Double Jeopardy (Entangled Select) (9 page)

As she waited, she toyed with a strand of hair that had worked loose from her ponytail and played her favorite game. Josh had finally realized how right they were together. She saw them sharing that huge bed of his for the wildest, most incredible sex known to man. With the car windows rolled up tightly and no houses in close proximity, no one could hear her cries as her fingers and sexual visions brought her to a climax.

…

“You going to get mad if I say you look tired?” Josh swung the car around the corner when they reached Lauren’s road.

“No reason to when it’s true.” She stifled a yawn. “I was up late last night working on an article that’s due in a few weeks. Then I was up early this morning to go to a Bodypump class.”

“I’m of the old school of going out and running.”

“As a doctor, I’d like to warn you, it can be bad for the knees.”

He grinned. “Good thing I have strong knees. The only thing I’ve ever had to worry about is skinning them when I don’t look where I’m going on a new path.” He turned up her driveway to the front door. “Part of your security measures?” He nodded toward the floodlights visible from the rear of the house and a strong light burning by the front door.

“They come on at dusk. While I have neighbors, they aren’t exactly close enough to talk over the back fence, so I figured the lights might be a good deterrent.” She rummaged through her purse until she found her keys.

“Lauren.” Josh placed his hand on hers to stop her from getting out of the car. “I’d better go in with you.”

She laughed. “Is this a new line?”

“No, just a safety measure.”

“I have a state-of-the-art alarm system.” Still, she allowed him to help her out of the car and walk her to the front door. Lauren unlocked the door and the moment she was inside, punched in the code to deactivate the alarm. “I forgot to do this a couple nights ago. I found out just how loud it is at 2 a.m.,” she explained, turning back around. The look on his face told her everything. She wet her lips with her tongue. “Josh, while my marriage wasn’t great, the divorce still left a few wounds that haven’t completely healed yet.” She suddenly laughed. “Not to mention, you presently have a few problems with your own private life. Let’s not get into something that could only hurt us both.”

“If I thought it would do any good, I’d try to change your mind,” he said quietly. “But it would only make matters worse, wouldn’t it?” He didn’t bother to wait for an answer. “Stay here.” He moved around her and quickly but thoroughly looked into each room. When he returned, he stopped long enough to trail the back of his fingers down her cheek. “Good night, Lauren. Maybe we can settle this between us when the other business is over.” He closed the door behind him. It took a few seconds for Lauren to recover and activate the alarm.

She walked slowly down the hallway, stopping only when she noticed the red light on her landline phone in her home office blinking red. She walked in and retrieved her voicemail.

“Did you honestly think I wouldn’t know the two of you went off together, Laurie dear?” The whispered voice struck a dark chord. “You don’t like being called Laurie, do you? No one with the snooty-bitch name of Lauren would. Then I think that’s exactly what I’ll call you until I can give you a more appropriate name.” Her voice turned harsh. “Did you tell Josh all the dirty details behind your divorce, Laurie? Or did the two of you find a motel room together for some down-and-dirty sex? No, I don’t think you did, because if you had told him your nasty past, he wouldn’t have wanted you, would he?”

Shaking so violently she couldn’t stand, Lauren dropped into the chair next to her desk, her phone plastered to her ear as she listened to the insidious voice bring up memories she had buried months ago.

“Josh isn’t a man to take things lightly, Laurie,” the taunting voice continued. “But I can make it very easy for you. Just leave him alone and give him back to me and I’ll forget all about it. I promise. And Laurie, I always keep my promises.” Her demonic laughter whipped across Lauren’s frayed nerves just before the click indicated the answering machine had cut her off.

Lauren sat in the chair for several more minutes before she could get up and leave the room. By the time she reached her bedroom, she felt more composed and positive she could handle anything that came her way. Until she found her favorite lipstick left on her nightstand when she knew very well she had put it away that morning. While she wanted to toss the case into the wastebasket—she doubted she could ever wear it again, even if she bought herself another tube—she followed the procedure she knew would be required by Kevin. She dug out a small paper bag in the kitchen and pulled on a latex glove before carefully picking up the case, dropping it into the bag, folding the top down, taping it shut, and writing her initials across the tape along with the date and time she found it.

By then, her body shook with a soul-shattering fury instead of fear of the woman coming back.

“Who does she think she is?” she gritted, spinning around to see what else she would find out of place. “Does she honestly think any man is worth putting a person through hell? Does she honestly think I’m going to put up with her insane pranks?”

The minute she’d said it, she wanted to take it back. Even carelessly calling the person crazy was proof that her subconscious considered the woman not of her right mind. And there were too many people not of their right mind who could be considered dangerous.

She experienced a sudden burst of furious energy that she needed to get rid of before she could even think of resting. Working like a fired-up machine, she thoroughly cleaned her bedroom, including changing the sheets—she wasn’t taking any chances that the woman had lain in her bed—before stumbling into the shower. The last thing she did before going to bed was to make sure her Sig Sauer was loaded and within easy reach.

…

The moment Josh stepped into his house, he was repelled by the heavy scent of the familiar perfume in the air. Swearing under his breath, he made a check of each room, but found nothing out of order. This time, his bed was still unmade. When he checked his phone, he found the message light blinking. Fearing Lauren might have found something after he’d left, he quickly checked his voicemail, ready to run back out the minute he found out what was going on.

“Darling, I know you were with the Hunter bitch today. You have to understand she isn’t for you.” The unfamiliar, yet familiar, voice breathed through the speaker and left his blood running cold. “Besides, there are things you don’t know that would change your mind about her. But she and I have made a deal. She stops trying to take you away from me and I won’t give away her dirty little secret. I’ll see you soon. Good night, lover.”

Josh’s first thought was to call Lauren and warn her they must not have been as discreet in leaving town as they’d hoped, but he hesitated. What if it was only a ploy and she’d never tried to contact Lauren today? No, he’d wait and give Lauren a call in the morning.

It was a routine now to record her hateful messages and set it aside for Kevin. He tossed the evidence bag into his briefcase, along with the file folder of notes Dana had given him. He’d hoped to look them over that evening before going to bed. Right now, he wasn’t sure he wanted even that impersonal kind of contact with her.

“I hope she realizes she’s costing me a small fortune in recording tapes.”

Chapter Eight

“How do you feel about getting bad news in the middle of the night?”

Lauren looked up from her computer where she’d been finishing a report from a recent post. Considering it was four o’clock in the morning and she’d had less than two hours sleep, thanks to her frenetic housecleaning which had done little to calm her raging fury, she looked remarkably fresh compared to Gail. The policewoman wore a tight black leather miniskirt and gold Lurex tube top with a black sheer long-sleeved top over that. Her makeup was smeared and she looked like a hooker who’d had a hard night.

“I got a call to go out and pronounce a death about one o’clock this morning. I just left the crime scene a half hour ago, and will have the pleasure of beginning my day with the post.” She stretched her arms over her head, and then dropped them. She gestured toward the coffeepot. “It’s been a while since I’ve been called out in the middle of the night and I’m feeling it. Want some coffee? It’s guaranteed strong enough to float an aircraft carrier.”

“I’d rather have four weeks’ worth of sleep instead of a stronger caffeine buzz, but I don’t think that will be possible just now.” Gail poured herself a cup and dropped into a chair. She reached down to slip off her high heels. She winced as she flexed and pointed her toes. “I’m surprised more hookers aren’t cripples, wearing torture devices like these instruments they call shoes.” She held up her shoes, the deadly looking three-inch spike heels pointed upward. “Give me Reebok any day.”

“We were brought up to believe that wearing them made our legs look sexier. They wear them because it makes their legs look sexier. Naturally, it’s men who spout all that nasty propaganda.” Lauren refilled her coffee cup. “So what’s the problem that’s going to make me rant and rave and scream?”

“Your victim is missing.”

Her smile froze. “That’s funny. I thought you said the victim is missing. Since I’d pronounced him dead, I can’t imagine a medical miracle where he got up and walked away.”

Gail looked chagrined at having to repeat her bad news. “I did just say that, and no, he didn’t decide to come back from the dead.”

Lauren sipped her coffee in the hope that her fourth cup of high-test caffeine would allow her brain to function at a normal rate. She could already feel the buzz traveling through her veins. She figured she’d be bouncing off the ceiling by noon. “No offense, Gail, but why are you the one bringing me that lovely piece of news?”

“Because it’s my case, and because I figured if you decided to throw a tantrum, you’d prefer to throw it in front of another woman instead of one of those macho ingrates who would just start spouting crap about what can you expect when women suffer from PMS and all.”

Lauren played with a strand of her hair that came loose from her French braid. “Yes, men can be scum, can’t they? So before I start yelling and screaming about the lost body, although I don’t know why I should bother since it means one less post to worry about, why don’t you give me an idea where he might be?”

By now, Gail just looked disgusted. “I wish I knew. Paul and Kirk left the scene around the same time you did and they haven’t been heard from. I talked to your lovely diner. I swear, Lauren, he reminds me of Peter Lorre.” She wrinkled her nose as she mentioned the clerk in charge of the morgue. “But he hasn’t heard from them, either. I swear, things always go nuts when the moon is full.”

“It usually does bring out the crazies,” Lauren agreed, settling back in her chair. “You can stop worrying. I’m not going to lose my temper and I’m not going to worry about it. I’m too tired to worry much about anything.” She stifled a yawn.

“Driving down to San Diego and back in one day can be pretty tiring. I’m surprised you wouldn’t want to stay the night and come home in the morning.”

Lauren looked at her sharply for a second, but there was nothing in Gail’s expression to indicate she was being sarcastic. At least she now knew that her cover story had gotten out and seemed to be accepted. And it showed just how quick the grapevine was. “I was able to miss most of the traffic by driving back after the rush hour, so it wasn’t too bad. The trouble is, I got to bed real late and ended up with barely a couple hours of sleep.”

“For someone who only had a little sleep, you look pretty good to me.” Gail grimaced as she raked her fingers through her hair. “I’m afraid to look in the mirror for fear of scaring myself and breaking the glass. What’s your secret for looking human?”

“A couple of tricks I learned when I was an intern. One of the nurses I worked with had a sister who’s an actress. One, you wash your face with icy water.” She laughed at Gail’s horrified expression. “Second, you use a pearl-colored moisturizing base under the foundation. At least, no matter how tired you are inside, you don’t look it.” She grabbed the phone and punched out a number. “This is Dr. Hunter. Do me a favor and put out an APB for Kirk, Paul, and one passenger.” She paused. “Yes, I know it’s a full moon. Yes, I know things always go weird this time of the month and a missing coroner’s wagon kind of goes at the bottom of a long list. So let me put it this way: if you don’t want me to sprout fangs and go looking for fresh blood, namely yours, you’ll track them down and tell them to get back here right away. Otherwise, I’ll have to come up there and pick someone out to take the victim’s place for the first morning post. And remember, I don’t carry anesthesia down here.” She slammed the phone down. “Don’t tell me. Harvey never minded if they took their time getting back on a slow night.”

Gail shrugged. “He did tend to go a little easy on them.”

“Then they’re going to find out the hard way that I’m not Harvey.” Lauren hit the save key for her file.

“I think they’re already getting that idea.” Gail stifled a yawn. “Do you know Mitzi Roberts?”

Lauren thought for a moment and shook her head. “The name doesn’t ring a bell, but I’m still meeting people around here.”

“She works as a clerk in the public defender’s office,” the policewoman explained. “She went through a bad marriage with an abusive husband and finally got up the courage to divorce him about a year ago. She would have had a lot of problems with that if it hadn’t been for Josh helping her out.”

Lauren’s interest was instantly caught, but she silently warned herself to be cautious. “I’ve heard he’s heavily involved in those issues. I think that’s very admirable.”

“He’s involved because he grew up watching his father abusing his mother and he’s always regretted not being able to help her.”

Another question answered. Lauren wondered what other private details Gail knew about Josh and why she was bothered by the idea when she’d told Josh just hours ago that she didn’t need a man in her life. She idly picked at a chip on her desk’s surface.

“Why are you telling me about Mitzi?”

“There are rumors that she’s seriously hoping about making him her son’s stepfather. Not only that, but she pretty much assumed Josh would have gone along with it if you hadn’t come along and dazzled him.”

For just a brief moment, the phone message came back to Lauren. She made a mental note to seek out the woman and find a way to listen to her voice to find out if it would sound familiar.

She shook her head, laughing as if she found the idea incredible. “People love to make unbelievable assumptions around here, don’t they? He took me out to dinner because he lost a bet and I made him pay up.”

Gail leaned over, surprise written all over her face. “Really? You have no interest in one of the hottest guys we’ve had here in a long time?”

Lauren nodded. “Is gossip so rare around here that if somebody sees us out together they automatically assume something hot and heavy?”

“It has been quiet lately,” she agreed. “And while you can’t consider Josh a womanizer per se, he does make sure not to be with one woman for too long, so they can’t get any ideas. Although we all thought for a while that Carol Lawson, who worked for a marketing research firm, was going to be the one to change his mind. Now she’s seeing one of the executives in her company. I guess she didn’t like Josh having to break dates at the last minute.” Gail plucked at a hole in her black fishnet hosiery. “I am going to be so glad I won’t have to wear these things any longer. I can’t understand why they were so popular to wear back in the late sixties. I always feel as if I have some disfiguring rash on my legs.” She laughed, then suddenly said, “I heard you’re divorced.”

“Nowadays, who isn’t?”

Gail looked up. “You were married to a cop, weren’t you?”

Lauren nodded warily, wondering where the questioning was going.

“Drugs, alcohol, other women, or abuse?”

It took a moment for Lauren to realize Gail was asking the reason behind the divorce. “None of the above. We discovered that we functioned better without each other than as a couple,” she said.

“No affairs on either side?” Gail winced. “Sorry, I guess questioning about things that are really not my business is a habit.”

“I’m not embarrassed. I just don’t feel the need to talk about a dead issue. As far as I’m concerned, it’s over and there’s no need to rehash old history.” She smiled to take the sting out of her words.

“Sorry about sounding nosy. As I said, I guess it’s part of my nature.”

“No offense taken.” Lauren started when the phone rang. “Dr. Hunter.” She listened to the caller, rolled her eyes, then gave Gail a thumbs-up. “Kirk and Paul just showed up. They said something about taking a detour that turned out to be a dead end and they got lost. Not the best excuse in the world since the van has GPS.” She stood up. “I think I’d better make sure they didn’t pick up a new passenger along the way.”

“Think I’ll have time for some sleep before you post the guy?” Gail asked.

“Sure. There’s a cot in the supply room just off Sophie’s office you can use,” Lauren offered. “I’ll wake you up when I’m ready.”

“Thanks, I’ll take you up on that.” Gail suddenly grinned. “Just do me a favor and remember I’m only sleeping and not one of your guests, so to speak.”

Lauren smiled. “I’ll try.”

“Hey, Lauren?” Gail turned around with her arms uplifted to her hair. “Some people think you’re a cold fish because of that ‘touch me not’ attitude you like to put out. I don’t think you’re so bad.”

Lauren smiled. “Old habits die hard. Forensic pathologists aren’t too popular because in a lot of instances, our word is considered law. After a while, you get used to being the bad guy to a lot of lawyers, and sometimes, even the cops. Go take your nap. Use the shower if you’d like. I keep toiletries in there for when I have to be here for an extended time.” With a quick wave of the hand, she was gone.

…

Gail looked around the office, noting the difference from when Harvey had been in charge. The file cabinets weren’t bursting with scattered papers. Files were piled neatly in the “out” and “in” trays; everywhere she looked she found papers, file folders, reports, all in order. Even her computer and accompanying tablet were dust free.

“I bet she drives Sophie absolutely nuts.”

…

“Whoever stabbed him wanted to make sure he was dead,” Lauren announced, pulling off her latex gloves and tossing them away. Pete remained next to the corpse, stitching up the Y-shaped incision. “There were twenty-seven wounds, twenty of them deep, which I would say means the person either had a lot of strength or a lot of anger. The knife had a serrated edge, and some of the wounds are spaced so closely together that his stomach came out looking like a piece of raw hamburger, so it was difficult to gauge the last time he’d eaten or even what he’d eaten There were also shallow cuts on his hands, as if he’d tried to defend himself, and a deeper cut on his left palm, as if he’d tried to take the knife away from the killer. No skin under his nails, so he wasn’t able to fight back, but I did find a few fibers I’ll send over to the lab, along with blood samples. Although I have a hunch the only blood on him was his own.”

Gail scribbled her notes. “Could a woman have done this?”

“Sure, and she wouldn’t have to be a bodybuilder to accomplish it, either. I’d say the knife used was razor sharp because these are all clean cuts.” She pressed the heels of her hands against her spine and bowed her back to relieve the muscle strain from bending over for an extended length of time. “I guess someone with his history has more than his share of enemies.”

Gail nodded. The expression she directed toward the autopsy table was filled with disgust. “His share of enemies could have us digging for the next twenty years. Personally, I don’t know why we don’t give the person a medal for giving us one less piece of slime to worry about. I fought like crazy to get into Homicide, and wouldn’t you know I’d end up with this for my first case?” She indicated her clothing. “I’m just glad I can finally get out of these things. I only went down there last night dressed like ‘one of the girls’ to get some information. Instead, I trip over him.”

“Well, thanks for the business,” Lauren teased. She glanced up at the clock and groaned at the hour. “I’m going to change and get some breakfast. Want to join me?”

Gail shook her head. “I’ve got to get back to the station and write up my report. Then I’m going home and burning these clothes. From now on, I intend to start wearing something a little more appropriate. Thanks for the info.” She waved her notebook.

“Anytime.”

Gail paused before she left. “Maybe you and I could have dinner sometime?”

Lauren’s face lit up. “I’d like that.”

“I’ll see what my schedule will be like in the next week or so.”

“Cozy with cops, cozy with DAs,” Pete muttered from where he’d just finished his task.

Lauren spun around. “You have anything to say, Pete?”

He looked up, his ferret face gleaming with sweat under the harsh lights. “Coroners have to be objective.”

“Yes, they do,” she agreed. “And they also have to learn how to separate their professional lives from their personal ones so they can have a life at all.”

“Like you do with Josh Brandon?”

Lauren guessed it took weariness combined with the early morning hour for Pete to speak so openly.

She leaned against the stainless steel sink with her hands braced behind her. “So?”