Nick shook his head.
“Xander,” he said, texting back. “Just to cover all of our bases, he got the owner of the Hot Spot to let him sweep through it.”
Lara tensed. “And?”
“Clean,” he said. The forming knot in her stomach lessened. “Well, not clean, but nothing out of the ordinary. On the off chance we missed something, Xander went ahead and grabbed their security tapes.”
“Good. What about Ty? Did anything happen with him?” Lara’s mouth went dry as she asked it. She wondered if the worry for Meghan’s safety was stronger than her general worry for any potential victim.
“Ty called a couple of hours ago to check in.”
“He called?” she interrupted.
“Yeah, I was surprised you didn’t wake up. Had my phone on loud and the door wide open, but you didn’t budge. You were really out of it.”
“I haven’t been getting the best sleep lately,” she explained, mind already leaving that thread of thought.
“Oh, I thought it might have had something to do with the bottle of whiskey you basically downed last night,” he ribbed.
Lara’s head throbbed. “That might have had a hand in it, too,” she admitted with a grimace. “What did Ty say?”
“The man that left the bar with her definitely spent the night. He left around seven. Ty slipped into the complex to check and see if Meghan was all right. She was, though apparently really pissed at being woken up.”
Lara let her head fall back against the arm of the couch. She closed her eyes. “So the text was just about getting under my skin?” she asked. It was a rhetorical question, but Nick answered still.
“That’s what I’m guessing. Cass has been scanning the airwaves all morning, looking out for any deaths last night that line up with our killer, but so far nothing has popped up. That text, in my opinion, was a scare tactic. A way to throw you off balance. A way to make you lose focus.” She opened her eyes and turned to meet his. “After last night, I’d say it worked. Not that I’m complaining. I think last night was a great idea if it meant I got to see a very drunk Lara Grant.” He gave her a wry smile and a wink for good measure.
Lara groaned again.
“Please, let’s keep this between us.” She motioned between the two of them and then over to where she remembered the bottle being. Nick held his hands up in defense.
“We’re partners. We work together,” he said with ease. “I got the same memo you did.” The playful mood Nick had fallen into vanished. His smile wiped off, his brow furrowed. He repositioned himself so his body was turned toward her. “But now that we’re both sober, I wanted to let you know that I get it, you know. I really do. A crappy past, not-so-great present, a life that got complicated and never stopped.” He shrugged. “Life sucks.”
“You’re so good at these pep talks,” she whispered, wondering where he was going with this.
“Our job is hard. It leads to a hard life...which is probably what got us all here in the first place. But you seem to have a difficult time remembering that you’re not the only one who is invested in this. You’re not the only one that has to duke it out in this fight. You’re not the only one getting kicked in the ribs here. We—the team, me—are right there with you. We may be relative strangers, but that doesn’t mean we don’t get it. We’re here now. We’re in this together. Got it?”
Lara felt her chin dip down and then back up. She had agreed without thinking, something she didn’t often do. “Got it.”
“Good. Now, I’m going to put some more coffee on,” he said. “Feel free to wash up. There’s clean towels under the sink in the bathroom.”
Lara didn’t hide the offense she took at his suggestion. He held up his hands.
“Unless you want to go into work smelling like a half pint of whiskey.”
Lara covertly sniffed. She scrunched up her nose. “That sounds like a good idea, actually. First, can I borrow that T-shirt you offered, so I can go to your car?” He raised his eyebrow. “I threw an emergency bag in your trunk last night. You just never know what might happen.”
“Amen to that.”
Minutes later and Lara was standing with her duffel in Nick Delano’s bathroom. She remained still for a second and marveled at the space. Two narrow windows were positioned over a black-and-white vanity, allowing the morning light to reach every inch of the space. They were nestled in a wall made up entirely of exposed brick. It was old, like the building, weathered, but stunning in the glow of the low light. It made Lara think of the man in the other room as she got into the shower.
Comparing Nick to the brick of his apartment seemed odd at first, but the more Lara thought about it, the more apt the comparison became. Brick wasn’t uncommon, and neither was the man. He was handsome, sure, but so were a lot of other men. He was also strong, sturdy. That was plain to see, no matter if you knew him or not. However, it was the way part of the wall looked flawed that stuck in her mind. Over the years part of it had broken, crumbling off to never be repaired. It hadn’t brought down the wall or even hurt its integrity. Instead it had added to the wall’s character. To its overall beauty.
Its past had and hadn’t defined it, if such a thing were true.
Lara let the hot water beat against her back and wondered about her partner’s past. She may not know everything, but she knew enough to see that, like her, words like “complicated” didn’t even begin to scratch the surface. She assumed the rest of their team had the same complexity. The closer they got, the more she hoped she’d learn.
She skipped washing her hair but couldn’t avoid using his body wash. As she pulled out her clothes from her bag, she could smell the spice on her skin. Hopefully, no one would pick up on at it at the office.
She felt all of her focus shifting back to the case. Nick had kept his word. He, and copious amounts of alcohol, had helped take her mind off of work. He was a good partner. But, now she planned on jumping straight back into work.
“I used some of your body wash and mouthwash. The latter of which I think you’ll appreciate,” she greeted when she felt refreshed enough to be in public. “Though I’d really mark your hospitality up to perfect if you spared two Advil and a giant glass of water.”
Nick looked up from his frying pan in one hand and a cracked eggshell in the other. She eyed the food with a sudden wave of nausea.
“Already ahead of you,” he said, pointing to the breakfast bar. A mug of coffee, a bottle of water and two pills were waiting for her. Next to it were two slices of toast.
“Consider your hospitality marked up as excellent.” Before she took a seat she popped the pills and washed them down with a good deal of water. “You really know how to bust out the royal treatment, don’t you?” She motioned to the spread in front of her. “Or is this normal for your work associates?”
“Only for the ones who kiss me off.” His voice dipped low, words rumbling. He grinned before returning his attention to his cooking. Lara was glad for the diversion. Heat pulsed through her cheeks...and ran down below her waist.
“What would I have received had I not ‘kissed you off?’” she asked, feeling daring.
“One hell of a night to remember,” he said with grit.
The heat within her expanded as he threw another wink her way.
“On that note, I’m going to grab my phone.”
Nick kept his smirk right where it was.
There was a missed call from Cass that Lara quickly returned. The knot in her stomach came back in full force.
“Lara,” Cass greeted.
“What’s up?” Lara braced for the bad news.
“Still no bodies,” she assured her. “But I did find something I think you need to take a look at.”
“What is it?”
“I think we might have found our bikini killer.”
“I’ll be right there.”
“Should I tell the others?”
“No,” Lara said, thinking of the time. “They pulled a late night. I
’ll grab Nick and we can handle it.”
“Didn’t he pull a late night, too?” Cass asked.
“Yeah, but I like him least of all,” Lara joked. It made Cass laugh, though the sound wasn’t entirely genuine. “We’ll see you soon.”
Nick had settled into his seat, already devouring his scrambled eggs.
“Ugh. How can you eat that?” Lara cringed as her stomach rolled at the sight.
“I happen to be a great cook, thank you.”
“No, I mean, aren’t you as hungover as me? I didn’t drink the entire bottle by myself.”
“I just happen to be a smart drinker.” He winked. “Who was that on the phone?”
Lara didn’t know if she was supposed to be offended by the jab that she wasn’t a smart drinker. Then again, her pounding headache quite clearly agreed with the accusation.
“We have a potential lead on our Macy’s dressing room killer,” she said instead. “Cass wants to see us in office.”
Nick stood while simultaneously shoveling the rest of his eggs in his mouth. Lara suppressed a gag.
* * *
A half hour later and Nick and Lara stood in front of a wall of monitors, trying to figure out why Cass had called them.
“What am I looking at?” Nick asked. Despite their somewhat intimate moment the night before, and even that morning, as soon as they’d come into the office both had slipped back into their roles as FBI agents. Not almost-lovers.
“Do you see her?” Cass pointed to a woman standing next to the mannequin with the floral dress, a few feet from the dressing room entrance. “I didn’t see her there the first two watch throughs. I came in early when I couldn’t sleep and decided to play it again. That’s when I noticed her.”
Cass clicked across her keyboard and soon the feed sped up. She paused it after a second and pointed.
“There she is again,” Lara said, noticing. Cass sped the feed up again. “And there she is again.”
“She’s casing the dressing room,” Nick commented. Cass nodded.
“She’s the only person to show up more than once on the footage before it cut out. So, I started to look for her and finally was able to ID her a few minutes ago.” Cass pulled a piece of paper off of her desk and handed it to Lara. “Here name is Nadia Green. She’s thirty-three and has a rap sheet riddled with drug possession charges. That’s her apartment in Brooklyn.”
Lara passed the address to Nick.
“Thank you, Cass,” Lara said. “You’re amazing.”
Cass shrugged, no smile at the compliment. “I’m just doing my job.”
“Well, we appreciate it,” Lara started. “We really do.”
Cass gave her a small nod. Still, she didn’t smile.
Lara and Nick didn’t waste any time before jumping in the car and heading to Brooklyn. Nadia Green wasn’t a name or face Lara knew from her time undercover. It made her all the more anxious to talk to the woman. She needed to know if she was really working with Moretti because, at that moment, Lara really didn’t know. Either way, the growing sense of excitement at finding a face, a name and an address to the woman who had killed Elizabeth Grant while trying on swimsuits was one Lara welcomed.
Lara cast a quick glance at her partner as they got closer. Eyes on the road, focused, he was the picture of determination. It was a trait that was as endearing to her as it was attractive.
“Notice anything?” Nick asked, taking advantage of a parking spot that freed up when they were at their destination. Lara took in the people walking down the sidewalks, the buildings around them and the street signs.
“This is the same neighborhood Dunst lived in,” she said, a lightbulb turning on in her head. Lara looked out of the window at the apartments. “Hard to not wonder if there’s a connection between them now.”
“I’m starting to think everything’s connected in this case.”
Lara nodded to that.
The relatively simple case of the man prepared to jump off of a ledge had thrust all of them into a world filled with puzzle pieces and death. Was Dunst tied to Moretti? Was Nadia Green? Or both? If so, what was their endgame? There were too many questions and not enough answers. It made Lara uncomfortable on a level that went beyond professional.
“Ready?”
Lara felt the bulge under her jacket. “Yeah, let’s—Nick.” Lara interrupted herself and grabbed the man’s shoulder. He followed her gaze out of the windshield. “That’s Nadia Green.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Walking down the sidewalk toward the apartments was the same woman they’d seen stalking the dressing rooms on the Macy’s security footage. Tall, lean, with short dark hair and wide eyes, Nadia walked with the posture of someone who was perpetually focused. Her shoulders and back were ramrod straight, yet she had a certain grace to each step. She wore a tight black shirt that dipped low over matching leggings, and a pair of tennis shoes. From where she sat, Lara couldn’t tell if there was a weapon hidden on her.
Before they could come up with a game plan—ambushing her in her apartment was one thing, having her out in the open was another—Nadia’s eyes swept toward them, and she stopped.
“She made us!”
Lara threw open her door and jumped out into the sidewalk. Nadia’s eyes locked with hers, and Lara took the only course of action she knew.
“FBI! We need to talk,” she called out.
But Nadia wasn’t having any of that.
She turned on her heel and ran, but not before pulling out a handgun hidden at her hip.
“Gun,” Lara warned her partner. She pulled her own out and aimed ahead. Nadia didn’t turn to fire, but she clearly wasn’t past entertaining the idea.
Once again Lara’s feet pounded the New York City pavement as she torqued herself down the sidewalk. Footfalls thundered behind her, letting her know Nick had followed. Nadia was fast but had been caught off guard. She hadn’t had time to create an effective escape route, and it showed when she got to the end of the block.
Hesitation lined her body as she paused for a fraction of a second before tearing off to the right.
“Move, move, move,” Lara yelled to a group of passersby clogging up the corner. They looked like tourists who had taken the wrong bus, maps out in hand. All scattering in unison as the two agents ran toward them. Lara lowered her gun as she had to slow to avoid taking out a Chinese man with a fanny pack. He yelled something that sounded more aggressive than the situation called for, and Lara had half a mind to throw her badge up and give him the finger. Nick didn’t fare half as well as she did. A string of expletives filled the air behind her. It was a distraction that almost cost eyes on Nadia.
The long-legged woman didn’t cut across the road but kept close to the right side of the sidewalk. A real estate office, a bookstore and a space for rent flew past Lara as she kept up with Nadia. A couple on their smoke break watched with interest as she flashed past. Nick yelled at them to get back inside.
If Nadia had been uncertain before about her direction, Lara was ready to bet that she had a backup plan already in the works. As they passed a one-way street that ran in front of a series of connected row houses, Nadia didn’t even turn her head to look down the path. Instead she seemed to pick up her second wind, her legs pushing her farther ahead of Lara’s own. If she kept this up, the agents might not catch her.
“Stop or I’ll shoot,” Lara yelled. It got a reaction out of the woman. As she passed the next set of houses, she skidded to a stop at the mouth of another one-way street. Pivoting with ease, she turned to face the two agents.
“Gun,” Lara yelled again as Nadia took aim. The sound of the shot echoed off of the walls and parked cars at the road. No pressure or pain pushed into Lara’s body. She’d thrown herself to the wall to her right just in time to avoid the shot.
Another shot sounded but this time from behind.
Nadia was already moving down the alley as Nick’s bullet whizzed by where she had been and embedded itself into a tree off o
f the sidewalk.
Once again, Lara gave chase.
With Nick at her side they raced to the end of the building and paused long enough to peek around the corner. The one-way street split more brick row houses with cars taking up each side of the road. Nadia had her back to them, running full tilt down the right sidewalk. Her gun was still in her hand.
Without a word between them, Nick and Lara followed the woman. Lara took the sidewalk. Nick took the road. Both were ready for another shot to be fired, but Nadia had other plans.
A woman near the end of the street opened her front door and turned around to lock it. A Pomeranian was on a leash at her feet. Nadia was only a few feet from her.
“Get back inside,” Nick bellowed down the street. The woman’s head snapped up. Nadia was gaining on her quick. She fumbled with her keys, but the armed woman yelled something. Lara couldn’t hear the threat but knew it must have been pointed. The woman dropped her keys, bent and grabbed her dog and scurried down her steps just as Nadia turned and ran up them. She flung open the door and ran inside without so much as pausing.
Lara would have cursed had her breath not been strained. She didn’t want to lose any steam she already had, but, although her hangover had lessened, her head still pounded. It was throwing her off. If Nadia got too much of a lead on her, she could hole up in the house and find a spot where she could easily shoot them down. But, if Lara ran faster, she might turn the tables.
“FBI, is there anyone else inside?” Nick yelled at the woman as Lara passed her.
“No—no!”
Lara burst through the door, gun up and ready. She needed to talk to Nadia—to find out what her part in the puzzle was—but she wouldn’t hesitate to drop her either. Especially since she’d already made it clear she wasn’t afraid to use her gun.
The row house’s stairs were against the right wall. There was a straight sight line through the living room and kitchen to the back door. It would have been a clean shot for either woman had Nadia tried to escape that way. However, Lara caught sight of her tennis shoe on the top stair as she turned out of sight. Lara huffed up the stairs, finger itching to pull the trigger.
Tough Justice Series Box Set, Parts 1-8 Page 18