Burning Seduction (30 page)

More mumbling came from inside the kitchen. Trent glanced at Cade hoping he’d caught something but his partner shook his head.

Frank stepped farther into the kitchen, and once he disappeared from view, Trent placed his hand on the doorjamb ready to enter. From where Devon was positioned, he probably had a better vantage point.

“I thought with Bill out of the way, you’d give me a chance.” Frank’s voice sounded more pleading than aggressive and Trent let down his guard for a moment.

Oh, shit. The puzzle pieces began to click into place. Even though he was married, it appeared as if Frank was interested in Elaine. Had Frank killed Bill and just admitted it? Even if he had, Elaine Goddard might not say a word. She’d said nothing when her husband abused her.

Loud footsteps sounded, along with scuffling sounds. When Elaine screamed, both he and Cade shot into action and barged in. Out of the corner of his eye, a blur shot by. Devon was heading their way.

When they reached the kitchen with their weapons drawn, Frank had a knife in his hand and his arm was raised.

Trent’s instincts sharpened. “Police. Stop what you’re doing, Frank,” he shouted.

The man whipped around, the knife still clutched in his fist, his eyes wild and unfocused. “You don’t know anything.”

That made no sense, but he’d play along. “Why don’t you tell us about it, Frank?”

As if he’d pushed aside the insanity, his faced calmed, and he set the knife on the counter as if it had all been a joke. He then held out his wrists. “I’m not saying another word until I speak with my lawyer.”

Crap. Trent nodded to Cade who stepped forward and cuffed the man. “Come with me, Mr. Hamilton,” Cade said.

His partner didn’t announce why he was arresting him probably because there were too many offenses to list.

The fact Frank didn’t claim he was innocent, spoke volumes. Devon rushed in and looked up at Trent. “Do you want me to go with Cade?”

“Yes, I’ll see to Mrs. Goddard.”

As soon as they left, Trent turned his attention to the woman who was shaking so badly, he thought she might collapse. “How about we sit in the living room?”

She looked up at him but said nothing, as if she was trying to formulate the words. Trent stepped over to her, placed a hand on her elbow, and led her out. When she was seated, he called the precinct and asked them to send over a forensic team. He wasn’t sure what they’d find, but they needed to secure the knife.

Trent then returned to the seat across from her. “Can you tell me what happened?”

She cast her glance to the side and knitted her fingers together. “I’m not proud of how I’ve handled my life.”

As much as he wanted her to talk, he needed her to focus on the recent events. “I’m not here to judge you, Mrs. Goddard. I’m only interested in what happened today and what Frank said to you.”

Perhaps later he’d ask about the conversation at the funeral home, assuming their voices weren’t picked up by the mic.

“Yesterday at John’s funeral, Frank was acting his usual creepy self.”

Creepy?
“Can you be more specific?”

She inhaled deeply. “I’ve known for a long time that Frank has been interested in me. It didn’t seem to matter that he had a wife or that I was married to his business partner. Bill wasn’t perfect, but I loved him despite his faults.”

Her thoughts came out a bit jumbled, but he understood the gist of what she was saying. Trent debated asking her about the origin of her bruises, but now wasn’t the time. “Did your husband know of Frank’s interest?”

She shrugged. “If he did, he never said anything, but I could always tell when he thought I’d stepped over the line.” She rubbed her shoulder as if remembering Bill’s violence against her.

Trent pictured the time when she’d kissed Harmon and wondered if it was worth bringing that up. While this wasn’t about his brother, he needed to know. “Was Bill angry when he found out you kissed my brother?” He failed to keep his tone civil.

She jerked, almost as if his comment had come out of nowhere. “He never mentioned it.”

“Was Bill a jealous man?”

“Only in that he didn’t want anyone else to have what he did.”

The possibility existed that Bill or Frank had framed Harmon because of his possible interest in Elaine, but without proof, his brother would never have his case overturned. Trent had let this conversation drift too far off course already and needed to discuss today’s event. “What happened when Frank came here today? If you could run it by me step-by-step, I’d appreciate it.” Trent pulled out his note pad.

“He rang the bell, and when I answered, he asked to come in. I knew what he wanted, but I wasn’t interested, so I told him to leave.”

Since his men had been sitting outside, they must’ve witnessed the exchange. “He didn’t listen?”

“No. I tried to push him out, but he barged in anyway and wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

“Did he force himself on you?” Anger roiled inside him.

She shook her head. “I was able to calm him down by offering him a cup of coffee, but when I went into the kitchen to make it, he followed me.”

That’s when Trent had arrived. “Go on.”

“He told me again how much he loved me, but that was a lie. Men like Frank and my husband only love themselves. He said that since Bill and John were no longer in the picture, there was no reason for me not to accept him as my lover. He had all the money I could possibly need. I said I still didn’t want him, and that’s when Frank grabbed the knife from the butcher block.”

She must have been frightened out of her mind. “Did Frank mention if he’d harmed either of them?” His pulse raced. Trent didn’t want to tell her they’d been listening outside the door.

She sat there as if her conscience was battling. “Yes. He killed both men for me—or so he’d said at John’s viewing.” She tapped her chest. “I never wanted that. Ever.” She dropped her face in her hands and sobbed.

Trent wanted to console the poor woman, but he wouldn’t. At some point, he’d ask her to come down to the station and make a statement, but he doubted she’d agree to it right now.

When she stopped crying, Trent continued. “Do you think Frank would have harmed you if we hadn’t stopped him?”

She sniffled. “I don’t know. He loved me, or so he said, but I think he just wanted what Bill had. When he raised the knife, I believed he wanted to kill me, but then you showed up.” She swiped her eyes. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” In the end, it wouldn’t matter if he meant to harm her or not. Frank Hamilton’s other offenses would land him in prison for the rest of his life.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

W
hen Trent didn’t
show up at five o’clock like he had these past few days to pick her up, Charlotte began to worry. “I think I’ll call him,” she told her dad.

“He’s probably caught up at work. I’ll drive you back to our house.”

She spun to face him. “So you think I shouldn’t disturb him?”

“When Trent is finished with what he’s doing, he’ll pick you up. Cops are busy.”

She’d rather go back to her house, but that would mean Dad would stay until Trent arrived, and she had wanted to visit with her mom. “Okay.”

They were halfway to her dad’s house, when Trent called, and joy spread straight to her belly. She wanted to talk dirty to him over the phone, but with her dad driving, she didn’t dare.

“Hey,” she said.

“Sorry I didn’t call sooner, but I got caught up at work. You’ll never guess what happened today.”

From the excitement in his voice, it was something good. “Don’t tell me the killer walked into the precinct and confessed.”

“No, that might have been nice, but we did find out who killed both Bill and John.”

She glanced over at her father, and while he appeared to be listening, she didn’t sense he knew what Trent was about to tell her. “Who was it?”

“I will, but only if you come over to my place.”

Just contemplating what kind of celebration they’d have, sexy thoughts raced through her. “Now?”

“Yes. Can you have your dad drive you?”

She faced her father and asked him if he wouldn’t mind dropping her off at Trent’s.

“I can do that, but I know your mom wants to see you. She misses you.”

Charlotte smiled. “If you’d brought her to work, we could have caught up. I promise to spend time with her this weekend.”

“Fine.”

A few minutes later, her dad pulled into Trent’s drive, and the front door opened. He jogged down the steps toward the car, pulled open her door, and helped her out.

After a quick hello kiss, he then leaned in the car. “Thanks, Vic. In case Charlotte didn’t mention it, you won’t need to babysit her at work anymore.”

“She told me you caught the killer. Who was it?”

He glanced at her first then back at her dad. “Frank Hamilton.”

“Figured he was the one,” he said with such confidence Trent almost believed him, but only for a second.

Trent laughed. “You are so full of shit.”

Her dad grinned, saluted, and then took off. “So Frank Hamilton killed Bill Goddard?” she said. “Did he say why?”

“He lawyered up.” Trent escorted her up the steps and into the warm house. “Elaine Goddard was the one who claimed he told her.”

“Will her word be enough to stand up in court?”

“That remains to be seen. We’ve got him on a few other offenses, so he will serve time. I’m hoping the surveillance we have of him at the viewing will provide us with the proof we need.” He slipped her jacket from her shoulders and set her purse on the sofa. “As much as I like to talk about work, I have something more important to discuss with you.”

She loved the way his voice dipped when he said that. “Oh yeah? What’s that?”

“Give me a second and I’ll tell you. Stay right here.”

“Okay.”

Trent turned and jogged down the hallway toward his bedroom. She had no idea what he was up to, but whatever it was, she bet she was going to enjoy it. For a second, she debated taking off her clothes and surprising him when he returned, but he had something on his mind, and she wanted to let him take the lead.

The door to his bedroom opened two minutes later. “You can come back now.”

Charlotte wanted to run to him, but instead she sauntered, thinking it wouldn’t be good to act too anxious. When she’d reached his door, it was closed. Something was going on in there, but she loved the mystery of it all. When she twisted the knob and stepped inside, her breath caught at the sight. Trent was lying naked on the bed surrounded by ten flickering candles both on the nightstand and dresser.

“Wow. You always celebrate like this when you catch a killer?”

He lifted up on his elbows. “This has nothing to do with my job. It’s all about you.”

Probably for the first time in her life, Charlotte was speechless. Her heart was pounding and her breath came out shallow. She wanted to rip off her clothes, dive into his bed, and enjoy loving him for hours, but it was as if none of her muscles would move. Trent eased off the bed and came toward her—powerful, seductive, and virile.

He cupped her face and looked down at her. “Every time we make love, it seems like
you
seduce
me
.”

That wasn’t completely true, but for the most part she had instigated their lovemaking. “Does that bother you?”

“Hell, no. It builds my ego, but then I realized it’s not fair for me to always be the one to receive all the loving.”

“Are you kidding? I’ve loved every minute of our time together.”

“I know, but it’s different somehow. You’ve told me many times how much you love me, but I’ve been too fucking scared to say it back. I keep thinking all of this has to be a dream and that I’ll do something wrong, and you’ll end up leaving.”

Tears shimmered in her eyes at the pain radiating off him. “Your mom didn’t leave you. She left your dad.”

“I know. I’m talking about us. I love you, Charlotte Hart.”

The joy at hearing those words nearly made her break down. “You do?”

He swiped a tear about to fall from under her eye. “Yes, I do. All I ask is that you stand by my side when I make mistakes—like when I forget to call, or when I’m so wrapped up in my job that I don’t mention you are the most important person in my life.”