A Little Harmless Submission 6

by Melissa Schroeder

  She pushed away from the wall and looked at herself in the mirror. She had his nose, and his mother had always claimed, his frown. But this time, she was going to prove that Big John Callahan’s daughter was more than just the memory of a beloved agent.

  · · · · ·

  “Carino,” Captain Akada yelled down the hall. “Need you in my office right now.”

  Damn. Rome had almost escaped the building without having to talk to the captain. From the time Rome had returned from a call, Akada had been locked up in his office with some suits, which was fine by Rome. Three days after finding Lisa and they had nothing more than they did before. Hell, they almost had less than with the other three killings. The bastard was getting better. Worse, Rome knew the killer was getting more infatuated with his work.

  He reached the door and discovered it open. He slipped in and found three people in the room. One was, of course, the captain, the other were two dark suited, very unhappy looking people. Feds.

  The man was typical of the species. Dark suit, blank expression. He looked like the kind of guy who would sell his mother to the highest bidder to gain a promotion. Short brown hair, brown eyes, and a frown. Typical. The woman, not much different, but there was something vaguely familiar about her. The suit showed nothing of her body. Her dark hair was pulled back into a tight bun at the base of her neck. When she looked in his direction, he felt like he’d been punched in the gut. He hadn’t expected the luminous blue eyes or the full, pouty lips. Her skin was flawless.

  “Shut the door, Carino.”

  He shook himself out of his stupor and did as ordered. Since the other two chairs were occupied by the feds, he leaned against the wall.

  “This is Brice Masters and Maria Callahan of the FBI.”

  He nodded in their direction. “What does the FBI from the mainland want with Honolulu PD?”

  The woman’s eyes widened, but if he hadn’t been watching, he wouldn’t have seen it. This one was used to hiding her feelings, but what fed wasn’t trained to do that? Still, there was something ice cold about her behavior, something that bothered him on a level he couldn’t understand. Possibly because he couldn’t read her emotions, which left him on the outside.

  “They’ve been chasing a serial killer. The Dom. They think he might be our guy.”

  Of course he had heard the name. It had been splashed on every headline for the last year. He wanted to argue with them, but he knew it would be useless. When the FBI sunk their teeth into an investigation, they didn’t let go until they chomped off a huge piece.

  Despite that, there was a good chance this was their guy. Without any DNA, he hadn’t been able to make any kind of match. Still, he knew from the crime scenes, this wasn’t an amateur. This was someone who was very good at what he was doing. This one had been killing for a while.

  Still, he refused to let them know what he thought. “What makes you think that?”

  Masters smiled and opened his mouth, but the woman beat him to answering.

  “Let me make some assumptions about your man. He picks up women at BDSM clubs. Or singles them out. No one really knows how he finds them, but they all go to the same club. Then, he beats them, sometimes tortures them, rapes them, and in the end, strangles them with a combo of a scarf and then finally manual strangulation. Their panties are missing, also. Did I get it right?”

  So close it made him twitch. “A bit.”

  The smile she offered him didn’t reach her blue eyes and was as cold as the top of Mauna Loa. “Really? I have a feeling I was spot on.”

  He hated her cockiness. Besides the fact that she was correct, he didn’t like the premonition that was winding its way through his brain at the moment. He glanced at the captain. “Are they taking over the case?”

  Akada shook his head. “No. Not officially.”

  He allowed for a beat of silence to go by. “In what capacity?”

  “Agent Callahan, would you like to explain?”

  From the look on her face, she didn’t want to, but she straightened her shoulders. When she turned all her attention in his direction, he felt like he had been hit by a bolt of lightning. His body reacted without him being able to control it. She had looked at him before, but now she was concentrating on him only. Her attention had his blood heating. Her eyes were so large, so luminous, they were at odds with her clothing. There was nothing staid about the dark blue gaze she trained on him. Even now, he couldn’t seem to concentrate on what she was saying. His mind had melted the moment she’d looked directly at him. What the hell was wrong with him? It took all his power to get his head wrapped around the idea that he should be paying attention to her.

  “We’ve gotten close to our man a few times. Of course, we don’t go in right away because we usually wait for a few deaths before we try to take over. Our problem is that every time we show up on the scene, our man disappears into thin air. Well, when the former agents showed up.”

  The look she got from the other agent told her he wasn’t happy she relayed that bit of info. She ignored him. Or pretended to. There was a slight wince after she realized what she said. Revealing the FBI was fucking things up wasn’t always the smartest thing to do. They liked to pretend they were invincible.

  From Rome’s study, Masters was older than Callahan. Probably sent to supervise, and that wouldn’t go over well with a go-getter like Callahan. Masters, for his part, didn’t look happy about being there.

  “So, you move in to investigate, he vanishes?” he asked, already getting a sour feeling in his stomach.

  She nodded once. The gesture was familiar. There had been an agent, one of the first profilers who hunted serial killers. John Callahan. The eyes should have told him. Almost luminous blue, just like her father’s.

  “That can mean only one thing.”

  Yeah, and Rome didn’t like it one bit. “He’s one of you or one of us. Or someone connected to us. Someone with access to this kind of info.”

  Her eyebrows arched in surprise, and Rome tried not to get pissed. He failed. The fact that she thought he wasn’t smart enough to figure that out irritated him. He expected it, had dealt with it before, but for some reason it made him mad.

  She moved her hands on her lap. He noticed that she didn’t wear any rings, and for some odd reason, he was relieved by that. If he hadn’t been that intrigued by that, he wouldn’t have noticed the way her thumb tapped her leg. The movement was so slight, he would have missed it if he hadn’t been paying attention. She was nervous.

  “If we come in here and take over, he’ll know. He has some kind of connection, whether it’s through him or someone he’s close to, someone he knows. Since I’m new to the case, he won’t know me, won’t pick up on me being here for it. But we can’t let anyone know I’m with the FBI.”

  He studied the two of them and shook his head. “Then you better do something about the way you’re dressed. Did anyone see you come in?”

  She glanced at Masters then down at her own suit. When she looked up, she grimaced. “Dammit, you’re probably right.”

  He shouldn’t want to help Callahan, but something in him wanted to make sure she stayed. “We’ll fix it. We can say that there was an old case from Seattle when I worked homicide there. Then you two need to assimilate.”

  “What does that mean?” Masters asked, but his partner was smarter.

  She sighed. Rome could barely hear it, but he picked up on her irritation. “Look around, Masters. People don’t wear suits here. I should have thought of it, but we came straight from the airport.”

  At least she was smart enough not to get pissed at him for pointing it out. Which in his book made her smarter than the average agent. “Where are you staying?”

  She didn’t even allow her partner to speak. The older agent might have been sent to babysit Callahan, but she definitely saw herself in charge. “Right now, the Hilton Hawaiian Village. But we’re looking for something more permanent.”

  Masters made a face. It was easy to
see the agent didn’t want to be here. Of course, it was probably more to do with who he was with. No one, not even Rome, would want to come to Hawaii with a woman who didn’t know how to have fun.

  “Okay. I’ll meet you for drinks in the lounge right by the big pool at the Hilton.”

  She said nothing for a second but studied him as if he were a bug of some sort. Then, she nodded. “Time?”

  “Seven.”

  She sighed. “Okay. Let’s go, Masters.”

  Both of them stood, and Rome couldn’t help but admire her height. He glanced at her shoes and saw that she wore low heels. She was as tall as Masters. The agents walked out the door, and it shut with an almost silent snick.

  For a moment, the captain said nothing. Then he chuckled. “That was very friendly of you, Carino.”

  He watched Callahan and Masters walk through the squad room until they disappeared through the door. Rome shot a smile over his shoulder at his boss. “Considering who her father is, I figured I’d play nice.”

  “Was. Big John died about eighteen months ago. Did you know him?”

  He nodded, thinking of the giant man he’d heard talk. “Went to a few of his lectures years ago when I was stationed in the DC area.”

  “Make sure you continue to make nice. The FBI might want to take this over, but I want to make sure that when we catch this son of a bitch, Honolulu PD gets some credit.”

  Rome offered his boss an angelic smile. “I promise to be a good boy.”

  “I didn’t tell them your connection to the club, but I think you better tell her. She’s pretty sharp, and if you aren’t careful, you’ll find yourself off the case.”

  He nodded and headed out the door. No matter what, he was on the case until he caught the bastard. And no one, not the FBI or the HPD, would tell him differently.

  Chapter Two

  Maria was nervous. Her entire body sizzled with energy that was draining her concentration. She had faced down felons that would scare the bejesus out of most grown men, but none of them made her feel as nervous as Detective Carino. It was embarrassing to admit that Carino made her palms sweat.

  It wasn’t uncommon for her to be edgy at work. She had never really fit in at the FBI, and she knew she never would. Every little bit of the job made her feel out of place. She hated the adrenaline rush before a raid, and she really hated questioning suspects. Still, Carino made her off her game. And not in the way that most adversaries did. She couldn’t get the cool, quiet detective out of her head. Good lord, she didn’t even know the man, and he had her almost drooling. There was something about the way he moved, all quiet control…It made her shiver.

  She pulled in a deep breath and looked out over the pool area. She needed to get her reaction to him under control. Acting this way could end up being embarrassing for her. Besides that, she could lose the edge she had over him right now. She knew he understood if he didn’t play nice, he could lose any hopes of solving the case. If she wanted to be a complete ass, she could take over the investigation. But she didn’t want to do that. She wanted his help. No, she needed it. Not that she would let him know how much she needed him. That would be a mistake with a man like Rome Carino.

  With considerable effort, she sipped on her white wine. As the cool liquid slid down her throat, she thought how she would prefer a swift shot of whiskey. She ordered herself to calm down, and she took another drink. It was her idea to work together. It was a great plan. All of it, including the part she didn’t tell them about, was solid. Now that she was here in Hawaii, she wanted to go run and hide. What the hell had she been thinking?

  You weren’t thinking, little girl.

  Maria shook her head, trying to push that thought aside, but she knew it was no use. How many times did she hear that from her father? More than a thousand, she was sure. He would have approved of her plan. It was good, solid, and coming in under the radar was the best way to do it. He definitely would not be happy with her reaction to Detective Carino.

  “Daydreaming, Agent Callahan?”

  She started at the deep, resonate voice that came from beside her. Drawing in a deep breath, she tried to prepare herself before looking at him. She just hoped she wouldn’t swallow her tongue. He was standing so close, she was amazed she hadn’t heard him walk up.

  There was no doubt about it. The man was a god. She knew for a fact there wasn’t a heterosexual woman alive who would argue with her. He was tall, so tall, that she had to look up at him. Since she was five foot eleven in her stocking feet, that didn’t happen that often. He wasn’t just tall, but he also had those movie star looks. A strong jaw, swarthy skin, and long, long eye lashes were enough to attract just about any woman. Add in the hazel eyes that seemed greener now that he was in the natural sunlight and he was near perfection. His dark hair was military short, but she could tell it was thick and probably very well given to curl. Full sensual lips completed the package, and she had to fight the urge to lick her own. He would be considered pretty if he hadn’t had his nose broken more than once.

  “Agent Callahan?”

  “Yes.” Great. Yeah, really a way to impress the local law. She was staring at him like she was a fifteen-year-old with a crush. “Sorry. I’ve been up for about forty hours or so.”

  One of his eyebrows rose. “I didn’t know you just got here.”

  She tried to tell herself not to get irritated, but she hated repeating herself. Especially when she was sure he did remember what she’d said earlier. Power plays were one thing she despised. “As I said at the station, we’d come straight from the airport. It’s the reason we were in our suits. You remember that, right?”

  His smile told her he did. “And you look much more relaxed now.”

  She looked down at her outfit, knowing it probably still looked too formal for Hawaii. The short sleeved red shirt and khaki shorts weren’t as flashy as a lot of the other tourists’ clothes, but it was the only thing she could think of wearing. Most of her other clothes were too formal, and she knew that she couldn’t wear her workout clothes to their meeting.

  He paused, his hands still in his pockets. “You want to wait to talk about this?”

  She shook her head. “I’m anxious to get to everything that isn’t in the report.”

  He looked around the bar. “I think we need to go somewhere more private. Is Masters in the room?”

  “He’s in his room. I’ve got my own.”

  He nodded and waited. Again, she liked the fact that he seemed to take his time to talk. So many men said the first thing that came to their mind. “Why don’t we take a walk on the beach?”

  She nodded, setting down her drink. He waited for her to step in front of him. An odd feeling. She spent so much time with men who treated her as another one of them, she always found it strange when men held chairs or doors for her. The moment he touched her back, she had to fight a shiver. He was warm, and—she thought—so was she. But the moment he touched her, heat and craving rolled through her.

  When they reached the sidewalk, she waited for him to draw even with her, and then they started to walk.

  “You have very nice legs, Agent Callahan.” The amusement in his voice didn’t bother her as much as she thought he might like it to. She knew that local police officers had to take a few swings at them.

  “I hate suits, especially in humid weather.”

  “Then why wear them?”

  She shrugged and looked out over the beach. “It’s expected.”

  She sensed, rather than saw him nod.

  “I met your father once.”

  That took her by surprise. Maria didn’t know why because she should have been used to people knowing her father, especially in law enforcement. He had been a celebrity of sorts, regularly interviewed on television. She glanced at Rome, but he was looking ahead of them.

  “Really?”

  He nodded. “I was stationed in the DC area, and he did a few lectures about different procedures.”

  “He was good at t
hat.” She could hear the pride in her own voice. Even if he had driven her crazy reciting his rules and regs while she was growing up, Maria knew her father had been a good lecturer. Hell, he had been good at anything he tried. “I think it was why he was so good at criminal profiling. He always said that following the rules would lead you to the man.”

  They walked for a few more steps, and then she asked, “You were in the military?”

  He glanced at her. “I would have thought you read my entire file.”

  “I didn’t have time. I read most of it, but I spent a lot of the trip going over each of your cases and comparing them to the others. What service?

  “Marines.”

  Like her father. “You weren’t in long enough to make it a career?”

  He shook his head. “No. My father got sick, and I needed to get back to Seattle.”

  She waited, but he didn’t continue. She knew he’d been a cop for a few years in Seattle, but not much else other than the proof he wasn’t connected to the case and that he was a member of the biggest BDSM club on the island. They walked on a few steps, the crashing of the surf and the busy walkway the only sounds she heard.

  “Okay, so you want to talk about the case?” she asked.

  “Not really.”

  They continued to walk in silence for a while, and he turned into the lobby area and then headed toward the Tapa Tower where she was staying.

  “How did you know where I was staying?”

  “With your job, they weren’t going to spring for the Ali’I Tower. And the Tapa Tower is the one people usually get at the last minute.”

  She nodded as they walked to the elevators. The moment they stepped onto the car, a family of Japanese tourist rushed aboard. She was forced to step closer to Carino. She could feel the heat of him warm her arm. The spicy scent had nothing to do with cologne and everything to do with the man. Neither of them said a word on the ride. Once they stepped off the elevator, he followed her silently to her room. By the time they were in her room, she had her mind back on the case, and apparently he did too.