Devious crime, p.1
Devious Crime, page 1
part #4 of Hangman Series
Devious Crime
Hangman #4
WL Knightly
BrixBaxter Publishing
Contents
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Description
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
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Description
Now that the Hangman’s list of potentials is dwindling to two names, Detective Jake Thomas realizes that his partner, Detective Jo Callaway is facing a conflict of interest that should take her off the case.
With her father and brother on the chopping block, time is running out for both of them, and Jake knows he’ll have no choice but to help the two men he despises most.
While she fights to stay aboard, Jo will make decisions that shake her faith and test her integrity, but will it help or hinder the Hangman’s mission?
With the duo still searching for the Hangman, Jake will make a move to the Rockford to find Missy, but will his plan work, or will the Hangman find him first?
Chapter 1
Jake
“I still can’t believe this has happened,” said Jo.
Jake looked over at the girl of his dreams, the one he wasn’t fucking and the one who had turned him away at every chance, and he had to agree. The scene they’d been in for the past several hours of their night, which then bled into the early morning, was the kind of shit nightmares were made of.
If you could sleep at all.
“Yeah, the bastard would be alive if he’d only answered his calls,” Jake said.
“Are you going home?” asked Jo as she stopped in front of her car. “I think I’m going to get something to eat and grab a power nap at the office.”
He’d be lucky to get a weak nap, much less a power nap. But food was something he could use. “Meet me at Speed’s, and we’ll talk about this case over coffee?”
“Sounds good. I’ll show you the photos I took.” She stretched her arms over her head, and Jake tried to look away from her perfect body or the way her perky tits had become even perkier with the raising of her arms. He reminded himself that he had no right to look at her that way anymore.
“Meet you there.” He walked past her, went to his own car, and soon had it started. He decided to wait for her to get in, buckle up, and start her engine. Then he drove to Speed’s without looking back or waiting. She’ll find her way.
But strangely, as the words came to mind, it wasn’t Speed’s he was referring to. After what had happened between them, the way she’d shown up to his house to find him completely naked and waiting on another woman, had made him realize his habit of fucking things up. Maybe she would be better off on her own. He’d done more than show her the ropes, but his ego was all that was keeping him around now.
It was hard to feed your ego when you were caught with your pants down. Maybe it was time to leave, case solved or not?
But as long as it took him to wallow in the self-pity of that revelation, it took even less to see the other side of things. “Fuck leaving. I’m not a goddamned quitter.” He mumbled the words as he slowed the car and turned into Speed’s lot to find a parking space, and at five a.m., there were plenty open.
Jo had kept up the pace and was right behind him when he opened the door and stepped aside. “Ladies first.”
“Thanks,” she said as she dragged by. Ruth Anne stood across the room filling the napkin dispensers, and when she looked up, her eyes showed Jake just how exhausted they must have looked.
“Oh, my,” she said, stopping her task to come around the counter with the pot of hot coffee and two clean, white mugs. “You two look like you’ve pulled a late one. Is this about that incident over at the Prestons’?”
“How did you know about that?” asked Jo, taking a seat in their usual booth.
“Honey, I hear everything. People have big mouths, I have a police scanner, and not only that, but Facebook was blowing up about it.”
“I don’t know why I’m surprised,” she said with a shrug as she leaned into the table like she was going to collapse on it.
Jake sat down and eased back as Ruth Anne poured them each a hot cup. “Thank you, Ruth Anne.”
“You’re most welcome. Are you two eating?”
Jake nodded, and it felt as if it were easier than speaking. He was too tired to move his mouth. Maybe if he were lucky, Ruth Anne would blend the food up and serve it with a straw.
“Yes,” said Jo, speaking for them both. “I’ll have the waffle stack with peaches and cream.”
“Usual,” he muttered. He brought the coffee to his lips and sipped the hot, bitter brew. Rich and delicious, he knew it needed something more, something he only did when he needed a boost of energy. He grabbed the sugar and poured it in.
Ruth Anne’s eyes got bigger. “You must have had a tough one. I’ll hurry the order before you drink yourself into a sugar coma.” With that, she hurried away.
“Hitting the hard stuff, I see.” Jo took the sugar when he was done and put a reasonable amount in hers. “You know you’re just going to crash from that sugar buzz later.”
“I don’t need a mother, so why don’t you just show me what you got?”
She eased back against the booth. “If I’d known how charming you’d be, I’d have gone somewhere else.” She took out her phone and placed it in front of him with the photos she’d taken ready to be examined.
Jake found the one with the cigar on the floor. “This. This is the one I want to look at.”
“The cigar? You think it’s significant?”
“I think it makes me curious. Who smoked it?”
“Preston, obviously. The Hangman took it and snuffed it out on his forehead.”
“The end of that thing looks like it was chewed to shit. Look at the teeth marks. I know we know who is committing these crimes, but this is our definite link.”
“You think that the Hangman took a puff before snubbing it out.”
“I think he smoked the whole damned thing. But regardless, I want it tested. If we can match the DNA to the known samples we got from the items in his house, then that’s just more solid proof and less of a chance that he could walk.” Knowing who did it and proving it were two different things, and they still had to process their evidence and make sure that everything was airtight.
“So, he smokes the man’s cigar and snuffs it out on his face. Who knew he was such a charmer?” Her sarcastic tone wasn’t missed, but Jake was more concerned with the fact that they had no idea where he was hiding out.
“We have to get to him,” she said as she brought her coffee to her lips and blew into the steamy cup.
He knew exactly what their next step had to be. “We have a lot of people to find. Including your brother and father. Any word?”
“Not yet. I’ll try again. I’ve been a little busy with the case.” He didn’t miss how she snapped out at him.”
“And I wasn’t kidding about the Rockford. With the lead Sam gave us, we’re going to have to go there to find Missy.”
“I’m up for it,” she said. “But she isn’t going to tell us anything. If she even knows, she probably won’t rat him out.”
“Then we follow her. Someone is helping him. He’s getting food and shelter. He could be sleeping on her couch for all we know.”
She gave a weary smile. “Let’s hope it’s that easy.”
“I doubt it too, but the letters show me he thinks he’s in control. He needs to be shaken up a bit.”
“I’m not sure it’s a smart idea to poke the bear. The letters show he thinks you two are buddies, but I wouldn’t let my guard down.” She rolled her eyes and then looked over as Ruth Anne came out of the kitchen with more coffee for Jake. She topped him off, and he didn’t bother adding more sugar this time.
Jake saw things a different way. “The letters tell me he’s still in there. Madden, I mean.”
“But that’s precisely what he’s trying to tell you. That Kellen Madden is dead.”
“Yeah, which is exactly why I think it means the opposite, but he does think he’s in control, or he wouldn’t have the nerve to send the letters. And snuffing your cigar on someone’s forehead? Cocky move. Especially since he left it lying there like he couldn’t give a shit.”
“Double-minded,” she mumbled the words.
“Yes, and when we get Missy, we’re going to see the real Kellen Madden step from the shadows. He’s weaker. He’s the one we’re going to catch.”
“And what if she no longer works at the Rockford? We’re back to square one.”
“From the way Sam talked, he saw her there not long ago when he was with Dannie.” Why the two of them decided to go to the Rockford was beyond Jake. They each had their own home, but then again, there was a nice bar off the hotel lobby that offered live entertainment now and again, and the downstairs restaurant offered privacy that others couldn’t. Especially if you didn’t want to run into your coworkers.
“I think I should go in alone,” she said. “She might know you and see you coming. I don’t want her to run or have a jump on alerting him.”
“No way. I’m going. I’ve never seen the girl, and while she might know me, she won’t think much if we just walk up and ask for a room.”
“A room? I’m not getting a room with you. Maybe Dr. Meadows would like to get in on the action.” Her tone let him know that she wasn’t as okay with all that had happened as she’d let on back at the scene.
Ruth Anne came out with their waffles. She quietly placed the plates on the table and warned Jo that her peaches were still a bit too hot. Then she hurried away.
“Look,” Jake said. “I’m sorry about what happened, but I didn’t expect you to show up at my door.” He took his phone from his pocket and put it on the table as he checked the time.
“No, that’s your game, isn’t it? Showing up drunk, making me think you care.” Her tone was flat, and it bothered him that she couldn’t see how much he wanted her.
“I care,” he said.
She shook her head and held up a hand to stop him. “Don’t. I’m not going down this road. It doesn’t even fucking matter. You’re a grown man, free to see who you please, even if it is a big mistake.”
“A mistake?” He couldn’t believe she’d called him out.
She gave him a sideward look as she cut her waffle stack and stabbed a plump slice of peach. “Yeah, it’s a bad idea to fuck your shrink. That should be a no-brainer.” She popped the piece in her mouth and licked her lips.
He couldn’t even argue the point, but with his food sitting before him, all he wanted to do was stuff his face and his gut. “Let’s focus on eating, and then we’ll head down to the Rockford before work.” He had an idea, and while he wasn’t sure she would go for it, it made sense to him.
After taking a forkful of eggs, he cut into his stack as his phone vibrated on the table. He glanced over to see Leigh’s name light up on the screen.
“You should take that. She’s probably worried sick about, you considering you had to run off into the night with me.”
“She can wait.” He had to talk to Jo about something important, and the last thing he needed was a fight. Especially when the subject at hand would most likely start a war of its own.
“Now what kind of man makes a woman wait? Especially one who is so interested?” She stabbed another piece of food, and he wondered if she envisioned his face as the target.
He silenced the call and went back to eating.
“What’s your plan when we get to the Rockford?” he asked. “Good cop, bad cop?”
“You watch too many movies. Is that how you worked your way up? Police Academy reruns?”
“Funny. I’m just trying to end the otherwise awkward vibe we have.” He had a feeling she’d like their partnership to end now, and while she’d even suggested it, he had been adamant about finishing his job. He wasn’t a quitter. Besides, she might be the one leaving, and that was the problem. He just didn’t know how to break it to her.
She cleared her throat. “Are you going to tell me what we’re going to do or not?”
“I told you. We’re going to go to the Rockford and get a room.”
“You’re serious?” She pegged him with a hard stare as if he’d lost his mind. “And then what?”
“Talk. Sleep?” He shrugged. He knew if they both needed a nap, there was no sense in not using the room.
She looked at him like he was crazy. “You’re out of your mind, and I’ve already said I’m not getting a room with you, Jake.”
“Relax. It’s strictly business, and besides, what better way to watch her? If I am staying in the room for a few nights, I can monitor her comings and goings, get to know her, and then follow her.”
Jo shook her head. “We’ll stake her out in the parking lot and follow her home. It’s that easy.”
Jake swallowed a big lump of waffle that went down like a rock, sinking to the bottomless pit of his stomach. “Trust me. My way is better.” And at least with Jo in his room, he’d get some sleep.
Chapter 2
Jo
As they pulled up at the Rockford, she couldn’t believe that she’d let him talk her into going inside. The misty morning air filled her lungs as the sun broke over the horizon, but they still had another two hours before they had to be in at work, and Jake was determined to get the day started.
She parked across the lot and then got out as he walked over to her car. “Come on, let’s get inside before anyone sees us,” she said, striding toward the entrance. She had been inside the place once, but then she’d headed straight in and up to the room where they’d found Nina Kline hanging. She had been the Hangman’s only female victim so far, but she had also been on the forensics team and made critical evidence useless against Kyle Young.
My brother, Jo thought. My brother who I’ve never even met. The one who is in town.
She glanced around, wondering if he could be there. She walked through the rotating door and stepped into a blast from the past. The Rockford, with its red carpet and damask-patterned wallpaper, was like stepping back in time.
“This place is a bit outdated,” she said. “I didn’t notice how bad before.”
“Why fix something that isn’t broken? Besides, the Rockford is all about atmosphere.”
“If you want a sleazy hotel that’s reminiscent of an underground speakeasy, sure. And what makes it worse? My father told me he was staying here when he was in town.”
Jake chuckled. “I’m sure he didn’t think you knew its reputation, being new and all.”
They crossed the expanse of red and made their way to the front desk, which was a rich mahogany with marble panels on the front. The girl who stood behind the counter was dressed in a tight top with a black pencil skirt and had the whole slutty pin-up librarian look down to a tee, even though her hair was died an unnatural shade of red. She wasn’t Missy.
“How many I help you?” she asked through red-painted lips.
Jake looked around like he was expecting someone. “Is Missy around?” Jake made it sound like he was a friend, someone who was just passing by and wanted to say hello.
The girl smiled. “No, she’s not. But can I help you?” She looked Jo up and down, and Jo’s eyes widened when she licked her lips. She wondered what the girl meant by help. The suggestion was subtle, but her body language said a lot.
Jo wasn’t getting mixed up in any of it. “Thanks, but we’re leaving.” She grabbed Jake’s arm, but as she tried to step away, he put his hand on hers.
“Not so fast, dear.” He flashed her a wink and then turned back toward the girl, who seemed amused by Jo’s discomfort. “I need a room.”
Jo couldn’t believe he was going through with his stupid plan. “Maybe we should just go.”
Jake handed over his credit card, and it was too late.
“Thank you,” said the younger girl, who did the transaction. Her fingers glided over the keyboard, and then she handed him a receipt and his card key. “Just so you know, Missy won’t be in today, but she comes back tomorrow.”
She grabbed his arm tighter. “Jake. Let’s just go. She’s not even in.”
“No, I want to check the room out. Come on.” He tugged her hand, leading her away toward the elevators. “We have a lot to talk about.”
