A Little Harmless Submission 6

by Melissa Schroeder

  For a tough as nails Dom hunting a sadistic serial killer

  is nothing compared to losing his heart.

  Harmless #6

  Rome Carino is hunting a predator. One who likes to hurt submissives, and the most popular BDSM club’s patrons are being targeted. With each fresh kill he gets more brazen. Rome knows he just needs one little break, but before he can make headway, the FBI shows up. Worse, the uptight, buttoned-down Special Agent Maria Callahan suggests a plan that is dangerous, but worth it because it might just catch the killer. If Rome can keep his mind on the case and off the beautiful FBI agent, he’ll be just fine.

  Maria is still trying to step out of her legendary father’s shadow and knows just how to do it. Luring the killer by posing as Rome’s new sub seems like a good idea. That is, until undercover becomes real life and she finds herself tangled up with a man who amazes and scares her at the same time. Her growing attraction to the Honolulu Police Detective is a little too much to handle. Even knowing that, she can’t help falling in love with the tough Dom and losing herself in the games they play in the bedroom.

  Rome is overwhelmed by his need for Maria. He has never had a sub respond to him the way she does, and no matter what he does, he feels himself slipping off that cliff into love. As their relationship starts to unfold, he realizes that he will do anything to win her heart, to convince her to become his sub for a lifetime. But before he can do anything, the killer turns his attention on Rome and the one thing he holds dear: Maria.

  WARNING: The following book contains: A Dom who thinks he can do no wrong, a new sub who is about to teach him he can, palm trees, a trip or two to Rough ‘n Ready, a flirty Aussie Dom with questionable motives, old friends, and a new enemy. Yeah, it might be called Harmless, but you Addicts know it’s anything but.

  Dedication

  To my Harmless Addicts. You kept the series going when most would have given up on it. Let’s face it, people did. But you hung in there and helped me take this scary step. Thank you for your support and your threats of bodily harm. Know that this one, as all of them are, is especially for you.

  Love,

  Mel

  Acknowledgements

  I say over and over that no book is written without help. This time was definitely not the exception. When I made the decision to step out on my own and self-pub the Harmless books, I didn’t do it without support.

  As always, Les and my girls were there to support me, tell me I wasn’t crazy, and to ignore the fact that I’m a temperamental DIVA.

  Brandy Walker, what can I say that would do you justice? You keep me grounded and keep me from going crazy. You know I LOVE all the lists you make for me.

  A special thank you to Joy Harris who was sitting in my room when I made the decision and reassured me that I had made the right one.

  Kris Cook, although he is the brother I never wanted, has been one of my biggest cheerleaders.

  And to the people behind the scenes:

  Kendra Egert for her wonderful cover art.

  Chloe Vale who whipped my arse into shape with the edits.

  April Martinez for doing the formatting.

  I could not have done this without your help. Thank you.

  A Little Harmless Submission

  Melissa Schroeder

  eBooks are not transferable. They cannot be sold, shared or given away as it is an infringement on the copyright of this work.

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  A Little Harmless Submission

  Copyright © 2011 by Melissa Schroeder

  Edited by Chloe Vale

  Cover by Kendra Egert

  Formatting by April Martinez

  All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  First electronic publication: October 2011

  Chapter One

  Rome cursed when the rain started to pound the top of his car. It figured he would get a call for a dead girl and it would rain like this. That’s the way his luck had been going the last few months. Only with hurricanes did they get this wet in Honolulu. What little forensic evidence they could have found was probably being washed away right now. He hoped that CID got there early enough to collect samples. He turned down Kuhio Street and headed to the scene. He had an itch at the base of his neck that told him this fourth girl in three months was connected to the other three. In all his life, he had never believed in coincidences, and he wasn’t about to start. What that meant for Rough ‘n Ready was not something he wanted to contemplate right now. He would deal with that later.

  He parked his car and sighed. There was very little media on the islands, but they all seemed to show up at his crime scenes lately. A small group had gathered at the front of the alley. Lord only knew how they discovered the scene, but on Oahu, it was like one big family. Everyone knew everyone else, and there was just no way to stop people from finding out.

  He stepped out of the vehicle, grabbing a hat before shutting the door. He turned up his jacket collar against the rain. Lord, it was cold. Rome had gone soft. For a kid who grew up in Seattle, this would be nothing. Now, after just a few years, seventy degree weather had him shivering.

  He shook those thoughts away and made his way to the scene. Several reporters tried to get a comment from him, but he ignored them as he pushed his way through the crowd. He was thankful to see the CID officers already working the scene.

  He glanced down and saw the girl. And, like the others before, he knew her.

  A rookie cop ran up, excitement and fear in his voice when he spoke. “Her name is Lisa Fender. Here’s her wallet.”

  Rome accepted it and was thankful the young officer seemed to be holding it together. “Who called it in?”

  “Tourist. He’s over there,” he motioned with his head. “Name’s Matt Young.”

  Rome followed the direction of the officer’s nod and found a young man standing, his face expressionless as he watched the scene in front of him. Truthfully, from what Rome could tell, the witness wasn’t really watching anything. He was staring into nothing, as if in a daze. Shock probably.

  After thanking the kid, he headed over to the witness. “Mr. Young?”

  For a moment, Young didn’t say anything. Rome started worrying the kid had gone over the edge and might need medical care. But, in that next moment, Young shook himself and seemed to focus on Rome. “Huh?”

  “I’m sorry to bother you, but I’m Detective Carino. I was wondering if you could tell me what you saw.”

  Mr. Young swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he nodded. Damn, he was young. In that instant, Rome felt ten years older than his thirty-five years. There was a good chance Young wasn’t even old enough to drink.

  The kid wiped his mouth on the sleeve of his shirt. “I was walking down here. Got left at a club by my buddy.”

  “He left you at a bar? Why?”

  He sighed. “He hooked up.”

  Rome nodded, understanding the timeless ritual of young men. Being left behind at a bar for a hot woman wasn’t that bad of a thing. As he studied the man, Rome recognized the buzz cut.

  Fuck. Rome wasn’t in the mood to deal with the military. “What service?”

  The kid’s eyes widened. “I have n-no idea—“

  “Cut the shit. You’re military.”

  He swallowed again, then
his shoulders sagged. “Yeah. Army.”

  “And let me guess, too young to be in the club you were in? Not to mention, it’s off limits to military.”

  He swallowed again. “Yeah.”

  “I don’t give a shit about that. What I care about is that woman lying dead on the ground.”

  The kid started breathing through his mouth, and Rome should have seen it coming. As it was, he barely missed getting the kid’s vomit on him. Rome jumped back with a curse as the private emptied his stomach contents on the street.

  “Fuck.”

  “You said a mouthful, Carino.”

  Rome turned and found his partner of just over a year walking up behind him. Jackson Daniels—who everyone called Jack Daniels just to piss him off—was officially his partner for the next three days. The paperwork was already filed, and Jack would be gone before the month was out.

  “What are you doing here?” Rome asked.

  He shrugged. “I got the call, too. Thought I would stop by.”

  His knowing look told Rome that his partner thought the same thing he did. “You can’t finish out the investigation.”

  “Yeah, but I can take the rest of the kid’s statement. Why don’t you get over there with the body, talk to the geeks?”

  Rome wanted to correct Jack’s use of the name, but decided to ignore it. Jack was the kind of cop that would use the science CID gave them, but hated it just the same. It was one of the things that had always been a bone of contention between the two of them. Thank God Jack wasn’t Rome’s responsibility anymore.

  “Sure. I got up to the part where he and his other underage buddy parted ways because of a hot girl.”

  Jack shot him a grin. “Hey, it happens.”

  Rome chuckled as he turned and worked his way toward the scene. He could just imagine what it had been like for a woman to walk down the alley. Lights illuminated the dark corners now, but it would have been gloomy, dank…not to mention the smell of rotting food and booze. No one, whether woman or man, would walk down this alley without a purpose in mind. And definitely not alone.

  The first person to notice him was Tim Takewodo, a first-rate detective with the CSI. He had been the lead on all the investigations so far, and having him there made Carino feel somewhat better.

  “Hey, Carino. Glad to see that you got the call.”

  He nodded. “What ya have?”

  Tim’s smile faded. “Raped. Beaten, strangled. Coroner will have to give us the exact way she died. Panties are missing again.”

  He shot Tim a look.

  “Yeah, I’m guessing manual strangulation like the others, and I’m sure he also used a scarf. I’m sure we will find the same fibers on her. I take it you know her?”

  He looked back down at the young woman. He had seen her at Rough ‘n Ready once or twice. “She looks a little familiar. I didn’t recognize the name, but since I started working homicide, I haven’t had as much time over at Rough ‘n Ready.”

  It was a half-truth. Rome was avoiding his friends. He’d had to distance himself from his friends to make sure there were no questions later. He had learned a long time ago to never take anything for granted. He knew in his gut that Micah and Evan had nothing to do with this, but he needed that separation to make sure they didn’t get tangled up in the investigation.

  “They have a lot of new members, and with the new club opening on the other side of the island, they had to hire new people. She might be one of the newbies.”

  Tim sighed. “I’d lay odds. And this makes the fourth one.”

  Rome nodded, knowing it would prick the interest of the FBI. Dammit, he wasn’t in the mood to deal with the feds. They would definitely come in and take over the case. “Find anything new?”

  “Nope. Again, we can’t be sure she was raped until there’s a kit done.”

  Rome wanted to argue. Because the first three women had been regulars or worked at Rough ‘n Ready, people thought they were into any kind of rough sex. Because a person was into BDSM didn’t mean they would do something stupid. In fact, a lot of times, people in the life were smarter than most about that part of their life. Anyone with any sense wouldn’t end up having sex in an alley of Kuhio Street. It was one of the rougher parts of Honolulu. Why leave the nice, warm environment of Rough ‘n Ready and wander into a backstreet that would leave them vulnerable? Didn’t make sense, but it was his job to make it make sense.

  Rome glanced around. “Have you seen a car nearby that might be hers?”

  “They did a search. Haven’t found it, but that doesn’t mean anything. You know if she was club hopping…”

  She could have parked anywhere in the area. Tonight’s weather aside, a person could probably bet on warm enough weather to make it from here to at least a bus stop.

  “Thanks, Tim.”

  He turned and saw the coroner had arrived. The sooner they got the poor woman out of here, the better. And then maybe they could find the bastard who did it.

  Rome looked out over the crowd, wondering where the son of a bitch was hiding.

  · · · · ·

  Maria Callahan pretended to be reading something on her computer as she waited. Still, she couldn’t stop her toe from tapping. She wasn’t very good at waiting. It was one of the few lessons her father had failed to teach her. It was hard to be patient when something that could make or break your career was being decided.

  She knew this was The Dom. Maria grimaced. That name irritated her, but reporters thought it was catchy. Damn reporters were making it damned hard to catch him. These new killings in Hawaii were him. She could feel it to her bones. Besides that, she had done enough research to know it was him. Her plan could work, and for once, she had worked up the nerve to approach her supervisor about it. It was unorthodox, but it could work.

  “Callahan!” Agent Smith bellowed. “Get in here.”

  It took every bit of her control not to jump and run.

  Don’t even let them see you sweat. Make them think they can’t rattle you. Falling apart is for later.

  Drawing in a deep breath, she slowly stood and walked to her supervisor’s office. She shut the door.

  His head was bent, showing her the bald spot none of them were allowed to mention. He had put on a few pounds in the last several years, but he was still in good shape. He signed a form then looked up at her. His face was expressionless. She still could not tell what her father’s old partner was thinking. Then he smiled.

  “It’s a go. I talked to the HPD captain. He agreed we need to be there. He wants you working with his man.”

  She could barely pay attention for a few seconds. For the first time, she was going to head an investigation.

  “Callahan.” Smith sounded worried. She realized he had said her name several times. She gave herself a mental shake and focused her attention on her boss.

  “Sorry,” she said, then cleared her throat. “The detective? He’s been checked out.”

  Smith nodded. “He’s been on the island for the last eighteen months, except for one trip to Seattle for the weekend. Sister graduated from college. He didn’t leave the area. So he’s clean. Apparently he’s pretty sharp, so try to play nice.”

  He said it sarcastically, and she tried not to wince. She didn’t like the fact that she would be walking into a local department and taking over their investigation. It had to be done sometimes, but the behavior of some agents always upset the locals. For her plan to work, she would need their help, especially the lead detective.

  “You’ll take Masters.”

  She tried her best not to show her irritation, but failed. Smith knew her too well.

  “You look just like your father when you get pissed.”

  She sighed. It was a problem working for a man who knew her family so well. Martin Smith had started at the FBI about the same time her father had. When her mother died, he had been the one there for them, the one to pick up the pieces. He and his wife were the closest thing she had to family. Which made it hard
er to conceal what she was thinking from him.

  She settled down in the chair in front of his desk. “We don’t get along. Other than his wife, I don’t think he likes women. At least, he doesn’t like me.”

  “You know why he’s like that, why a lot of them are like that. Every single one of them thinks you got this job because of your father’s legacy. But I can’t send you without an agent who doesn’t know how to run a case like this. He’s only going to get you started, and then he’ll come back. We want this low key, just like you said. If you need help, you’re to contact the Honolulu office.”

  She nodded. “I understand. Doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

  He chuckled. “I didn’t ask you to like it. Just do your job.”

  People’s opinions shouldn’t matter, but they did. Not to her personally. More that it made her job harder to do when no one wanted to work with her. It wouldn’t change until she solved a big case. It wasn’t fair because she had a good reputation from her time in vice, but that didn’t seem to matter. She pushed those morbid thoughts aside and stood to leave. It would do her no good to worry about people’s perceptions. “If that’s all?”

  “Flight’s at eight tomorrow morning from National. Make sure you make it on time.”

  She nodded and had her hand on the doorknob.

  “Maria.”

  She looked back over her shoulder. “Yes?”

  “This could be a huge step up for you, but please, be careful. This guy isn’t just smart, he’s fucking dangerous. We’ve never had a woman on the case before, and if he finds out, he might fixate on you.”

  She nodded again and slipped out the door. She wanted to dance down the hall, but she decided that would be unprofessional. Instead, she went to the bathroom and leaned up against the wall and let it sink in. She was going to Hawaii, and she was going to hunt The Dom killer. Panic settled in her chest first. In the five years she’d been with the FBI, she’d had to fight her way to the top. Sure, she had to work five times as hard as the other agents to prove herself, but there were always those whispers that Big John Callahan was the reason she got her start.