The Heart Of A Killer Part 8

Nine.

Anna was frustrated. She updated her reports and got into her car, not wanting to spend the better part of her shift stuck in the precinct.

She drove past the alley, though she wasnat sure what she expected to find there. Nothing, which was exactly what she saw. It was empty.

She pulled over and got something to eat, then grabbed her phone, impulse punching Danteas number.

aAnna?a aYeah.a aWhatas up?a aDid I wake you?a She cringed, realizing not everyone kept night hours like she did.

aNo. Iam up.a Now what? Idiot. Why did he still twist her up inside and make her feel like a tongue-tied sixteen-year-old? aIaI want to talk to you. You busy? Youare probably going to bed soon arenat you?a She heard the soft chuckle. aNo. Iam up. Come over.a aOkay.a She hung up, feeling stupid and hot and sweaty. d.a.m.n him for getting to her that way.

She drove over and knocked on the door of the condo.

He answered, looking delectable in a pair of jeans and a well-worn gray T-shirt that snugged tight against his body. His hair looked mussed, like head run his fingers through it several times.

aAre you sure you werenat sleeping?a aIam sure I wasnat sleeping. Come in.a He closed the door after she walked in. The television was on, though turned down low. He had a laptop open on the dining room table.

aWorking?a aNot really,a he said, pushing it closed as he headed to the kitchen. aOnline games. Itas an addiction.a She laughed. aI guess itas good to have something to do to pa.s.s the time.a aYou want something to drink?a aWater, if you have it.a He pulled out a bottle of water for her and a soda for himself.

She felt ridiculously out of sorts standing in the middle of his living room, though this really wasnat his place, so she didnat understand her discomfort.

aDecent place.a aGabe scored it for me, and yeah, it beats the h.e.l.l out of a hotel.a She took a seat on the sofa, unable to take her eyes off him as he slid next to her. What was it about him that, even after twelve years and total abandonment, he could still capture her interest in a way that made her palms sweat and her heart beat faster?

It had to be the shadowy element. Shead been drawn to him when he was the bad boy, the kid with the rocky, brutal past. And now head swooped back into her life as mysterious as ever, possibly even mixed up in a murder investigation. She should be steering clear of him and focusing on him as a suspect. Instead, she was breathing in his musky male scent and wishing she had the guts to put down her water and climb onto his lap and do what shead fantasized about doing for the past twelve years.

She breathed in and out, her focus on the sun-bleached hairs on his arm and the broad muscle of his biceps. She hadnat even realized she was staring until her gaze reached his face and he was smiling down at her.

aLost in thought?a She leaned back and took a long swallow of water. aYeah.a aAbout the case.a aOf course.a From the smirk on his face, she could tell he knew d.a.m.n well what shead been thinking about. b.a.s.t.a.r.d.

aYou going to tell me why you came over?a Shead love to. If she actually knew what had compelled her to drive over here. aIam stuck.a aOn?a aThis case. But Romanas the one I should brainstorm with.a aHe around tonight?a aIam sure he is. I could call him.a aBut you didnat. You called me. So talk to me.a He made it sound so simple when everything was actually convoluted. Like being here in the first place.

aAnna, itas me. You can talk to me.a She shifted to face him. aYou want me to erase twelve years of aI donat know where the h.e.l.l youave been or who you area as if they donat mean anything, Dante. I canat do that, especially when you wonat tell me anything.a aI was in the army.a Her brows shot up. aThe army?a aYeah. When I left here I joined the army. I needed to get away, start over, start a different life, but I was unskilled, so I knew I needed training. The army gave me that.a aHow long were you in the army?a aStill am.a aYoua Really?a aYes.a aSo youare on leave?a His lips curled. aYou could say that.a She frowned. If he was military, his fingerprints would have showed up in the database. aAre you Special Forces or something?a He leaned back. aWhy do you ask?a aI ran your prints. You donat show up.a aYou rana When?a aI used a gla.s.s you drank water out of and ran fingerprints on you.a His brows rose. aWhy?a aDuh. Because you wouldnat tell me a G.o.dd.a.m.n thing about yourself or where youad been for the past twelve years. I donat like mysteries, so I wanted some answers.a His smile was infuriating. aGet any?a aNo. You donat show up on any databases. No license, nothing. Why is that? I canat imagine youad be any good to Special Forces not knowing how to drive a car.a aI do special projects undercover. They donat want me showing up on any databases. Letas just leave it at that for now.a She opened her mouth to argue, but Dante placed two fingers at her lips. aPlease, Anna.a She was supposed to believe him, take his word.

Theyad been everything to each other at one time.

But right now, he could be a killer.

People changed. She knew it, saw it.

But how much did they change? All those years ago she knew exactly who he was and what he was capable of.

Head saved her life that night. But head also taken a life.

Shead never been so confused about anythinga"or anyonea"before.

aSo tell me why youare here.a She should leave, keep her distance, listen to that inner voice that kept telling her to be wary of Dante.

Instead, she decided to see where this led.

aAutopsy showed nothing out of the ordinary other than George had been beaten and cut with a nondescript sharp knife, probably some random switchblade. No stray hairs or fibers, no fingerprints from the scene. The bag of drugs was clean, but it had Georgeas fingerprints on it. The scene and the body itself were almost too clean. It was as if whoever had done this had been meticulous about prepping the scene or making sure head leave nothing behind.a aA lot of crafty killers watch television and read books these days. Many are well versed in crime scene technology.a aTrue, but people think they know what to watch out for, and they still leave something at the scene we can pick up on. This guy left nothing. Not even a shoe print.a Dante leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. aWhich means what, exactly?a aI donat know, other than he knows what to do to not leave any evidence behind.a aMaybe heas done this before.a aI did a search on similar crimes and found nothing.a aWhich doesnat mean your suspect hasnat killed before. He just hasnat killed in this way, right?a She leaned back. aTrue. But how could we not know this guy was in the alley that night twelve years ago? Wouldnat we have seen him?a aLots of hiding places in that alley, Anna. You were in shock, and the guys and I were focused on two thingsa"you and Maclin. There could have been an elephant in the alley and we wouldnat have noticed.a aYouare probably right. s.h.i.t.a She took a drink and set the bottle down on the table in front of her. aBut why kill George?a aI told you. Itas a message. Heas here and he knows what happened. Now he wants us to know. And he wants to hurt usa"us being me and the other guys. George was our fathera"the closest thing to a father we had. Killing him hurt us.a Anna nodded, acknowledging the pain they must all be going through. The funeral had been brutal for all of them. Shead stayed in the back and watched them as theyad surrounded Ellen, watched their faces as the coffin was lowered into the ground. Shead felt the gut-wrenching sorrow emanating from all of them, especially from Ellen as shead let tears fall from her cheeks and stood stoically at the grave site. It had been a horrible experience.

She shook off the memory and lifted her gaze to Dante. aBut why wait twelve years to send his message? Why didnat he do it earlier?a He shifted, drawing his knee onto the sofa. aIave been thinking about that. Maybe he was waiting for me to come back so wead all be here.a And maybe Dante was the one who had set it all in motion. Maybe he was the killer.

She hated thinking it, but there it was.

No. He wouldnat do that to George. Head loved him. She remembered him telling her that George was his father. Head admired and respected him and he and the other guys had finally found a homea"a familya"with the Clemonses.

So she pondered his suggestion, the fact that all of them who had been in the alley that night were now back in town. aThatas the only thing that does make sense. If he wants to show offa"to show us that he knowsa"he had to do it in front of all of us and you werenat here. For a while Gabe wasnat here, either. It wasnat the right time.a aYes.a aWhich means itas someone local, someone whoas been tracking our movements all these years. How would he even know who we are?a aYou know as well as I do, if you want to find out who people are, you can figure it out. You worked in the shop right there. Easy to backtrack from there.a This was all so surreal. aYouare right. So now heas done it. Whatas going to be his next move?a Dante dragged his hands through his hair. ah.e.l.l if I know. Maybe itas a cat-and-mouse game and he wants you to find him.a aUgh. This is as bad as television.a aReady for a beer now?a aIam on duty.a aI wonat tell anyone.a She smiled. aNo, thanks. Iam so tense I probably wouldnat stop at one, and it would be my luck Iad get called in by my captain, head smell alcohol on my breath and then theread be h.e.l.l to pay.a aIam sure you wouldnat be the first detective to drink on the job.a aNo, I wouldnat. But thatas not who I am.a He leaned back and studied her. aStill a good girl, arenat you?a She stood, her irritation spiking hot. aYou donat know anything about me, Dante.a Dante loved seeing the flash of heat in Annaas cheeks. Even if head p.i.s.sed her off, which he seemed to be able to do easily.

aI guess I donat. You never used to spark up as quick as you do now.a aYou never used to irritate me as much as you do now.a He laughed. aThen sit down and tell me about yourself.a He patted the sofa. aSit.a Her jaw clenched. aIam not a dog.a aPlease.a She slid onto the sofa and grabbed the bottle of water, eyeing him warily. She had reason not to trust him. The circ.u.mstances of their first meeting after head gotten back hadnat been ideal. And shead gone on a fishing expedition to find out more about him. Hadnat found anything, either.

She still didnat know it all.

aTell me what happened after that night,a he said.

aYou mean after you left?a aYeah. Iam sorry I left you.a He wanted to say it over and over until she believed him, until she forgave him.

She shrugged. aNo big deal. I handled it.a He could continue to apologize for that, but what would be the point? What was done was done and he couldnat change the past.

aYeah, you did handle it. Look at you now.a Ignoring him, she said, aAfter that night I went on living just like normal. I went back to school and tried to pretend nothing had happened.a aThat must have been hard.a aIt was. The guysa"Roman and Jeffa"stuck by me, but I was so freaked out about someone connecting us to the murder in the alley that I distanced myself from them.a aBut no one knew you were there.a aI was working that night, remember? The police questioned me. I told them I had closed up and hadnat heard anything out back.a Guilt hammered at him. It had been a mistake leaving. He could have waited awhile, could have argued harder with her father about leaving right away.

Yet he couldnat go back and change the past. His guilt would always be there, so head just have to live with it.

She had paused, so he nodded. aGo on.a aAnyway, after that I motored through cla.s.ses, had no social life and went on to college where I majored in criminal justice. Then I became a cop.a aSo you could take down bad guys like Tony Maclin.a aSomething like that.a aOnly I donat think it was that simple, was it?a He swept a stray hair away from her face. She stilled, her eyes so expressive, so wary. He wondered how badly that night had scarred her. aDid you get counseling after the attack?a aYes. I had no one to talk to and my dad felt inept about it, so he found someone for me to talk to. With those records being confidential I was protected and so were the rest of you. Plus I didnat elaborate much to the therapist, just said I had been jumped.a He hated that she couldnat even be honest in therapy. aIam sorry.a She shrugged. aDonat be. It wasnat your fault. You didnat attack me in the alley that night.a aBut if I hadnat left, and if we had called the police, you wouldnat have had to bottle this up inside all these years. And now we have thisaa aI can deal with it, Dante.a aCan you?a She laughed. aIam stronger than you think, a lot stronger than I was that night. Being a cop requires you to toughen up. Iave been shot at, kicked, slapped, punched and swiped at with a knife. Being a cop isnat easy.a aNo, I donat imagine it is. But it still doesnat mean you should have had to endure the aftermath of that night alone.a aI wasnat alone. You all saved my life.a Then he ran. So did Gabe. And left Anna alone to pick up the pieces and hide their crime. Yeah, he was some savior.

aYou donat always have to be tough.a He leaned in and palmed the nape of her neck, ma.s.saging the tension he felt.

Her eyes widened, but it wasnat fear he saw there. aYes, I do.a He decided to push his luck and drew her toward him. aItas okay to lean on someone else.a She reached out, touching his chest. She wasnat shoving him away, just resting her fingers there.

He should leave her alone. If he was a good guy, head do that.

He wasnat a good guy.

aI donat lean on anyone, Dante.a He gave her a devastating smile, then bent his lips to hers. aTry.a

Ten.

Anna gasped as Danteas mouth met hers. Her mind fired off a million reasons why this was wrong. She was on duty. Dante could be a killer. She was angry with him for leaving her.

His lips were soft as they slid across hers, making her forget all her objections. She encountered a solid wall of muscle as she braced her hands against his chest. It would be easy to push away, to break the kiss.

But how long had it been since shead allowed a man to get this close?

Dante wasnat just any man, and it had been years since the last time shead touched his lips, since the last time shead felt his body against hers. Then theyad been kids. Now they were adults with adult pa.s.sions and needs.

The last of her resistance melted away as she sagged against him. He wrapped his arms around her and dragged her onto his lap where she felt just how much of a man he really was now, and how far out of her element she was. Yet she didnat want to stop, instead let her fingers dive into his hair as he eased back against the sofa and deepened the kiss, his tongue sliding between her lips and teeth.

She shivered at the intimacy of the contact, no longer needing to worry about pulling back because she was too young and they had to take precautions about going too far. She could go as far as she wanted to.

She always pushed men away. The act of s.e.x, while not unpleasant, wasnat something she lingered on.

With Dante, shead want to linger, to explore. She lifted her fingers to where their lips were connected, skimming them over his jaw, his neck, down to where the corded muscles of his shoulders exposed his sheer power.

Powerful men in intimate settings scared her.

He didnat.

She adjusted, sweeping one leg over his hip to straddle him, her mouth still latched onto his as pa.s.sion exploded inside her. Dante gripped her hips and rocked her against his erection. She whimpered against his mouth and drove herself against the rock-hard evidence that his need was as great as hers.

The first thing that would have to go was her gun, followed shortly by her clothes. Too many clothes.

Her phone vibrated. Danteas fingers traveled up her rib cage, creating an even sweeter vibration along her nerve endings.

The pulse of her phone was incessant, dragging her away from the drugging euphoria of Danteas kiss. She pulled back and grabbed her phone out of her pocket, looked at the display.

ad.a.m.n.a She pushed the b.u.t.ton. aDetective Pallino.a She listened, clarity slicing through the s.e.xual haze. aWhen?a She looked over at Dante, whose lazy smile died as he read her expression. She slid off his lap, regret hollowing her belly as she caught the disheveled look of his hair and the ridge pressing incessantly against the zipper of his jeans.

aIall be there in fifteen minutes.a Still trying to gather her wits and catch her breath, she put the phone in her pocket as she looked at Dante. aAnother murder in the alley.a He was off the sofa in an instant, dragging his fingers through his hair. aKilled the same way as George?a She nodded, tucking her shirt back into her pants.

aIam coming with you.a He grabbed his shoes.

She should say no, but he was a part of this, too, and she felt a bit raw at the news theread been another murder. She wanted him there with her. aOkay.a They were on scene within fifteen minutes, the familiarity of the roped-off alley making her stomach roll. She had to hold it together. This was her case. Shead called Roman on the way over and he said head meet them there.

Gloved and their shoes covered, they moved toward the crime scene. The body was positioned on his back in the same location near the Dumpster. The victim looked like a businessman, had on a suit and nice shoes. His tie had been thrust to the side, his white shirt torn open and bloodied. From a distance she could already see his chest, see the carving of the heart. Her stomach rolled. He was beaten so badly his face was unrecognizable.

Blood was everywhere.

aThis is worse than last time,a she said.

Anna squatted and surveyed the wreckage that was once a human being. The M.E. was already on the scene.

aSame as the last one,a Dr. Norton said. aTime of death was earlier tonight. Based on temperature and lividity Iad say maybe three or four hours ago.a She looked at her watch. It was three in the morning. So anywhere from 11:00 p.m. to midnight.

Anna reached into the victimas pocket and pulled out his wallet.

The familiar name and picture on the driveras license stopped her breath. Her heart pounded so hard she heard the mad rush of her blood in her ears.

aNo. This canat be right.a She looked at the face, unrecognizable because of the blood and swelling. His hair was so matted with blood she hadnat noticed the sandy coloring.

Dante dropped to his knees next to her. aWhat is it?a She turned to him. aItas Jeff.a Dante frowned. aWhat? No, itas not.a Hands shaking, she handed him the driveras license.

Dante looked at the license, then the body. aThatas Jeff?a Anna bowed her head. aG.o.d, Dante.a She didnat know what to do, what to say.

aIt canat be.a aIt is.a The face was distorted and swollen, but it was Jeffas hair, his body.

aYou know this vic?a Richard asked.

She nodded. aFrom high school.a Richard laid his hand on her arm. aIam sorry, Anna.a This changed everything. It was what she was afraid would happen when George had been found in the alley.

The murderer had started killing her guys.

She squeezed Jeffas arm. aIam so sorry.a She hadnat jumped on this fast enough and now everyone was in danger. Her gaze lifted to Dante, his face filled with hard anger as he stared down at Jeffas body.

Her misery turned to fury. This had to stop. She had to hold it together. It was her job to be objective. She continued searching the body, so glad it wasnat Jeffas sweet face staring back at her. At least he didnat look like himself as she reached into his inner jacket pocket. When she pulled out the white bag, she cursed.

aDrugs,a she said to Dante, who grimaced.

aCome on.a Dante cast her a disbelieving look.

She bagged it and handed it over to the CSU team.

There was blood spatter around the body, this time the crime scene not so neat. Blood pooled under Jeffas head.

aHis skull is likely fractured,a Richard said. aI donat know if he was. .h.i.t with something or if your killer pounded his head into the pavement. Iall be able to tell more once I autopsy him. Again, no gunshot wounds or other obvious signs of stabbings other than the carving here.a Pain racked her body. All she wanted to do was curl up and cry. Instead, she sucked it all inside, rose and finished working the scene. Because maybe this time theread be some G.o.dd.a.m.n evidence they could use.

When Roman showed, Dante touched her arm. aIall tell him.a She gave him a curt nod and went back to walking every square inch around the body with the forensics team. There had to be something here. No one was that good at hiding the evidence of his presence.

She lifted her head only when Roman cursed so loud several uniforms stopped and stared. He made eye contact with Anna, his face drawn with shock and sadness. She shook her head.

Not now. They could all fall apart later.

Roman came over to her, his face drawn, his skin pale. aWhat do we know?a aNothing. Same as last time. A lot of blood spatter, though. This time he was meaner.a Roman squatted and lifted the cover over Jeffas face.

Anna didnat want to look again. It wasnat Jeff anymore anyway.

aJesus,a Roman muttered. aWe need to find out who did this.a aDo a canvas around this area,a she directed the uniforms, motioning to the people milling around the taped barrier at both ends of the alley. aThey might be nothing more than gawkers, but they could be potential witnesses, too. And I want Forensics taking pictures of all those people. Our suspect could be lurking, getting off on revisiting the scene to watch the action.a They began to wrap Jeff for transport. She had just seen him. He had been laughing and joking with all of them at her house. Annaas heart clenched, the pain in her chest tightening to a near-unbearable level. Her scar throbbed and she rubbed at it with the heel of her hand.

You and me are one now, Jeff, in a way I never wanted.

Now there were two other people with matching scars like hers. And she was the only survivor.

She and one of the uniforms. .h.i.t the other end of the alley to talk to the people there. No one saw anything, just happened to be leaving one of the bars when it closed and saw the police cars so came over to see what was going on. But they still took names and numbers to interview these people later. They might have been standing outside the club and seen whoever was in the alley. Often people saw something and didnat even realize what theyad seen was important.

Anna walked outside the alley and down the street, turning the corner to get a view of the buildings that fronted the alley. It was all corporate and banking on both sides, so unlikely anyone would be inside, but she wanted to know.

She motioned Roman over. aLetas find out what offices flank the alley. I want to know if anyone was pulling an all-nighter. Maybe looked down out their windows into the alley the nights of the murders. Maybe some corporate junkie on deadline.a aYou got it.a He laid his hands on her shoulders. aYou gonna be okay?a She lifted her gaze to his. aIam so p.i.s.sed right now I want to tear someone apart. But Iall be fine as long as Iam working. We just need to find out whoas doing this.a He nodded, his expression grave. aWe will, honey.a aWe have to tell Ellen.a He closed his eyes, opened them again. aI hadnat thought about that. Want me to go with you?a aNo. Grab some uniforms, get into those office buildings and get that started. If we can pull a witness out of anyone in there, it could make this case. Iall go talk to Mrs. Clemons.a Dante came up behind Anna. aIall go with her. I was just over there to visit Ellen.a Roman looked pained. aThis is going to destroy her after just losing George.a Dante put his arm around Annaas shoulder. She felt the sting of tears and blinked them back.

This wasnat about her grief. This was about finding a killer. Her pain could wait. aWeall go do that before I head back to do my report.a aIall get started on the list,a Roman said.