She still looked deathly pale, a state that hadn’t changed, even with both hands wrapped around a warm mug of tea one of Antonio’s assistants had brought in for her.
Her grisly discovery in the car had momentarily stunned him but he’d finally gotten his wits when another patron departing the hotel behind him laid on their horn. Whipping back around into the parking lot, he’d already speed-dialed Melissa to tell her what happened. He’d pulled up in front of the hotel and barked out orders to the valet station to find him a spot to set up in the garage.
The team had complied, the fact they already knew him going a long way toward their cooperation, even before he had his badge out.
Melissa had arrived shortly after, Brett and Ember on her heels.
“What happened?” Brett’s question was out before he’d even cleared his car.
“The shirt,” Troy had told him. “We got back into the car after dinner and Evangeline found it at her feet on the floor on the passenger side.”
“Son of a bitch.”
“I know. This is too close.” Troy stared at the shirt, still visible on the floor of his car. Too damn close.
“Which is concerning all on its own. But worse knowing that shirt’s been in play for a few days now.” Brett shook his head. “So where’s the body?”
The crime scene techs had arrived and were getting set up. Troy was grateful to see Jillian in the mix. She’d do right by the evidence, which meant she’d do right by Evangeline.
Brett had gone to work then, too. He set Ember up with the scent from the shirt and then began the repeated motions, working their way from the car outward, looking for a scent.
Troy had wanted to stay but Melissa’s orders, barked at Antonio through her phone to stay put in his office with Evangeline, had sent him running back into the hotel.
Yet even as he ran toward her, determined to shield her as best as he could, Brett’s last question rang over and over in his mind.
Where was the body?
When it was just an investigation into a disappearing crime, Troy had been able to keep that thought at bay. They’d reviewed open files for any missing women in the area, but when no one turned up that fit Evangeline’s description, they’d moved on.
But now? With the evidence some crime had been committed? It was challenging not to follow it all the way through to its natural conclusion.
There was a dead woman undiscovered and unaccounted for somewhere in Grave Gulch.
Pushing that grisly image aside until they had the details from the CSI team and whatever Ember could suss out in the garage, Troy turned his attention back to Evangeline. Her gaze followed Antonio as he criss-crossed his office, but other than her polite thank-you to the man’s assistant for the tea, she’d said nothing else.
Which made her next words that much more of a surprise. Her voice was steady and strong as she leveled a question at Antonio.
“Who has access to your garage?”
Antonio stopped and turned at the question. “The valet staff. Hotel staff. Laundry deliveries, too. Big deliveries go through the loading dock but laundry is in the garage as the entrance goes straight to housekeeping.”
“Is a badge required?”
“Yes.”
“Cameras?”
“Of course.”
Antonio nodded before Melissa jumped in. “Ellie’s on it and already working with the IT office. If there’s something to find she’ll find it quickly. There was a limited window of time when someone could get to Troy’s car.”
Just like the comfort he took knowing Brett and Ember had the garage and Jillian had the forensics on the shirt, he was pleased Ellie was running point on the tech.
And he still hated sitting in the office, away from it all. He knew Melissa felt the same and figured she’d finally give in and let Antonio come with her for no other reason than she wanted to be down in the garage. He’d nearly said as much when Jillian came racing into the office.
“Mel!” Jillian came to a halt when she saw the assembled group. “Even better. You’re all here.”
“You found something?” Melissa asked.
“The blood. On the shirt.”
Troy felt Evangeline stiffen beside him. Before he could ask for more details, Jillian was already excitedly revealing her discovery. “It’s not human.”
“What?”
The question went up as a collective, all of them talking at once.
“It’s a fake.” Jillian waved the phone in her hand, tapping the face to pull up a photo. “Look at it.”
She set the phone down on Antonio’s desk and they all gathered around.
“It’s not a person’s blood?” Evangeline said, her excitement palpable as she stared at the phone.
Troy heard the distinct notes of hope in her voice and hoped like hell Jillian was right. He didn’t doubt his cousin, but after all Evangeline had been through, they couldn’t afford to make any missteps here.
“I secured the evidence from the car and was going to take it directly to the lab. I still will, but there was something about the spatter pattern that bothered me.”
Troy gave his cousin her due, listening patiently to her overview of blood spatter and the seemingly random nature of what was on the shirt. “But the kicker was when I realized what was missing.”
Evangeline’s harsh intake of breath had Jillian smiling and nodding, all at once.
“No bullet holes.” Evangeline’s breath flew out on a hard whoosh. She eyed the phone again before turning her attention fully back to Jillian. “You can see it even in the photo.”
“So whose blood is it?” Melissa demanded, snatching the phone off the desk to expand the image of the shirt.
“It’s synthetic. Someone wanted this to look pretty damn scary, but the blood isn’t human. I’ll run full tests on it and log it in evidence, but I’m pretty sure that is not human blood. And based on the integrity of the fabric, no one was shot wearing it, either. The blood spattered like it came out of an exploding capsule. The sort they use in TV shows to fake an accident.”
“I don’t understand.” Evangeline ran her hand through her hair, her gaze steady on Jillian. “I mean, I’m happy no one was shot. Relieved, really. But what is this all about?”
“It’s a joke.” Melissa’s gaze was dark as she set the phone back on the desk. “A nasty one. On you and on all the good cops trying to get to the bottom of this.”
Throughout his life, he’d had plenty of experience with seeing Melissa mad. From family squabbles to workplace blowups, her threshold for anger was something Troy wasn’t ignorant of. She was levelheaded and calm and didn’t cross that line often, but she was human, too. Add on the high-stress job and she’d been known to lash out a time or two.
But never, in all his life, had he seen the sheer fury that now painted her face. Her crystal-blue eyes had gone dark with it, her slim frame fixed in hard, tense lines. She gripped one of the guest chairs in front of Antonio’s desk, her knuckles going white.
It was only after she’d stared at each one of them, Evangeline the longest, that Troy saw that fury channel itself into action. “We’re going to find whoever did this and take him down. And if I find out this has anything to do with Len Davison or Randall Bowe, there is no rock either one of them can hide under that I won’t pull them out from.”
Troy moved close, laying a hand over hers and squeezing tight. “That makes two of us.”
* * *
Evangeline yawned as Troy turned into the parking lot of her condo. She’d believed getting back into his car would be difficult but she’d been so exhausted by the time they finally reached the parking garage that her fear never took root.
It doesn’t hurt, knowing the blood wasn’t human.
Which was entirely true, even if she couldn’t deny the sheer menace of the situation. Yes,
it was creepy to know someone had done such a malicious prank. But it was still a wild relief to know a human being hadn’t been harmed in the process.
The various GGPD teams had finally wrapped up in the parking garage about two hours after Jillian’s revelation in Antonio’s office. And while it had buoyed Evangeline’s spirits to know a person was unharmed, those same spirits had taken a second hit when Ellie had come in about an hour later and confirmed she hadn’t been successful in finding anything on video.
Antonio’s outburst had sent him marching off toward the hotel’s IT office, leaving her and Troy behind. She’d encouraged him to go down with the rest of the GGPD but he’d insisted on staying with her.
A kindness she appreciated, even as she warned herself not to get too comfortable with the attention.
While it wasn’t definitive proof, whatever she witnessed in the alley seemingly wasn’t a murder. A crime of some sort, yes, but not something that had resulted in murder. Melissa had vowed the GGPD would get to the bottom of things, but Evangeline knew the decreased likelihood of a murder meant the already-stretched staff would double down on its efforts to find Len Davison and Randall Bowe.
A move Evangeline not only agreed with but insisted upon. Police resources had to be prioritized where they were most needed and a serial killer at large needed to be everyone’s focus.
Even though it meant she’d see far less of Troy.
“I’d like to stay one more night.” Troy turned off the car and turned to her. The parking lot lamp was still out but the light she’d left on over her front door gave some illumination to the car.
“You don’t have to. I know a lot happened tonight. And I know the shirt thing is creepy and we have to get to the bottom of it all, but I can’t tell you how relieved I am that no one was murdered.”
“We don’t know that.”
“No, we don’t. But we’re a lot closer to thinking someone’s playing a nasty, disgusting prank than anything else.”
He still didn’t look convinced and Evangeline reached out to lay a hand on his forearm. “You’ve been so good to me this week. But the GGPD needs you. Totally focused on finding and securing Len Davison.” She paused, well aware she’d had a part in that. “I know that better than anyone.”
“You don’t still blame yourself for that?”
“I do.”
“Randall Bowe is responsible for it.”
They could go round and round but it wouldn’t change anything.
Troy’s support of her was sweet and oh-so-caring, but she owned her role in all that had happened. In all the challenges the town of Grave Gulch currently faced. And in the questions the community now rightly asked of its public servants.
He looked ready to argue with her but only nodded. “Let me at least come in and check everything out.”
What had seemed insensitive and rote earlier left a new sensation in her chest now. It felt good to be cared for.
Wonderful, actually.
With no small measure of shock—and an amazing shot of clarity—Evangeline realized that she hadn’t had that in a long time.
Maybe ever?
Her mother was warm and caring, but so much of Evangeline’s childhood was overshadowed by the behavior of her father that those quiet moments with her mother weren’t as fixed in her memory.
She’d dated off and on since college, a few of the relationships moving to something steadier and more serious, but she’d always held those men at arm’s length. Almost as if the distance could protect her should they turn, their personalities morphing with the same sort of anger and rage as her father had.
It was only now, faced with the innate kindness, warmth and true decency that was Troy Colton that Evangeline recognized all she’d missed.
Or never had to begin with.
And with that realization came one she hadn’t expected. Yet now that she recognized it, she couldn’t deny it.
She wanted him.
It would be so easy to chalk it up to the stress of the past few days, piled onto the distress of the past few months. A need that could assuage the strain and anxiety and provide a pleasurable reprieve from all she was living with.
But even as she rolled that thought through her mind, Evangeline knew it was an excuse.
The current situation had given her proximity to Troy in a way she’d never had before. And with it, she’d had the opportunity to see all the qualities she’d believed he possessed but hadn’t known for sure.
The first time they’d crossed paths in the Grave Gulch County courthouse, she’d seen an attractive man with a strong jaw and sexy smile. As she’d deposed him for cases, she’d seen a man who cared about justice and wanted the best for each and every one of their citizens.
It was only now that she could acknowledge how surface attraction had turned to deep-seated interest. How the knowledge of his professional commitment could make him even more appealing on a deeply personal level. And how attraction, always left on simmer up to now, could leap up and grab you by the throat with sharp, needy claws.
“I’d appreciate that.” She took a deep breath and wondered if she could press for more. “Thank you for making sure I’m safe.”
He carried the protection even further, asking her to remain in the car until he could come around and get the door for her. It was sweet and chivalrous and the insistent need that had begun thrumming in her bloodstream at the thought of intimacy with Troy began to beat.
His grip was firm as he held her hand, helping her out of the elevated seat of the SUV. She felt her heels hit the concrete and, even with her balance steady, she held tight to Troy at the sudden trembling in her knees.
Did she dare pursue this?
And could she live with herself if she didn’t try?
In the span of a few short minutes, they were inside her condo, no external threat detected during the short walk from the car or the time it took to unlock her front door.
Unwilling to stand there twiddling her thumbs, she went to the kitchen while Troy did his check of the house. Surprised to see her hand trembling, she dug out a bottle of water from the fridge. She’d just unscrewed the cap and lifted the bottle to her lips when Troy walked back into the kitchen.
“The house is fine.”
She fumbled the water at his unexpected arrival, spilling it over the front of her dress. The thin material was already quite sheer and the water only added to that, the wetness spreading over the top of her chest.
“I’m sorry.” Troy’s gaze drifted over her breasts before he turned away to grab a towel from where it lay draped over the edge of the sink. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”
“You didn’t.”
His eyes remained level with hers as he handed over the towel, his smile sweet and boyish. “You always spill water all over yourself?”
He’d given her the perfect opening and Evangeline recognized this was her shot.
Now or never, Whittaker.
“I’m clumsy when I’m nervous.”
His demeanor changed immediately, any lingering humor from her spill vanishing. “You’re worried about staying in the house? I checked everything and the doors and windows are secure.”
She dabbed at the water stain with the towel, her tone easy. “I know.”
“Then what are you nervous about?”
Evangeline set the towel on the counter and turned her full attention to Troy. “That you’ll say no when I ask you to stay.”
His eyes, that warm, rich hazel, turned a deep gold with desire. He understood what she was asking, but she wanted to make absolutely certain.
More, she needed to. Needed to know he wanted, just as she did.
“With me, Troy. I’d like you to stay with me.”
* * *
Troy heard her. He even understood her.
But he could
n’t believe it was happening.
The woman he wanted more than anything—more than he could ever remember wanting a woman before—wanted him to stay. And there was no way he could act on it.
His job was to protect her. Hell, he’d just done a sweep of her home, ensuring she wasn’t in danger or under possible threat of attack from the nameless, faceless stalker who had set their sights on her. There was no way he could cross the line and sleep with her.
“Evangeline. You know I can’t do that.” He saw the pulse beating wildly at her throat, even as her gaze stayed level on his. “Even if you are the only thing I can think about right now.” He hesitated, before adding, “And the only one I want.”
“Why can’t we have this? In the midst of all that we’ve both dealt with, why can’t we have this?” She moved a step closer. “Why can’t we take it?”
“I have to protect you.”
“That’s an excuse, Troy, not a reason.”
“It’s a damn good reason. You said yourself, the GGPD’s efforts need to be focused right now. On capturing Davison. On securing Bowe and making him account for his lies. And they need to be focused on what’s been happening to you. That shirt tonight isn’t the end of things.”
He hated to scare her, but if that was what it took to make her see reason, he wouldn’t sugarcoat the situation, either.
Oh, who was he kidding? If it was what it took to convince himself to keep his head and not give in to passion, then the words were even more important.
“That shirt is an escalation. Sneaking around to place it in my car, knowing you’d be the one to see it? Even more so.”
“You think I don’t know that? Just because I’m glad there’s now a high likelihood a woman isn’t dead from a gunshot at close range doesn’t mean I’m ignorant of what’s going on.”
He let out a hard sigh, the frustration of so many unanswered questions more than evident in that hard exhale. “You tell me then, Evangeline. What’s going on?”
Harlequin Romantic Suspense July 2021 Box Set Page 37