Oracle Seeing (The Phoenix Files Book 2)

by Kelley, Morgan

  “We didn’t see him. He’s holed up in his room. We came in after the body and he didn’t make an appearance.”

  “Oh.”

  She didn’t like that at all.

  Honestly, Bishop hoped she hadn’t forced him into a deeper funk. She’d crossed the line, but she was going with her gut on this one—and Avalon’s advice. It had to work.

  “Oh, and I’m sorry about what I gave to Avalon.”

  Nate looked confused. “What did you give to her?”

  “Apparently, the Marine didn’t want me giving her coffee. How was I supposed to know she’d wig out?”

  Nate laughed.

  The coffee thing only bothered Maura, so he explained. “When Avalon gets caffeine, she becomes boisterous. She asks a lot of personal questions, bounces around, and that makes Maura nervous. No one minds but her. It freaks her out.”

  “So coffee it is.”

  Luke laughed. “Great. Make my life hell.”

  “Hey, a girl has to have some fun.”

  Grabbing her baseball cap, she dropped it on and pulled her ponytail through the back. “Shall we?” she asked.

  They followed her out.

  It was time to get some details and interview time in. They had a case, and it wasn’t going to work itself.

  For all they knew, the killer was going to drop a body a day. If that were the case, they had one hell of a problem.

  Time wouldn’t be on their side.

  * * * O R A C L E * * *

  Morgue

  When they arrived, Roxy was working on some paperwork and finishing up with the last victim. Attorney Dale Plunkett was in a bag and on his way to the cooler.

  Not far from the brunette was Jagger, and as always, he was in the corner watching everything.

  By everything, that meant her.

  He was so myopically focused on her that he tracked each and every move. Nate and Luke knew that look. They’d had it a few times themselves, mostly when Avalon and Maura were concerned.

  The man was still on the hunt.

  “Hey, Roxy! Make my day.”

  She glanced up and over her glasses. “Well, how’s the prettiest sheriff this side of the Mason Dixon?”

  “Bitchy. What do you have?”

  “Well, on today’s menu, we have torture with a side of torture. It looks like Dale and Arron both had a run in with the same tools, the same methods, and the same crazy.”

  Yeah, from what they saw, that was damn apparent. The killer was insane in the membrane.

  “I almost hate asking this, but I know I need to know. Were they alive at the time?”

  “Yes, and for the entire thing. I couldn’t find one wound on their bodies that had happened post death. The killer made small injuries, enough to hurt, but not enough to kill.”

  Bishop thought back to the severed ears.

  That was small?

  Holy hell!

  That sucked for Dale.

  “What’s COD?”

  She flipped the papers around and passed them to her best friend. “I’m calling it exsanguination. They bled out.”

  Nate made an observation. “The crime scenes didn’t have a lot of blood.”

  “Nope, so that means you don’t have the location they were killed, and it wouldn’t fit the time line,” Roxy offered. “The way they died would be a slow bleed. We’re talking hours—not minutes. If the killer strung Dale up, and then tortured him on the gate, someone would have driven by, and they would have noticed.”

  “Very good point,” Luke stated.

  “Thanks. That’s why they pay me the big bucks,” she stated. “It’s how I keep myself in shoes.”

  Bishop laughed. “Rox, you keep yourself in trust fund shoes. That’s the big difference between you and the rest of us having to work for it.”

  She supposed it was.

  Then again, her life had been hard. She deserved the pretty things she surrounded herself with on a daily basis.

  “A girl’s got to eat. That’s how you got me so damn cheap. Count your blessings and stop being a bitch.”

  She blew her best friend a kiss. “What else?”

  “Nothing.”

  They all looked at her.

  “Seriously. This is Ravenswood. We have a team, but we contract out all of our lab findings. I still haven’t shipped out all the samples from the judge. If you want fast, start praying to the DNA gods because I can’t make miracles.”

  Nate could.

  “I can have it expedited to an FBI lab, and it’ll be safely tested, processed, and all in one day.”

  “I’ll kiss you if you can make that happen. If you can get these couriered, even better.”

  “I’ll pass on the kiss, but Jagger will be more than happy to help you. He’s free for the afternoon. There’s an FBI facility twenty minutes away. He’ll be more than happy to help out, won’t you, Jagger?”

  “Sure.”

  She smiled over at the man. “Thank you, Marine.”

  “FBI,” he stated, patting his badge. It was bullshit, but no one needed to know that.

  “Your haircut says otherwise.”

  “Yeah, she’s dated a few ex-soldiers. She can spot them a mile away. Then they learn to spot her, and they stay away.”

  She flipped off her bestie.

  Both women laughed.

  It was clear they had a great working relationship. That made Jagger even more curious.

  “Anyway, if you can get this handled, I can work through the information as it comes in and be ready for the next victim.”

  Jagger was watching her.

  She was fascinating.

  She cursed like a sailor, looked like a sexy school marm in her glasses, and she was standing in an autopsy suite in a skirt and heels. He was having a damn hard time pinning this one down.

  Doctor Roxanne Faust was an enigma.

  She was making him crazy.

  “It’s the least we can do, Doctor.”

  As Bishop was about to get the show on the road, the morgue doors opened, and in strolled everyone’s favorite mayor.

  Literally.

  No one disliked Silas.

  “Hey, Granddad! Are you here for coffee?” asked Roxy, coming around the table to greet the man.

  “No, sweetheart. It’s work related.”

  “Too bad. Maybe later. All work and no play makes Silas Reed a dull boy.”

  She did the introductions.

  “This is Director Nathaniel Carter and his partner Lucas Mars, and the gentleman in the corner is another Fed, Jagger Armstrong.”

  The man shook everyone’s hands.

  “Thank you so much for coming here to help. I just heard about the next victim, and I’m sick about it.”

  Yeah, well he should be.

  This was a hot mess.

  “Do we know who we have?” he asked, moving closer to the open bag.

  As soon as he saw the mangled pile of human, he looked less enthusiastic about being down there.

  “Jesus! That’s gross.”

  “I have his ID done. Thanks to some information and his dentals, I can give him a name.”

  The team already knew, but no one was mentioning how. They were keeping it to themselves.

  “Who is it?”

  “It’s Dale Plunkett.”

  The man looked horrified. “So we have a judge, a defense attorney, and the locations they were dumped were the courthouse and Lucian Monroe’s home?”

  “Yep.”

  “This is bad.”

  “How did you know it was Lucian’s?” asked Bishop. She didn’t update the mayor yet. That was on her list, but near the bottom. In fact, they’d blocked off the media a decent way from Lucian’s home. It shouldn’t be out there quite yet.

  She should have time.

  “I read the paper.”

  “Oh, come on! They’ve been dead hours.”

  “Well, the media is all over it. Better yet, want to guess who is breathing down your neck?”
<
br />   The Feds were curious.

  Roxy and Bishop were not.

  They knew who it would be. If there was one pain in Bishop’s life, they could pick her out of a crowd.

  “Wendy Lockwood?” they asked together.

  “Yep.”

  He handed the sheriff the newspaper article he’d tucked into his back pocket. “This was my morning wakeup call.”

  She read over the headline.

  Then she wanted to punch someone in the silicone-laden face.

  Over and over again.

  This reporter was the world’s biggest pain in the ass, and no one could get away from her.

  “What’s it say?” Nate asked.

  She handed it to him.

  ‘Lucian Monroe is a suspect in two homicides.’

  Luke whistled.

  Talk about really inconvenient.

  “Does he have anything to do with this?” Silas asked, staring at the sheriff.

  “Not a single thing,” Bishop offered, taking Lucian’s side. She made a vow. She’d keep him safe, and this was important. “He’s being screwed with, and we don’t know why.”

  The older man glanced over at the Feds. “Do you agree?”

  “HEY!” she objected. “I’m the sheriff here. This isn’t like some doctor appointment where you need a second opinion. This is my day job.”

  Silas patted her on the cheek—much like he’d do with a child. “Well, if we’re getting help, we might as well use it,” he offered. “They are the FBI.”

  “You ARE an old man.”

  He winked at her. “I could put you over my knee still. You watch your manners, Bish.”

  “Blah blah.”

  “Well?” he asked.

  “He’s in the clear. We were with him when the killer was stringing up the body on the gate. We’re his alibi.”

  Okay, that wasn’t a hundred percent true, but Avalon was their gauge on this, and she said the man was safe. They were going with it.

  “Well, then someone better get Wendy off his ass. She’s like a pit bull on a fat lady’s leg. You don’t want her sinking her teeth into this one.”

  Oh, she was aware.

  “I’ll handle it.”

  Luke was curious. “Why is she targeting him?”

  Everyone in the room got quiet. This was a touchy subject for Lucian.

  Finally, the mayor went there.

  “When he was nearly killed, he was engaged to her. She was an up and coming journalist…”

  Bishop cut him off. “You mean gold digger who should have her fake teeth knocked into her empty head.”

  Roxy glanced over at her best friend. “Wow, someone hates Wendy.”

  “Guilty as charged. I don’t hate often, but when I do, Wendy Lockwood is my favorite target.”

  “This is concerning,” Silas offered.

  “No, it’s a freaking witch hunt, and I’ll stake my reputation and my family’s reputation on Lucian. He’s not involved in this.”

  The older man relented. “Okay, sweetheart, but you need to find the person doing this.”

  “REALLY? Shit! That’s my job? Here I thought I was just some sicko who liked hanging out with dead bodies. Thanks for clearing that up, Silas.”

  He snorted. “There is plenty of bad attitude in here. I think I’ll head back up to the office where my secretary at least smiles at me and thinks this shit—but doesn’t say it out loud.”

  The two women hugged him.

  “Oh, and Bishop?”

  “Yeah?”

  “You are not to engage her no matter what. You stay away from Wendy, ignore her, and don’t let her get under your skin. You two have history, and that’s a bad thing in this case.”

  Having anything with that skank was a bad thing. She made STDs look like a pleasure cruise. Wendy was the reason Lucian wouldn’t even talk to her. She was the reason he hated her freaking guts.

  “Fine.”

  “I mean it. I will bust you down if you get into an altercation with her. She’s waiting to bait someone, and you’re her favorite target.”

  “I don’t get why,” Nate said. “Can someone please fill us in here?”

  They couldn’t expect their help, if Bishop kept this to herself. “When Lucian was hurt, I was on guard duty.”

  She told them everything—including what Wendy did. The most surprised person in the room was Roxy, who was staring at her as if she’d lost her mind.

  “You never told me that.”

  “It’s not a memory I like reliving.”

  She gave her best friend the look. Bishop knew they were going to have to talk about this at a later date. She dreaded that to her core. Roxy was a detail whore.

  She had to have them all.

  The mayor patted her on the back. “How about you let me help you with the media? I’ll do the press junkets, and you can focus on work.”

  She wished it was going to be that easy. Only she knew there were a couple issues standing in their way.

  “We have a problem. While I love that you’ll take one for the team, Silas, I can’t avoid the media.”

  “Why the hell not? In this case, that is exactly what you should be doing.”

  “Arron Abrahms was hooking up with his secretary—his buddy’s wife. His buddy is Gaylor Zimmer.”

  The people from the town got it.

  The ones not from Ravenswood didn’t.

  “A hint please?” Nate asked, running his hands through his hair in frustration. He really hated not being in charge.

  “Gaylor Zimmer is on the crime beat, and he works for the Ravenswood Chronicle. The second I start questioning him, or he sees the FBI, we’re news.”

  “Shit!”

  “Yeah, so I can’t avoid the media. Holly Zimmer was getting her needs taken care of by the judge. So, this is delicate. This is going to be so much fun.”

  Yeah, not.

  It was going to be one hell of a tap dance on her behalf.

  “The man has the best motive. His wife was having an affair with our first victim.”

  Great.

  “As for Dale Plunkett, he was the most hated ambulance chasing attorney in town. I’m willing to bet half the people here wanted him dead.”

  They didn’t take that bet.

  “I’m glad my job is over,” Roxy stated. “I have the easy one.”

  “Yeah, I know you do. I can’t let the FBI near him or he’s going to put every detail in the paper. It’ll be a hot mess.”

  They agreed.

  “What about a gag order on the media?” Nate asked. “Do you have a good working relationship with them?”

  Everyone in the room laughed.

  “Bishop isn’t easy to get along with on a good day,” Roxy stated. “She’d as soon as punch you in the face for crossing your eyes at her.”

  “Thanks. I’m a raging bitch. I love that my best friend defended me on this one.”

  She winked.

  Then she thought about it. Maybe the FBI had the right idea.

  “I can talk to York Spencer,” she offered. “He runs all three papers. It’s his life. The owners are some fancy magazine in the city, but he puts everything he has into the three papers. They’re his life. He lives for journalism.”

  It was worth a try.

  “Will he be friendly?”

  “Ehhh.”

  “Can you bribe him?” Luke asked.

  “That’s the ONLY way he’ll be helpful. It’s like once they become journalists, integrity goes out the window, and they become soul sucking monsters.”

  Yeah, they got that.

  No one liked working with the media. It was the bane to every cop’s existence.

  “Here’s my other dilemma,” she offered. “We’re going to have to split up. If you’re with me, the media is going to be all over you. I thought we’d have a few more days before it got really bad, but we’re jinxed.”

  “Nate and I can take the much hated attorney, and you can handle York Spencer and Holly
Zimmer. That should keep the pressure off you for a little while. We’ll hide the badges and walk into the office. Maybe someone will think we’re clients.”

  “Or you can go in and kick their asses. That’s so much hotter,” Roxy offered.

  She had everyone’s attention.

  “Well, it is.”

  She was having a hard time focusing with the Marine watching her. She was wondering how many tattoos he had all over his body, and if he’d be offended if she asked him to strip so she could count.

  “No, that’s okay. Let’s do it the FBI way,” Bishop stated.

  Pulling out her cards, she passed them to the three Feds. “If you need me, here’s my number. On the back is my house line. No one has that one, so tonight you can reach me there if something comes up.”

  “Want us to meet you at your home tomorrow?” Nate asked. “To debrief you?”

  “Let’s meet today at my office when you’re done. I’m going to have to check in with my team. Leaving them alone is a recipe for disaster. I wouldn’t want the mayor chewing me a new one about how I’m letting them have fun at work. God forbid.”

  The man being discussed laughed and headed out. “So bold, Bish. So damn bold.”

  When he was gone, the Feds and Bishop were right behind him. That left Jagger and the coroner.

  “Can I help you with something?” he asked.

  She was surprised.

  He’d said nearly nothing to her for hours. It was making her crazy.

  “I have to put Mr. Plunkett away, and then we can pack up the boxes for you to take to the FBI lab. It’s not too much paperwork. You’ll be on your way within the hour.”

  “Okay.”

  It was fine with him. He didn’t mind following her around. Watching the doctor was interesting.

  As she went to put the victim away, Jagger pushed the table into the cooler, making sure he was behind her. She’d been wearing scrubs most of the time doing the autopsy, but now she was back in a skirt and blouse. The little glasses did him in, and they made her look like some studious teacher.

  He wanted to feel her against his body, but he knew that was a damn bad idea. He had no business playing fast and loose with this woman.