Saving the Girl Next Door

by Susan Kearney

  Leroy had no motive for arson or murder. He had no idea why anyone would have gone to such elaborate lengths to frame Piper. But experience told him they weren’t up against an ordinary criminal.

  Piper’s mind had taken a different tack. “I wish I knew who Leroy was speaking to during his phone call.”

  He must have been shook up but good not to think of that angle himself, Jack thought. “If the phone was registered in his name, the records will be available.” He made a quick phone call to the Shey Group’s home office and put in his request.

  “Where are we going?” Piper asked.

  “To John Smith aka Easy As Pie’s residence.”

  “We look like refugees from a war zone. Maybe we should clean up first.”

  “No.”

  “Don’t I get a say?”

  He didn’t want to go to a hotel with her. He didn’t need more distractions. They needed to concentrate on this case and solve it. He put some urgency into his tone. “We waited too long to talk to Leroy. I don’t want to wait and miss—”

  “You don’t need to feel guilty.”

  What? Did he have “guilt” written on his forehead? Because if so, he might need to find a new profession.

  That she was so good at reading him took him aback. He didn’t want to be so transparent. Usually he wasn’t. And if he wasn’t, then she’d connected with him on levels so scary that he really didn’t want to think about them.

  His phone rang. “Leroy James—” one of the Shey Group’s information specialists had called Jack back “—doesn’t have a cell phone registered in his name.”

  “What about a phone in the name Venus De Lux?”

  “Nothing. However, Leroy’s wife has a phone, but it was reported stolen last week.”

  “Has anyone used that number?”

  “Let me check and get back to you, okay? By the way, Adam wants you to call him.”

  Jack dialed Adam’s number. “You have something for me?”

  “Yeah. Your guy is smart.” Adam’s voice came in clearly, but sounded faint.

  Jack upped the phone’s volume. “We’re looking for a male?”

  “Normally I’d say yes. Females aren’t usually into computer hacking, but that makes the ones who are even more dangerous.”

  “Got it.”

  “You’re probably dealing with someone brilliant and unstable. Probably a sociopath. The world revolves around him and anyone who gets in the way will be squashed. Your guy is ruthless. And a coward.”

  “Aren’t those traits contradictory?” Jack asked.

  “When he feels he’s in control, he takes pleasure in manipulating. But once he’s threatened, he may go underground. Or run.”

  “Understood.”

  “The guy’s dangerous. Don’t underestimate him.”

  “Vulnerabilities?” Jack asked.

  “Once you chase him out of his territory, he might make a stupid mistake. He believes he knows it all and can handle anything. Push him from his comfort zone, and he’ll still think he’s invincible—that’s when you catch him.”

  “Thanks, Adam.”

  “Keep sending me information and I might have more for you later.”

  “Anything else?”

  “Like any wild animal, he’ll be most dangerous when cornered. I repeat, use extreme caution.”

  LEROY WAS DEAD and he could roast in hell. Too bad he’d be alone.

  The SOB hadn’t had the decency to take Payne and Donovan with him. According to the police scanners, the bombing had killed only one victim. An Afro-American male. The sorry excuse for a man could do nothing right.

  Apparently if I want this done right, I will have to do it myself.

  Yet killing them wouldn’t be easy. Donovan had skills. And Payne was no pushover.

  The smart thing would be to hire a professional. But that left loose ends. And associating with criminals was so incredibly disgusting. Those people were little better than animals. They had no class, no intelligence and no idea that there was more to life than drugs, booze and getting laid. And even worse, they couldn’t be counted on to remain loyal.

  No more relying on idiots. No more mistakes could be allowed. The buyers were silent, hadn’t even acknowledged the last e-mail. Moving quickly was essential before the buyers bought the information from another source.

  This time there would be no error.

  Chapter Ten

  Piper had cleaned her face and Jack’s with tissue from her purse. However, there was nothing she could do about their sooty clothes. After they questioned Easy, Piper planned to go to a hotel and take a long hot shower. Preferably with Jack.

  If his erotic kiss was any indication, he was heating up just as she’d planned. It was a shame that the memory of their first real kiss had to be marred by a man’s death.

  Although she’d wanted to confront Leroy about his false accusation, although she was angry that he had contributed to a scam that had gotten her fired, she hadn’t wanted revenge. At least the explosion had killed him in the initial blast. Quite likely, Leroy hadn’t suffered and hadn’t had time to realize what had happened. One moment he’d been alive and well, and the next he was gone forever.

  And she and Jack could have died with him. Which hadn’t changed her priorities, only reinforced them. Now more than ever Piper wanted Jack to be the one to take her virginity. She didn’t want to wait any longer. Although she hadn’t changed so much that she was now thinking she should live for today and not worry about tomorrow, she didn’t want to put her life on hold, waiting for a man and a future that might not happen.

  Jack was here. Today. And they shared a chemistry that couldn’t be denied.

  Tonight, she promised herself. Tonight’s the night.

  She didn’t say a word to Jack about her plans. Instead, she admired the leaded-glass front doors of the ranch-style home and the old-fashioned mail slot manufactured right into the creative design.

  “This is another ritzy address,” Piper told Jack as they walked up the steps to the front doors. “I wonder what Easy does for a living?”

  Jack rang the bell, and chimes announced their presence. Piper almost expected a butler to answer the door. She remembered John Smith’s face from a picture, it had been taken during his last year in computer class. The man had fanatical eyes and had worn black in that picture, too, just as her father and Danna had said. According to other students, he’d always been hostile and uncooperative, and she had no reason to think he’d changed.

  “What do you want?” A man’s voice came through the front door.

  She tried to peer through the glass, but between the stained panels and the beveled edges of the clearer sections, she couldn’t see anything beyond a dark-clad silhouette. How the guy had ever earned the nickname Easy was beyond her. John Smith, if that was him behind the door, struck her as antisocial and hard-edged. Nothing easy about him.

  Jack pounded on the door. “Either you open the door or I’ll call the cops.”

  Huh? What was Jack thinking?

  Surprisingly, his threat worked. The man opened the door.

  “You John Smith?” Jack asked.

  “Yeah.” He stood about six foot five and looked like a slab of solid muscle. With his black T-shirt, black jeans and black boots, he could have been a professional football player—even down to his hostile leer. But the burning cigarette dangling from his mouth spoiled the image of a superstar athlete. “So?”

  “We want to talk to you about…business.” Jack put his arm over Piper’s shoulder, and she could have sworn he leered at her—just a little.

  She had no idea where Jack was going with his act, but she played along. And snuggled right up against him. For once he didn’t pull back. Perhaps their sizzling kiss had set him straight.

  She might have been clueless, but Easy seemed to know what Jack was not saying.

  “Look, I don’t take clients off the street.” Easy eyed their sooty clothes suspiciously. “Where’d you get
my name?”

  Clients? Off the street? He sounded as if he was into something illegal. Computers. Internet. Illegal. Porn?

  Jack’s hand had suddenly gotten very friendly with her shoulder. His fingers drifted south toward her breast. And she’d been around him long enough to know that he wasn’t making a move on her. No, Jack’s calculated touch had to be to create an impression for a reason she had yet to fathom.

  She trusted him enough to go along. Very deliberately she placed her hand on his buttock. And squeezed. Then she looked up at him innocently.

  Jack’s eyes danced with heat. There would be consequences for her actions. Later. Consequences she’d be happy to accept in exchange for the opportunity to tease him now.

  “Found you on the Internet,” Jack explained.

  “My address isn’t listed.”

  “I did a little hacking,” Jack admitted.

  Jack hadn’t hacked the address. She’d gotten it from the shoe rental clerk at the bowling alley, but she supposed it paid for him to cover their tracks. Besides, the admission made Jack appear to be part of the criminal underworld and might cause Easy to relax.

  “I wasn’t sure I had the correct address until I saw the matching logo from this side of the door. Pretty cool.” Jack’s admission gave her the clue she needed. He hadn’t told her more because he hadn’t known until he’d seen the glass doors from this side. Apparently the image matched something he’d seen on the Internet.

  Jack’s fingers sent delicious shivers down her arm. And as they walked into a black-mirrored and black-tiled foyer that could have used a good dusting, she tilted back her head to look up at the black ceiling and restrained her frown of disapproval. From here she could see living and dining rooms, and every piece of furniture in them was black.

  What a nut case.

  “Then you know how I work,” Easy said to Jack. “Two grand for one hour. Cash. Up front.”

  Two thousand dollars? For what? Piper didn’t ask, but continued to play along.

  Jack opened his wallet and peeled off hundred-dollar bills. “You have costumes for the lady?”

  Uh-oh. Costumes?

  “Sure.”

  “And I’d like a look around.”

  “We have bedrooms with some interesting decorations. You have a fetish—I’ve got a room with the right paraphernalia and props. And you’ll have a better chance of earning back your investment.”

  Earning back his investment? Piper tried to keep the confusion from her face. The man was making pornography? Apparently Jack’s program had run down her father’s students and picked up those with questionable businesses, information that he hadn’t shared with her.

  Renting a room and charging outrageous prices might not exactly be illegal, but the city commissioners would frown on it. That meant hassles from the press and police. Was that why Easy hadn’t wanted to speak with Detective Payne? He hadn’t wanted her snooping into his business and scaring away his clients?

  “While she’s picking out her outfit, could I look at some finished video product online?” Jack asked. “Might give me a few ideas.”

  Double uh-oh. She swallowed hard. Apparently they were renting a room for kinky sex to be broadcast over the Internet. She wanted her job back, but she would go only so far to get it. And kinky sex on the Internet was definitely crossing over her line.

  But she could play along for a while. Obviously Jack wanted in to Easy’s system. And while he played with the keyboard, he clearly wanted her to distract Easy by trying on costumes, but for all they knew, he might be bored with women’s lingerie by now. Piper wanted to punch the air out of Jack’s lungs, but instead she pasted a bright smile on her face.

  “I do so adore trying on clothes.” She wriggled against Jack. “Darling, this is going to be so much fun.” And then with a hand behind Jack’s back, a hand Easy couldn’t see, she squeezed his butt again, harder this time. Not that she could make a dent in his buns of steel, but taking out her frustration on him gave her more than a bit of satisfaction.

  Jack stepped back, but not before swatting her rear in a playful gesture. “Go on and enjoy yourself, babe. You know my taste, don’t you?”

  She raised an eyebrow. “Why, I didn’t know you had any taste. I thought you just wanted me to show up naked…with beer.”

  Over her head Easy and Jack chuckled, but then Jack’s eyes locked warmly with hers. “Naked is fine, but a man always appreciates a good striptease first.”

  She filed away that little tidbit for later use. Jack had been kidding, but if that fantasy was the first that had popped into his mind, it must be one he enjoyed. And tonight she wanted both of them to enjoy some private time together.

  Business first. She linked her arm through Easy’s and did her best to keep the dread out of her tone. “Let’s go, sugar. I’ll model a few outfits, and you can give me your opinion.”

  Surely his costumes couldn’t be worse than a bikini. Or the prostitute’s outfit she’d worn on the street during a neighborhood cleanup operation, but then she’d had backup, officers who would come in to help her if she murmured a code word into her hidden microphone. Here she was on her own—except for Jack.

  Of course, she trusted Jack. But he couldn’t be in two places at once.

  After showing Jack his computer system, Easy led her upstairs and into a walk-in closet the size of most people’s living rooms. All four walls were lined with shelves and were full of gadgets and costumes, everything from shiny black leather and chains to whips and paddles.

  Most of the outfits were see-through, skimpy and barely there. She strode past endless rows of spiked high heels, clear storage drawers filled with stockings and garters. And there was every kind of undergarment ever made in a wide variety of colors and styles. Most of them indecent.

  In the hope it would cover her, she took a nurse’s uniform off the hanger. But the uniform had clear plastic pull-away Velcro cutouts. No way. Not with Easy’s fanatical eyes slicing her up for a gourmet lunch.

  Next she took an I Dream of Jeanie costume off the rack. Multicolored gauze covered the arms and legs and the material left a bare midriff, but the essentials were covered. However, she could have done without the tassels on the bra.

  “This might do.” Piper carried the outfit behind a curtained-off changing area. She immediately spied the Webcam, which she blocked with her purse before starting to undress. She didn’t want to raise Easy’s suspicions by moving too slowly, yet she intended to drag out each costume change for as long as possible. Jack was going to owe her big time for every minute she had to stall.

  When she finally exited the cubicle to stand before a three-way mirror, she had to refrain from cringing. In the harem clothing she looked like some kind of love slave. Yet from the way Easy was eyeing her in dissatisfaction, she guessed she wasn’t showing enough skin.

  Easy frowned. “Since you seem undecided, maybe I’ll go help lover boy pick a room. We have one that matches that costume.”

  “Really?” Although she was willing to go only so far, she had to keep him here. She couldn’t let him leave and find Jack hacking into his computer. “Maybe you could help me find something a little more revealing?”

  At her words, Easy turned back to her. His eyes glimmered with renewed sleaze, but at least he’d given up on the idea of visiting Jack. He pulled out a camisole with matching panties that were all lace and bows—with no lining. Wearing that offering would be the equivalent of going naked.

  She peered at the flimsy material as if trying to decide. “I’m worried about—”

  “Germs?” Easy leered at her. “After a session I have everything professionally cleaned. Even the bed linens and towels. I run a first-class operation.”

  “Okay.” She took the teddy and retreated to the dressing room. A few minutes later she came back out—fully dressed. And she could see the disappointment in his eyes.

  “Sorry, the panties were too large.” Yeah right. The only reason she’d even pulled t
hem above her knees, but no farther up, was that he could see her feet and calves below the curtain.

  “Ah.” Easy reached into the rack and extracted a pale pink bodysuit that was barely there. “Try this one. It stretches. One size fits all.”

  She nodded her thanks and again retreated to the cubicle. Where the hell was Jack? Piper was beginning to run out of excuses. But she went through the process of removing her slacks, then pulling the material over her knees. Then she waited as if she were really trying on the pink thingy.

  She spoke from behind the curtain. “This color is all wrong. My skin looks sallow.”

  “It also comes in black.” Easy tossed her a black outfit.

  Great. All the times she’d gone shopping, no man had ever been so helpful. And now she was excuse-challenged. She’d never been much of a shopper. She’d complained about size, style and color. What else was there?

  JACK’S FINGERS FLEW over the system. He’d hacked past Easy’s fire wall, but had lost precious minutes finding a way past his Internet guard dogs. The defense system, surprisingly sophisticated, had him suspicious. Once he got a crack and worked his way inside, he restrained a whistle. Easy’s operation was unbelievably profitable.

  He copied Easy’s e-mail address book and forwarded it to his system. But a cursory search found no mention of Vince, Leroy, Danna or Aaron.

  Time to go.

  Carefully he hid his tracks, covered his entry and exit, dismantled the warning bells and whistles, then set them back to default before slipping out of the system. As a matter of course he left a back door open, so if he wanted to return he could now do so from any Internet connection.

  He’d rushed, but he’d been thorough. And as he checked his watch, he realized that Piper had been alone with the porn king for longer than he’d intended. Although he knew she could handle herself, Jack took the stairs three at a time.

  The minute he entered the costume room, Easy’s face gave him a clue that he hadn’t arrived a minute too soon. The lines on his face had deepened into dark scowls. And his meaty hands had closed into fists.