Killer Love (24 page)

He stopped and his smile widened. “You don’t mean to hurt me with that little piece of tin, do you?” His laugh sent a shiver of fear down her spine.

“I know what you’ve done. I know what kind of sick monster you are but I’m not afraid of you.”

He crossed his arms and let his gaze travel over her. “Then you’re not as smart as you look, are you?”

Even though he hadn’t moved, she took a step back. “What do you want?” she demanded.

“Several things, actually. But you can’t really help me with any of them.” He took another step toward her and she reached for the phone. She punched the ‘talk’ button. Before she could dial 911, he was on her.

He wrenched the receiver from her grasp and threw it across the room. He grabbed her by the hair and pulled her toward him. She brought the letter opener up and into his chin. He howled with pain.

“Fucking bitch.” He tightened his hold on her hair. Tears sprang to her eyes. Blood dripped from his chin onto her shoulder. Very little blood, unfortunately. She’d barely nicked him.

He grabbed the hand that clutched the letter opener and twisted until she released her hold. The useless weapon clattered to the desk. Shards of pain shot from her wrist up her arm. She was certain he’d broken it. She’d heard the bone snap.

She felt his hot breath on her neck. Tears coursed down her cheeks...partly from pain, partly from fear.

He was so close, she could see her own reflection in his ice blue eyes.

What she saw in them frightened her more than anything had in all of her fifty-six years.

Chapter Sixteen

“Not so high and mighty now, are you, bitch?” Eyes wide with fright, the woman struggled in his grasp.

She grabbed his forearm with her uninjured hand, yanking to loosen his hold. “You filthy scum! Let me go!”

“Scum?” He released her hair and clamped his fingers around her neck. “I could buy and sell you
and
your husband, you stupid cunt. Who do you think you are?”

Her eyes bulged and her face reddened as he tightened his grip. She clawed at his hands, long red nails scratching his flesh.

“Please...just...let...me...go.” She gasped for air and he eased his hold. “I won’t tell anyone you were here,” she promised desperately.

He threw his head back, a bark of laughter rumbling from his chest. “You must think I’m stupid. Do you really think I believe that? That I’ll just turn around and go?” Melanie had always been such a bitch. Treated him like dirt. Like he wasn’t good enough for her friend. What would she think when she realized the power he had over her world? No way Jade would stay away after she found out what he’d done to her best friend’s mother.

He must have been distracted, loosened his hold more than he’d intended because the woman lunged away and the next thing he knew, she was free.

She raced to where he’d thrown the phone, amazingly agile considering the height of those heels she wore. He closed the short distance between them. Just as she reached her goal, he grabbed her hair and spun her around.

He punched her in the face. Blood spurted from her nose. Suddenly, she was like an enraged beast. She began to scream and flail her arms, catching him square in the jaw with a wild blow.

Carefully dodging her frenzied attack, he slipped the Italian switchblade from his coat pocket and flicked it open.

With one quick thrust, he felt the fourteen-inch blade penetrate her wool Valentino suit.

One more thrust and it sank into her flesh.

Blood sprayed onto his jacket. He’d have to leave it behind so as not to attract attention when he left.

One twist, then another.

She stopped struggling.

Funny, he still couldn’t remember her name.

****

The snow had stopped falling but over a foot covered the ground. Icicles dangled from the roof, glinting like jewels in the slowly darkening evening. Jade sat in the window seat, using her finger to draw inverted smiley faces in the condensation on the glass.

Luke would be gone in a few days.

Deb was marrying Dennis. Would she really take the kids? Jade couldn’t let her do that but she had no idea how to stop her.

Her cell phone rang. A woman’s voice on the other end said, “US Marshal’s service with a call for you. Melanie Bomar is on the line.”

Melanie? Her spirits lifted. This was what she needed. To hear her friend’s voice. The Marshal’s service had allowed her to give her friends and family a number to dial in case of an emergency. They didn’t know where they were calling, just that they could be connected to Jade. “Yes, thank you. Put her through.”

“Jade?” Melanie’s anguished cry filled her ear. “Oh my God, Jade.”

“What is it, Mel?” Cold, numb fear swept through her body as she listened to her friend sob. “What’s wrong?”

“Mother...she’s dead. Oh my God, she’s dead!”

Jade’s body went weak and she sank to her knees, head bowed, the receiver gripped tightly against her ear. “What? How?” She choked out the words, but they were so faint she wasn’t sure Melanie heard them.

“Murdered. Someone killed her.” Melanie moaned and her voice caught on a sob. “She was found in her office. Jade, what’s happening? What does it mean? Did you hear about the body found at our house? What in God’s name is happening?”

“I heard,” Jade whispered. She didn’t have to wonder if there were a connection to Maureen Anderson and Katherine Bomar’s death.

With an icy, fatal dread, she knew.

She also knew what she had to do.

****

The red wig caused her head to itch, but Jade ignored the discomfort as she pushed the sunglasses higher on her nose and smiled at the balding salesman.

“This is the most amazingly gorgeous car I’ve ever seen.” She leaned toward him and placed a hand on the sleeve of his jacket. His eyes shifted downward, drinking in the cleavage revealed by the unbuttoned leather jacket and tight blue blouse. She wore a silver choker around her neck to hide the scar.

“Glad you like it, ma’am.” He told her breasts.

“Oh, my. Like it? I love it,” she purred. Her fingers kneaded his flabby bicep. Her tongue flicked out to moisten her lips.

She’d taken a bus to Denver, then a cab to a mall where she’d purchased the outfit. She’d taken another cab to the car lot and approached the first male salesman she’d seen. One look at the lecherous gleam in his eyes and she knew she’d chosen well. The man was like a bar of chocolate left out in the sun. He practically melted in her hands.

She winked at him, then turned to lean inside the window of the mustang, giving him an eye full of her rear end in the tight white slacks. She made a show of checking out the interior, murmuring just the right amount of oohs and aaahs. She straightened and turned toward him, catching his gaze on her ass.

His eyes reluctantly moved to her face. He rubbed his hands together and cleared his throat. “How about a test drive, little lady?”

Her hips swayed as she sidled up to him. She took his tie in her fingers and leaned in until her lips were practically touching his. “How about I take it for a quick spin on my own, then swing by and let you...slide inside.” The innuendo hung between them. She wanted to recoil at the odor of garlic coming from his panting breaths but she didn’t flinch.

He smiled as if she’d offered him the key to the holy grail. “Yeah, sure. You do that. I’ll see you in a few minutes?”

She batted her eyes and smiled. “You bet your ass, sugar.”

She waved as she left the lot, feeling a moment of panic at what she’d done. The panic stayed with her as she pulled into the parking lot of a Wal Mart and switched tags with another Mustang.

It wasn’t until she was gliding along I-70, lost in the sea of commuters that she relaxed. Guilt and fear flew out the sunroof of the red mustang. Melanie needed her. She was doing the right thing.

****

Fourteen hours later, Jade stood at a pay phone, fishing in the pocket of her over-sized jeans for coins. She had her cell but was afraid the US Marshals or FBI would have some kind of tap on her phone.

With her hair tucked beneath a Cardinals cap, wearing a baggy gray sweatshirt, from a distance, she could pass for a boy. Or, at least, a decidedly masculine female. Between the authorities and Bryce, she damned sure didn’t want to be recognized.

Exhaustion caused her to slump against the wall as she listened to Melanie’s cell phone ring in her ear. For a panicked moment, she thought her friend wasn’t going to answer. She almost cried with relief when she heard her voice.

“I’m here, Mel. Can you come pick me up at the Denny’s on Lindbergh Boulevard?” She was actually at a pay phone down the street but she’d only eaten once since she left Denver. She’d leave the Mustang here and walk to the restaurant so she could get breakfast while she waited for Melanie.

By the time Melanie pulled into the parking lot, Jade was no longer starving but was now battling to keep her eyes open as weariness seized her body. How long had it been since she’d been to bed? She couldn’t recall.

Melanie stepped out of the Corvette, her beautiful face crumpled with grief. Jade went into her embrace and the two women held each other and sobbed. After a few moments, they were starting to attract a crowd. They separated and slipped inside the car.

“How are you?” Jade asked once they were on the road. She knew it sounded hollow but she didn’t know what to say.

Melanie shook her head, a fresh wave of tears pouring from her eyes. “She’s gone, Jade. My mom is gone forever.”

“I know, hon. I’m so sorry.”

“Who would have killed her? Everyone loved her.”

Jade hadn’t wanted to tell Melanie about Bryce over the phone. She didn’t want to tell her at all, but it wasn’t something she could keep from her. Melanie had a right to know.

“There’s something I need to tell you, Mel, and it’s not going to be easy.”

Melanie took her eyes off the road long enough to glance at her. “None of this has been easy lately. I’m sure I can handle it.”

“I don’t want you to hate me.”

“Sweetie.” She reached over the console and squeezed Jade’s hand. “I could never hate you. Surely it’s not that bad. Just tell me.”

Jade stared out the window at the familiar sights of the city. Funny how she thought she’d missed St. Louis but now that she was here, she realized she didn’t. Strangely, she missed Solitaire.

She took a deep breath, turned back to her friend, and said, “I’m pretty certain I know who murdered the girl found at your house. And I’m just as certain that same person killed your mother.”

“What?” The look Melanie gave her was half uncertainty, half anger. Like she wasn’t sure if Jade was joking and if so, didn’t think it was funny.

“Melanie, I think Bryce killed them both. And, I believe he did it because of me.”

“Oh, God.” Melanie looked around and eased off the brake. She pulled to the shoulder of the highway, earning the blare of a driver’s horn. Letting the car idle, she turned in her seat to face Jade. “Tell me everything.”

Melanie was silent as Jade explained everything that had happened since she’d left St. Louis. The low hum of the engine was the only sound in the car for what seemed like an eternity. Melanie wouldn’t even look at her, just kept staring out the window, still as stone.

“I’m so sorry. If you hate me, I’ll understand.”

Melanie shook her head but didn’t turn around. “It’s not your fault.”

Relief swept through her. She knew it was her fault, but she couldn’t have stood it if Melanie blamed her. She’d lost so much already. She wasn’t sure if she could bear losing Melanie too.

****

A silver-haired man and a tall, graceful brunette walked arm in arm toward the green canopy. The woman’s shoulders slumped in grief, taking a few inches off her height.

A smaller figure stood next to the tall woman and held onto her other arm. The figure was dressed in baggy clothing, a hat pulled low over dark hair. A large pair of sunglasses concealed most of the face but the man standing several yards away, watching through binoculars, knew what was behind those sunglasses. Those were the eyes he’d looked into when he promised to love and to cherish.

Til death do us part.

With his free hand, Bryce flipped the silver dollar as he watched the graveside service. He couldn’t have planned it any better. Jade was here, just as he’d predicted. It was like a big beautiful orchestra and he was the maestro. He was the one in control. Just the way he liked it.

“What now, boss?”

“Shut the fuck up, Kenner,” Bryce hissed. Even though they were several yards away, he wasn’t taking any chances.

“Sorry.” His voice lowered to a whisper. “You want me to follow her, right?”

“Yeah, right. I don’t know how long she’s staying but I want you to keep an eye on her. Follow her every move. She’ll probably leave town soon. Follow her to the ends of the earth if necessary.” He continued watching through the binoculars. He recognized Senator Bomar and Melanie as the people with Jade.

Loyal friend, aren’t you, darling? Too bad you’re not that loyal to your husband. Life would be a lot easier on both of us if you were.

Bryce wanted to follow her himself but he couldn’t risk being seen by the Marshals. Or fucking Butler. Once Kenner nailed her location, he was to call Bryce. Then, Bryce had a very special surprise for his loving wife.

Kenner nodded. “You can count on me, boss.”

“I know I can.” Bryce slipped the dollar in his pocket. “After all, your life depends on it.”

****

Luke stood at Jade’s apartment door but hesitated before knocking. He was leaving town in the morning and had already told Jade goodbye. So why had he come back? He told himself it was so he could tell her he was sorry about her friend’s mother, but he knew that was just an excuse. The truth was, he wanted to see her one last time before he left.

He
was
sorry about the Senator’s wife. DiMarco had murdered the woman, he was sure of it. The next step was to prove it. To find the bastard before he hurt someone else. He knew how difficult it must be for Jade. To be here, hundreds of miles away from her best friend when she needed her the most.