by Debra Cowan
“You’re the cops who’ve been calling me.”
“Yes, sir.” Kiley saw no reason to distinguish between her job and Collier’s at this point.
“The reason I didn’t call you back is because I have nothing to tell you.”
“You said you’d talked to these people.” The woman glanced at her husband, her lips thinning. She looked at Kiley. “I’m sorry you had to come all the way up here.”
“Don’t apologize,” Embry snapped. “One of them—him—he’s from the fire department. You know what those firefighters did to Alan, threatening to take a tire iron to him.”
For good reason, Kiley thought.
The woman’s gaze turned troubled, moved from Kiley to Collier then back to her. “What exactly do you want to know?”
Collier kept his voice relaxed. “When was the last time you saw Alan?”
“Last week.” Jackie aimed a look at her husband. “Well, Doug didn’t see him. He made sure to be gone when Alan brought the kids and left them here for a few days. I took them back to Presley alone.”
“Do you remember the dates?”
“Yes. The grandkids come at the same time every year. They arrive on December thirtieth.”
“And when did you take them home?”
“Last Tuesday.”
January sixth. Adrenaline shot through Kiley. So Alan had lied about being here the night of Lazano’s murder. “When did you last see your son, Mr. Embry?”
“Jackie, be quiet. I’m an attorney, and I know we don’t have to talk to the two of them.”
“We know Alan hasn’t done anything wrong. It can’t hurt to answer their questions.”
“They’re not here to let us know he received some kind of award,” he muttered.
Kiley didn’t want to get her hopes up, but there had to be a reason Doug Embry wouldn’t cooperate. “Mr. Embry?” she prodded.
“I haven’t seen him since Lisa’s funeral.” He sounded choked.
Kiley could see Collier was calculating the time just as she had. It had been over six weeks since Doug Embry had seen his son. And Mrs. Embry had just told them that Alan hadn’t stayed here during the time he said he had.
They’d busted Embry’s alibi. Kiley reined in her excitement.
“We’ll get out of your way now,” Collier said. “Thanks for your help.”
“You’re welcome.” Jackie walked them to the front door. “This settles all your questions about Alan?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Collier walked out behind Kiley.
As they started down the porch steps, she heard Mr. Embry say angrily, “What is the matter with you? I told you we didn’t have to talk—”
The door closed. Kiley grabbed Collier’s forearm. “We got something.”
“Yeah, I heard.” He grinned. “Yee-haw, Russell, looks like we caught a break.”
“It’s about time.”
As they stepped onto the sidewalk and headed for the rental car, he hooked a thumb back toward the house. “Who do you think’s gonna win in there?”
“My money’s on her.” Kiley withdrew the hand she still had on his arm, reminding herself to keep things strictly professional.
He walked around to the driver’s side and opened the door. “Mine, too.”
Kiley took a deep breath before climbing inside. She’d been so excited about catching Alan Embry in a lie that she’d wanted to kiss Collier. He really was getting to her, and she didn’t know what to do about it.
A few hours later Collier and Kiley were once again in the air. She hadn’t said two words since they’d boarded the plane for their return flight. Collier had switched seats for this flight, too, so he once again sat next to her, his injured leg stretched out in the aisle. “You’re not mad at me, are you, Blaze?”
She glanced over. “About what?”
“Switching seats?”
“No.”
He probably ought to stop before he heard something he didn’t want to. “Last night?”
“No. Do you want to go straight from the airport to talk to Embry?”
“Absolutely.” Cool, professional, pleasant. Exactly how she’d been all day.
“And then to see Angie the girlfriend? She obviously lied to us about being in St. Louis at Alan’s parents, too.”
He nodded, his gaze skating over her dewy skin. He knew how soft it was. He wanted to feel it again, but he knew better. The wary look in her eyes told him that if he tried to touch her in any way, he’d probably draw back a bloody stump.
Her wild hair was down today, tucked behind her ears. Her warm cinnamon scent settled in his lungs. He studied the curve of her cheek, the angle of her jaw until she looked at him.
“Why are you looking at me like that, McClain?”
“How long have you been a cop?”
“Eleven years.” She eyed him speculatively. “How long have you been a hose dragger?”
“Thirteen years.” He should follow her lead and try to keep their conversation restricted to the case. “Did you go to college?”
She nodded, returning to her magazine. “What’s with the twenty questions?”
“Just trying to get to know you a little better.”
She frowned at him. “How about if I ask you some questions?”
“Go ahead.” He laid his head back on the seat, folded his hands over his belly. “Ask me something.”
“Anything?”
He cut her a look. Was she planning to ask him when he’d lost his virginity or what? “Anything.”
Her gaze held his for a second then slid down his body. He went tight all over. What was going through her mind?
“How’d you get that scar on your stomach?”
“You hiding one of those firefighter calendars, Blaze?” Fighting to squelch his surprise and the jump in his blood pressure, he kept his voice lazy. “How do you know about that?”
“I saw it that day at your house. When you were walking around half-naked.”
Her tone was teasing, but her eyes had gone dark in a way that told Collier she was every bit as aware of him as he was of her.
“Are you going to tell me?”
Talking was not what he wanted to do now. He cleared his throat. “It was my first flashover.”
“What’s that?”
“The combustion of a room and its contents by simultaneous ignition.”
“Ouch.”
“It was at an apartment building. I was on the second floor and there was a puppy. I picked him up, tucked him under my turnout coat and started for the exit. The room behind me exploded, and the dog panicked, clawed my shirt to shreds. Coming out of the building, I got hit by a flying piece of burning debris. Burned my wrist.” He nudged up the sleeve of his coat and shirt to show her the faint scar on the inside of his wrist. “And my belly.”
“Good grief, McClain! It sounds awful.” Her eyes were huge, worried. “You were lucky. Was anyone else hurt?”
“No.” Her warmth drifted over him. He loved watching her emotions change from disbelief to concern. He couldn’t stop a grin.
“What?” Her eyes narrowed. “Are you lying? You’re lying!”
“Yes.” He chuckled.
She rolled her eyes. “What really happened? Fall off your bicycle?”
“Walker and I were shooting off fire crackers. We were trying to one-up each other, daring each other to hold a bottle rocket.”
“Stupid.”
“Yeah, we found that out.”
“Good grief.” She pushed his arm off the rest between them, a wry smile curving her mouth.
He wanted to run his thumb along her bottom lip. “What about you, Blaze?”
“What about me? I don’t have any scars, if that’s what you want to know.”
“Got any family stories?”
“Not like that.”
“I know you have a sister. Any other siblings?”
“Just Kristin. I’m a year older than she is.”
“Are the two of you cl
ose?”
She nodded.
“What about your mom and dad?”
Her face closed up. “My mom lives in Nevada half the year, during the winter.”
She didn’t mention her dad. Maybe he’d died. “Is your dad still around?”
“Sometimes.” Something he couldn’t define streaked across her face. “Why are you asking all this, McClain?”
“I’m just—” his gaze dropped to her lips “—interested.”
She actually squirmed. “What about your family?”
“You’ve met Walker. I don’t know what to say about him.”
Kiley grinned. “He’s cute. Is he married?”
“No, and don’t get any ideas.”
“About what? Setting him up?”
“Going after him yourself.”
She laughed. “And you have a sister?”
“Yeah. Walker’s two years younger than I am, and Shea is three years younger.”
“You said she wasn’t a firefighter.”
“No, she’s a nurse, like our mom.”
Kiley eyed him thoughtfully.
“What?”
“I was just wondering about you and Miss Hadley.”
He stilled. “What about us?”
“I have a hard time picturing the two of you as a couple.”
“My mom said the same thing.” Collier shrugged. “Gwen’s okay. She’s just not the woman for me.”
“You don’t sound bitter at all. After what she and Lazano did to you, I’d think you would be.”
“I was for a long time, but we’re better off apart. Some part of me knew we shouldn’t have been together even when we were, but I let other things drown it out.”
“Like sex?” she asked dryly.
“Sometimes.” He stared at her for a long minute. “Sometimes I just didn’t want to deal with it or work that hard.”
“Wow, that’s honest.”
“I thought you wanted an answer.”
“I did.”
He wanted to press his lips to that spot behind her ear, the slope where her neck curved into her shoulder. “After we split up, I found out Lazano wasn’t the only guy she’d been with. That’s when I realized just how bad her drinking had gotten.”
“I’m really sorry. That’s awful.”
“At least it’s over.”
“Is that why you don’t have a relationship with just one woman? Too much work?”
“Not enough honesty.” She was a straight shooter, and Collier liked that about her. “I don’t mind working at it as long as I’m not the only one. Why aren’t you seeing anyone?”
“Too much work.” She grinned, but he saw hurt flare in her eyes for a split second.
He hated her acting like there was nothing between them. He’d had enough of women who pretended.
Of course he was pretending right now. Pretending that sitting beside her wasn’t winding him up inside. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could fight what was between them. He didn’t know if he wanted to anymore.
Three hours after leaving St. Louis, Kiley stood with Collier in Angie Bearden’s living room. Small and neat with a wood floor and a colorful throw rug in front of a brick fireplace, the room was cozy.
Driving separate cars from the airport, Kiley and Collier had gone first to see if Alan Embry was home from work. When they found no one there, they decided to see if they could catch his girlfriend at home. They’d found both Angie and Alan.
Kiley had just finished reading them their rights.
With a tool belt hanging low on his tight jeans, Embry looked like the electrician he was. He glared at her. “I’ve already answered all your questions.”
“We’ve been up to see your folks,” Collier said quietly.
“So?”
His tone was belligerent, but Kiley caught a flash of panic in his eyes. “You lied about being there with your kids during the dates we discussed.”
Embry cursed. “I should’ve known my dad would hang me out to dry.”
“Actually it was your mother.” Kiley moved toward the fireplace, deliberately studying the room as if searching for something. Maybe that would rattle some information out of them. “She’s so sure you couldn’t have done anything wrong that she didn’t have a problem telling us what we wanted to know. Why lie? Why not just tell us you took your kids to St. Louis, dropped them off, then came back to Presley?”
“I’m not telling you anything.” Embry edged around Angie and stopped a couple of feet from Kiley.
She could’ve let Collier step in, but she was sick of this jerk’s attitude. “You can talk to me here or at the station.”
Collier moved to her side, his shadow falling over the other man. “Why do you want to make things harder on yourself, Alan? You could clear this up in a few seconds.”
“He was with me!” Angie cried out, curling her arm through her boyfriend’s. “We were together, just not in St. Louis.”
“Where, then?”
“We were here, at my house. You know, in there.” She tipped her head toward what Kiley assumed was the bedroom.
Ugh. “The entire seven days?”
“Yes. Alan was with me,” she repeated.
“Can anybody verify that?” Collier asked.
“I doubt it since we stayed in bed the whole time,” Alan said with a smirk.
“That doesn’t explain why you lied about where you were.” Kiley’s gaze homed in on Angie. “Why would anyone care if the two of you were holed up here doing the wild monkey dance for nearly a week?”
“Maybe y’all really weren’t together for all of that time,” Collier suggested.
The girl met his gaze stubbornly. “We were.”
“Surely someone saw y’all. Maybe when you got your mail or the paper?”
Angie shook her head.
“Did you go out to eat? Go to put gas in your car?”
“She already told you we didn’t go anywhere.” Embry’s face and neck were flushed with anger. “I lied about it because I told my supervisor I had to be out of town for a family thing. I was on call for both New Year’s Eve and day, and I didn’t want to work it, for once.”
Kiley folded her arms and stepped back onto the throw rug. “So you told one lie to cover for another one?”
“Yeah.”
“Makes me wonder if you’re doing that right now.”
She actually saw a vein bulge in his neck. “I’m telling the truth!” he roared.
“Call your attorney,” she said in clipped tones. “Have him or her meet you at the station.”
“No way.”
“You’re busted, Alan.” Collier gave him a hard look. “You have motive to kill all four victims, and now we’ll recheck your alibis for the dates of the other murders.”
“I didn’t kill Lisa or Lazano or anybody else,” the man said hotly.
Kiley stared at Angie for a long time then shifted her gaze to Alan. “Maybe the reason you lied is because you didn’t want Angie to know where you really were.”
“He was with me!” the other woman cried.
“And you can’t prove I wasn’t.” Alan got right in Kiley’s face.
She slapped a restraining hand on his chest. “Back up.”
He wrenched her arm away from him, shoving as he did so. The throw rug beneath her feet slipped on the slick wood floor and she stumbled against the raised hearth. She tried to right herself, lost her balance and pitched headfirst toward the brick facade. Angie cried out; Kiley thought she heard a masculine grunt, then a curse. She hit her right cheek but managed to catch herself before her face plowed into the rough surface.
She quickly regained her footing, spinning around in time to see Collier ducking a punch from Embry. Collier rammed a shoulder into the other man’s stomach and pushed him to the wall. The legs of an end table screeched across the wood floor as the two men plowed it out of their way.
“I want him, McClain!” Kiley rushed over to the two men, whipping out her hand
cuffs.
Collier either didn’t hear or ignored her. He had Embry’s hands behind him and the jerk kissing the wall by the time she elbowed her way between them.
“He’s mine, McClain.”
He shot her a look, laying an arm flat across Embry’s shoulders to immobilize him while Kiley snapped on the cuffs. She pulled the loser around to face her. “You’re under arrest for assaulting an officer.”
Fury boiled inside her—at the jackass she’d just cuffed, at herself, at Collier for jumping in the way he had. Yanking her cell phone from her coat pocket, she hit speed dial and requested a black-and-white to come to the scene and transport Embry.
Angie was crying. Alan turned his head and snarled, “Call a lawyer, Angie!”
Kiley prodded her collar toward the door. “Move.”
“It was an accident.”
“You went for her.” Collier’s eyes glittered savagely. “Not smart.”
Kiley threw him a heated look as she pushed Embry forward. The creep stopped cold in his tracks. He outweighed her by at least eighty pounds. She certainly couldn’t pick him up and carry him. She reached down, crushed his knuckles together and squeezed the way she’d been taught in recruit school. That got him moving.
Collier followed her outside. “How long before a patrol cop gets here?”
“Any second.” A siren sounded and a black-and-white rounded the corner at the end of the block, headlights sweeping the street.
Kiley seethed. As soon as the car stopped, she yanked open the door and stuffed Embry into the back seat. “I’ll follow you to the station,” she told the patrolman.
As soon as the cruiser started away, Kiley turned on Collier. “I had it covered. Why did you jump him?”
His jaw dropped. “You’ve got to be kidding! He put his hands on you. Do you think I’m going to sit still for that? Do you think anybody would?”
“I was handling it. I wasn’t at risk.”
“From where I was standing, you were,” he said in a dangerously quiet tone she hadn’t heard before.
“I can take care of myself, McClain. I don’t want you pulling that Sir Galahad stuff again.”
“Get over yourself, Russell.” He looked as though he wanted to throttle her. “I would’ve done it for a man or a woman.”
She fought back her anger. “I’m going to the station. Are you coming?”