“I will, thanks. As much as I would be happy to see drug dealers, smugglers and all the scum involved eradicated from the world, I wouldn’t do this. Nothing will bring Billy back.”
As they were driving to the station, Lucas’ mind drifted and he envisaged himself in the same position as the gunman, finding his parent’s killers and what he would do. He would want to extract his own revenge, an eye for an eye. This would be his initial reaction but he knew deep down, he would do the right thing. He respected the law and no matter how much he despised them, he wouldn’t kill them. He wasn’t a murderer. Was the delectable Annabelle? No, it wasn’t possible. If only she wasn’t a person of interest, he would like to help ease her pain ...
“Hudson,” Cooper spoke loudly bringing him back. “What gives?”
“What? Sorry I was somewhere else.”
“I noticed. What did you think of Annabelle? She definitely appears to fit the profile.”
“She might be grieving and hate all drug dealers, with good reason, but I don’t believe so. Two of the fathers you interviewed this morning are more likely suspects to me.”
“Don’t let a pretty face fool you, Lucas, it could be your downfall.”
“It wasn’t because she was so ... I just don’t think she fits.”
“Murderers come in all forms.”
Lucas’ mind buzzed with images of pretty girls with black hair and blue eyes while he tried to sleep that evening. As much as he liked the idea of getting to know Annabelle personally, he knew it was taboo. Nevertheless he couldn’t erase her from his mind. Maybe if he got laid, as it had been weeks since his last tumble, he could push her from his mind. He glanced at the time. It’s was only ten so he thought it wasn’t too late to head over to his favourite haunt.
He was stepping out of the shower as his phone rang. He wrapped a towel around his hips and thought it was probably Carrie checking on him. Pregnant again and almost ready to burst, she was particularly cranky and moody at the moment. He smiled as he thought about being an uncle again. Mabel, just gone two, was the love of his life and his adoration for her grew every time he saw her. With her long blonde hair and big bright blue eyes she was the sweetest little girl in the world, well as far as he was concerned anyway.
“Hudson.”
“Hello, Detective Hudson, this is Annabelle Richardson.” Oh shit.
“Hi, what can I do for you?”
“I’m sorry to call so late but I have further information to share with you. Perhaps we could meet and talk.”
“Sure, my partner and I could call around tomorrow ...”
“Can you come now? I ... found something while going through some of Billy’s things after you left today. It’s a list of names and addresses, maybe it can help. I know it’s late ...”
“It’s okay. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
Standing outside her door he pondered the wisdom in his decision. Should he be here alone? Maybe he should have called Cooper, but he hadn’t wanted to disturb him at home with his family. This could break open the case. A list of dealers could lead them to suspects. If they could link dealers to overdose deaths and subsequently their families, then they could find the murderer. Just because he found her attractive and had fantasised about doing all sorts of things to her, didn’t mean he couldn’t help along his career by talking to her. What would it hurt? He would get the information he needed and then hook up with a girl as intended. He rang the bell and waited.
Wearing only a short satin robe in a deep sapphire blue, over who knew what, and a smile, Annabelle sent his heart into his throat. His groin tightened as he took in her bare legs and imagined where they led. What the hell was she doing? What was he doing here? He cleared his throat and tried to push his lustful thoughts aside.
“Come in, Detective, sorry about my ...” She gestured to her robe. “After I called you I continued to look through Billy’s stuff and lost track of time. I just got out of the shower.”
This brought more indecent thoughts to the forefront of his mind. Concentrate.
“So, what did you have to show me?” he asked and realised his voice was thick with lust. Perfect, really professional, Lucas.
“I’m afraid I lured you here under false pretences.”
“So, there’s no list?”
With a shake of her head, she said in a husky voice. “Only this.”
She pulled open her robe to reveal a sensation body. Her large full breasts held fully erect large nipples. Her smooth, flat stomach and olive skin beckoned to him, while her sensational legs ... well he was imagining them elsewhere. Lucas groaned.
“Annabelle, I … this is really inappropriate.”
His mouth said one thing but he was certain his eyes said another. There was no way he was leaving without having her.
“I’m sorry but when I saw you today ... you’re so hot.”
Consequences being damned, he stepped forward and kissed her hungrily, desperately. He kneaded her generous breasts, which felt much better than they looked, and rubbed his thumb against her nipples. She groped at his clothes and removed them swiftly and as he moved his hands down her back to pull her against his bare chest, he realised her robe was long gone. He lifted her up, cupping her behind and felt her eagerness and readiness against his fingers.
“Where’s your room,” he asked hoarsely in her ear before trailing his kisses across her face and neck. She indicated with her head and he carried her to the bed. She pulled him down with her and urged him onto his back. She began her own trail of kisses down his body as her incredible breasts preceded her lips, sending his crazy.
As they slid over his readiness it was almost too much and when her lips closed over him, it took all his self-control to hold on. She brought him to the brink and he moaned loudly. She stopped.
“Do you have protection?” He asked, desperate to be inside her.
She reached over to the table beside her bed and pulled out a condom. Then with slow deliberate movement she put it on. Her hand almost caused him to blow.
Rolling her over, he lifted her ankles to rest on his shoulders and plunged inside of her. She met him thrust for thrust, she was insatiable. As she writhed with each wave and as he headed to the peak of his desire she would change for him, on her hands and knees, on top, every which way. He’d never seen a fireball such as this before. Finally, she allowed his release and he fell beside her spent but satiated.
“Wow you’re ... words can’t describe.” His satisfaction and lack of breath cleared his mind of everything.
“Thanks, but I’m not normally quite that forward. There was just something about you that brought out the animal in me.”
“I’m flattered.” He paused. “I probably should have told you this before .... but I don’t do relationships, at all.”
“Now you tell me.”
He turned to look at her and was relieved to find her smiling as she lay on her side gazing at him. Her pretty face flushed from exertion and excitement. A sheen of sweat covered both their bodies. He almost didn’t perspire this much at the gym.
“If what you just gave me is all you have to give, then I’ll be a very satisfied girl indeed.”
“Just so you understand.”
“Perfectly. Do you want to stay?”
“I shouldn’t but yes I do. I really want to do that again.” He grinned. “Just give me a bit, you almost spent me.”
“I’m sure I could help you with that.” She ran her hand down his torso and stroked him lightly.
“I have a better idea.”
Lucas eased on her back and fed hungrily for a few moments on her rosy nipples. Her moans grew louder as he intensified the pressure. Then he brought his mouth down to rest between her legs and teased her slowly with his tongue until she cried out. Now he was ready.
16
Forbidden Lust
Their investigation continued as did Lucas’s nocturnal visits to Annabelle. A suspect list had been drafted with Annabelle list
ed much to his irritation. There was no way the sweet wildcat he shared a bed with was capable of murder. He also could not share with Cooper why he felt this way. Many times, Lucas had tried to shift the focus from Annabelle and onto other more viable candidates but before long Cooper became suspicious so she stayed on the list.
The vulnerable girl who shared her heartache over her brother with tear-stained cheeks surely wasn’t responsible for shooting these men, regardless of how much she wished the dealer responsible should be punished. He’d even trusted her with his despair and unloaded the story of his parent’s death. The first person he’d ever confided the whole story in besides his partner. Her compassionate eyes and comforting hands helped him to offload his repressed sorrow. They understood each other. Both caught in a grief they would never escape.
Through all this they still maintained casualness to their relationship even if he spent most nights in her bed. They didn’t venture out together or do things couples did, simply shared their burdens and satisfied each other. The sex was fantastic and Lucas was glad he didn’t have to go looking for casual flings. He didn’t have to do any groundwork and there were no strings. Just the way he wanted it. Now all they had to do was find the real killer so he wouldn’t have to avert his eyes from Cooper when they discussed the case.
Two nights after the first night with Annabelle, Nathan called Lucas on route to the hospital, Carrie was in labour. Lucas paced the waiting room anxiously until Nathan appeared bringing proud and happy news, the birth of a son. Thomas, Tommy, had a head full of dark hair and Lucas immediately saw his resemblance to the Hudson side. He sat with Carrie and Tommy for a long time that evening.
Three blissful new nephew days and Annabelle filled nights passed quickly. The case was no closer to being solved and there were no further shootings. It looked set to go cold.
As Lucas strolled into the station three weeks to the day after he began his liaison with Annabelle he felt lighter in his heart. He had to admit that having her fill the lonely nights was ... nice. The fact that he actually liked her and considered evolving their relationship astounded him. Perhaps taking a chance on a relationship would do more good than harm. They’d both experienced loss in a devastating way and filled an empty void in each other’s life. Was he falling in love? It certainly felt great to spend time with her.
No, his mind warned his passionate heart, love is not on the agenda. The nights he didn’t see her he missed her and the thought of something happening to her made him uneasy. If he fell in love with her it would be much worse. As nice as the idea of loving her sounded, it was a bad one. He would need to exercise more caution, guard himself a little better. These whimsical notions needed to stop.
Cooper was already sitting at his desk when Lucas took his seat across from his partner. He glanced up at Lucas and studied him for several moments before returning his eyes to the file in front of him. Lucas pulled the file he’d been reading the previous day containing their interviews with their suspects. He needed to find something, anything which could lead them to the killer and away from Annabelle. Coopers prying eyes were disconcerting. It was as though he could read Lucas’s thoughts.
“You’ve had a spring in your step lately, Kiddo. It’s good to see you happy.” He paused, Lucas lifted his gaze to his partner and put on his shielded expression. Cooper’s eyes met his for a second before returning to the file. “Special lady perhaps?”
Lucas contemplated what to reveal. No reason he couldn’t say there was, he didn’t have to elaborate.
“Yeah, though it isn’t serious, just having some fun, you know?” His attempt at casual wasn’t good enough, Cooper persisted.
“Are you sure about that? You have all the classic signs.”
“Of what?”
Those kind brown eyes lifted to study him again and it took all his control not to squirm in the seat like a chastised child. Cooper didn’t need to say what was on his mind; it all came through in his eyes. He knew something was amiss.
“Being in love,” he finally said and offered an amused grin.
“Ah no, definitely not love, just great sex.”
“If you say so.” He smirked again but the suspicion didn’t leave his eyes.
“Anyway, do you think we need to get heavy on a couple of these suspects? There are a couple who have flimsy alibis.” Lucas changed the subject. His partner would see through him if he didn’t.
“It wouldn’t hurt to re-interview some of the suspects we interviewed first. We never spoke with Annabelle Richardson again. I still like her for this. She was mighty jumpy when we were there.”
“I’m leaning towards David Harrison.”
“Several people witnessed him being present at a function at the time of the first murder.” Cooper persisted.
The crease Cooper got across his forehead when he contemplated had appeared.
“Yes but no-one can verify exactly what time he left. For the other two murders he has no alibi, said he was driving home from work. Both times he left his office as usual at five but didn’t arrive home until well after six.”
“Yeah I know it’s thin but he could have called into the shop on the way home, as he said. The girl has no alibi at all or not one she could recall. I say we talk to her and make her recall.”
“I guess we should talk to them both.”
This was not the way Lucas planned for the conversation to go but if he protested too much then his partner would definitely smell a rat. However, inside Lucas felt relief, Annabelle was working today and wouldn’t be available to interview. How much longer could he dodge the interview? Would she be able to hide their affair from his partner? Keep her face and body language impassive? Could he?
Cooper had started dialling as Lucas’s thoughts drifted and he held his breath as the phone rang out. He racked his brain to see if she divulged during their interview where she worked. The problem here, Lucas knew. She worked at Starbucks and Lucas would have to keep this information from his partner. This bothered him, big time. Not doing his job properly and keeping information from his partner weighed heavy on his shoulders.
“No answer,” he said as he hung up. “Pity we don’t know where she works.”
“Yeah.” Lucas cleared his throat. “So, Mr Harrison then?”
“Yeah, we’ll go and pay him a visit at work and Mr Davis too. We haven’t spoken with him since either. We could try the girl again after. She did mention she finishes work at three so we might be lucky and find her home.”
Fate intervened on Lucas’s behalf that afternoon. After visiting with both men and obtaining little information helpful to the case, they drove towards Annabelle’s. Cooper’s phone rang as they neared her house. A brief conversation ensued and from the one-sided conversation Lucas knew a body must have been found.
“We’ve got another shooting,” he said after he hung up and gave Lucas the address.
Lucas breathed a sigh of relief. That was a close one. It couldn’t be her. She was at work. He’d been right about her. Hopefully they would find something new at the scene that would lead them away from Annabelle.
17
Unwanted Discoveries
Driving from the scene to Annabelle’s, the Crime Scene Technicians words echoed around Lucas’s head. ‘The projectile indicates a person no taller than 5’6”. Cooper then decided that Annabelle was looking even better as a suspect. Lucas dread filled his chest as thoughts swirled through his mind. She couldn’t be. They must be missing a different suspect. It could be a short man, another woman, but not Annabelle. She was at work. At least that’s what she told him but it could’ve been a ruse. He didn’t want to believe it but all his instincts screamed differently. He couldn’t ignore a hunch.
This shooting was different from the others. The killer appeared to have been standing as opposed to sitting as was the case with the other victims. This gave them extra evidence, more details about their suspect. Unfortunately it pointed more towards Annabelle than any other susp
ect on their list. Regardless Lucas didn’t want to believe it despite what his gut told him. This would mean he allowed a killer into his bed. The thought of this made him more than just uneasy. There had to be someone else. At the scene Cooper had tried calling Annabelle again to set up an interview and told Lucas they must proceed with caution. If she was responsible for the murders, he didn’t want to give her a heads-up and have her do a runner.
“We have to make it appear we are doing a routine follow-up only,” Cooper had said.
Much to Lucas’ relief she hadn’t answered the phone so Cooper had called it a day. Lucas dropped him home and then drove towards Annabelle’s. He knew she would be home within the hour as she was awaiting his arrival, which further added to his guilt. More information he couldn’t share with his partner. As he drove up her street towards her house he questioned again his stupidity. What the hell was he doing? She was their number one suspect and he was about to turn up alone and unprepared. He should go home but something compelled him to walk to her front door.
When she opened the door wearing only sexy black lingerie, his clothes fell to the floor with his composure. Without thought he lifted her up, wrapped her legs around his waist, pushed her up against the wall and plunged inside her. He pounded out his frustration until they both moaned in pleasure. When it was over his guilt and uneasiness returned. Where was the steadfast, hardworking detective? Instead of doing the right thing and avoiding her and walking away, he’d given in to lust.
“Wow,” she said between panting breaths. “What was that about? Not that I’m complaining.”
Her contented expression and familiarity of her eased his concerns a little. One thing he knew for sure. They had to find out quickly if she really was the murderer or find the killer before he became even further entangled by his mistakes. He cursed his lack of control and desire.
“I missed you,” he said instead of the things he should be saying.
Hudson Page 9