Long, Lean and Lethal

by O'Clare, Lorie

  “I’m supposed to install computer systems. I figured I would stop in at the police station and talk to the chief.” He tapped her nose with his finger. My cover allows me to go anywhere, but not with you. “I’ll be sure and tell him you send your love.”

  This wasn’t part of the deal. She didn’t like him leaving her here carless and, worse yet, heading out to her stomping ground.

  Turning to the bathroom, she waved over her shoulder. “You do that,” she said, closing the bathroom door at the same time the garage door closed.

  Rain took her time getting dressed and then made the bed and straightened the house. There was no way she could paint, and not just because Noah had suggested she do so. It pissed her off he would leave without her. They were partners. Partners worked together.

  Scowling all the way to the bedroom, she slumped into the computer chair and glared at the screen. There were the notes she’d taken the night before and information she’d added to their chart. She stared at the names of everyone going to the party. Beneath those were names of acquaintances, business associates, anyone who knew the victims and their families. Some of the blanks next to each name were filled in. Sheila Lapthorne was involved in a nasty child custody case twelve years ago. During that time George Lapthorne was charged with child endangerment, but it didn’t stick. There was also a DUI on his record. It appeared they were trying to get all of his priors expunged when he was murdered.

  Otherwise, Lorrie Hinders had a best friend, Nina Bogart, who had a criminal record—shoplifting and aggravated assault. Nothing showed up on any of the other names Rain entered into the system. She could head out to the pawnshops and find out who’d purchased a gun that would shoot .32-caliber bullets. Of course, they didn’t know how long the murderer owned the gun. It could have been a weapon housed in the family for years.

  “But with no car, it’s kind of hard to do any investigating.” She scowled at the screen and finally opened a new browser window. “Maybe I should learn more about this kinky world I’m about to dive into.”

  An hour or so later, Rain was lost in a world of perversion and kink that was professed by all who partook in it as normal and healthy. Some of the sites had stories, and although she quickly learned all of them weren’t for her, she enjoyed reading a couple where two men enjoyed one woman sexually.

  “That would be okay,” she mused, clicking out of the site after finishing the second story. “I can see how reading these would help keep a marriage solid.”

  How would it pull off in real life, though? Rain imagined being in a relationship with a man and then sharing him. Or understanding the type of man who would willingly allow another man to fuck her. It would be damned hard not to get jealous. Focusing her thoughts further, she imagined watching Noah fuck another woman and enjoy her as much as he enjoyed Rain.

  “Like hell.” She cringed, and then noticed she was white-knuckling the edge of the desk.

  She glanced at her notes, scribbled in an open spiral notebook next to the keyboard. “Motive,” she whispered, staring at the word she’d written in block letters and underlined a few times. “Jealousy would definitely be a motive.”

  Blowing out an exasperated sigh, she leaned back in the chair, clasping her hands behind her head and closing her eyes. Immediately images of Noah above her appeared in her mind, his perfect body tense as he drove deep inside her again and again. The thoughts caused her insides to swell and tingle. In spite of having just fucked him and being pissed at him at the moment, she wanted him again.

  And she didn’t want to share him. “Crap,” she grumbled, and forced herself to remember this was just a case. There wasn’t anything between them, and there never would be.

  The way he looked at her while making love to her sure implied otherwise.

  “Fucking, not making love to,” she instructed herself.

  Rain looked up quickly, her insides tensing, when someone knocked firmly on the door. Sliding her chair away from the computer, she stood, patting her hip, and then hurried around the large bed to where her suitcase and gun were hidden under the bed. She wore shorts and a sleeveless button-down blouse with tennis shoes. There wasn’t anywhere on her to conceal a weapon.

  The doorbell rang and she turned around quickly in the room. She needed something she could slip on that would conceal a weapon.

  “Shit. I hate this.” Being unprepared in any way always irritated her. It was sloppy. Hurrying to the one window that faced the front of the house, she peered out and saw two ladies standing on the stoop, both staring with blank expressions at the door. “What the hell?”

  Grabbing one of Noah’s oversized sweatshirts out of his duffel bag, Rain yanked it over her head and then stuffed her handgun down the back of her shorts. It pinched her skin and was seriously uncomfortable. The sweatshirt hung well past her waist, though, and concealed it nicely. She’d have to live with the cool metal digging into her spine.

  “We’re so sorry to bother you.” A woman possibly forty, with short brown hair and a stylish business suit, offered Rain a friendly smile when she opened the front door.

  “What can I do for you?” Rain decided she didn’t like the fact that there wasn’t a screen door. Gripping the door handle, she stood face-to-face with two strangers. Although they were harmless looking, she would have preferred some form of safety net between her and anyone who might come to her door.

  “Are you Rain Kayne?” The other woman, who was a lot younger, possibly in her early thirties, wore clean blue jeans and a pale pink blouse that showed off not only a fair amount of cleavage but also her nice, even tan.

  “Yes. And you are?” Rain’s radar cued in. The woman had called her by her cover name. The only people who knew that name were the butcher and his wife, Brandy, and the Gamboas whose party she and Noah were going to tomorrow night.

  Which meant these two women knew either or both of those couples. Or maybe they were Brandy and Mrs. Gamboa. Rain fought to keep her excitement concealed and forced down the urge to immediately invite them in.

  “I’m Patty Henderson,” the woman in the business suit offered, and then stuck out her hand. “I know this is terribly forward of us, but we heard you and your husband were new here in town and that you’d talked to Butch.”

  Rain shook Patty’s hand, which was very warm and damp, a sign the woman was nervous about something. Her expression seemed calm and relaxed, though. Rain stepped backward, opening the door farther, and gestured for them to enter.

  “We are new here. And I’m afraid we’re still settling in. But please, come in. Are we neighbors?”

  “We sort of are.” The younger woman walked into the middle of the living room and turned around slowly, checking the place out. She had a small African violet in her hand and held it out to Rain. “I’m Joanna, Joanna Hill. Patty didn’t think it would be a good idea for me to come say hello alone.”

  Patty scowled at her and made a show of rolling her eyes. “Joanna speaks her mind. But hopefully we all can. I came over on my lunch with Joanna because honestly, we wanted to check you out.”

  “I admit you’re seeing me at my worst.” Rain inspected the small plant in its clay pot and then nodded for the women to sit. “Let me give this some water. Thank you by the way. I love plants and we haven’t had time yet to go shopping for homey things. This is so kind of both of you.”

  “A housewarming gift. Casseroles seem so clichéd, don’t you think?” Joanna didn’t sit but followed Rain into the kitchen, obviously inspecting as much of the house as she could. “Is your husband here?”

  “He should be here soon.” Rain turned on the water and doused the plant with a good soaking, then set it on the windowsill over the sink. Maybe it was normal for swingers to want to check out the member of the opposite sex of a new couple on the block. For some reason she didn’t have any desire to keep the subject on Noah. Turning to face Joanna, Rain noticed that Patty hadn’t followed her. “Thanks for the plant. I had to give all of mine away be
fore we moved.”

  “Good. I’m not very good with plants myself, but they told me you were the artsy type, so I thought maybe you’d have a green thumb, too.” Joanna gave Rain a thumbs-up with both hands, as if proving neither was green. “I’m not very artistic, either. But maybe we’ll get along anyway.”

  “Why wouldn’t we?” Rain asked, not missing a beat as she smiled sincerely at Joanna. “Can I get either of you something to drink? Patty?” she called, and held on to her relaxed smile when the woman appeared in her doorway. “I have coffee, soda pop, and bottled water.”

  “Coffee is fine, black,” Patty added, her attention moving around the kitchen. “You know, Joanna is a marvelous interior decorator. She really fixed my home up. As bare as your home is, I bet she’d have a field day here if you allowed her to do your home.”

  Joanna gave Patty a worried look but quickly diverted her attention to Rain, her smile appearing sincere. “It’s something I always have loved doing.”

  “You know it’s funny, I was just thinking about that before you two showed up,” Rain lied, and then turned to get coffee going. “We were in such a small apartment, and now with this bigger home I have all of these dreams.”

  “Wonderful!” Patty sounded almost too excited and clapped her hands together. “Joanna is a great decorator, and a really good friend, too.”

  Rain turned around, her back to the percolating coffeemaker, and studied Patty’s enthusiastic expression. Joanna looked smug but not embarrassed by the praise. They were an odd mix, with Patty’s conservative business attire and Joanna’s casual, if not promiscuous, look. She wore light solid colors to Patty’s bland pastels and way too much makeup, while Patty possibly didn’t wear any. Both women were decent looking, but Joanna would stand out in a crowd easily, and it appeared that she wanted to do just that.

  One thing reassured Rain. She was positive she didn’t know either woman. Rain had worked undercover on another case a long time ago and had to do some persuasive talking to be allowed the chance to do it. As she had grown up in Lincoln, Chief Noble worried she’d be recognized. But Lincoln was a growing metropolis and few ever saw her in street clothes, with her hair down, and away from her squad car. She relaxed, taking her time studying both women, and wondered how long each of them had lived here in town.

  “We’ll get a chance to become just as good friends,” Joanna offered. “Both of us will be at the Gamboas’ party tomorrow night.” Her grin widened as if she expected Rain to register shock at her knowing about Rain’s personal schedule.

  Rain did her best to give the reaction she thought both women expected to see. “Okay. How did you know we were going?” she asked, sounding stumped.

  Patty beamed, her smile finally looking sincere. “We’re a tight-knit group. Butch suggested we pay you a visit. Brandy said she spoke with you on the phone, but with kids at home it’s harder for her to get out. We’re very careful about who we allow to join us.”

  “Especially lately,” Joanna mumbled.

  “Why is that?” Rain noticed Joanna’s immediate discomfort, as if she’d said something she immediately regretted.

  “Nothing.” Patty glared at Joanna, but the look faded so quickly Rain might have missed it if she weren’t paying very close attention to their body language as well as what they said.

  If only she and Noah could wire the rooms so what was said in here would be recorded. She turned around and stared at the coffeepot, silently blowing out a breath, and forced herself to keep her cool.

  “What Joanna means is that we are a very safe group. As with any club, organization, or just tight group of friends, there will be problems.” Patty hesitated and Rain almost questioned her, wondering if pushing the subject would get her more information or cause the two women to clam up. “And honestly, I guess you could say that is why we stopped by.”

  The coffeepot was half-full. Rain wanted to keep them here as long as possible and so turned around instead of getting down coffee cups. She made her expression relax and her tone sound lighthearted. “So is this an interview?” she said, teasing.

  “Of course not,” Joanna insisted, waving her hand in the air.

  “Well, in a way,” Patty chimed at the same time.

  Rain laughed, determined to keep the atmosphere relaxed and casual. “Perfect. This will be fun. I wish I knew you two were coming and I would have made a snack tray. But we can take our coffee into the living room. I’d love to get to know both of you better as well. I’m sure you agree that it will make tomorrow night easier if we all know each other somewhat before the party begins.”

  “Absolutely,” Patty agreed.

  Rain was glad she had enough coffee cups and made a little ceremony out of pouring coffee and handing the cups over to the ladies. Then leading the way into the living room, she took the couch, which encouraged Patty to sit in the upright chair opposite Rain. Joanna took the other end of the couch but didn’t give any indication that she found it uncomfortable.

  “So tell me about both of you. What do you do for a living? Are you married?” Rain put an excited edge in her tone purposely, appearing anxious and excited at the possibility of making new friends. Again she wished that at least she could record their conversation. As it was, she prepared herself to stay as focused as possible and remember everything they said.

  “First things first,” Joanna said, holding her hand up in the air. “I’m bi and Patty is straight. What are you?”

  Rain blinked, her smile fading as she stared at Joanna’s broad grin.

  “Forgive her,” Patty said, rolling her eyes. “With her, it’s all about swinging.”

  “It is not,” Joanna protested, crossing one nicely tanned leg over the other and balancing her coffee cup on her knee. “But I do believe establishing our sexual preferences out in the open leads to a better relationship. I mean, what if I made a pass at her husband? I need to know what her rules are.”

  Rain recalled some of the stories she’d read online before these two showed up, and the swinger lifestyle Web sites she’d visited. None of it seemed real, but now these two women, both appearing normal and educated, spoke just how people did on those sites, and as calmly as if they were talking about the weather.

  Realizing both women looked at her, politely waiting for her response, Rain leaned back and sipped at her coffee. “That would be Noah’s choice,” she offered simply. “If you make a pass at him and he’s not interested, he’ll let you know.”

  Joanna grinned like she’d just been given permission to raid a candy store. Her long, radiant red hair flowed perfectly over her bare shoulders and down her back. Not one strand appeared out of place. Rain would guess she put some effort into her appearance before coming over.

  “My guess is you’re straight. Am I right?” Patty asked.

  “I’m not bisexual. I enjoy men.” She remembered the story about a woman enjoying two men at once. “The more the merrier,” she added.

  Patty’s grin turned sincere. “Amen to that one, sister.”

  “You two don’t know what you’re missing,” Joanna piped up. “There’s nothing hotter than getting it on with a lady while the men watch and then having them join in.”

  “To each their own,” Patty said, dismissing the topic with a wave of her hand in the air.

  “Are you satisfied that she’s for real?” Joanna’s question shocked Rain.

  And Patty’s face immediately sobered. She gave Rain a furtive glance and Joanna cleared her throat.

  “You’ll learn that Joanna here is the sweetest lady you could ever know, but she’ll never make a good detective. Anything on her mind comes right out of her mouth.”

  “Damn, Patty. Sorry,” Joanna said, sounding wounded.

  “Wait a minute.” Rain straightened on the lumpy couch, scooting to the edge while shifting her attention back and forth between both women. “What do you mean, detective? If you want to know something about me or my husband, just ask.”

  “It’s real
ly not like that,” Patty assured her.

  “I know, I’m the blabbermouth, but I really believe being open and honest is always the best approach,” Joanna said, focusing on the coffee cup that she gripped firmly in her hands. “Rain, we did come over here to check you two out. Our lifestyle seems very normal and everyday to us, but that doesn’t mean people who aren’t appropriate partake in swinging as well.”

  “I assure you we’re very normal.” Rain remained perched on the edge of the couch, aware that she’d tensed up but fighting for the right words and praying one of the women would say something to indicate they knew about the murders.

  She stood and didn’t add anything else before heading into the kitchen and grabbing the coffeepot. The two women remained silent in the living room, but Rain sensed their tension. She believed they had stopped by to check her and Noah out, but what was it they hoped to learn?

  Rain walked into the living room with the coffeepot. If the women suspected someone they knew had committed the murders, it would explain their coming across as edgy and suspicious. Most people had a very hard time keeping information of that proportion inside without talking to someone about it.

  “More coffee?” Rain asked, stopping in front of Joanna and holding the pot over her cup.

  “Thank you.”

  Rain refilled Patty’s cup, too, and then met her speculative gaze.

  “We really do owe you an apology. I’m sure you were excited at the possibility of new friends showing up at your door when you’ve just moved here. And that is what we are: new friends. I promise. We heard you were from Washington, D.C., is that right?” Patty’s smile was tight in spite of the softness in her tone. “And we didn’t come over here to judge you, or decide if you met our qualifications for friendship. We aren’t like that.”

  “We really aren’t,” Joanna piped in before Rain could confirm where they’d lived before here. “The group of people we hang out with have always been so wonderful, and easy to hang out with.”

  Rain turned, facing Joanna. “I’m sure Noah and I will like all of you,” she said quietly. She hurried to put the pot back in the kitchen and spoke as she entered the living room. “You did make me worry for a minute, though. We don’t want to be part of a group who screens their friends to make sure their income and wardrobe meet a certain standard.”