to stop in at ‘Perfect Indiscretions’ to rattle the cage,” Croft said. “Hopefully, the warrant will be ready to go by then,” he stated. “Paris, can you put a call in and get it moving?”
The man didn't mind. “Sure thing, boss.”
Emma knew what she planned to do. “Well, if you’re going to go play at the internet place, I’ll head to the apartment.”
He laughed. “Yeah, no you won’t--not alone, anyway.”
Emma simply pointed at her partner. “Remember her? She’s my normal backup, so if I can trust her any other day, I can do it now too.”
He didn't like it.
All Greyson kept thinking about was Marianna, and how he could be stalking his wife.
“Okay, but you keep your eyes open,” he stated. “You shoot anyone who comes near you.”
While she appreciated his concern, she was a cop and couldn’t randomly take people out. Reporters tracked her down all the time, and she wasn’t allowed randomly to take shots at them either.
“I’ll start with the autopsy too. I know how much Brynn likes them,” she teased.
“Great. This day is getting better and better,” she stated.
No one missed her tone.
It was clear.
In fact, Curtis even flinched.
“You can have it,” stated Croft. “I’ll take my ex-probee and we’ll head out for the business. I’m sure that by now, he’s anticipated my thoughts and has the address ready.”
He looked panicked.
Immediately, Paris covered for him, sliding a paper toward him.
“Oh, look,” Curtis said gratefully.
“You’re so lucky that HR already has your paperwork on your promotion,” Croft stated. “If they didn't, I’d be all over you today.”
That wasn’t true.
He could see something was wrong. It was just a matter of time before they forced the man to spill it.
“We’ll start pulling the victim’s phone records,” stated Tessa. “By the time you get back, we’ll have something.” She hoped.
“I need a profile too, Paris. Be ready.”
The man was. In fact, he was ecstatic. He was going to work with his Tessa for the rest of the day. While he could think of other things he’d rather be doing on a Saturday, this was still pretty high up there on the list.
When her hand moved into his lap, he couldn’t help but grin. He may not be able to feel it, but he sure as hell was glad it was there.
Outside at her desk, Emma g
rabbed her keys and gun. As she was clipping it on, Ford approached. “You have anything yet?” he asked.
“We just caught this one, Captain. I’m heading out now.”
He figured he should give her the heads up. “Just to make you aware, the media is all over this, and that means the new commissioner is all over me. He’s not thrilled, so I’m not either.”
Emma shrugged. “Well, we’re trying. It’s only been four days. I hope he doesn’t expect us to be able to solve this with a handful of chicken bones and some spells.”
He started laughing. “If that were an option, would you do it?”
Emma shook her head as he walked away.
No sooner was the man in his office then Croft stole a kiss. “You be safe out there, Emma,” he ordered. “Text me if you deviate from the plan.”
As he turned to avoid his wife’s scowl, Croft noticed Curtis and Brynn were standing as far apart as humanly possible.
They both looked guilty as sin.
Yeah, he was going to get to the bottom of this.
“Are you ready for autopsy?” Emma asked, heading toward the elevator.
“Yeah, I hate this part.”
“I know, but you have to face the dead. They need you to take care of them now,” Emma said. “Did you and Curtis have a fight?” she asked, hoping they weren’t going to have to get on and off the relationship merry-go-round again. When they broke up the last time, they had to deal with Curtis being miserable, and Brynn being distant.
They were cops and had a job to do.
“No, we absolutely didn't.”
Brynn wasn’t lying. They didn't argue at all. They were both in too much shock to say much of anything at this point. What she really wanted was to blurt out the truth, getting some well needed advice.
Instead, she kept it zipped. A part of her felt guilty, especially after her partner had been open, sharing the issues which had plagued her marriage.
Brynn just wasn’t ready.
She may never be.
There was no doubt.
She was in shock.
Once downstairs, Emma and Brynn found the ME elbow deep in the dead woman. Immediately, Brynn wanted to throw up. Although this was her typical morgue reaction, the booze wasn’t helping the situation out. “Oh my God. I’m never drinking again,” she muttered.
Steele was with her there. He’d made that same exact vow himself as he was doing the Y-incision.
“What can you tell me, Doctor?” Emma asked, while her partner stayed across the room by the garbage can.
“I was right about the strangulation. Her hyoid is fractured. I can now see some handprints appearing around her throat. I’d say he was enthusiastically choking the life out of her.”
They knew the woman liked church sex, but maybe the man liked watching his victims asphyxiate. This was all one big sexified mess, any way you looked at it.
“We also found semen. He wasn’t bagged up, and the swimmers are alive and healthy.”
She snorted. “Yeah, for a crazed killer, that’s likely screwed up DNA.”
He agreed. “We already sent it off to the FBI lab, since they can get the results faster.”
When he dropped the woman’s heart on the scale, Brynn nearly gagged. That’s just about how she was feeling.
“Thank you, Doctor.”
“If I find anything else out, I’ll call you. Right now, tox won’t be in any time soon. I think I also have the results of the other victims. It came yesterday. I’ll scan it and send it when I’m done.”
She appreciated it. “No problem. We’re going out in the field.”
Steele glanced up. “Alone?”
Emma wanted to laugh. Now, she had her brother-in-law’s boyfriend worried about her too.
“I have Brynn. Technically, I’m not alone.”
They both looked over at her as she tried not to puke. Neither had to say what they were thinking. It was evident.
“I’ll be safe,” she reassured.
Heading out the door, she couldn’t help but wonder. “You’re beyond hung over. Did you and Curtis break up?” she asked, hoping they wouldn’t be distracted.
“Worse.”
“What?”
“I did something that I think may be bad,” Brynn confided.
Oh boy…
* * *
While he may not still be a probee, there was no way in hell Croft was relinquishing control of the wheel. Curtis could sit in the passenger seat and bitch all he wanted.
Only, he wasn’t.
It was just too damn odd.
“Okay, what’s wrong? You’re quiet, miserable, and not yourself. Please tell me that you two didn't break up.”
“No.”
“Is she pregnant?” he asked, just like a father would. In fact, he thought that way about the man beside him. Where it started as a joke, Croft knew he’d never have kids of his own, so this was as close as they were going to get.
He loved Curtis, and hurt when he did.
“No. It’s worse.”
Croft pulled off into a parking lot and faced the man. “You realize that you can tell me anything, right?”
Curtis nodded like a forlorn child. “We went out and partied pretty hard. We were hitting the booze like there was no tomorrow, not even thinking about the consequences.”
It wasn’t as if Croft was surprised. The man beside him was a boy still.
“Then I woke up and found this.”
Pulling the paper out of his pocket, he handed it to the man he loved and respected. This was the guy he wanted to be like, and now he was praying that he’d help him navigate this mess.
Anything would help.
Greyson opened the paper and recognized it immediately, since he’d been married in Vegas too.
“Curtis, you got married?” he inquired, glancing over.
He held out his hand and it was shaking. “Apparently, Vegas, partying, and two single people are a bad idea.”
It wasn’t as if this would be the first time that happened. This city was notorious for things like that. Tourists came, drank, and partied themselves, if they were lucky and it wasn’t death, into marriage.
“What do I do? I’m young!”
“Son, this isn't something I can tell you how to solve. This is one of those situations that have to occur between you and the girl involved.”
“Brynn and I just started fixing our relationship. We agreed to move slow, and this isn't moving slow. This is…”
“Crazy?”
He nodded.
“I'm not even thirty yet.”
This had to be a first. Greyson Croft was speechless. He didn't see this one coming.
“I have so many emotions right now,” Curtis admitted.
He was mad.
Confused.
Scared.
And even happy.
Croft could hear the pain. “You love her, don’t you?” he asked, hoping to help the man navigate this mess. If he didn’t, what kind of friend would he be?
“With all my heart. I’m mad that we did something so stupid, confused on how to fix it, and scared. I don’t have anyone who loves me. I just want to have someone to call my own. If she tells me she wants a divorce, or wants an annulment, what do I do? I don’t want to be another mistake…” He let it drop off there.
Greyson knew this had the potential to break the man beside him. If by chance Brynn pulled the plug on this impromptu marriage, Curtis would be hurt.
“My mom left me. I don’t know my own father, and my grandmother won’t live forever. I’m so alone.”
“Hey! You’re not alone. Who am I? Or Emma? I call you my son for a reason, Curtis. You’re my family. We may not be blood, but I will always love you as one of my own. I may not have had you, or been born from the same mother, but you’re part of me.”
Curtis appreciated his words. Nothing made him calmer than to hear that someone had his back.
“What would you do?”
Croft d
idn't even have to ponder his answer. He was well aware of what he’d do. “I’d fight until my dying breath if I knew I loved her.”
He thought about his Emma.
“Yep, I’d kill to have my wife.”
“What if she leaves me?” he asked.
Greyson pulled the car back on the road. They had an interview to take care of. “You chase her.”
“Is it really that easy, Grey?” Curtis asked, believing the man beside him.
“Son, it’s only as hard as you make it.”
* * *
At the apartment registered to Lidia Martinez, they checked out the area. It was a nice place, and definitely out of the price range for a dog walker, unless she was independently wealthy.
As Emma pulled the keys from the ignition of her vehicle, she couldn’t help but be wary.
Brynn wasn’t talking, and that was odd. After they left the morgue, she clammed up. Now, Emma could see she was edgy as hell.
Enough was enough.
If she was going into a strange situation, she needed her partner focused. If she got shot, Greyson would kill her. The man was at his max for surprises.
“Okay, tell me what’s wrong. We’re not getting out until you spill your guts. I will hurt you if you don’t just get it off your chest.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“Remember when I was having Greyson issues? You took me to lunch and threated to tell everyone around us that I liked to juggle fire while naked.”
She snorted. “Well, it worked.”
“Yeah, I’m telling you that you’re my friend and partner. We can’t go into that apartment with you distracted. So if you don’t tell me what’s going on, I’ll tell all our coworkers that you like having sex with midgets.”
Brynn opened and closed her mouth, unsure what to say.
“Spill it, Brynn.”
“I may have done something stupid, that’s all.”
“Did you and Curtis get matching tattoos?” she asked, teasing the woman.
“Worse.”
That didn't sound good.
“We got married.”
She had to have heard her wrong. “WHAT?”
Brynn grabbed a tissue and began telling her friend everything. From the shots, to the dancing, she left nothing out. It all flooded from her in a wave of pain and confusion. “I really screwed up.”
Heaven is Weeping (A Croft & Croft Romance Adventure Book 5) Page 24
