Hostile Desires

by Melissa Schroeder

  Elle blinked. “Wow, that’s a lot of words.”

  The doors opened to the basement and she stepped out. Emma looked a little green around the gills.

  “Are you okay?” Elle asked.

  “Yeah. I’ve been getting motion sickness. I get these things all separately, so I’m thinking the stress of the wedding is getting to me.”

  Elle smiled. “That very well could be. I didn’t sleep for three nights before my wedding. Could barely keep anything down, in fact.”

  “Oh, good, I thought it was just me. Or maybe I was dying.”

  “You thought you were dying, but decided to keep it to yourself?”

  “No. I came to see you, and I talked to my doctor, who said not to worry. I stress myself out, and this wedding is pushing me over the edge. Which is true. That was about a month ago, and it’s getting worse.”

  “I can give you an exam, but not tonight.”

  “Yes, I understand.”

  Emma watched Elle as she washed her hands then dried them. Elle knew the younger woman had something on her mind, but it was always best to let Emma come around on her own.

  “You called him Graeme.”

  The statement came out of nowhere, and it took a moment for Elle to realize what Emma had said. Dammit, she hadn’t realized that she had done that.

  “What?” Elle asked.

  “Graeme. You called him by his first name.”

  She turned to look at the younger woman. She seemed so young, or looked it at least. But the horrors she had seen as a young woman, after surviving the Boxing Day Tsunami, had matured her beyond her years. Still, she had a genius IQ and barely missed a thing.

  “I call lots of people by their first names.”

  “Not Graeme. You usually call him McGregor.”

  She did not need to discuss this, not right now. She had too much going on. “Well, it seemed weird calling him by his last name since we are working together.”

  Emma didn’t believe her. Elle could see it by her expression.

  “Nope. Something happened,” Emma said, crossing her arms beneath her breasts.

  “No.”

  “Yes,” she said, jumping up off the chair, then suddenly swaying.

  “Whoa, there, Emma,” Elle said, rushing forward. “You need to take it easy there.”

  “Oh, that is not fun. Just like when I had anemia.”

  “Tell you what. I’ll come by the house tomorrow and check you out.”

  “Don’t tell Del.”

  “You haven’t told him you aren’t feeling well?”

  “You know how he would freak out about it. Since that incident earlier this year, Del has been overprotective. He knows I’ve been throwing up, but the dizziness I’ve been keeping to myself.”

  “The incident was a serial killer trying to kill you, and Del saw you fall over your balcony. You act like it was just breaking your nail.”

  Emma rolled her eyes. “If there is something wrong, then I’ll tell him. But I think it is just the anemia.”

  Drew burst into the lab in his usual matter.

  “I don’t think I can do this,” Emma said, her voice faint.

  Elle patted her hand. “Have Del take you out and eat a high iron meal. Eggs, red meat, or scallops. Get some spinach.”

  She nodded. “I guess I better let you go so you can call Tripler. Thanks, Elle.” She smiled at Drew, then left them alone, rushing out.

  “What’s wrong with her?” Drew asked, as Elle looked through her contacts at Tripler.

  “Bridal nerves. They have less than two weeks left.”

  “I know,” Drew said, wiggling his eyebrows. “I’m going to make my move.”

  She smiled. “You asked Cat to attend the wedding with you?”

  “Well, we are driving there together. Then, I’ll sweep her off her feet.”

  Elle smiled. “I hope you do.”

  She brought up a contact’s name, and started dialing the number. When Dr. Myers answered on the first ring, she smiled and started talking fast.

  * * *

  Graeme’s mobile rang before they could even get to the report. He saw Carino’s number and winced.

  “Carino,” he said to Del.

  “Read him in, and if he gives you crap, hand him off to me.”

  Graeme nodded and clicked on his mobile as he walked into his office for a little privacy.

  “Give me a reason not to kick your Scottish ass all the way back to the UK, McGregor,” Rome growled over the phone.

  “Hey, I was under orders. And to save a little bit of an issue, Del had gotten approval to read you in before the info leaked. I was going to talk to you about it tomorrow.”

  “Still pissed.”

  “Well, get over it.”

  There was a long pause, then a sigh. “Okay, tell me what you have.”

  He went over what little they had gathered, then waited for Carino to respond.

  “Son of a bitch. We could have asked him about that and might have found the weapon.”

  “First of all, he lawyered up. Second of all, before we could sort through everything, he’d passed out.”

  Carino sighed again, the long day and the frustration of a case that had just gone sideways easy to hear over the phone.

  “We’re going over the ME’s report, but why don’t I come over tomorrow with the report from this case, along with the cold case, then we can put it all together and maybe come up with something?”

  “I’ll see what I can dig up. Nine sound good?”

  “Make it ten. I’m still at TFH headquarters, and I’m not sure how long before I can head back home.”

  “Good. And, just so you know, I say you owe me one.”

  Then he hung up. McGregor couldn’t help but chuckle. Carino was definitely one of a kind. He walked back out into the conference room.

  “Everything okay?” Del asked.

  McGregor nodded. “Aye. He’s coming over around ten tomorrow to go over the two cases with us.”

  “Good. Carino has a good eye, so he’ll help.”

  “More than likely, he’ll be happy to dump this in our laps.”

  Del nodded. “From what this says, she was found under some brush, her face covered,” Del said, as he read over the ME report. “Odd that he made so many notes about things like that in this.”

  “Both Elle and I think that the murderer might have known her, or at least it wasn’t premeditated. Definitely shows remorse.”

  “And the ME?”

  “He’s practically like an uncle to Elle. She thinks he wondered about a cover up, so the extensive notes might have something to do with that. And, she noted that he started looking at it again around the time of the Goddess Killer.”

  Del nodded as his mouth tightened. Graeme could understand his boss’s reaction. Seeing the woman he loved fall over a balcony was enough to make Del hate even the mention of the case.

  “It’s such a shame the girl was ignored, but hell, you see it still today,” Marcus said. “And this definitely would fall through the cracks, even right now.”

  “Not sure about that,” Cat said. “Now that we have so many traffic cams, etc., there would have been more ways to sort through the evidence. And, remember, there is no ongoing serial killer case. With a healthy social media, many Hawaiian residents would make sure she would get attention.”

  That was one of the things he loved about Oahu. There were close to a million people on the island, but it was like a small town. Everyone knew everyone else...or his cousin. It was probably irritating to some, but when they needed each other, there was always community support.

  “Speaking of which,” Marcus said looking at Graeme, “You want to make sure you get all the evidence. I’m pretty sure Charity could do something with it.”

  Graeme nodded. “Let’s hope there’s enough.”

  “Well, they have her clothes from what this says,” Del said.

  “Do you need us for anything else, boss?” Marcus asked. �
��Cat and I have a meeting out at Hickam tomorrow.”

  Del shook his head. “You go on.”

  When they were left alone, Del leveled him with a look. “Got something to tell me?”

  “No.”

  He nodded and continued to look over the report. “So, you and Elle went out to eat?” Del asked.

  “Yeah. Seems that she frequents McPherson’s.”

  Del nodded. “I could see that. It seems like you worked through your issues.”

  Graeme shrugged, feeling as if Del was fishing, and he was not in the mood. His mind was on the case...and the woman.

  “Did you ask her about her past?”

  “She told me some of it.”

  Del nodded. “I assumed that was part of the reason she had issues with you. But I’m glad you worked it out. My mother gets here the day after tomorrow, and Emma’s sick. She doesn’t want me to know she is sick, but she’s worried herself into a state. I knew the two of you would be able to work the case together.”

  “I don’t know that I need the doctor around after she goes over the findings.”

  “True, but since she has a connection to the first ME, I thought it might help out in the case. I do want her taking off tomorrow. I want you to tell her that I don’t want to see her at the office unless it’s an emergency.”

  Graeme let one eyebrow rise up. “And you think she’ll listen to me?”

  Del smiled. “Tell her I said so. Then threaten her with leave. Or a call to the good old Doc Keahi. The man is like a second father to her.”

  “I didn’t know you knew about their relationship.”

  “I don’t miss much, but I do know he recommended her for this job, and she lived with him for awhile when she first got over here. He might not be able to get her to do anything, but he’ll contact her mother. Apparently, that is the way to put the scare into Elle.”

  “Okay.”

  They heard the ding of the doors, and they both turned toward it. Emma turned the corner into the conference area and made her way to the office. By the time she stepped into Del’s office, she looked like she was ready to pass out. Her face was pale, and she didn’t appear to be steady on her feet.

  “Hey, Emma, what’s wrong?” Del asked, as he rose from his desk.

  “Nothing. I just realized I need to get some good food in me. And I need some sleep.”

  “You got it. I take it you’ll be here when Elle’s done?” Del asked.

  He had planned on it. “Yes. I want to see what she found out.”

  Del nodded.

  “Night, Graeme. Make sure she gets sleep. Elle hardly ever sleeps,” Emma said.

  “And you know this how?”

  “I recognize a fellow insomniac when I see one.”

  He followed them out of the office, then watched as Del led her out into the hall. His boss was right. Emma did not look all that well, but then, he had been around for one of his sister’s weddings, and that had been horrible. The memory still left him with nightmares.

  Alone in the office, he decided to go over the report that Elle had given him while he waited.

  * * *

  Elle was practically dragging her ass on the ground as she stepped out of the elevator. She had expected Graeme would stick around, but she felt better when she saw his office light on.

  Graeme. Since the moment she had said it earlier, she knew she would never think of him any other way. That was the reason she had avoided using the name. She stepped closer and realized he was reading...and he was wearing a pair of glasses. He was so focused on what he was reading, he didn’t realize she was looking at him then. She felt free to take her time to study him.

  He always seemed like a man from another time, a warrior without a kingdom. Maybe it was the Scots in her blood, but that accent and those piercing eyes called to her. He was the first man since her divorce, and the incident that preceded it, to make her want to be touched. And seeing him like this, intent on whatever he was reading, made her hormones pop to life.

  She must have caught his attention, because his gaze rose to hers. Lord, he was sexy before, but now he looked like a warrior nerd. Then, he slowly slipped the glasses off. Okay, her ovaries might have just quivered. Good lord, she was starting to sound like Charity now.

  The longer she stood there, the harder it was to take that step forward. After a few moments, she found the ability to step in the direction of his office.

  “I wasn’t sure if you would still be here,” she said. “I did not know you wore reading glasses.”

  “Not a secret, but I don’t need them that often.”

  “I talked to Dr. Myers. He works at Tripler. Seems Katsu was crashing when he came in.”

  “Yeah?”

  “According to the admitting doctor, if he had been able to buy his next fix, it could have very well been his last. He had track marks in his arms. So very many of them. But he seemed to be okay when they got him stable.”

  “I sense a but here.”

  Elle nodded. “Three hours ago, he plummeted. They have no reason for it, and they have no idea why he went down the way he did.”

  “There was a guard at the door,” Graeme said.

  “Yes, but there might have been a few minutes that he was distracted. I don’t have all the details on that, but Myers said he would find out. Seems like there was a fight that conveniently broke out just outside of the ICU.”

  “Any chance of recovery?”

  She sighed. “Probably not. He’s pretty much brain dead at this point. They really don’t expect any kind of recovery.”

  “Which means, we won’t be able to question him or find out where he got the gun.”

  She nodded.

  “Bugger me.”

  “Exactly.”

  Chapter Seven

  Less than fifteen minutes later, Elle walked beside Graeme. Nights in Hawaii were always gorgeous. Even if the trades were light during the day, the nights were bearable. The humidity from the day had burned off and nothing was left but the sweetness from the tropical flowers and the salty scent of the ocean. Still, after living in Oahu for five years, she would never get used to it.

  She was wired. Too much caffeine was part of the reason. She loved her Kona coffee, but she rarely had the gallon or so she had consumed today. But part of the reason was the man beside her.

  She glanced at her companion. They had parked next to each other, so for most people it would make sense. Still, this was the first time for the two of them to walk out together. Their antagonistic relationship had made it easy to avoid each other, but she knew even then he would have escorted her. When she said she had to get her things, he had waited for her. Being raised in a house of sisters had taught him well.

  It had been years since she had garnered so much attention from a man. Granted, it was because of work for the most part, but it didn’t mean that it wasn’t for other reasons as well. Like…to steal another kiss.

  Her heart fluttered. She couldn’t get that thought out of her mind. More than once tonight, her mind had drifted back to the memory of his mouth brushed against hers. She had lost her train of thought while on the phone with Tripler. Bloody hell, she was thinking like a school girl. Infatuations were not for women who were within spitting distance of forty. She had given up on fairy tales a long time ago. She knew all the experts and their advice, but she lived in reality. She might have been able to build her marriage back up, but now, she wasn’t sure if she could trust a man—even for a little romance.

  “So, are they convinced he had help with his crash?” McGregor asked.

  He didn’t seem to be preoccupied by the kiss. It was probably a very normal thing for him. He probably kissed women he knew every day. Lord knew there would be enough women who would gladly line up and pay for his attention.

  She nodded. “Dr. Myers was very cagey about it, but he alluded to the fact he thought something happened. Fights don’t happen every day at Tripler. They have civilians there, but the majority of th
e people are military or retirees and their dependents. It is suspicious that it happened like that. He doesn’t know if it was on purpose, but either way, he should have pulled through. Of course, things always go wrong now and then. Katsu was pretty strung out. There were reports of drug abuse as early as twelve.”

  “Jesus.”

  “With a history like that, a bad case of the flu could send him to the hospital. His heart has been abused for years.”

  She clicked the button to unlock her doors as they stopped by the driver’s side of her car.

  “He probably wouldn’t have lasted long in prison,” Graeme said, as he held the door open for her.

  “You think someone would have gone after him?”

  “Yes. Any number of gangs could have gone after him, but top of the list would have been the USO.”

  She glanced at him. “USO?”

  “United Samoan Organization Family. Most powerful gang in Halawa.”

  Which meant they were definitely the most violent. “I’m assuming they have some connection to the police.”

  “Some. You know how gangs go. There are always some gang members who have familial connections to cops, or they’re from the same neighborhood. I’ll assume it’s even harder to break free in Honolulu. Small island, no place to go. You might walk the straight and narrow, but your buddy doesn’t.”

  “Sounds like you’re speaking from experience.”

  He nodded. “Although I grew up in a middleclass kind of neighborhood, there were always one or two wankers who went the wrong way. Scotland is a big place, though, and easier to move and start a new life. I would assume here some people feel trapped.”

  “Do you think the USO could have gotten someone into Tripler?”

  He glanced at her. “Why?”

  “Katsu’s connection to the Kalani case only just made news. I don’t think someone from that crime had anything to do with what happened at the hospital. They would not have had time to make it to Tripler, right? Even setting something like that up would be hard to do in that short a time.”