Slenderman Page 12
“I’ll tell them we’ll plan it after the first.” Then Rhys chuckled. “Wackadoos—”
She dug into his sides lightening the mood. “It’s your brother’s fault. He kept asking what nutjob had to do with guys’ nuts and I refuse to go back to GlenCare again. I swear I should tell the captain to add it into our jurisdiction as many times as I’ve had to go over there.”
“Because you kept cursing.”
Jo pressed a kiss to Rhys’s lips. “Well, thanks to the curse jar and the director of GlenCare I’m almost cured.”
His hands moved up her thighs and she slapped them. “Not on this moving rope of death. We are not getting frisky on it unless you want both of us to end up in traction.”
The gleam in his eyes made Jo giggle, and she launched from her perch, leaving him to scramble to stay on the wildly rocking hammock.
“I’ll get you for this, Rayburn!” he shouted at her retreating back.
“Good. I’ll be waiting.” Popping her head back out of the door that led to their master suite, she held her bra aloft and dropped it on the deck. “Naked.”
His eyes widened then narrowed, and she knew she would be in for it. Hurrying to the bed, she stumbled out of her clothes on the way. She had one knee on the mattress before she was grabbed from behind. Another giggle bubbled up and then she was tossed face up on the bed.
“Why Rhysian Harrison, are you naked in my bedroom?” Jo drawled her words and fluttered her eyelashes. Something she’d never have thought to do before meeting Rhys.
He held up her bra and underwear. “I was just following an interesting trail.”
Covering her face as it heated in embarrassment, she had never been this forward. But Rhys wouldn’t let her get away with hiding as he blanketed her body and nudged her arm aside. “I love you, hon. And I love playing with you.” He captured her lips, his tongue dueled with hers.
The giddy joy morphed into want and need. Emotions he drew effortlessly from her. He was her drug of choice. One she loved to indulge in as often as possible.
His arms caged her as he wove his fingers into her hair and tipped her head. Their ever-present spark flared to life and Jo arched. The golden pelt on his chest abraded her nipples and stomach. Dragging her foot up the outside of his leg, she nipped the bottom of his lip. His passion made her head spin. Everything about him called to her deepest desires.
Nips down the side of her neck drew a shiver. The bend of her shoulder a moan.
“One day, we’ll go fast and then take our time.” Open-mouthed kisses over her chest to her breast which he nibbled around before laving it. “I want to map every piece of you with my mouth, hands, and eyes. Find all those hidden spots. Maybe a few I can touch in public.” Rhys’s voice deepened and turned powerful and sensual as his moist breath puffed across her nipple, pulling a shudder from her. She wanted his mouth on her. Not teasing.
“Everything you do turns me on.” She trailed her fingers over the one spot she could touch in public that made him gasp. The spot at the nape of his neck hidden by his shoulder-length hair, but she’d found while cuddling with him on the sofa. “But there’s something to be said for slow too. How about we try on our honeymoon?”
His molten gaze met hers as he pressed their foreheads together. “That sounds like a plan.”
Before he could claim her lips again, she shook her head. “A promise.”
His eyes gleamed. “A promise.” His mouth devoured hers as his fingers delved into her wet heat.
Impatience rode both of them as they arched for the drawer. Fingers fumbled together and with a growl Rhys yanked open the nightstand drawer. A triumphant huff and the tear of a condom made her grind into him, and then he was filling her.
She wrapped her legs around him and met him thrust for thrust. His mouth sucked up a mark at the bend of her shoulder. She raked her nails lightly across the golden skin of his back, feeling a shiver of pleasure pass through his muscles.
By now they both knew each other’s hotspots. Knew how to wind the other up. The tight grasp of his hands as they cupped her rear and lifted her had her gasping when he hit the spot inside her designed strictly for him. Her nails dragging across his scalp elicited a deep moan.
Then she was over, pulling him with her. He fell to his back next to her. Both gasping for breath. She grinned, her head lolled to the side, and she combed her fingers through the hair on his chest. “Definitely promise to take our time on the honeymoon.”
He laughed as he rolled out of bed and headed into the bathroom. The muscles of his ass flexed. But it was the light scratches marking his back and rear that caused her smile to widen.
Before Rhys, she’d never had a lover who played in bed, nor one who enjoyed exploring her. It was all wham bam, roll over and sleep while most times she was left empty and wanting. With him, it was heat, want, and sometimes laughter. But most of all every touch, breath, and whisper spoke of love. This new life they were building would have to be pried from her cold dead fingers before Jo would ever give it up.
Chapter 10
The garage rolled shut behind her Mustang as Jo stepped from it and headed into the house. Going to her office to see if Redden or Ian had found anything, Jo waved to Marta who was stirring something in a large pot. The scent of basil, oregano, and tomato sauce wound around her, and she almost bounced on her toes the way Rian did when excited. “Spaghetti?”
“Yep.” Marta dipped a spoon into the homemade sauce and tasted it.
“How long?”
“An hour.”
Jo’s stomach grumbled as if protesting the wait. Grinning, she tossed a wave to Marta and resumed the trek to her office. The list Evan gave them had been sent to Ian’s contact at Scotland Yard over two weeks ago and was supposed to have an update tonight. With the game based in England, he had a better shot of gaining the information with his contact than Jo or Redden did.
Redden was busy clicking away on his laptop. “I’m glad you’re here. I was about to send you an email.”
Jo frowned and tossed her purse onto the couch. “Why?”
“I’m needed in Texas. Our guy hit Rottensteer—”
“Rottensteer? But you talked with him and his family.” She rubbed her pounding temple. There went her Saturday plans with Rhys’s partners. “I don’t think Captain Walker will let me—”
“Don’t worry about coming with us; Ian and I can handle it. And before you talk about jurisdiction, I’ve already reached a deal. The cases will stay in Alabama since you all have the highest death penalty conviction rate.”
Jo shook her head. “Texas puts them to death quicker though.”
“Well, we can argue that, but seeing as how you have three teenagers and this is the first death in Texas . . . ” Redden trailed off.
She wanted the case here. She wanted the man to pay here. Especially when she thought of all the tears Mark’s, Zach’s, and Amy’s parents had shed when Jo and Sullivan had broken the news to them. “Okay.”
“Coupled with Georgia and Tennessee, there are five in this area alone. But I’m going to need to make sure there’s not a copycat now that the news has gotten ahold of some of it. Though they’ve not pieced everything together yet.”
“I saw they had questions about the Michigan man’s death and how it mirrored the one in Tennessee. Let’s hope they don’t dig up more. I hate having my every move scrutinized on the news’s timeline instead of our timeline.” Not that their timeline had moved much. “Rottensteer makes thirteen that were guesting in Rian’s group after leaving.”
“It seems it’s the common thread.” Redden dragged a hand through his hair, causing it to stand on end before he patted it back into place. “Ian’s going with me. We plan to be back by the end of next week.”
“Next week? It’s Tuesday—”
&nb
sp; “It’s also Halloween this Friday, and I want to be with my wife and son when they go out trick-or-treating. I also need to check in at the office. Ian will hang around in Texas if the case isn’t a copycat and they come across something that’ll help. With the loose connection to Legends of Stone, I don’t expect a copycat.”
“Me neither. I’ll see you both next week.” Jo hadn’t been able to dig into the case like she wanted between her promotion, planning her wedding, and her never-ending caseload. She needed more time to focus wholly on this case. With the international element, it was hard connecting with people across many time zones which was where Ian came in handy and why he slept most of the day.
But Jo had the next four days off and she, Sullivan, Karma, and Maker were delving into this. They had the list of dealers who made pugiones. She had a meeting set up this weekend at a Halloween party most of her family was attending along with Kyle and Kyle’s Legends of Stone contact. The thirty pieces of silver aspect had been of no help. They’d hoped the other countries might have an easier time tracking the money, but it was all generic coins in shiny silver. And the killer used the lowest denomination they could. In the US it was nickels; in Norway, it was the one krone; in England, it was the five pence piece and so on. As if the victim deserved nothing more.
Redden snapped his laptop closed and turned at the door. “By the way, Ian’s contact came through so you’ll have a list of each person’s movements from my office, and the identities of the potential international victims with their movements too. Which Ian said if you can separate those for him, he’ll send it to Interpol so they can give it to law enforcement in the relevant countries.”
Jo frowned. “Way to bury the lead.”
“It still needs to be sorted. If we can figure out their activity, maybe we can figure out who in the clan is killing them or at least whittle down the three hundred names. The company is willing to help, but they won’t fork over everything due to privacy.”
“Okay. We’ve got the team working on this for the next four days. So we’ll get the list torn apart first, and then we’ll home in on their schedules to see if anything pops. Rottensteer’s the latest victim so he’ll have the most current schedule.”
“Good idea. I’ll email that to you all, and you send me the list as soon as you have it.”
“Will do. Have a safe trip.”
Redden waved as he left.
Jo pulled up her emails and shot a quick text to Karma, Maker, and Sullivan requesting an all-nighter with the promise of Marta’s spaghetti. Before she started on her new set of tasks, Jo jogged to the kitchen. “We’ve got company coming tonight.”
Marta hummed. “Should be plenty-I made extra so you could have meals the next few days.”
She groaned. Of course she’d have to give up her leftovers, but if they could dig out a nugget that would put them on Slenderman’s trail, she was more than happy to pay with spaghetti. Hopefully four days would give them plenty of time to explore the new leads.
~ ~ ~
The office Rhys set up was more comfortable and spacious than the den of Jo’s old apartment. Empty pizza boxes littered her desk. There wasn’t a need for Marta to cook for them every night when they could order in. Lisa kept Rian and Evan busy with their moving plans while Jo worked.
Karma’s fingers clicked across the keys of her laptop at the yellow table to Jo’s right while Sullivan and Maker’s deep voices overlapped each other on her left. The knitting needles clicked as Jo’s fingers wove a hat for Rian to match his scarf. Her overstuffed easy chair cradled her while she dissected each piece of their case spread across the whiteboard.
“Still no luck finding anyone who’s made the dagger,” Sullivan said, leaving the desk and slumping on the couch next to Jo’s chair. “We have three crafters that state they can make one but have never received orders for them.”
“I don’t see how he could buy the dagger everywhere he went. It’s too specific, and he moves around too much.” Maker joined Sullivan on the couch, both looking at the board.
The victim in Tennessee kept drawing Jo’s attention. Something about the date the victim died niggled at her. Giving up, she faced Sullivan. “What were we doing September thirteenth?”
Sullivan released a long, drawn-out groan. “I was suffering through a convention about superheroes or whatever they’re called with Arabelle, Elle, Rhys, and Rian while you appeared in court for sentencing on a case.”
Jo remembered the case; it was when Sullivan had been on vacation, and she’d arrested a mid-level drug dealer who’d tried to kill his girlfriend. The drug dealer had pleaded guilty since all of it had been caught on film and uploaded to a video sharing site. Jo had only needed to appear in court, which sucked since she hated going to hearings but also rocked since she didn’t have to go listen to days of sci-fi and fantasy talks at the convention. The date and event clicked, and Jo grinned.
Now she was glad one of them had attended. “They dress up at those things, right?”
“Don’t remind me. Some of those people should not be wearing spandex ever. Why?”
Sullivan knew her. Knew she wouldn’t be asking while they were focused on the case. “Is there a way to find out if the Legends of Stone game was represented there?”
“Oh, that wouldn’t have mattered. People came dressed up in . . . ” Sullivan’s eyes widened as he caught up to her train of thought. “Holy shit.”
Karma turned in her chair. “I don’t get it.”
“Some of the costumes are brought in instead of purchased. Most are made.”
“Holy shit,” Maker chimed in using Sullivan’s favorite saying. “The killer brought the dagger—”
“I think the killer brought an entire costume, including the dagger, and attended the event.”
Karma’s fingers flew across the keyboard. “You’re on to something. There was another convention in Michigan when that victim was killed, and one in Canada.”
“He’s not buying the dagger, he’s bringing the weapon the same way he would on a quest.” Jo pointed to Karma. “I can see him flying from Michigan to Tennessee and then killing in Alabama and Georgia since he could drive, he wouldn’t need the cover of a convention. But the list you’ve been sorting. Were there any people in Mississippi or New Orleans?”
“No. So he flew from here to Texas?” Sullivan asked.
Karma clicked a few keys. “Maybe. There were two conventions, one in Dallas and one in Houston, so he could have flown.”
Maker stood and headed for the hall. “I’m calling Redden and Ian to see if they can talk to the agents that check those bags. Someone might remember a costume and dagger.”
“Sullivan, you need to get out of here.” Jo pointed to the door with her needles.
“Why?”
“Because you’ve got to get Arabelle ready for her trick-or-treat night with Elle, Rhys, Rian, and Evan. Then meet me at the address I gave you.”
“I don’t want to go to a Halloween party, Jo. I want to take my daughter and girlfriend trick-or-treating.”
Karma chuckled. “I’m glad Maker and I only have to hand out candy here, and now dig into international conventions to see if Jo’s lead holds up.”
Jo flipped Karma off while narrowing her eyes on Sullivan. “We won’t be long since we’re picking Kyle up at the party and I want to go trick-or-treating with Rhys and Rian. Kyle’s friend is nervous about being seen in public with cops.”
“I swear we always get the weirdos to question,” Sullivan muttered as he left.
“And don’t worry about a costume.”
“I wasn’t going to worry about one since I’m not dressing up as anything but a cop.” He shouted down the hallway.
Jo chuckled as she put up her knitting in the chest nestled between the chair and the couch.
“Arabelle’s dressing him up as a skeleton to fit in with her and Elle’s costumes.”
Karma and Maker laughed. Maker pointed at her. “Get pictures.”
“Of course.” Like Jo would ever pass up an opportunity for more blackmail fodder on her partner. She pushed up from the chair and stretched.
“You sure you two don’t need backup?” Karma asked.
“Nah, I checked up on the kid we’re meeting. Basic possession of marijuana and one loitering charges. Besides, he looks like this.” Jo flipped her phone around to show Karma the scrawny teenager that looked like he’d never seen the sun.
“Yeah, you two have this.”
“If the convention lead pans out, we should see if those venues have video surveillance—”
“We don’t have a face to match it to.”
“Not yet, but I can feel we’re closing in on him. Between the dagger, three hundred names and fifty potential victims. Now with the conventions . . . I have a lot of questions for Kyle’s friend. If he has the answers, we’ll catch the asshole.”
“Good luck,” Karma called while Jo left to get ready for tonight.
~ ~ ~
Jo frowned when her cell belted out the Don’t Worry Be Happy tune she’d chosen for Carl after her mother gave him that atrocious singing fish for a gag gift. “Dad?”
“Jo, thank God,” he whispered over the line. “Are you on your way to the Halloween party?”
“Yes, I just took the exit, so I’m about fifteen minutes out.” She pulled to a stop at the red light. “Why? Do you need me to pick up something?”
“No, I need you to run by our house first,” he continued to whisper.
“Dad, why’re you whispering?” She turned onto the main drag and then made the turn that would take her to her parents’ house.
“Because I don’t want the neighbors coming over.”