Meghan pursed her lips. “Or maybe your father would have done the same thing, only earlier, and you never would have been born.”
Jonas sighed and tugged her to him. “Maybe… I guess we’ll never know, huh?”
She stared up at him. “I’m glad you were born, Jonas, and for the first time in a while, I’m glad I was born too. I’ve never been very happy, but I like being with you.”
He brushed her hair away from her eyes. “I like being with you too, Meghan. It feels good to finally be able to talk with someone who cares, who understands me. I miss my brother horribly. I know he killed those people, but if you’d seen what those humans had done, you probably would have wanted to kill them too. I researched all the cases afterward, because I knew my brother wasn’t evil.” He dropped his head. “I miss him so much. We were so close. Unlike most siblings, we never fought. He was my best friend.”
Knowing there were no perfect words to comfort someone who’d lost a loved one, Meghan ran her hands over his arms. “Then why don’t we leave, Jonas? We can start a new life together.”
He sighed again. “I want to. I truly do, but…” Jonas shook his head. “I don’t know. What if what I’ve started really can make the world a better place?”
Without warning, a laugh burst out of her. “What are you…Miss America? You really think that’s possible. Look at what Tag did. I’m not saying that guy didn’t deserve to be punished, but maybe he was just playing some domineering role, thinking that most goth chicks would get off on it?”
Jonas narrowed his eyes.
“Not me. The point is…I could have found out what he’d really planned, and I could have handled him. But Tag enjoyed killing him. He had no right to be there.”
“I sent him,” Jonas said without a hint of remorse.
Meghan stepped out of his embrace. “You, what?”
“I sent Tag to make sure you got home okay, since I knew I’d be in the meeting all night.”
“I told you I didn’t want a babysitter, Jonas,” she ground out. “You don’t trust me, do you?”
Jonas took a step forward. “I do trust you. That’s not why I sent Tag. I sent him to make sure you were safe.”
“Safe… No human would have been able to hurt me…and no creatus has a reason to. Other than Tag, that is.”
He dropped his head. “I didn’t want anyone to take you away from me. Your father…it’s only a matter of time if you’re on the street that he’ll find you, and then I’ll lose you.”
Why did he have to say stuff like that? She cupped her hands over her mouth and used her sigh of frustration to warm her fingers. “I won’t be a prisoner, Jonas.”
He whipped his head back and forth. “Never, Meghan. It’s just you and me…forever.”
“And an army of rogue creatus,” she said through a huff that sounded like a laugh, even though humor was the furthest thing from her mind. “I want to go back to the hotel…I can’t do this. The way I’m feeling, I might end up killing someone.” She inhaled a deep breath before she said her next words. “We need to talk.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Detective Casey O’Brian leaned against the sleek black bar, attempting to keep his features impassive as the large Samoan man, probably six-five and close to three hundred pounds, nodded at the image of Rick Williams he’d flashed him.
The man was even larger than the security guard he’d met on his first visit. If they ever needed a stand-in for The Rock, this man could get the job. After shedding about thirty pounds, that is. At six-one, Casey didn’t have to look up at many people, but this guy was massive—and tall. No wonder the club had hired him. He probably frightened most patrons just by looking at them. Casey wasn’t intimidated, though, he was ecstatic, but even that reaction needed to be kept in check when questioning a witness. “You recognize him?” he clarified the man’s head nod.
“Yeah…I seen ’da guy. Comes here a lot, even though it don’t look like ’is kinda place. I heard from one’a my girls dat he likes to get rough, too.”
“Girls?”
“Naht like dat. Da cocktail waitresses. We—me and ’d other doormen—we keep ’em safe, so we think of ’em as our girls.”
Casey nodded. “Makes sense. So, one of your girls dated Rick Williams?”
“No, sir. Not allowed. But a couple of ’em know some of the regulars, and evidently ’e’s taken a few of ’em home, expecting a lot more than they were willing to give. Never does enough to get arrested, I guess. But from what I understand, he pushes the girls as far as they let him. Guess he’s into all that BDSM stuff.”
The doorman smiled, and Casey couldn’t help but grimace, wondering if the big man liked that stuff too. He could only imagine what dominatrix would be powerful enough to bring the giant to his knees. A shiver went through him at the visual.
Thankfully, he didn’t have time to experiment with domineering sexual games that had gotten so popular since that erotic book hit the bestseller lists. He’d lost count of how many calls he’d been on where acts involving handcuffs and whips and chains had gotten out of hand.
“You see him with anyone Friday night?” Casey continued his questioning, hoping that the guy’s manager didn’t show up any minute and shut him down. From his experience, he’d always found that most managers of restaurants and clubs were nowhere to be found between the lunch and dinner rush. If he showed up at a business between two and four, he almost always heard, “He’ll be back at five.” And then if he went about it correctly, he’d usually get an employee who was more than willing to talk, and employees usually knew what was going on more than managers anyway. Strange that almost all of his investigations started with a visit to a restaurant, bar, or hotel. It seemed even bad guys went out before they committed a crime. Or, a more likely scenario, the alcohol they consumed while they were out fueled them to do something they might not have done in the first place.
The Samoan bobbed his head. “As a matter of fact…yeah. Couldn’t help it. Don’t think anyone could have missed ’er. Don’t get me wrong, we get lots of babes coming through here. And for some reason, they treat us doormen as though we’re celebrities too.” He shrugged. “They think we have pull with the security teams that guard the bands.” He smiled a toothy grin. “We let ’em think that.”
Casey didn’t bother to point out that he’d said that employees weren’t allowed to date the customers. Then again, maybe that rule only applied to the waitresses, in order to protect them. “Do you remember what she looked like?”
The big man nodded, his broad smile flashing again. “Oh, yeah. Tall…damn near close to six-foot tall, taller with the boots she’d been wearing. She had blond hair too, almost white. Unusual in here, the reason she stood out. Most of the punk rockers have black as midnight hair. She was also a beauty. I mean…like one of those chicks you’d see on a runway. High cheekbones, tall, shapely… You know…like on those TV specials put on by that lingerie store.”
Casey couldn’t help but laugh. He liked this man. A little rough around the edges, but he seemed like a nice guy. “Did she leave with Rick Williams?”
He shrugged. “Dunno. I saw ’em in the middle of the floor a few times when I was making my rounds, but didn’t notice ’em leave, which is strange. I was at ’d door after the concert ended, so ’dey must have left early.”
“Who was watching the door before close, then?” Casey asked.
“Maybe no one. Not too many people are trying to get in when the show is almost over. I had to escort my boss to the office with cash drops before the club closed. Too much of a chance of a robbery if customers see a lot of loot in the drawers, especially at closing. More of a temptation.”
Casey nodded. “How old would you say the girl was? Anything else stand out?”
“Had to be at least eighteen, that’s the youngest we allow.” He narrowed his eyes as though he were thinking. “Yeah…she was…cautious. She got here real early. The other reason she stood out amongst the usual
crowd. It almost looked as though she were scoping out the place. Not like she was gonna rob us, but as if she were forming her escape plan. You know…like a cop would do.”
Or, a cop’s daughter, Casey thought, but didn’t voice his beliefs. “And she was almost six-foot tall with platinum blond hair?”
“Yeah.”
Casey pulled out his notebook and jotted down a few notes. He never pulled it out at the beginning of a conversation. Witnesses’ minds and mouths would shut down almost as soon as he pulled out a pen and notepad. But this interview was over. He was certain that he wouldn’t be able to get much more without a warrant.
“Oh, and one more thing,” Casey asked. “Did your security system get stolen Friday night?”
“Strangest thing. We checked it when that other dude from the department came after closing, and everything was there. My boss even burned him a copy of the day’s footage.” The big man stopped talking, as though he were thinking. As much as Casey wanted to blurt out questions about the dude, he knew better than to interrupt a witness. The big man tapped his finger on the bar. “He was looking for a missing person. He didn’t ask if we’d seen anyone suspicious, just demanded to see the footage. You think he was looking for ’dat girl?”
Casey nodded. Not only did he think the mysterious dude was looking for the girl, he was almost one hundred percent certain that Reece was the dude, and based on the doorman’s description, the girl could be Reece’s daughter. But…he wouldn’t let on that he knew about the girl. His department was working with Reece now, so he’d just watch and see what the guy was up to.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
As Jonas sped through the tunnel, all Meghan could think was how nice it’d be if she weren’t so ticked off at her husband on their wedding night. It was partly her fault, of course. He’d wanted to order a beautiful meal and have it shipped to their wedding suite. But since she’d been anxious to try out her new skills, she’d wanted to spend the first night of their honeymoon watching.
Still his fault, she reminded herself. If he’d trusted her enough to go out on her own, none of this would have ever happened. Then again, if none of this had happened, maybe Jonas wouldn’t have realized how much he needed and wanted her. If her life hadn’t been threatened, he might have still been acting cool toward her.
In the last month, she’d fallen head over heels for him, even before she’d fallen. Falling had just made her feelings more intense, but she was still mad.
Meghan turned her head to look at him when she noticed he was heading in the opposite direction of the hotel. Great! Now he was gonna just go back to their building because she was mad at him. So be it! She gestured her hand halfheartedly, as if she didn’t really care. “Didn’t you say the hotel was on the wharf?”
Jonas reached to her side of the vehicle and brushed her hair off her shoulder as if she hadn’t just insinuated an ultimatum by saying We need to talk only ten minutes earlier.
“Yes,” he said with a soft smile, “but I need to make a stop at a drugstore, and you need a hat. Not that I don’t love that beautiful blond hair of yours, but, darlin’, you stick out like a sore thumb.”
She grimaced. He wasn’t helping his case. “And you don’t? Look at you…you’re a walking poster boy for…well, I don’t know what exactly. Abercrombie maybe, with your dark skin and wild hair. You look like you stepped off some exotic beach somewhere. The women must just fall at your feet.”
He laughed, then allowed his hand to trail down her arm, slipping his fingers between hers. “Not even close. I don’t know why, but most humans shy away from us, unless we approach them. Maybe they really do believe in vampires and think that just maybe…there might be something to the myths.” He grinned, flashing his beautiful set of straight white teeth that always looked especially white with his olive skin and five o’clock shadow.
“Maybe you should buy fangs,” she teased.
He smiled, and his fingers did that tracing her fingertips thing that he’d done before that she thought had been an absent-minded movement. It felt sexual somehow, and she felt his soft touch burn through her entire body.
He softly squeezed her hand. “So, does this mean you forgive me?”
Snapping back to the present, remembering she was supposed to be furious with him, she shook her head. “Your being cute has nothing to do with this. It’ll take a lot more than making me laugh for me to forgive you. I’m still mad at my father, and he, at least, trusted me enough that he never stopped me from going out.”
“That’s because he wasn’t there,” he said. “If he’d been living with you, taking care of you, I’m sure you wouldn’t have been allowed to do a lot of things.”
She rolled her eyes. “Even when he was there. My father knows I can take care of myself, and he trusts me.”
Jonas grinned again. “And look where that got him. You ran off with a rogue.”
She shoved his hand off her arm. “You’re not helping your case, Jonas.”
“Darlin’, I am who I am. You’ve known that from day one. I say what I mean…mean what I say. Did you think I was gonna change? I love you, Meghan. I do. With all of my heart and soul, and I’ll protect you until the day I die, so you need to get used to that. I didn’t send Tag to watch you because I didn’t trust you. I sent him to look after you because I don’t want to lose you. So if that makes you mad, fine. I’ll deal with the repercussions.”
Meghan let out a long breath and crossed her arms. “Fine. Just…let me know next time. I’d rather have a bodyguard than have someone shadow me, killing innocents.”
“Deal.”
He reached for her hand again, and she didn’t fight him. Couldn’t fight him. Not that it would do any good, since she knew he could hear her heart tapping out a ridiculous patter just because he’d taken her hand.
He pulled her hand to his lips. “For the record, I’m sorry. Please forgive me. I won’t do anything behind your back again.”
Accepting his apology, Meghan adjusted her body, so she was as close to him as she could get with the center console in the way. She rested her head on his shoulder. “So, how long till we get to the hotel?”
He parallel parked outside a convenience store. “Not long. I’m gonna grab us both hats and jackets. Something with the Red Sox, so we’ll blend in. I also need a few necessities, so I don’t have another person in the world that I have to protect, and then we’ll spend the next three days completely alone. How does that sound?”
She bit her lip to hold back a full smile. Pregnant…she hadn’t even thought about getting pregnant. Thank goodness he’d been prepared, and was now stocking up, she guessed. “That sounds good.”
He pursed his lips. “Just good?”
Meghan pecked him on the cheek. “Awesome, wonderful, fantastic, beautiful. Hurry up!”
Jonas hopped out, but then stuck his head back in. “Keep the doors locked, and scream if anyone comes near the car.” She laughed, and he grimaced again. “Meghan, this isn’t a game. The creatus government doesn’t hold trials via the US justice system, with a jury of our peers. If we’re caught, and they convict us of murder, the penalty is death.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
Reece had spent the entire day tracking down places his daughter might go. A few clubs looked interesting, but unless she’d really been part of the set up to murder Rick Williams, she probably wouldn’t be clubbing anytime soon. His daughter wouldn’t want to put anyone in harm’s way because of her. Hell, once when he was home, she’d even screamed for him to remove a spider from her room, but she’d insisted that he set it free outside.
He couldn’t imagine Meghan taking part in killing a college kid, even if that kid had less than appropriate ideas of how to treat a woman, based on the fact that he’d obviously drugged her and then practically dragged her out of the nightclub. And she was certainly capable of taking care of herself, so he doubted she’d had to kill Rick Williams in self-defense.
Someone had taken advantage of t
he situation. Nothing else made sense.
Meghan had shown up at the club alone, and other than checking out the place, as he’d always done when they went out to eat, she hadn’t looked wary. She’d been on-guard, but she hadn’t been scared. In fact, she’d looked as though she’d been having a good time until the show had ended.
Reece searched on his phone for stores that sold the clothing lines his daughter wore. Nothing popped up. All the brands he’d documented were mostly only available online—or, a second-hand store, he thought. She’d always been a fan of clothes that looked as though they’d already served their tour of duty and deserved a quiet retirement.
Not that he was a prude…he loved slipping into his favorite worn out pair of jeans. But he got the holes and faded areas the old-fashioned way: working on his back beneath his Ford Bronco, hiking, and remodeling his bungalow in SoBe. And when he was a teenager…by climbing trees, building forts, and lying in the grass for hours, staring up at the clouds in the daytime or the stars in the evening. He and Meghan’s mother would take off in the morning and not get home until around midnight some nights.
Reece shook away his guilt about Julie. It hadn’t been his fault that she’d gotten into drugs while he was in the service. He’d told her he’d come back for her, but when he’d come home, she was more interested in hanging out with her new friends and getting high than she was about seeing him. So, he’d left again, and again, and again. When he’d come back when he was thirty, ready to change careers, she’d just been released from a drug rehab and was ready to change her life too. Their time together had been like old times. They’d enjoyed just being together. But then she started using again, and he’d left again. Until Betty had called him, explaining he was a father and that he had to help Julie.
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