Dennis glanced over Hunter’s shoulder then gave Hunter a suspicious look. “What’s going on?”
“What?”
Dennis pointed to Amy’s coffee cup sitting empty on the file cabinet. For the first time since Amy died, the coffee cup was not being used. “That’s what.”
Hunter looked at the plain white coffee mug with FBI in bold black letters in front of him and knew Dennis was the only one he trusted to tell. “I met someone at the festival.” Dennis’s eyes widened with intrigue and he gave Hunter a look that said It’s about time and Who is she? “Don’t get too excited. She loved me and left me.”
“At least you got laid,” Dennis joked.
Hunter shrugged his shoulders. “She told me that it would be a one-night stand and I was okay with that at the time. But this girl…” He let out an aggravated growl. “I don’t know. I just have to let it go.”
The conversation went no further as Judd was walked in with a somber look on his face, taking the seat next to Dennis. Hunter suspiciously looked from one to the other, knowing something was wrong and neither one of them wanted to be the one to speak first.
“What the hell is going on?” Hunter demanded.
The way Judd nervously shifted in his seat, trying to get into a comfortable position, reminded Hunter of how he had reacted the first time the job required him to break bad news to somebody, hoping like hell they wouldn’t throw something heavy at him. Dennis didn’t say a word.
Before Hunter could ask again, Judd cleared his throat and spoke with a hint of nerves in his voice. “So, something’s come up. Two somethings, actually. First, Mack Finley is trying to turn state’s evidence.”
Hunter looked at Dennis in disbelief. Dennis’s expression of irritation, along with the sharp nod of his head, confirmed what Judd was telling him.
Hunter let the words sink in for a moment, then said, “You know what will happen, don’t you? He’ll ask for witness protection.”
“Probably,” Judd confirmed. “But, apparently, he’s only willing to give his story if you’re in the room with him and his lawyer.”
“Why?”
“Finley said he thought you would be interested to hear what he has to say.”
“How long have you known about this?” Hunter asked, curious as to why both Dennis and Judd would keep this kind of information a secret.
Dennis jumped in then. “The paperwork came across my desk about an hour ago and I had to prep Fowler on how to break the news to you. You have a tendency to not take bad news very well.”
Knowing this was true, Hunter looked to Judd. “Second?”
The younger man let out a deep breath and gestured with his chin to the files on Hunter’s desk. “There have been two more. One was a missing hiker in Idaho they’re calling an accident. The other one is staying out of the news and as far away from the public as possible. I haven’t seen the file or any photos yet but Vegas PD says we will have a full copy of the file as soon she’s identified. She was found in the basement of an abandoned car repair shop. Vegas said she had been down there at least a month, maybe longer.” Judd’s body gave an involuntary shudder.
Hunter considered what he was hearing. He could understand the authorities wanting to keep something like this out of the news, but Judd was omitting something.
“How soon until we have identification?”
“We don’t know yet. Her fingerprints were burned off so Vegas will try to use DNA.”
“DNA? That takes too long. What about a picture to match to DMV records?”
Judd forcefully shook his head and Hunter could see he was struggling with what he had left to say. Hunter couldn’t imagine what could be so terrible that Judd had to look to Dennis for some kind of reassurance, but after Dennis silently nodded his head, Judd composed himself and looked Hunter directly in the eye. “In order to do that, they’ll need to find her head first.”
Dennis didn’t say a word and Judd let out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding as they watched Hunter accept what he had just been told. Hunter slowly stood up and paced the room, Dennis’s and Judd’s eyes following his every step, trying to anticipate his reaction. This was the worst murder so far and Hunter didn’t know what to think. He was shocked and appalled. He was angry at the fact that he hadn’t been able to stop it from happening. He was tired of chasing a ghost. He wanted—he needed—to stop the bastard responsible so he could finally stop blaming himself for Amy’s death.
After three laps around his office, Hunter went to his desk, took out his gun, then casually walked out to the shooting range.
***
“You did good, kid,” Dennis said. “You’re going to do just fine.” He patted Judd on the shoulder and left the office.
Left alone, Judd stared at the wall in front of him, glancing over Hunter’s newspaper clippings and handwritten notes stuck to it. He then let his eyes wander over the open files on Hunter’s desk and realized that this was the first Black Rose Murder that Judd would be involved in from beginning to end. The second he found out about this recent death he had resolved himself to put forth everything he had to help solve the case. Not only to put a stop to the killing, but also to help give Hunter a little relief.
By the end of the week, Judd got the report from Las Vegas, studying every word and every picture, making sure to miss nothing. He was going to become intimate with the case and would forever wonder what Sasha Wheeler had ever done to deserve losing her head.
Chapter 27
Four Months Earlier
When it came to doling out consequences, Matthew thought of it as teaching a lesson. With Sasha, however, he was simply covering his ass.
James and Lawrence Garafola were both captains in Las Vegas, brought in substantial money for the Family, and followed orders without hesitation. When the brothers called and asked if they would be able to partake in Matthew’s fine hospitality in Atlantic City, he immediately granted their request and decided to meet with them for dinner over the weekend. It was during this dinner that Matthew found out Sasha had recently been seen in Las Vegas. Lawrence’s comment made every fiber of Matthew’s being feel like it had been hit with a jolt of electricity. Stunned and shaken by what he’d just heard, he decided he needed to hear it again.
Lawrence was trying to swallow a hunk of steak he had just shoved in his mouth so James repeated it for him. “He said he recognized her because they hooked up a few years after we took care of your problem. She worked for you back then, right?”
“She did.”
James nudged Lawrence with his elbow, a grin on his face. “If this guy can remember a hook-up from that long ago, she must have done something right.”
Matthew attempted a smile to show he found the humor in the comment, but it just wasn’t coming out right. He wiped his mouth with his napkin in an attempt to gather his thoughts, and realized that if he wanted to get more information about Sasha’s secret visit to Las Vegas all those years ago, he would have to feign interest.
“Well,” Matthew said, “Sasha did have a knack for putting a smile on men’s faces long after they had parted company. It’s too bad you only got one night of her expertise.”
Lawrence shook his head, his fork poised in front of his mouth. “We didn’t leave the room for three days.” He gave himself a congratulatory smile and shoved the fork in his mouth.
Matthew quickly tried to recall how long Sasha usually went away on business trips and calculated the longest he could remember her being gone was no more than five days, and never recalled her visiting Las Vegas.
Lawrence had a smile and a thoughtful look on his face. “Yeah. I wouldn’t mind getting together with her again. It would be nice to get another video.”
Matthew’s head snapped up and he stared at Lawrence. “Video?”
“He likes to watch,” James clarified.
Lawrence shrugged his shoulders. “Eh. It’s just a hobby.”
Matthew was getting impatient. “What video?�
��
“Oh, I have a digital camera set up at the foot of the bed.” Lawrence let go a proud laugh. “We had plenty of footage. Three days is a long time.”
“Do you remember any of the conversation you shared over the course of three days?” Both James and Lawrence looked confused and Matthew let out a frustrated sigh. “Did you happen to mention anything about our business arrangement?”
Lawrence gave an uncaring shrug of his shoulders as he scooped up another forkful of food. “I don’t know. Damn, now that I think about it, I wish I could go back and watch the video again but she took it with her when she left. Or, I guess she did. It was gone when I tried to find it a few days after she left.”
***
Matthew was in Las Vegas within a week, Crescent and Tucker in tow, to hunt down Sasha. Matthew was hoping to find her quickly; they were in somebody else’s territory, unannounced, and had to tread carefully. While Matthew convinced Neil Parsons, underboss of Vegas, that he was there for pleasure, he sent Crescent and Tucker in search of Sasha. Within twenty-four hours, she was found.
In the basement of an abandoned auto repair shop, Matthew sat down in front of Sasha, full of sorrow and disappointment. Sasha was one of the few women he trusted and was genuinely hurt when she left Boston. It pained him to see her tied to a chair, shaking and scared to death, taking in her surroundings and most likely knowing any one of the numerous auto parts and tools would probably be used to inflict a lot of pain. Crescent and Tucker stood on either side of Sasha while Matthew calmly assessed her, trying to decide the best tack to take. He could see was desperately trying to be courageous and unafraid of the inevitable.
Matthew’s tone matched the look on his face—he would get what he wanted from her. “I understand there is a video. Tell me where it is.”
Matthew could see from the way Sasha’s eyes popped wide open that he had learned a secret she never wanted him to know. Sasha spoke through the tears choking her speech. “I don’t have it.”
Crescent’s hand flashed out and his fist violently cracked Sasha’s face, blood spraying from her nose as the force jerked her head from one side to the other. Matthew patiently waited a few moments to let her regain her senses before asking again. Sasha, though taken with white-hot pain, straightened herself in the chair, tried to control the tears, and looked at Matthew with angry defiance in her eyes.
“Who else knows about it?”
“Nobody!”
“If nobody else knows about the video, then where did it go?”
When Sasha didn’t answer, Tucker put his full force behind swinging a torque wrench across her left thigh. Matthew knew the pain was immediate and excruciating, and Sasha let out a wailing cry of pain as another blow hit her leg with enough force to break her tibia. She quickly sucked in shuddering breaths, closing her eyes against the pain, her tears freely falling. When she looked at Matthew once more, the fire in her eyes was still there, but there was something else. Something that told Matthew she had information he never wanted her to have. Suspicious, he asked her, “How much do you know?”
Sasha barred her teeth against the pain and gave a pained smile. “Everything.”
***
When Sasha learned Matthew’s secret, the first thing she wanted to do was tell David, but she wouldn’t be able to go to him without proof. Her opportunity came when a delivery of compromising photographs needed to be made in Arizona and Matthew sent Sasha to personally deliver them. Once her errand was completed, she snuck over to Las Vegas. It didn’t take long to find the Garafola brothers. Hastily seducing Lawrence and suffering three days in his company got her the information she needed.
“Your boss didn’t like this guy he was partners with. I mean he really didn’t like him. Apparently, he had been stuck with him because he’s the son of someone important and your boss was sick of his friend fucking everything up.” Lawrence undoubtedly got a rush of excitement from telling the story, and an even bigger rush from being the person responsible for taking care of the problem. Sasha could see the enthusiasm both in his face and between his legs. “So, your boss paid us a little extra—two hundred and fifty thousand each—to take this guy out to the desert and make him disappear. We roughed him up a little bit but I got bored, so I put two shots in him. Afterward, we went to the casino and I won a grand at the blackjack table.”
Lawrence shrugged to indicate his indifference, then reached for Sasha and quickly replaced the conversation with his excitement. She didn’t expect to be able to get physical proof, but Lawrence’s fetish for making videos of sexual encounters was simply an added bonus. On the third day, after Lawrence finally left the room to meet his brother, she showered and gathered her things, including the digital footage, and boarded a plane for home.
***
“If you have had this information all these years, why haven’t you told anyone?” Matthew asked.
“Because even though you are an arrogant, selfish, murdering son of a bitch, I couldn’t let her grow up without a father.”
Sasha had succeeded in infuriating Matthew. He shot a commanding look and Tucker dealt another blow to Sasha’s face. This time her head snapped backward, her neck threatening to break. She bit her tongue and blood dripped out of her mouth. Another fist connected with her face before Matthew held up a hand and gave Tucker a look that said to wait for further punishment until instructed.
“Where is the video, Sasha?”
“I locked it away,” she said through clenched teeth.
His exasperation was beginning to show. “And where is the key to its hiding place?”
A cracked smile formed on her face through the blood and the pain. She definitely had another secret, and Matthew was determined to know everything she knew. Instead, she left him curious.
“I passed down one key when I left Boston.”
Surprised, Matthew asked, “There is more than one key?”
Sasha glared at Matthew with a hardened look that informed him she was done talking. Instinctively, Matthew knew Renee would have one of the keys, and he had one more reason to find her and force her to come back. After he had used Renee to get what he wanted, he could dispose of her and never look back.
Matthew gave Sasha a disappointed look, then turned to Crescent. It actually hurt him to cause Sasha pain, but he wouldn’t let that deter him from his quest. “Find out where those keys are and then make sure she will never be able to repeat that story. I’ll meet you at the airport in a few hours.”
Matthew turned and walked out of the basement, leaving Sasha alone with Crescent and Tucker, where begging for her life would be completely pointless.
Chapter 28
Present Day
Chloe sat in the conference room, staring at her computer screen, and tried to concentrate on work, but her thoughts kept drifting to how desperately she wanted to see Hunter again. The more she thought about Hunter, the more she was reminded of the tragedy of her previous relationship. She made no apologies for leaving after he had fallen asleep. She had made many rules for herself over the years, which she adamantly followed, and when it came to sex, sleeping over was never an option.
Arthur entered the room, breaking her out of her thoughts, and took a seat across from her. “Good afternoon, Arthur.”
He got right to the point. “Expansion for the future is a very immediate goal. I would like you to assist us with opening and setting up a second location, which means we would need two business plans: one for this office and one for the new location.”
She didn’t like being in one place for too long, but gave consideration to what he was saying. If she did stay, she would have more time with Alice. She would also have the possibility of seeing Hunter again, which excited her. She quickly shook off the thought; she couldn’t allow herself to risk feeling the pain of loss again.
“I would also like to extend an invitation for you to join Walter and myself at dinner next weekend in New Orleans with other colleagues in the area, as well as some
friends from other professions. I thought it might be an excellent opportunity for you to network your services.” His tone suddenly changed to indicate the power he intended to exude. “With my supporting recommendation, of course.”
Just like her father, Arthur was used to getting what he wanted, and his means of getting it was threats and intimidation. Arthur’s flaw, however, was in underestimating Chloe. The animosity she felt toward Arthur at the moment was only one issue. New Orleans was a completely different issue. Jack Lawrence was there, and in a room full of strangers, she didn’t want to risk being spotted. She had no idea if Jack, or any of his associates, would even attend a function such as this, but she certainly didn’t want to take the chance of finding out.
Chloe narrowed her eyes at Arthur, revulsion in her gaze. “Of course.”
Arthur must have taken her response as acceptance to his invitation and stood to leave. He spoke to her in an almost demanding tone, once again reminding her of Matthew. “Next Saturday. The reception starts at three, dinner is at five. Formal dress. I’ll have my secretary get you the location and directions.”
“I’ll let you know if I can make it,” she said.
Arthur cocked an eyebrow at her, ready to do battle in an effort to get his way, but the hard stare he was receiving said to bring it on.
“I carry quite a bit of weight in many circles. While at this dinner, I could help you immeasurably.” He shrugged his shoulders in an attempt to challenge her. “Or not.”
She leaned forward and replied in an icy tone, “My career has done just fine over the years. I doubt your recommendation, or not, would change that.”
“Well, maybe that’s something we should put to the test.”
“You don’t want to test me, Arthur.”
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