Consumed by Wrath: An FBI/Romance Thriller (An FBI/Romance Thriller ~ Book 8)

by Kelley, Morgan

  “You offered a man, who openly admitted that he was in love with you and wanted to marry you multiple times, the honor of being our child’s Godfather?”

  “Yeah pretty much.”

  Ethan shook his head. “Unbelievable.”

  “What?” she asked, trying not to laugh.

  “We’re going to discuss this later,” Ethan said, as he drove them to the city council building.

  “What if I mention that I have a second cheerleader outfit in my closet at the house that we used for away games?”

  He stared at her. “Are you seriously trying to bribe me with sex, to allow Tony to be our child’s Godparent?”

  Everyone in the car stopped moving at the tone in his voice. Ethan sounded angry and that was enough to give them pause.

  “You’re damn lucky, Elizabeth, that I’m easy,” he said, laughing. “But you’re seriously going to have to earn it,” he added, winking. “One time may not be enough.”

  She relaxed immediately.

  True to his words, he was working through the anger like he promised. Obviously, the call to the doctor the previous night and the morning run were working out in their favor.

  Placing her glasses on her face, she continued, “It’s a good thing that I like a challenge.”

  ~ Chapter Nineteen ~

  Inside, they separated the men. Denton Kline wasn’t exactly happy about it, but honestly they didn't care. Apparently, he didn't like being questioned like a suspect.

  Unfortunately for him, that was too damn bad.

  Sitting in one of the offices, Elizabeth was prepared to ask him some questions, and she was pretty sure that the man wasn’t going to like those either.

  God, she loved her job.

  “Mr. Kline, what was your beef with Jefferson Harris? We’ve had a few people tell us that you had it in for him.”

  Denton Kline fixed his tie and tried to stay calm. “I did have it in for him. He was syphoning money from the treasury to keep his wife in the lap of luxury.”

  “From what I understand, the man was from old money, so maybe you just thought that he was taking funds. Can you prove it?” she asked, glancing over at her husband. He was sitting there calmly, observing the man with an empty stare. It made her wonder what it would be like to be a suspect facing him across the table. That had to be unnerving.

  “No, I can’t. We have our lawyer working through the paperwork, and as soon as we do find something, we’re going after him.”

  “Yeah,” she flipped open her tablet and slid it across the table. “He really doesn’t give a shit,” she said, showing him the man’s autopsy photo.

  The look on his face was priceless when he saw the severed head, and the bones that were laid out to resemble what was once a human being.

  “Oh my God! Is that really all that’s left of him?” he asked, and the horror was clear in his voice.

  “Yeah, the cannibal ate the rest of him.”

  It took the man a minute to grasp that. “What? We have a cannibal that’s eating people in Salem?”

  “It appears so. Now, why don’t you tell me why you really hate the man? I get that stealing would upset you, but I’ve been doing this too long to not notice that at the mention of his name, that the vein in your forehead bulged. You didn't just dislike him, you hated him.”

  He shrugged. “He was dishonest, sneaky, underhanded and a conniving asshole.”

  Yeah, that said more than just dislike.

  Then, it hit her. “Are you married?”

  His body language gave him away. “I was at one time. I’m recently divorced.”

  “How long was Jefferson Harris having sex with your wife?” she asked, taking the long shot.

  “That bastard ruined my marriage!” he shouted, jumping up from his chair, causing it to flip backwards. “He seduced my wife and then gave her an STD, which she then gave to me.”

  “Wow, so, your wife cheated on you, with a richer man, picked up pubic lice, and then passed them off to you? That would make me very angry.”

  “It did. I hated his fucking guts.”

  “Enough to kill him and eat him and a few other people?” she asked. “Did you kill him, and then like the way it felt to have that kind of power, Mr. Kline? Is that why you killed the others too?”

  The man shut all of his emotions down. “You can ask me more questions after I contact my attorney. I have nothing more to say to you.”

  “You’re a suspect, sir, so don’t leave town,” she stated, standing up.

  “I don’t understand why you think I did this. I’m not some crazed maniac running amuck on the streets of Salem.”

  She rattled it off. “The man stole your wife and gave you an STD. That in itself is plenty of reason, but we can toss in that you wanted his position, and to make him pay. That’s called motive. You argued with him at the final meeting he was at, and then he disappears. That’s called opportunity. You have two of the three in the cop’s trifecta. Motive and opportunity I’ve got, but now I need means. If I can find a way to link you to our murder weapon, you’re going to jail for a long time, or an insane asylum.”

  He stared at her. “I’m innocent.”

  She headed for the door. “We’re watching you,” she said, stepping out. In the hallway, she stopped to look at her husband. “We need to find a way to connect him to the rest of the victims. If we can do that, then we have a way to bring him in.”

  Ethan made a note and requested the financials. It looked like they were going to be working on paperwork all night on this one. Someone was going to have to start digging through all the suspects’ lives.

  “Let’s head in to see Chris Santana, while Callen’s doing his interview,” she said. “I need to see if I can pull off a miracle.”

  Blackhawk kept his mouth shut. He understood why his wife was doing it, but it didn't make him happy. Tony liked to always use her as his safety net, and that pissed him off. Unfortunately, the man was a part of her past, and he needed to suck it up and take the good with the bad.

  “Sure thing, baby,” he replied, placing his hand on her hip as he pulled her closer to his body.

  Instead of telling him no touch-y feely, she just went with it, because she needed it, and it felt nice.

  “I love you, Lyzee,” he stated, dropping a kiss to her cheek.

  “I love you too, Cowboy. Let’s go watch me work my mojo.”

  Blackhawk smiled on the outside, but deep down he hoped that it didn't work.

  Enough was enough.

  * * *

  Callen sat across from the man, and placed his tablet on the table. “I hope you don’t mind if I record this meeting,” he said, hitting he app to start the recorder.

  The man stared at him. “I’m not quite sure I understand why you’re here to interview me.”

  “Well, Mr. Carney, we have one victim that had an altercation with the council, and someone suggested that you would be the most forthcoming and willing to help us out.”

  He relaxed. “Sure, I don’t mind helping out the FBI. What can I do for you?”

  “Why was the council harassing Duke Williams?” he asked, watching the man. He was very calm, maybe too calm. Didn't his brother tell him that if something looked suspicious, it probably was?

  “We weren’t harassing the man. We simply tried to bring up legislation that outlawed that kind of smell. Have you been to his farm? It’s like a toxic waste dump. We just wanted to make him do something about it.”

  Callen nodded. “Oh, so people were complaining?”

  He shrugged. “Not per say, but we want to offer the people who come to the Spring Fling a happy, clean place to spend money, support their town, and have pride. It’s hard to do all three of those things, when you’re forced to smell pig shit for hours.”

  Whitefox imagined that was pretty accurate.

  “We only wanted an ordinance that cleaned up the air pollution. How were we to know that the man would get so riled up over it?”

&nb
sp; “You wanted to shut down his livelihood. You had to know that would cause some sort of friction.”

  “Listen, I love pigs. They’re delicious if you prepare them right or wrap things in bacon, I just don’t want to smell them while I try to eat meatball parm at the town festival. Would you?”

  Callen shook his head.

  “We, the townsfolk, have rights too. I shouldn’t have to live and pay taxes in a town that smells like a toxic animal dump.”

  “Then he disappeared, and what happened?”

  The man shrugged. “Nothing. No one wanted to go after the man’s widow. That’s inhumane and cruel. We opted to suck it up and move the Spring Fling earlier in the season. We told everyone that it’s because the weather is so nice, but it’s because the stench isn’t nearly as bad now.”

  Whitefox keyed in on one little thing. “How do you know that he’s dead?” he asked, staring at the man.

  “The FBI isn’t investigating a missing person case. I hear the gossip. You think they’re all dead, so why pretend?”

  Callen hit the stop button. “Thank you for your assistance, Mr. Carney. I appreciate it.”

  The man stood and offered his hand. “If you need anything else, just come on back and ask. We want Salem to be a safe, healthy place for everyone.”

  “Thank you.”

  Whitefox headed out and sent his brother a text. When he got the reply, he opted to go grab three coffees and wait in the lobby downstairs. The man he just interviewed rubbed him the wrong way, and he just needed a few moments to think.

  * * *

  Elizabeth stood in front of her old co-worker and pleaded her case. She knew that it was going to be a hard sell, but she at least had to try. Tony was in bad shape, and instead of being kicked when he was down, the man needed a hand up.

  That was what friends were for.

  “Come on, Chris. I’m asking it as a personal favor.”

  “Why the sudden turn around?” he asked. “Just the other day you were trying to get him booted and Tyrell in his place.”

  “Tony needs this job. I spoke to him last night and tried to get him to understand. We both know why he’s screwed up, and I’m responsible. This is going to ride on my shoulders, especially if he drinks himself to death.”

  “Do you really think he would do it?”

  “You don’t?” she countered.

  The man thought about it. The woman in front of him would carry it for her life, and she had always been a fair and good boss when he worked under her.

  “Here’s what I can offer. If he agrees to therapy and rehab, I’ll request that he not get terminated. You’ll have to personally vouch for him, since I don’t believe he’ll pull it off. The council owes you one from the last killer you handled. So, they’ll probably give you what you want on this one.”

  She grinned at Chris. “You’re a really good mayor. In fact, better than you were a deputy.”

  Blackhawk tried hard not to smile.

  “How about you stop insulting me, and tell me what you have?” he asked, laughing.

  She broke it down and shared all the information that they had on the killer and the victims. Elizabeth told him about the interview that they just did and what they had learned.

  “Yeah, I know it was an ugly divorce. The wife claimed that Jefferson Harris was going to leave his wife for her. You know how the mistress always thinks that the husband is going to keep his word.”

  Blackhawk shook his head. “Don’t look at me. I wouldn’t cheat on her. She’s scary.”

  Elizabeth laughed. “Yeah, I know right where to hit you, where it really hurts too,” she stated. “Rah, rah, rah,” she teased, cluing him in.

  A million cheerleader fantasies bounced through his head. “I do love someone with lots of team spirit.”

  Chris started laughing. “Then, you should have seen Elizabeth. She was the peppiest cheerleader we had. The guys on the team were always trying to get her to cheer them on, personally.”

  She snorted. “It took a lot more than just some testosterone laden boy in padding to get in my cheerleader skirt,” she stated.

  The mayor laughed and let that one go. “If you hear anything, let me know,” he said, as they headed out the door.

  At the elevator, she pushed the button and waited for it to open. Once inside as the door closed, Ethan took the opportunity to spin her quickly.

  Elizabeth gasped.

  “What exactly does it take to get in your cheerleading skirt?” he whispered, his mouth so very close to hers.

  Elizabeth’s heart began pounding. “I’m fond of Native men with tattoos and a sordid past. All girls love a bad boy, and you, Mr. Blackhawk, were one of the baddest.”

  His mouth found hers, as he pressed her against the wall of the elevator. His hands wandered and once they found her ass, they pulled her firmly against his body. As he took her mouth, it reminded him of another time when he was dangerously close to losing control.

  Breaking the kiss, he stared into her eyes. “How bad do you want me, Elizabeth?” he asked, softly. There was no mistaking what he was talking about.

  Just as she was about to answer, the door opened. Apparently, they had forgotten to push the button. The mayor’s secretary stood there with her mouth hanging open.

  “Sorry,” she said, as she got in and hit the first floor button.

  Elizabeth fought hard to not giggle. To make him suffer, she wantonly ran her hand all over his ass. When he gave her the ‘behave’ look, she did it even more.

  She could be bad too, just in her own way.

  Once downstairs, she took his hand as they walked across the lobby. Elizabeth could tell that he was all stirred up. When they spotted Callen, they headed his way.

  “What’s up?” he asked, staring at his brother. “Why is he all red?”

  She started snickering and wigging her eyebrows lecherously. “He tried to manhandle me in the elevator, but we were interrupted. Instead, I got to handle the man, if you know what I mean.”

  Blackhawk sipped from the coffee that his brother handed him. “I’m not ashamed to say that I loved every second of it.”

  Whitefox offered her, and his brother, a fist bump. “I feel left out,” he said, grinning. “I’ll tell you all about what I learned on the ride out of here,” he said, as they headed out the door.

  Immediately, she didn't want him to think that she wasn’t an equal opportunity offender, so she slid her hand into his back pocket as she began telling him what they discovered. Every few steps, she’d give his ass a squeeze.

  Callen was slightly distracted, but really, he didn't mind. Her hand on his body was always a welcome addition.

  “Later, I’ll see if I can offend you both,” she said, as they reached the vehicle. “Repeatedly.”

  Both men were more than okay with that.

  * * *

  Agents Leonard and Stanton stood inside the café and listened to everything that the staff had to tell them. They were convinced that the woman had met with some sort of horrible end. Their boss never missed work.

  “When was the last time you saw her?” Cyra asked.

  Brandon Welsh thought about it. “That would be Saturday night. She left here and told us that she would see us at the Spring Fling on Sunday. Justine planned on working on her new recipe for faux chili. She was going to debut it at her booth tonight, and then at the chili cook off on Tuesday.”

  Cyra made notes. “Was anyone bothering her?” she asked, just covering her bases. For all they knew, this was a random thing.

  The man thought about it. “No, she was happily cooking up a storm. I mean, sure, we have a few people who don’t get why we don’t have meat on our menu, but they aren’t mean. They ask for bacon, we tell them we don’t carry it, but the tofurkey one is just as good.”

  “How do they respond to that?”

  He shrugged. “Some better than most, but I completely understand. I love meat and appreciate how they feel.”

  “An
d you work for a Vegan café?”

  Brandon thought about it. “Hey, a guy has to pay the bills. This is Salem. You take whatever job you can get.” Then, there was a pause.

  The trained investigator in Cyra caught it immediately. “What?”

  “We did have an altercation a while back. A customer came in and wasn’t happy that he found a hair in his salad. He was pretty irate.”

  She stared at him. “Define altercation, Brandon.”

  “He yelled and screamed at me, and then demanded to see the owner. Justine came out and handled it, but she was pretty frustrated when he left. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her that mad before. She actually cursed at him and tossed him out of the place.”

  “Who was it?”

  He thought about it. “I don’t know his name. It wasn’t like he was going to leave his business card. I had seen him in here a few times, though. I can ask some of the other people that work here if they know him.”

  “Thank you. Can you describe him?”

  “He was Native American and this tall,” he said, holding his hand up to his chin, “and looked like he was out hunting. I don’t get why he came in here. If you’re a hunter, you probably aren’t going to like vegan food. I keep telling Justine to add bacon to the menu. At least offer up a BLT or something.”

  Harper made notes.

  “Can you give me Justine’s address? We’re going to head by there and see if we can find anything,” she said.

  Harper wrote down the address that the man rattled off, and began working on her tablet immediately. As they walked out, she glanced over at her partner. “What now?”

  “We’re heading to her place, and then the notifies. Later, we’ll hook up with the Blackhawks and go from there.”

  “Okay. Well, I’m going to start running her. Maybe something will pop up in her financials.”

  Her partner agreed. “Way to jump in and outthink the bosses. They’re probably going to ask us to do it later anyway, so you get a gold star from me. Maybe later you’ll get a fist bump from the boss lady.”

  “Do you think I should check out everyone?” she asked.