Exposed fury, p.1
Exposed Fury, page 1
EXPOSED FURY
Marie Flanigan
Exposed Fury
Red Adept Publishing, LLC
104 Bugenfield Court
Garner, NC 27529
http://RedAdeptPublishing.com/
Copyright © 2018 by Marie Flanigan. All rights reserved.
First Print Edition: July 2018
Cover Art by Streetlight Graphics
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to locales, events, business establishments, or actual persons—living or dead—is entirely coincidental.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
CHAPTER ONE | Mid-December, Friday
CHAPTER TWO | Friday Morning
CHAPTER THREE | Friday Afternoon
CHAPTER FOUR | Friday Evening
CHAPTER FIVE | Friday Night
CHAPTER SIX | Saturday Morning
CHAPTER SEVEN | Saturday Afternoon
CHAPTER EIGHT | Sunday into Monday
CHAPTER NINE | Monday Evening
CHAPTER TEN | Tuesday Morning
CHAPTER ELEVEN | Tuesday Afternoon
CHAPTER TWELVE | Tuesday Evening
CHAPTER THIRTEEN | Wednesday Morning
CHAPTER FOURTEEN | Wednesday Afternoon
CHAPTER FIFTEEN | Wednesday Night
CHAPTER SIXTEEN | Thursday
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN | Friday
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN | Friday Night
CHAPTER NINETEEN | Saturday
CHAPTER TWENTY | Saturday Afternoon
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE | Late Saturday Afternoon
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO | Saturday Evening
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE | Sunday Morning
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR | Two Days before Christmas, Late Morning
Acknowledgements
For my husband, Colin Flanigan, without whom none of this would be possible.
CHAPTER ONE
Mid-December, Friday
If not for Chester, Annie wouldn’t have noticed the body. A cold wind was stirring when Chester started to bark. Annie tried to keep her footing on the icy pavement as her little white dog strained at his leash, fixated on one of the businesses backed up to the alley. A leg was awkwardly draped over a low brick wall around the back patio as though someone were attempting to climb it, but the leg was covered in snow.
Annie had been enjoying their early-morning walk despite the weather. What had started out as a brief ice storm late last night had then dumped four inches of snow. It was still coming down, giving the historic district of Leesburg, Virginia, a Currier-and-Ives feel, especially with Christmas wreaths on the doors of the shops and candles in many of the windows.
But at the sight of the body, all Annie’s winter-wonderland delight fell away. She went into cop mode, picking up Chester and stepping in for a closer look.
The man was facedown with drifting snow covering his upper body. Without thinking, Annie pulled out her cell phone and called her old partner.
“Annie?” Gunnar sounded surprised to be hearing from her. They hadn’t talked in a while.
“Hey, Gunnar, sorry to be calling so early, but I was walking my dog, and we found a dead man in the alley next to the town garage.”
“What? Did you call it in?” His voice was deep and rough, as though she’d woken him.
“I called you.” She regretted it the moment she said it.
“Annie...” He said in a nurturing tone.
It annoyed her. “I know. I’ll call nine one one.” She used her cop voice, wanting him to know that she wasn’t fragile and could handle the situation.
Gunnar responded in kind. “What’s it look like?”
“Not sure. He’s a big guy, but he’s covered in snow. Can you get over here?”
“I’m on my way.”
Annie hung up, called 911, and gave the dispatcher the same information she’d given Gunnar. Still holding a squirming Chester, she looked at the body again. The wind had blown some of the snow off his leg to reveal charcoal-gray dress pants, nice socks, and expensive-looking black leather shoes. She looked all around the broad alley, which stretched the block from Loudoun Street to West Market. A pristine blanket of snow covered the whole area. The only footprints were hers and Chester’s. She carefully retraced her steps, but balancing on the slick pavement wasn’t easy. The back entrance to Leesburg Beer Company was filled with blown snow, and the outdoor seating area behind King’s Court Tavern was shuttered for the winter. Nothing looked amiss. The shops and restaurants weren’t open yet, and everything was still beneath the blanket of white. She took the steps up to the parking garage’s ground floor and stood just inside, out of the wind.
She kept Chester in her arms as he licked her chin and she rubbed his head. As a cop, she’d witnessed her fair share of bodies, but this was the first one she’d seen since leaving the force—and the only one so close to her own home. Standing in the empty alley with the body left her with a vague sense of unease. The wind picked up, swirling through the garage entrance, and Annie felt the cold through her heavy woolen peacoat. Stuffing her free hand deeper into her pocket, she wished she’d worn her heavier knit cap. The long scar above her right ear was starting to ache. She rubbed it and wished Gunnar would hurry.
A town police car slowly pulled into the alley. The emergency lights on top of the cruiser were on, but the siren wasn’t, which Annie considered a small mercy, given her current sensitivity to loud sounds. The officer parked diagonally, blocking the alley, then got out of the car. Annie stepped out of the garage to see who’d caught the call and recognized Officer Mike Hartt.
He smiled. “Detective.”
“It’s just Annie now, Mike,” she said, smiling back but feeling a little twinge at the change in her status.
“Oh right. Sorry. I’m never going to get used to that.” Mike had been on the force for only a few years when Annie left, but he’d been one of her students at the academy.
“It’s fine,” Annie said. She’d had a little trouble getting used to it herself.
“Dispatch said you found a body.”
Annie pointed toward the wall. “See the leg?”
“Yeah. What do you think? Accident?”
Annie shrugged. “I’m guessing he fell. It was really icy last night. Can’t be sure, though. He’s covered in snow, and I didn’t want to disturb anything.”
She wouldn’t have wanted to work the scene. Snow was a mess—not as bad as rain, but trace evidence was still hard to locate.
Mike got out his notepad. “When did you find him?”
“Just a few minutes ago. You’ll see my tracks and my dog’s. I didn’t see any others.”
He walked over to look at the body, careful to step in Annie’s tracks. He cordoned off the area with yellow police tape and took photos of the scene.
Gunnar’s unmarked car pulled into the alley a few minutes later. Annie watched as her former partner got out of his car like a Viking in a suit. He spoke to Mike. At six feet eight, Detective Gunnar Jansson dwarfed the other officer. Annie smiled. She’d missed the big man. He pulled on latex gloves and checked the man’s pockets for identification. While she waited for him to come talk to her, two more patrol cars arrived in the alley.
Annie tried to figure out which shop owned the patio where the body was. It didn’t belong to any of the restaurants. She counted from the corner vintner and ruled out the jewelry store and the spa. The property had to be Susan’s Sundries, which had opened in the fall.
“Hey,” Gunnar said, walking up to her. “How are you doing?”
“Aside from finding him”—she nodded toward the dead man—“I’m okay. Freezing but okay. I have an appointment in a little while, though. I need to get going.” She pressed at the scar, which continued aching in the cold wind.
Gunnar nodded. “Sure, sure. I appreciate you waiting. You want to tell me what happened?”
Other police vehicles arrived behind him.
“There’s not much to tell,” Annie said. “I was walking my dog, and he noticed the body and started barking.”
Gunnar held his hand out to Chester.
“He’s missing an eye,” Gunnar said.
Annie nodded. “I always said you were a great detective.”
Gunnar snorted.
“He was like that when I found him,” she said.
Being on this side of an interview with Gunnar was strange. The Leesburg Police Department didn’t officially partner up their detectives, but people sort of gravitated toward each other, and Annie had usually worked with Gunnar.
“I don’t suppose you walked him last night and noticed anything suspicious going on in the alley?” Gunnar asked.
“No. I don’t walk him this way at night. This is our morning route.”
“My old lab would be jealous,” Gunnar said. “She’s lucky if she gets walked a couple times a week.”
Annie remembered how fat Gunnar’s lab was. “It’s good for both of us.”
Gunnar smiled. “I can see that. You look great, Annie.”
“Thanks.”
She wished she could say the same o
While they were talking, Bernie Smith, the crime-scene tech, arrived. She knelt over the body and had Mike assist her in rolling the poor guy over. Annie couldn’t see his face from where she was standing. The man was on his back with his hands frozen palms up. She thought he looked like Han Solo frozen in carbonite in The Empire Strikes Back.
A few minutes later, Bernie walked toward them. She pushed an errant hair off her forehead, which was too tan for this time of year. Looking around, she noted with disgust, “I hate snow.” She exchanged hellos with Annie.
“What have we got, Bernie?” Gunnar asked, ignoring the snow comment. Like most Vikings, he enjoyed the cold.
“Not much. Did you check for a wallet?”
“Yeah, I didn’t find any.”
Bernie frowned. “Me either. No cell phone or keys?”
Gunnar shook his head. “What’s a grown man doing walking around downtown without a wallet or car keys?”
“Was he mugged?” Annie asked.
“Too soon to tell,” Bernie answered.
“Any idea what killed him?” Gunnar asked Bernie.
“Nothing definitive. There’s a blow to the back of the head, but it’s hard to tell out here if he got it falling or if someone hit him.”
Annie had a sinking feeling in her gut, but she shook it off—not her problem.
“If he fell, then he was awake enough to roll over and get his hands under him.”
“And then what? He passed out?” Gunnar asked.
“Maybe. The medical examiner might be able to tell. In the meantime, I think we have to treat this as a crime rather than an accident.”
“Great,” Gunnar said grimly.
“What time did it start snowing?” Bernie asked. “That’ll help with time of death.”
“I took Chester out at eleven thirty, and it was sleeting,” Annie said.
A couple guys from a local funeral parlor unrolled a black cadaver bag. They would be transporting the body to the medical examiner’s office in Manassas.
“I’ll let you know what I find,” Bernie said. She left them to coordinate the removal of the body.
Annie turned to Gunnar. “Is there anything else you need from me?”
“Not right now,” he said gently as he touched her forearm. “It’s good to see you up and around though, like your old self.” The sympathy in his voice cut through her. He didn’t mean it as pity, but it felt like that anyway.
Annie smiled. She’d really missed him. She’d really missed all of this. “It’s good to see you too. Good luck with your case.”
Gunnar nodded. “Thanks.”
Then they just looked at each other for a long moment before Annie headed back to her apartment. Walking away from him was hard when an active investigation was going on, but she had to. This wasn’t her life anymore.
CHAPTER TWO
Friday Morning
The snow was starting to let up, but the wind was blowing even harder as Annie stepped out of the shelter of the alley. She pulled her cap down over her ears and hurried home with Chester trotting alongside. Despite her best efforts, the walk was slow going. Standing around in the cold had stiffened her right leg, which made walking in the snow harder. When she took out her keys to open the door, she realized it was already unlocked. She hesitated, but Chester didn’t. He nosed his way in, barking. Annie followed to find Ford sitting on her couch, trying to keep Chester from knocking over his coffee. The terrier was wiggling in his lap, trying to lick his face.
“Okay, okay,” Annie said, making Chester get down. She smiled at Ford and hung her coat on the tall rack by the door. “You’re back.”
“Yep,” he said, standing. He wrapped his arms around her, and she pressed her face against his broad chest, breathing him in.
“Three weeks is too long.” Having his arms around her again was good.
He kissed the top of her head. “Sorry. I didn’t really get a choice in the matter.”
“I know. What time did you get in?”
“Late. Or, I should say, really early. About two o’clock this morning. I didn’t want to wake you, so I stayed at my place.”
Annie looked up at him. “I appreciate the courtesy.” She slipped out of his arms and went to get herself a cup of coffee in her apartment’s tiny kitchen. “How was Afghanistan?”
Ford snorted. “You’re hilarious.” He stretched. His dark hair was getting long. He usually didn’t like it covering his ears or touching his shirt collar, but it was doing both, and he hadn’t shaved for a while, possibly the whole time he was gone. His beard was full and thick.
She looked at him and smiled innocently. “What?”
“Do you really think I’ll slip and tell you where I’ve been?” He folded his arms over his chest and arched an eyebrow at her.
“It could happen,” she said, picking up the coffee pot.
“No, it couldn’t.”
“So says you. Can I top off your coffee?”
“Please.” He held out his cup. “Are you doing okay? How are you feeling?”
“I’m good,” Annie said, filling his cup.
“Really? Because you’re rubbing your scar and limping.”
Annie realized she was rubbing at the scar on her head and let her hand drop down to her side. “It’s cold outside. I got a little achy and stiff. No big deal.”
“If you say so,” he said, his brow furrowed with concern.
She knew she should appreciate the concern. She knew it came from a good place, but it irritated her. “So, they don’t have barbers where you were?” Annie said, changing the subject. “They don’t sell razors?”
He smiled and rubbed his chin. “I’m trying a new look. You don’t like it?”
“I like it fine. It’s just different.” She didn’t like it, but Annie wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of saying so.
She hated his job. Like so many people in Northern Virginia, Ford was an information worker who couldn’t discuss the nature of his business. She never knew where he was or what he was doing. He was very hush-hush-Secret-Squirrel, which irritated her, especially since his new look probably had more to do with work than it did with any interest in men’s fashion.
“You know what?” he said, leaning over the bar and taking her hand. “Don’t pour your coffee. Let’s go over to the diner and get breakfast. My treat. I’m starving.”
She didn’t really feel like going back out in the cold, but if she said so, that would revive the conversation about her injuries. The restaurant was a short walk, which would give her a chance to get another peek at the investigation.
“Yeah, okay.” She pulled her coat back on, but this time, she wrapped her neck with a heavy scarf her friend Celia had made, and she put on her woolen hat that had earflaps and a fleece lining.
“You be a good boy,” she told Chester before they stepped outside.
THEY walked down Loudoun Street past the alley on the way to the restaurant. The police were still working the scene. Rotating red and blue lights were reflecting off the snow, making it look as though a lot more cop cars were there than actually were. Still, most of the department was probably in the alley and the town garage. Even the mere possibility of a murder in Leesburg would mean all hands on deck. Gunnar would be having everyone go over the scene with a fine-tooth comb—not an easy task in the snow and ice—on the off chance that the guy hadn’t just fallen.
“I wonder what’s going on over there,” Ford said, stopping to look.
“Chester and I found a body this morning,” Annie said, trying to keep the excitement out of her voice.
“What?” Ford said, whipping around to gape at her. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“It didn’t come up. I was just happy to see you.”
“Jesus Christ, Annie!” Ford looked exasperated. “What the hell?”
Annie held up her palms. “I know, I know. I’m sorry. I should have said something.”
