Pledging to Die (An FBI/Romance Thriller Book 11) (48 page)

Elizabeth was enjoying herself. She’d seen Gabe break lesser agents, so Jason Blaise was in for one hell of a ride.

“Head back now. I’ll see you in my office tomorrow morning. Be ready to explain why the hell you did what you did, and if I don’t like it, you’re screwed.” There was a pause. “And not in a good way, Agent. Now get moving!”

He stood and began packing his gear.

“Elizabeth,” Gabe stated, “take me off speaker.”

She did as he asked. “Yes, Gabe?”

“Are they okay?” he asked, worried about their agents. “I hope you don’t think that I condone his behavior. I would never intentionally risk anyone under my watch, including you, Ethan, or Callen.”

“They’ll be okay, but it was damn close. As for that last part, I’m well aware.”

“Tell me how bad they are.”

She updated him on their conditions, and then she continued when Agent Blaise had left the room, “The frat boys aren’t the killers. They had our agents at the same time as the last girl died. We have a big mess here. Unless we get a miracle, we’re screwed. From here on out, we’re back at day one. I’ve never been a week into a case and thinking about erasing my board to start from scratch.”

“You can figure it out. I have faith in you, and if my issue gets out, it’s fine. I did the crime, so I’ll do the time. Don’t stress it anymore. It wasn’t fair of me to rest that on your shoulders. I tied your hands, and it wasn’t right. We’re family, and I shouldn’t have dumped this in your lap.”

She told him how she scared the shit out of the president of the university. “You should be good. I think he’s going to think twice before picking up that phone to rat your ass out.”

He laughed. “It’s good to know that I still have you in my corner. I’m shocked I still do.”

“Friends don’t let friends stay trapped in their mistakes. It’s water under the bridge, Gabe. We’re family, and we always have each other’s backs.”

“Thank you for that.”

Elizabeth glanced down at her watch. “I have to go, Gabe. I need to check in with the ME, swing by the hospital to visit my agents, and then get to holding. I have a dick and his helpers to break down today. It’s going to be a long one.”

“Call if you need anything,” he stated.

She told him about Arman’s father being a judge.

There was laughter on the other end.

“Send him my way. I’m in that kind of mood. I’ll make sure his ass is chewed into next week. If you need me to throw my weight around—text me, and I’ll handle it. I’m not scared, and you shouldn’t be either. He’s a local judge. I golf with two Supreme Court justices on Saturday mornings. He’s got no game against you.”

“Thank you, Gabe,” she said before hanging up.

The men escorted her back out to the morgue room. Just as she had asked, Chris had all his ‘patients’ laid out in the order they were taken and killed. They were free from their body bags, and as Elizabeth walked up and down the rows, checking off the victims in her mind, no one spoke.

She had that same look on her face that she did when she was neck deep with a whiteboard.

Finally, she turned to look at them.

“We missed something huge, and I don’t have a clue what it means, Ethan. The whole time, our killer was telling us what was going to happen next.”

They stared at her.

“What?” Ethan asked, joining her at the first victim’s table.

“Take a walk down
‘Dead Sorority Girl Lane’
with me,” she stated. “Here’s our first victim, Felicity Magliozzi. She’s missing her heart, but she’s also been mutilated around her stomach area. We thought he was just losing control from the beginning but there’s more.”

Everyone was focused on her words, especially the team. It was rare that they got to watch Elizabeth in action. Most of her sleuthing happened behind closed doors or in her mind.

“Look at victim number two, Veronica Libbey. She’s missing her stomach, liver, and her eyelids are cut. He wasn’t torturing her or playing with the victim before she died. He’s not marking them up for shits and giggles,” she stated.

Ethan saw the pattern she was trying to point out. It was right there, and they had missed it. “We didn't notice it until we found the missing woman. Until we located Poppy Gauger, we didn't have a clue.”

“Yes, and look at her body. Her eyes are missing, and her chest is sliced to ribbons.”

Even Chris was amazed. He’d been myopically checking wounds, not looking for a pattern.

“Then we have Lori Denny. She’s missing her lungs and spleen, and look at her lower back. He hacked the shit out of it. At first, I mulled about the idea that he was working on that tramp stamp, but it wasn’t right.”

Callen pointed at Page Pinel. “Her kidneys are gone, and he tore into her pelvic area.”

“Yeah, so much so that we thought that the killer was trying to eradicate a pregnancy.”

She nodded. “He wasn’t. He was leaving us a clue as to what was coming next. Now, we need to figure out if it was intentional or he was losing his damn mind. Ethan, could this all be just an after effect of him being crazy? We’ve dealt with people with split personalities before.”

Callen remembered it well, and he hated every second of it.

Ethan noticed the desperation in her eyes. He was well aware that this could be their first big case that they didn't solve if he didn't get them something to work with, and fast.

“Yeah, it could be, but I need to mull this around. How about we revisit this later?”

She could do that.

“Now we have another question that begs to be answered. Here’s the next victim, and we notice that her uterus and ovaries are gone, but he’s left no other sign that there’s more to come. It looks like he’s done warning us,” she stated.

“Maybe he’s finished killing,” Callen offered. “Maybe this was his last intended victim, and we’re good.”

Merry was impressed. “I didn't even notice there was a pattern. Way to go, Director.”

She laughed. “It’s like you all think this is my first day on the job,” she stated. “I’ve played with killers before.”

Yeah, and because she was very similar, it helped that her mind worked like one.

It was sad, but very true.

“I’ll give you a direction by tonight, baby,” Ethan said. “I can say that all of this this is going to change a few things.”

She was well aware.

“I’m ready for it, Cowboy.”

And she was.

It was time to stop this killer, and end it all.

Fast.

       
         
* * *
  B l a c k h a w k - W h i t e f o x   * * *

Sunday Noon

Brody wasn’t sure what was going on, only that there was someone resting against his body. He didn't need to open his eyes to know who it was.

He could smell her.

No matter where he went in life, he would always know the distinct scent of her perfume—even if it was covered by the antiseptic smell of hospital.

It was his Johanna.

Brody vaguely recalled what happened after Arman threatened to rape her. As they taunted him, the red haze filled his vision, and he had to fight to save her.

Unfortunately, Nels Lucas was a brick shithouse, and he was buried under the rubble. When he opened his eyes, Brody planned to wake Johanna to ask her how she got in his bed at the hospital. Instead, he noticed someone sitting across the room from them.

It was his dad.

Great.

He really wasn’t in the mood for any family drama.

“Hello, Levi,” he stated. “I asked my boss to tell you not to come. I’m perfectly fine.”

That was a total lie. Brody felt like a bomb had gone off beside him.

“Yes, I can see you’re doing great. You look it.”

Brody knew where he got his sarcasm from—this was half of his twisted gene pool, and it was here for Johanna to see. It pissed him off.

Levi Seaton didn't expect his son to welcome his presence, so this was no big shocker. He was accustomed to the brushoff and angry words. That was really all they shared anymore. This was the normal routine, and it would likely never change.

“When you get hurt, kid, I show up. It’s kind of in the parental rulebook.”

Brody wanted to laugh. Since when did this man give two shits about how to raise a kid?

That was laughable.

Brody began to hope that his father wasn’t really there. Maybe he had a concussion. In all honesty, he wasn’t in the mood for a makeshift family reunion with his father. The further this man stayed from him and Joey, the better.

Levi Seaton was a walking disaster.

Not only that, but he was quite possibly the worst father in the world. He’d had his kid trained to break the law at the ripe old age of four.

Brody was angry, and here was his handy target.

“As you can see, I’m fine. Leave.”

He laughed. “You look like shit, son. Your face is purple, and your eyes are practically swollen shut. Your girlfriend isn’t looking all that hot either. The two of you look like you’ve fallen from a building, and you were the cushion that softened the landing.”

Brody glanced down at Johanna. Her head was resting on his good shoulder, and her hand was protectively over his heart. “She had a rough one too. She nearly died.”

“Your boss told me,” he offered. “I didn't know you were dating your partner,” he stated. “Were you ever going to bring her home?”

He laughed, and it hurt like a bitch.

“Fuck no. Why would I do something stupid like that? If it were up to me, you two would never meet.”

“I see.”

“No, you don’t, Levi. Mom’s dead, you two screwed up my entire life, and I don’t want to see you ever again. I finally have some normalcy. All I want is to serve this country, have my girl at my side, and be happy. I can’t do that with you in it. I don’t want you passing my name to every cop who busts you, hoping I’ll get you out. You don’t get it, Levi. I don’t want to live the life you chose. I want to live the one I did.”

He listened, knowing this was going to happen, so instead of letting his son’s blood pressure shoot up, he changed track. “She’s beautiful.”

That stopped him from the rest of his anger fueled tirade because he didn't think his father would go there. Levi ran numbers, he didn't deal with emotions.

“She’s the most beautiful woman in the world, and I love her,” he stated. “She’s my other half.”

“I can see that since she crawled out of her bed to be in yours. That’s a good quality to have in a partner. She’s tough. Badass women are always the best. They hold up under the pressure,” he said.

Brody was about to tear him a new one, if he was even thinking of comparing his Joey to Levi’s wife. They were nothing alike. Johanna Madden was honorable, and that’s why he was drawn to her. Not all women like to run a grift, con people out of money, or steal.

Some were good.

She was good. 

As if on cue, Johanna stirred.

When she opened her eyes, her partner was her sole focus. “Brody, babe, are you okay?” she asked, her lips gently leaving a soft kiss against his.

“I am now,” he stated. “Did they hurt you, Joey?” he asked, knowing she’d understand exactly what he was saying. He didn't want to bring up the ‘R’ word in front of his father, but he needed to know. “Did I buy us enough time?”

“I’m not hurt, Brody. I’m just shaken up. You’re a mess. They only drugged me.” Johanna knew that they were going to assault her, and if not for the sacrifice Brody made, she would have been in some serious shit.

As in they’d be doing a rape kit, not a drug test.

“I love you,” she whispered, softly letting her lips heal his cracked and split ones. He had to be in so much pain, but he wasn’t complaining, and neither was she.

She’d nearly lost this.

“I love you too, Joey,” he vowed.

Before Johanna could continue, she realized someone was there. When she glanced over, she knew who he was. All it took was one look.

“You must be, Mr. Seaton,” she said, offering him her IV’d hand.

He took it in his and shook it warmly. “Call me Levi,” he stated. “I’m Brody’s dad.”

The wounded man made some indecisive sound.

“It’s nice to meet you, sir.”

“Levi, can you go take a walk for a few minutes, I need to talk privately to Joey.”

The man stood. “Johanna, would you like some coffee? You look like you have a bitch of a hangover.”

She would kill for some caffeine. “Please,” she stated. “That would really be amazing.”

With that he walked out, leaving them alone.