“Hey, come on! The needle should hurt and not the damn water!”
He just laughed as he pointed to the table. “Lie down, please.”
“What?” she asked incredulously. “I am NOT lying on a table that had a dead body on it. I don’t care what you say.”
“We do clean up between bodies, Lyzee,” Doc looked over his glasses, grinning.
Blackhawk laughed at the sheer look of horror that was on her face. “I’ll hold your hand,” he offered, helpfully.
She sighed as Doc pointed, not giving her any choice. “This is damn creepy,” she muttered, “at least distract me, Ethan.” Blackhawk leaned down to kiss her, and she interrupted his plan, “I meant with the tox report.” She did laugh now. There was no way in hell she needed to be making out with the FBI agent while lying on a morgue slab. He was sexy, but she had her limits and this was one of them.
He stood beside her, holding her one hand, allowing her to squeeze it with every stitch being placed in her wound. There was no doubt, his sheriff was tough.
His sheriff.
God, what he wouldn’t give for that to be truth.
It tugged at his heart at the possibility. He composed himself, and read the results. “They found Digitalis toxicity.”
“Digitalis?” she asked, flinching. “Isn’t that a heart medication?”
Doc nodded and continued stitching. “Yes, it’s given to some heart patients. It’s also found in nature.”
“So, could you fall into a coma like state, if you’re given too much Digitalis?” she asked, taking the last stitch and hoping she didn’t break Blackhawk’s hand. Then again, he ratted her out to Doc, so maybe that would be his karma.
“You can have a variety of reactions, from dizziness, blindness and the worst, death. Digitalis is prescribed as Digoxin, for individuals with congestive heart failure. It strengthens the patient’s rhythm. It’s one of those things that in small dose can save a life, but if overdosed it can kill. It’s lethal if taken incorrectly.”
Elizabeth let Blackhawk pull her up, and Doc bandaged her arm. Now they had another little piece of the puzzle. The killer was overdosing the victims, putting them into a coma like state, so they were more manageable. “We need to find where they are getting the Digitalis from,” she hopped down and unrolled her sleeve.
“That’s not going to be easy, digitalis is everywhere, especially in nature,” said Doc. “But at least it’s a start.
“I’ll take whatever I can get at this point. Today was a pretty productive day. We have a new suspect and drug that was used to kill. We may be able to run with this and get a break.” Elizabeth walked over to Doc and kissed him on the cheek. “Thanks for the stitches,” she added.
“Be careful, Lyzee!” His eyes flickered to the FBI agent’s over her shoulder.
Blackhawk nodded. There was no doubt in his mind that he wasn’t leaving her side for a second.
As they waited for the elevator, there was silence; she had pulled away, deep in thought. “Want to share?”
She looked over, surprised. “I’m sorry, Ethan, when I start thinking about something, I just get lost in it,” she said, squeezing his fingers reassuringly.
“Maybe I can help.”
“Something is brushing against my brain, like this little tickle. It’s telling me that I’m missing something. The minute Doc brought up the Digitalis, it started. I just have to let it play out and eventually it’ll come to me, just like the connection to Salem witches.”
He nodded and asked, “Want me to drive?” He scanned the area to make sure she was safe. He didn’t trust Forbes to be smart and stay away. He was sure he’d be prowling and waiting.
“Thanks,” she handed him the keys.
Blackhawk paused until she buckled her seatbelt. “Where to now, Sheriff LaRue?”
Elizabeth noticed they had been in the morgue a while. “Tony is off duty in an hour, so we need to swing by and pick up some pizza.”
“Where’s the pizza place?” Elizabeth gave him directions and let him drive there. When they arrived, she jumped out and then leaned back in to ask him a question.
“What do you like on your pizza, Cowboy?”
“Anything that once lived works for me.”
“Veggies, it is,” she said, laughing. “After you tattled to Doc, don’t think I won’t pay you back with green veggies.” Elizabeth closed the door and walked away whistling.
Blackhawk shook his head, entertained by her. While he waited, he would get some calls out of the way. He dialed Lily, and felt guilty that he seemed to have forgotten all about her. He and the sheriff had built such an easy rhythm together, he almost felt like they were partners. When the agent answered her phone, he briefed her on what they found.
“I’m glad you’ve had some luck. I have to say that I think the sheriff is dead wrong. We can’t find anything to prove she’s onto anything.”
“Nothing?”
“When I say nada, I mean nada. There isn’t any correlation that any of these women have been involved in witchcraft.”
“Can you keep digging? Something has to be there.”
Lily Sanderson sighed, “Ethan, you can’t make her theory valid if there’s nothing to it,” she paused, “we are almost out of options.”
“I trust her instinct,” he added. “Something has to be there.”
Lily bit her tongue, knowing exactly what was there, but it had nothing to do with the sheriff’s job and everything to do with her bed. “I’ll keep at it.” The tone of her voice was chilly, and she hoped he heard it.
“Thanks, I’ll check in later.”
“Sure, I hope you know what you're doing, Ethan,” she disconnected the call.
Blackhawk watched her walking out, balancing two pizzas and beer. He was willing to take a chance, his instinct and gut feeling was rarely wrong. He was going to bet it all on Sheriff LaRue.
Elizabeth opened the back door, placing the pizzas and beer inside. “All set,” she buckled her seatbelt. “What?”
“The other team isn’t finding anything that has to do with witchcraft. They all seem to be good Christian girls.”
Elizabeth leaned her head back, and closed her eyes. “Okay, well, then we re-examine it and see what we find.”
He started the Jeep. “We may need to be prepared to have to search for another avenue to pursue,” he was preparing her for what may happen, if they couldn’t connect the dots.
Elizabeth was curious as to why he sounded so apprehensive; just a few minutes ago he was fine. It was like he was tiptoeing around something. “Ethan, if you need to say something, just say it.”
“I hate to throw this out there, Lyzee, but you may be wrong.”
Elizabeth laughed and spoke, “Like this would be the first time? I’m not worried Ethan. I’ll find a connection; it just may take me some time. Until then we have to keep moving forward with it. I’d rather be wrong and work on something, as opposed to just sitting here waiting for another body to show up.” Elizabeth didn’t trust Lily Sanderson’s ability to do a deep search. The woman didn’t like her and she wasn’t exactly thrilled about working with her. Lily was nothing but trouble. She’d give her team some time, they may find something.
He completely agreed.
“It isn’t like we have a whole lot to run with right now. Have some faith, Mr. FBI. This isn’t my first rodeo; everyone just seems to think it is.”
Blackhawk laughed at her cowboy reference. “You’re pretty adorable for a bad ass sheriff.”
Elizabeth shrugged, whipping out the drawl. “Darlin’ I do try.”
He took her hand in his, feeling complete calm for once in his life. “Now, let’s go home.”
Lounging on the couch with their beers, they waited for Tony to arrive. She honestly hoped that he showed up, since they needed to have this discussion and deal with the problem that was brewing between them. She wasn’t going to let this cause issues between the men in her life. The thought gave her pause
. So much so, she needed to catch her breath.
Tony would no doubt be part of her life, but where did Ethan Blackhawk fit? Was he going to be a constant, or once this was all over would she be forced to watch him walk away? That squeezed her chest, making her eyes fill with tears at just the thought. She pushed down deep, and just told herself to live for the moment. She ran her hand up and down his leg, thinking about the man she was leaning against. It seemed like she knew him forever, if he were to leave, she didn’t know how life would be after that.
Blackhawk leaned back on the couch with Elizabeth tucked comfortably beneath his shoulder. Her legs were beside his on the couch, and she was drawing lazy circles on his jeans. Something about the simple action warmed him, even as the cold claws of panic ripped at his heart.
Elizabeth hadn’t spoken more than a few words since returning home. She was thinking again, and in the past he had found that women who thought too much about a relationship, were most likely going to end it and shortly. He wished he could slip into her mind, just to get an idea of what was going on in there. He was just about to ask, when they heard the car in the drive.
“I want to say I’m sorry in advance, for anything ugly that gets said tonight,” she said, looking up at him. She was expecting the worst. “I’m going to be blunt and forthcoming with him. I don’t plan on allowing him to have any doubt about the nature of what’s between us.”
“I’m a big boy, Lyzee. I can handle a little slinging of ugliness.” Ethan kissed her on the top of her head and felt her tense even more as Tony knocked on the door. It was going to be interesting, and he couldn’t wait to hear how she defined what they had between them. He himself wasn’t sure. There was no doubt what he wanted, but he was letting her set the pace.
“I’ll let him in,” she said, moving from the warmth of his body and towards the door.
Once the door was open, Tony just stood there unmoving. She hadn’t seen him look this miserable in a long time. Something was definitely bothering him, and it appeared to be huge. There was this little whisper of instinct that said it had more to do with other things than just her and Blackhawk. They were just the surface.
“Hey, I’m here,” he said, strolling past her, “like you ordered.”
“Beer in the fridge, pizza in the great room,” Elizabeth said as she closed the door behind him. Elizabeth grabbed the plates, ignoring his comment. “I’m glad you came,” she added, as he walked into the room. It wasn’t lost on her that there was pure animosity on his face and all of it was aimed at Blackhawk.
“Evening, Tony,” Blackhawk acknowledged him, voice void of any emotion. He took the plate she offered him. “Thanks, Lyzee.” Blackhawk gave her one of his gentle reassuring smiles.
Immediately, Elizabeth felt a little more relaxed. Ethan simply had that effect on her.
“Hello Special Agent Blackhawk.” Tony wasn’t thrilled the man was now using her nickname too. This whole thing was way out of control. How did she not see this was a bad idea?
Lyzee opened the two pizza boxes, and pulled out a slice covered in meat, placing it on Blackhawks plate.
“Thanks,” he kissed her on the cheek and whispered in her ear making her laugh. Obviously she wasn’t going to punish him for the arm stitches. “For you I would have accepted my punishment.”
Elizabeth winked and turned to the next box. She offered a slice of veggie to Tony. She had gotten his favorite too. Just to appease both men and not to give Tony any other reason to feel excluded and ostracized.
“Thanks, that’s my favorite. You remembered,” Tony added, staring directly at Blackhawk, almost in silent challenge.
Lyzee went for meat, and leaned back on the couch sitting beside Blackhawk. She was ready for whatever he was going to throw at them. Beer in hand and greasy pizza, she could face it now. “Want to go first and tell me what you needed to talk to me about?”
“I thought we should be alone for this.”
“That depends on what it’s about. If it has anything to do with Ethan, he’s staying. He has every right to hear it. If it’s about our personal relationship, then I’m going to tell him anyway after the fact, him staying saves me a conversation.”
“Why?” he asked angrily. He couldn’t understand it at all. She just met the man.
Elizabeth sighed and then explained. “Tony, my personal time is mine. I don’t come over to your house to tell you who to sleep with or date. Do I?”
He flinched.
“What’s happening between us is our business. I appreciate your protective nature, but really it isn’t necessary.”
“I’m just looking out for you,” he said, drinking his beer. “So this relationship, you think it’s going to last?”
Elizabeth looked over at Blackhawk for confirmation. “I think we’re starting a relationship together. Aren’t we, Ethan?”
“We’re in the middle of one, Lyzee,” he answered, dropping his arm around her shoulders possessively as he watched the man across from him.
She felt relief rush through her. A part of her was hoping he wasn’t just viewing it as a fling. Elizabeth leaned into him and placed her plate on his knee, connecting them as a couple. “We‘re adults, Tony. I think you can stop the hostility.”
He hated to be the one to point out the obvious to her. “Once this is over, he’s going back to Quantico. You're going to be heart broken and then what?”
“This is my choice, Tony, and I appreciate you caring about me, but I’m a big girl. I went into this with my eyes wide open, and if the time comes, I’ll be the one that pays the consequences. Your concern is noted. If it all goes to shit, I hope you’ll help me put it back together again, because you’re my friend. Until then you need to butt out. There are two people in this relationship. We have it under control. Ethan and I are consenting adults and can have a relationship.”
“You do realize I’m sitting right here, right?” asked Blackhawk, laughing. “Can I say something in my defense?”
Elizabeth linked her fingers with his. “Yeah, Cowboy, what do you want to add?”
He looked right at Tony. “Don’t be too sure that she won’t be the one breaking my heart,” he said, honestly. “I’m going back to Quantico when this is done, but I don’t know what’s going to happen after that. I can’t be more than who I am, and I’m an FBI agent. I won’t hurt her intentionally.”
She ran her hand over his thigh, offering her support. She understood they were both in uncharted territory. Both had careers, hundreds of miles apart. “I’m the Sheriff of Salem,” she said softly and then continued, “we’ll find a solution or we won’t, but that’s our problem, Tony.”
“If you're worried I’ll hurt her that’s one thing, but if you're throwing me the visual daggers because you screwed up in high school and lost your chance, that’s on you not me,” Blackhawk added. Honesty hurt, but it was nonetheless the truth.
“I just think he isn’t good for you,” Tony spoke unabashedly.
“And you would be a better choice?” Blackhawk wasn’t enjoying this conversation. He got that the man had it bad for Elizabeth, but his time had happened and he dropped the ball. It was over. “She’s made her choice.”
“I just think I’m more of a realistic option. I’m not leaving when this is over. You’ll get on the jet and be gone, and then what Agent Blackhawk?”
Ethan’s muscle in his face twitched. He was about to lose his temper at the idea that this man was sitting in front of him and trying to talk her out of a relationship with him.
Elizabeth could feel Blackhawk tense, his whole body tightened, and she knew he wasn’t happy. She leaned further into his personal space, to offer him that connection. Tony wouldn’t ever be more than a friend. He wasn’t Ethan Blackhawk, and that was ultimately the bottom line.
The FBI agent did it for her.
“You don’t know me Tony, and you don’t know what I will do and won’t do. Especially when you yourself didn’t do the right thing when it came to
her,” he kissed the top of her head, trying to calm down.
“We tried Tony and you and I weren’t compatible. You dumped me not the other way around, and now that’s what’s in the books. You can’t erase it or pretend it didn’t happen. You tossed me over the day after the prom, because Susie Ziebach offered to put out that night and I wouldn’t. You weren’t in love with me, or you wouldn’t have. I wasn’t crushed and destroyed afterwards, either. There were other men after being with you and now there’s Ethan.”
He wondered if he told her right then and there that he was going to be the last man in her life, what she’d say or do.
Elizabeth stared into his eyes and saw the emotion.
Blackhawk covered his feelings with humor. “Ouch,” muttered Blackhawk into his beer, trying to not laugh, but if Tony only knew what sex was like with Elizabeth he’d really be kicking himself. It was explosive and wild.
“What I mean is we didn’t fit, or we would still be together. When something is meant to be, it sticks and doesn’t fall away forgotten. Until I came back to Salem, I was forgotten, Tony.”
“I understand.” It was obviously a dead end. “I just don’t want you to get hurt.”
“Tony,” she said, taking a bite of her pizza, “I offered to marry him already; he didn’t take me up on my offer. I’m thinking he’s pretty level headed. I wouldn’t worry,” she laughed when Blackhawk choked on his beer. She patted him on the back. “You okay, love bug?” Elizabeth enjoyed catching him off guard and making him lose his control.
“No, I don’t think I am,” he said, staring at her. Twice now, she said the ‘M’ word, and he didn’t know if she was serious or kidding.
Damn it!
Blackhawk couldn’t get his balance with her.
Elizabeth laughed and leaned into him, kissing him slow. Once she broke away, Tony had her focus. “I hope we’ve resolved this now, because I really just want to eat pizza and drink my beer. No more drama.”
Blackhawk knew he wouldn’t be the issue.
“Everything resolved?”
The Killing Times (An FBI Romance Thriller (book 1)) Page 19