Devil Hath Come (an FBI/Romance Thriller ~book 7) (22 page)

“I’m guessing more people hate you.”

Ethan stood and Callen followed.

“How many murders have you investigated in your time as a cop, Chief?”

The woman shrugged. “I’ve been a cop fifteen years. We don’t get many so maybe ten.”

Elizabeth stared down at her. “I covered those ten my first six months in the FBI. I’ve been in law enforcement for almost twelve years. So, you do the math. I’m not going to apologize for the death I’ve seen, waded through
, or had nightmares about at night. I’ve earned my attitude and my battle scars. When you come out of murder kindergarten to play with the high school kids, we’ll talk. Until then, you think whatever you want.”

The woman stood. “
Your attitude is insulting.”

“So
is your behavior. Making us wait while you get a coffee is very childish. When the next body pops up and I don’t stop it, pat yourself on your back. You helped buy the killer time by wasting mine.”

“You’re crossing the line, Agent,” she stated.

The blatant disregard of her title only spiked Elizabeth’s temper. “For the record, I’ve also earned Director before my name. Calling me anything less is like me calling you officer and ignoring your rank. If you think you can intimidate me, you have another thing coming. You may be a bitch, but I’m the queen of them all and have a track record to prove it.”

“I’ll call your
boss,” she demanded angrily, when she couldn’t come up with anything more to add.

“Great, tattling too. I’m glad my assessment was right. His name’s Gabriel
Rothschild and he’s the big man in Quantico. Tell him I send my regards, oh and be sure that you tell him about your ME and the way your officer mishandled evidence. I know I will when he calls me to ask if I want more agents shipped in to babysit.”

With that, Elizabeth left the woman staring as they exited the office. She wanted to slam the door behind her, but she refused to play childish games.

Ethan walked beside her. “I already apprised Gabe of the situation,” he said, offering her reassurance.

“You know what? If I’m lucky
, he will yank us all off this one. Right about now, I’m ready to toss it and walk away.”

Callen stared at her. That was something new coming from her. Never before had he heard her say anything like that while on an assignment in the field. Usually, she loved
the hostility and fed off of it.

“I need a vacation,” she stated, unequivocally. “I know I say that all the time, but today I’m feeling it.
That woman is a pain in my ass and makes me want to lie on a beach and be oblivious to the world around me.”

Blackhawk
reassuringly ran his hand over her back. He was well aware of how much pressure was sitting on her shoulders. The minute the FBI took over, it all became their responsibility. If another person died, it wouldn’t be Chief Lowry who was skewered. It would be Elizabeth and the team.

“You have this, baby,” he stated.

She didn't respond.

As they arrived downstairs, she stopped at Clifford’s desk. “Mr. Bean, where can I find Officer Larry Murphy?”

The man flipped through his papers and looked up the information. “He’s on the other side of town doing patrols.”

“Great. Now I have to track him down
too. Can this day get worse?” she practically snarled.

“Actually, it’s slow over there. You might check at the coffee shop. He’s a lover of their jelly filled donuts. They’re light and airy
and can lift your spirits. You look stressed. Maybe you should have one or two.”

Somehow, she didn't believe there were enough donuts in the whole damn town
to brighten her mood. “Of course he’s having a donut and coffee break,” she stated as she really wanted to kick the crap out of something. “Thank you for your help, Clifford.”

Walking out, both men were silent.

“You’re about to lose it, aren’t you?” Callen asked, taking her hand in his to offer her some sort of calm. He wasn’t sure if it would upset her more, but when she squeezed his, he was pleased she was leaning on him.

“I’m close
to the edge.”

Ethan took her other hand
. He really didn't care if they were a spectacle as they walked towards the Denali. “You need to look at this on the bright side.”

She glanced over. “Yeah?”

“You love jelly donuts.”

Elizabeth stared
incredulously at him. Finally, she gave in as the laughter overcame the irritation. She giggled all the way to the vehicle. “You’re a funny man today, Cowboy, and just for that, you’re buying me one.”

He winked as he dropped
his sunglasses onto his face. If donuts would cheer her up, he’d buy her a whole damn dozen.

Once across town, they found the only coffee shop on the street. There was the aroma of warm baked goodies in the air, and thanks to Ethan and the promise of sugar, her mood was getting marginally better.

Of course, sh
e had yet to have a discussion with the cop inside and in her mind, she was already prepping for the oncoming debacle.

Walking in, everyone in the place stopped moving, talking
, and pretty much breathing. They stared over at them, measuring the visitors to their town.

“Wow, it’s like no one’s eve
r seen Feds before,” she stated loud enough for the room to hear. Elizabeth was almost hoping someone said something to her.

With her current mood, there could be a bloodbath
.

Ethan and
Callen each touched her on one of her shoulders, offering their woman reassurance. If anything, they were accustomed to the speculative glances. It wasn’t the appearance of the FBI, but the two large, gun toting, Native men behind her that were the likely culprit.

Circle Rock
was a small town, and pretty much everyone in it was Caucasian. Not that it was a bad thing. It made it easier for Ethan to profile the killer. If the entire population was white, odds were in his favor that the suspect was also going to follow suit.

Now
, he hoped that no one brought up the ‘
Indian
’ word, in front of Elizabeth. Where Gabe would be okay with her handing the sheriff a verbal beat down for incompetence, he wouldn’t tolerate kicking the crap out of locals.

Even he had limits.

Although, Gabe had sent her out, and this should be a lesson for the next time someone wanted her to play a game. They could always plead that they knew this was going to happen, circumventing any future assignments.

“Officer Murphy, a minute of your time,” she said, pointing at him. Lifting her glasses, her gaze swept the room
and caused all the locals to look away. Yeah, she dared them to even think about making a comment about the ethnicity of the men in her life. Her kids were mixed, and she’d lose her damn mind.

“Sure thing,” he said
as he patted the seat beside him. “Why don’t you get yourself a coffee and donut? I suggest the raspberry ones. She stuffs them until they’re like little bombs of fruity goodness.”

Elizabeth took a deep breath
and tried to remain in control. It was hard to remember that not everyone moved on Fed time. Sometimes, sleepy little towns had their own slower paced clock. “Okay, let’s have coffee and talk.”

The waitress came over to the counter
, and they placed their order. When she was gone, it was time to handle business.

“We need t
o know where you saw the victim, and I need an answer that’s more specific than in town, on the street, or just walking. At this point in the investigation, I need the exact location.”

He sipped his coffee and thought about it. “The
boss said you were on your way here and that you were pissed off. She told me if you were rude to tell you ‘
eff
’ off.”

Yeah, it wouldn’t be the first time the ‘
F
’ word was directed at her, and it certainly wasn’t going to be the last. “I’m not even close to rude. I’m having donuts and coffee,” she stated, picking up the berry stuffed concoction. She knew it was going to send her into sugar convulsions, but what the heck. All she could pray was that it wouldn’t go right to her ass.

“There’s a shop about three doors down
. I believe it’s called ‘
Mystic Memorabilia
’. I saw her taking in a sale sign the one day. I normally work at night, and it was just about when they were closing up. I have to say, she was dressed like some wacked out nutcase. Is that specific enough?”

She chewed on her donut. “
Yes, and I appreciate it.”

Callen finished his
sugar laced confection and stared at her half eaten one.

“Cal, I’ll cut your hand right off,” she warned
. When he gave her that big puppy look with his warm brown eyes, she didn't have a chance. Sighing, Elizabeth slid it towards him.

Blackhawk started laughing. “Keep it up and you aren’t allowed on top anymore,” he said
as he poked his brother in the washboard abs. There wasn’t any fat on either of them, but they liked to bust his ass regardless, since he tended to out eat them both.

The cop looked over. “
Are you three really having sex?”

Elizabeth stared at him.
“No, we’re eating donuts,” she replied, lifting her eyebrow. It was simply one more reason to dislike the woman they had just visited. Apparently, there was idle chit chat going on behind their backs.

Big shocker there.

The cop laughed as he took a sip of coffee.

“
Just to clarify, your boss has a big mouth,” she stated. It wasn’t like they were trying to hide it, but there was such a thing as couth. The only way something like that would be brought up in casual conversation was in gossip. People rarely talked about other people’s sex lives out of the blue as a point of reference.

“Yeah, s
he does,” he agreed easily. “That’s not the first time that someone has said that about her.”

The man’s easy going nature almost had her mood brightening. It was hard to get angry at someone
who was laid back and munching donuts.

Standing up, she tossed money on the counter
and paid for all four of their sugar fixes. “Have a good day, Officer Murphy, and thank you for the information,” she stated, walking past the staring people. She almost wanted to check her face for any wayward jelly.

“See, sugar makes the world go round,” Callen said.

“I thought
that was sex?” Ethan replied grinning. “After careful contemplation, I’m pretty sure I’m right.” He patted his wife on the ass.

Elizabeth
didn't flinch. “Yeah, and you’re dangerously close to being kicked off that train, Cowboy,” she added.

Callen snorted.

“You can be riding solo too, Cal.”

That shut them both up pretty damn fast.

It didn't take long to find the storefront that Officer Murphy had been talking about.
Pausing on the sidewalk, she stared up at the sign above the door. It appeared to be a cross between a hippie hangout and some new age haven. Pulling on the handle, she found it locked. The hours were listed on the door.

“Okay,
it’s closed on Monday and Tuesday,” she stated. “I guess we will have to put this on the list for tomorrow. There’s nothing we can do about it right now.”

Ethan made note.

Elizabeth’s phone began ringing. Looking down at the caller ID number, she answered. “Yeah, Agent Rickard, what do you have for me?”

She listened to him break it down over the phone as she stared into the shop windows, trying to
recognize any of the merchandise that was being sold there.

“What else?” she asked. In the window
, she could see both of their reflections. Callen and Ethan were carefully watching her as she received the information. “Okay, head back into the morgue as soon as you gather all the items for the team. We’ll meet you there,” she stated, hanging up. At least someone was having far better luck on the investigation front.

“What do we have,
angel?” Callen asked.

“They finished the sweep of the victim’s house
, and it appears that the pentacle that Chris found in her throat was pertinent after all.”

Blackhawk
didn't know where she was heading with it.

“
According to the team, it looks like our victim was a practicing Wiccan.”

“So
, we have a devil worshipper that’s killing witches?” inquired Callen.

Elizabeth dropped her sunglasses onto the bridge of her nose.
“Yeah, it appears so,” she stated. “It looks like we’re going to max out on weirdness with this one, boys,” she stated.

Great.

It was just what Callen and Ethan wanted to hear.

~ Chapter Six ~

Tuesday mid-day

Arriving at the
morgue, they found Patrick Parrish outside smoking. He was just the person that Elizabeth wanted to see. Walking up to him, she waited for him to acknowledge her presence.

“Yes, Director Blackhawk?” he asked, glancing up from his phone.

“Do you
know if there is any empty space upstairs in the office?” What they needed was a meeting room to work out of as a team.

“It depends. W
hat are you using it for?”

“We need a space to lay everything out and have our daily
check-ins. Also, if we get a room, that’ll give you more space in the autopsy suit. Doctor Leonard can work up there when you’re busy, and you wouldn’t feel like you’re being watched.”

That idea appealed to him
a great deal. He was feeling like the other doctor was always measuring up everything that he did. He was pleasant enough, but when he was just autopsying the accident victim, he knew the man wanted to make a comment about his style.

“There’s one medium sized room. It’s not huge, but it’ll do for a place big enough for six comfortably.”

“I appreciate your help with this. Thank you.”

Doctor Parrish was just glad to have his space back. The Feds were cramping his work style.
“Room twelve and I’ll get the key sent over from the administrative office, so you can lock up at night.”

Elizabeth was glad
that they had a place to call their own. Now they’d have privacy. Heading first to the room, she walked in and hit the lights. Across one whole wall was a giant white board. “Oh hello there lover! Where have you been all my life?”

Both men
were entertained. Elizabeth had an incredible fondness for the boards and this was proof.