Protective Custody Read online

  “Hmm.” He shoved his tablet into his pocket. “Is it possible this client saw anything?”

  “No. He was gone.”

  He scratched his scalp. “So no one else can corroborate your story.”

  “Do murderers usually have an audience? I swear to you I’m telling the truth.”

  The cop held his flashlight to the window. “Place is completely empty. It’s hard to build a murder case with no suspect and no body.”

  No body? It had to be there. She rushed to the glass and peered inside. The place was one big open room. Nothing. “Check the locks. Maybe they broke in.”

  He heaved a breath but walked toward the door. “Everything’s fine here. Not a scratch.”

  She led him to the rear of the building. The steel door remained just as undisturbed as the front. She gave it a yank anyway, but it didn’t budge. Nothing appeared amiss in the gravel parking lot. As they returned to the street, her mind swirled with incongruent pieces of the puzzle.

  I did not imagine this.

  “Maybe those kids played a Halloween prank on you, ma’am.” He shut off the flashlight. “Lots of people think it’s funny to mess with someone that way.”

  She squared her shoulders and cleared her throat, hoping her voice wouldn’t fail her. “I know what I saw, Officer Guthrie. You have to believe me. The killer saw me. He’s going to come after me.”

  The cop gave her a patronizing smile. “I’d be happy to drive you home. I’ll even swing by to patrol your neighborhood during the night. Under the circumstances, I think you’re letting your imagination get the best of you.”

  She resisted the urge to fist her hands. “A woman was murdered tonight. Right before my eyes.” She bit her tongue, tried to remain calm. After taking a steadying breath, she started over. “She was young, really young. How can you allow that man to get away with this? If you’d only seen her eyes…”

  “If a woman was murdered here, where’s the body, ma’am?”

  Chapter Two

  Crouched low in the passenger seat of his boss’s car, Will McCoy snapped pictures of the couple leaving Room 114 as they passed under the bright security lights. The woman—a bleached-blonde bombshell in a purple dress—glanced both ways before hurrying toward her Mercedes. Her lover took his time strutting across the motel parking lot to a Ford sedan. He probably had less to lose than the woman, whose husband had hired Dawkins Security and Investigations to follow her.

  Ed Dawkins crunched on a French fry. “Ninety percent of women are cheaters, Will. Remember that before you go getting too involved with one. And for God’s sake, don’t ever get married. Particularly not to a blonde.” He chuckled and offered a fry, which Will refused. “Oh, I forgot. You have a thing for black chicks.”

  Why did Ed always make assumptions? Will fought the urge to roll his eyes. Ed had a prejudiced streak Will tried to ignore. Only he didn’t always succeed. But if it hadn’t been for Ed giving him a shot at becoming a private investigator, he’d have been forced to join his father’s business—a fate worse than death—after he resigned from the sheriff’s office. If I hadn’t made that awful mistake, I’d still be a cop.

  The woman’s lover drove out of the lot, and she followed. Will sat up and took a sip of his iced tea. “I dated one black woman. I don’t have a thing for them.” Megan’s face materialized in his head, but he forced the image away. The pain was as fresh as it had been when they broke up six months ago. Ed chomped on a chicken nugget. “Didn’t mean to offend you, buddy. I just figured…” The older man paled, his face growing closer to the color of his salt-and-pepper hair.

  Will mentally kicked himself for opening his mouth. Ed couldn’t help it if he’d been raised in a time when racism was commonplace, particularly in the South. Truth was, the guy made an effort to be open-minded. “I can see why you’d think all women cheat. Most of our clients are men, right?”

  “Nearly all of ’em. Soon as you put in a few years on this job, you’ll start to recognize the suspicious husbands coming into the office before they even tell you why they’re there.”

  Ed started the engine. “Just take my advice. Don’t let a woman get her hooks into you too deep. Women are poison. Love ’em and leave ’em, my friend. That’s the way to go.”

  Will was tempted to ask if Ed’s wife was included in the poisonous category, but he already knew the answer. Ed had twenty years on Veronica. The woman was a gold digger through and through. But in Ed’s eyes, she could do no wrong.

  The ring of his cell phone cut through the silence. His breath caught at the number on the display. Why would Megan call him? Could she have reconsidered? Maybe she wanted to give them another chance. Ask him to forgive her for calling it quits.

  As if he’d hesitate for an instant. He cleared the cobwebs from his throat and answered. “Hey.”

  “Hi, Will.”

  Shutting his eyes, he pictured her pretty face. He turned away from Ed as if that gave him a shred of privacy. “How are you?”

  “I’ve been better. It’s been a rough day.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I…I’m scared.”

  He sat up straighter. “Why? Where are you?”

  “Home. I saw a murder tonight, Will.” Her voice cracked, cutting through him like a jagged knife.

  “You weren’t hurt?”

  “No, no. Nothing like that. I just… I’m shook-up.”

  If anything had happened to her… He couldn’t bring himself to even imagine what that would do to him. “I’m about twenty minutes away. What do you say I come by?”

  He picked up the relief in her sigh. “Yeah. That’d be good.”

  “I’ll be there soon as I can.”

  “Thank you.”

  He shut his phone, replaying the sound of her voice in his head.

  “Everything okay?” Ed shot him a glance, then returned his eyes to the road.

  “I don’t know. My—a friend witnessed a murder tonight. She doesn’t want to be alone.”

  “A murder? Around here?” He gunned the engine. “Put on the radio. Maybe there’s something on the news.”

  Will hit the button on the dashboard, but he was more interested in making it to Megan’s house than in the details of the crime. He prayed they’d reach the city lights in the distance quickly.

  “So who is this lady? More than a friend?”

  Will counted Ed as one of his closest confidants, a lot like a father, or at least an uncle, since Ed had been his training officer at the sheriff’s office, but he’d always kept the details of his love life to himself. Why mention that he imagined Megan’s pretty face when he lay awake in bed, stroking himself? Why say he didn’t want any other woman, only her? “Nah. Just an acquaintance, really.” Although technically he and Megan weren’t more than friends. Not anymore.

  “Hmm. And she calls you when she doesn’t want to be alone. Interesting.” He exited the highway. “You know I’m grooming you to be my business partner someday, right?”

  “So you’ve said.” All he could concentrate on was Megan. Only a few more miles to the office. And his pickup.

  “Don’t take this the wrong way, but the man I choose to help me run my operation will be single.”

  “Excuse me? This from a married man?”

  “Exactly. If I could do it all again, I’d run the other direction when I met Veronica. But from that first moment—” he groaned, “—it was all over. That woman will be the death of me. We can’t have two pussy-whipped schmucks running things.”

  Deafening silence stretched between them. He shifted in the seat, itching to get out.

  “Antsy?” Ed shot him a smirk. “You seem awfully anxious to be with this friend.”

  He didn’t want to play this game. “She’s frightened, Ed. Give me a break.”

  Ed held up a hand in surrender. “Whoa. Take it easy. I’m just messing with you, son. Jeez.”

  “Sorry.” He wiped his sweaty palms on his jeans. What man wouldn’t be con
cerned about a woman he’d loved?

  Still love.

  Didn’t matter that she’d broken his heart. He couldn’t turn off his feelings just because she’d left him. What if he let her down or made a wrong decision that caused her to get hurt? Or worse.

  A man died because of me.

  He banished the painful memory.

  They stopped for a red light. Will needed to get to her, had to make sure she was okay.

  The air grew stifling. The instant Ed parked the sedan Will shoved the door open and jumped out. “See you tomorrow, buddy.” Without waiting for a reply, he jogged across the street and climbed into his truck.

  He made the ten-minute trip to Megan’s in less than six. The moment he parked in front of the old cracker-style house, memories climbed into the cab and settled in. He’d spent some of his happiest times here. With her. Circumstances aside, there was something so warm and comfortable about being here again. Like coming home.

  Her porch light illuminated a jack-o’-lantern wind chime hanging over the steps. He popped a cinnamon candy into his mouth and got out of the truck. Megan opened her door before he’d made it to the porch. Standing in the foyer, silhouetted against soft yellow light from inside, she glowed like an angel. Her straight hair had grown to skim her shoulders. Her jaw was tightly set, betraying her worry. She hugged herself, stiff and unyielding.

  Until he crossed the threshold.

  “Thanks for coming over.” She practically jumped into his arms, then softened into him, burying her head against his chest.

  Tentatively, he circled his hands around her, rubbed along her back, over her gentle curves. He fought the lush sensations flooding him, but his cock had other ideas. Her hair fell forward, strand over glossy black strand. She pressed her ripe body to him, and he pictured her full, rounded breasts and those crimson nipples, hard as pebbles. Her vanilla scent drifted to his nose, roped all remaining clarity and dragged it away.

  She lifted her face toward him, dropped her gaze to his lips. God, he wanted to kiss her, to feast on her sweet mouth. Her lips parted, and a wisp of moist air escaped. He breathed it in and yearned for more. Heart pounding, he glimpsed her white teeth. The memory of those teeth scraping along his rigid cock made him tremble with raw need.

  But this wasn’t the time. She was afraid. And she’d called him.

  Grasping her shoulders, he held her at arm’s length. “Let’s sit down and talk.”

  Heat rushed to Megan’s face. She couldn’t bring herself to look at Will. God, she was acting like a hormonal teenager, throwing herself at him. He’d come over as a favor, as a friend. She backed away and shut the door. His T-shirt emphasized the sexy V from his broad shoulders to his slim waist. She’d forgotten how tall he was, how his commanding presence put her at ease. “Come into the living room. Want a drink or something?”

  “I’m good, thanks.” That deep, resonant voice wrapped around her. He followed her to the sofa. “Tell me what happened tonight.”

  She clasped her hands on her lap, still shaky. Will took the wingback chair. She drew a calming breath before she spoke. “Well, I had a late appointment, a new client. When he left, I went into my office to close the blinds and noticed something in the empty shop across the street.” She told him the rest, then wiped away a tear.

  “I should have called the police while the man was strangling her, but I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I was like a deer mesmerized by headlights.”

  “I understand. You’d be surprised how often that happens to witnesses. Logic trumps reality for a few seconds. Bear in mind that even if you’d called the moment you realized what was happening, that woman would probably still be dead.”

  “If I’d acted more quickly, maybe they’d have caught the guy, who knows? He could be a hundred miles from here already.”

  “You can’t beat yourself up over maybes.” He moved to the couch and covered her hands with his. She breathed in his unique scent—a blend of cinnamon and his piney cologne.

  She met his stare. God, she could easily get lost in those moss-colored eyes. “The perpetrator is probably long gone. They rarely take the time and the risk to come after witnesses who might not have seen anything.”

  “I hope you’re right.”

  “Why don’t I drive you over to your grandmother’s house? No sense in you staying here alone when you’re afraid.”

  “I had to move Gram into an assisted-living place a while ago.” She’d come to terms with her decision, yet the admission brought a streak of shame.

  He rubbed her shoulder. “I’m sorry. Is she okay?”

  His concern touched her, especially since Gram had never hidden her disapproval of their relationship. “She’s adjusting. I wasn’t comfortable with her living alone anymore. She forgot to take her medicine too many times, and she refused to move in here with me. Said she didn’t want to burden me. It’s been three months.”

  “It’s probably for the best. If she’d come to live with you, she’d be alone all day while you’re at work.”

  “You’re right.” She fought the sudden urge to feel his arms around her.

  “I have an idea.” He got up and rubbed his hands together. “I think I should spend the night.”

  A rush of enthusiasm lifted her mood, but she tamped it down. “No, Will. I appreciate the offer, I do. But I’ll be fine. I guess I just needed to talk to someone who doesn’t think I’m a lunatic with a macabre imagination.”

  “Let me sleep on your couch. It’ll make me feel better knowing you’re safe.” He crooked an eyebrow. “Come on.”

  She stood. “No, but thank you. I’ve infringed on your time enough. Plus I need to be at the office early in the morning. My regional manager may drop in.” A lie, but she didn’t trust herself to have him so close. Not again.

  “There’s nowhere I’d rather be tonight, Megan.” He glanced around the room. “Unless your boyfriend would mind.”

  “Huh?” Her stomach knotted. Could he be referring to Jerome? “I don’t have a boyfriend.”

  “So there’s nothing stopping me from camping out in your living room.” He sat and draped his arm over the back of the cushion.

  But he wouldn’t stay on the couch. She’d invite him to her bed before he could say good-night. “No, Will. I’m sorry, but you have to leave. I feel a lot better. I’ve checked all the windows and doors. Everything is locked up tight. I’ll be fine.” Taking her chances with a murderer was tame compared to risking her heart on Will again.

  “Have it your way. Promise me you’ll call me if anything goes bump in the night.”

  She nodded as she walked him to the door. “Thanks again for coming by. I’ll let you know if anything comes up about the murder. Since the police didn’t take me seriously, I plan to do a little investigating.”

  “Don’t you dare.” He threaded his fingers through her hair and pulled her close for a way-too-chaste kiss on the top of her head. “I’ll phone you tomorrow, and we’ll discuss the case. Maybe I can help. I want you to promise me you won’t go snooping around. That’s a great way to get hurt.” He hesitated, then kissed her cheek, and heat bloomed in her belly. “I don’t know what I’d do if anything happened to you, Megan.” The desire in his stare threatened to undo her, but she had to be strong. She’d already hurt Will enough.

  She let him out, then leaned against the door and wished she’d let him stay.

  Will drove around the block, then doubled back and parked close to Megan’s house. He’d have preferred to stay inside, but this would have to do.

  Yeah. Like I’d have been able to concentrate on anything besides her sweet body.

  Forcing back a rush of need, he gripped the steering wheel. Regardless of the obstacles in their path, he missed her. And he suspected she missed him too.

  But what if his instincts failed him like they had on that cold, rainy night? A man was dead because of him. He flashed on the worst night of his life. Torrential rain obscuring his vision, a man in a dren
ched sweatshirt running from a gas station. A lone gunshot that destroyed one man’s life and sent his own on a path he’d never intended. He forced the painful images from his mind.

  Megan deserved someone who wouldn’t screw up at a critical moment. He prayed he could keep her safe.

  Tomorrow he’d call a couple of his old buddies at the sheriff’s office. He didn’t have much pull there anymore, but he did still have a few friends. Maybe he could convince Kenny Horvath to open an investigation.

  Damn. He missed the SO. Locking up criminals was a hell of a lot more rewarding than spending ten or twelve hours a day tailing crooked employees and unfaithful spouses. By the end of each exhausting day his back ached and his legs were cramping. Good thing boredom wasn’t fatal.

  His eyelids grew heavy. He slapped his cheek to wake himself. A barn owl hooted nearby. He’d shut his eyes, but only for a moment.

  He woke with a start and checked the time.

  Shit.

  He’d been asleep more than an hour. Anyone could have slipped past him. He grabbed a flashlight and his gun from the glove box, then silenced his phone and shoved the gun into his waistband. Dry grass crunched as crossed the yard.

  A scratching sound near the porch sent his pulse racing. He fingered his weapon and approached the house. His blood ran cold. A severed head lay in a pool of dark liquid on the porch.

  Chapter Three

  John Jarity scrolled through a dozen sites before finding what he sought. He tore his gaze from the computer for a second and checked the open doorway to make sure his wife was still asleep. Ruth Ann had an annoying habit of waking in the middle of the night and tiptoeing through the house in search of him.

  Wrinkled-up bitch.

  Just in case, he shut the door to the study. For good measure, he locked it too. His shoulders and neck ached. Too much tension. Releasing some of the pressure would do him good.

  He returned to the desk and loosened his belt. Clicking on a thumbnail picture of a nude woman, he grinned. The image enlarged, and so did his cock. The girl was about seventeen or eighteen with long black hair and smooth, toffee-colored skin. Her tits were small but high with dark brown buds.