The Killing Times (An FBI Romance Thriller (book 1)) (30 page)

“What if we know something that might help solve her murder?”

“Well, then you should tell me, so I can bring the guilty party to justice,” she answered, opening the door to her brother’s place and enjoying the blast of cool ai
r. She led them over to a table and sat down. “Tell you what, why don’t you ladies order whatever you want, and then we can talk.”

“Can I get fries?” asked the second girl.

“Anything you want,” she motioned to her brother, that they were ready to order.

Blackhawk
could feel the anger fill him to the point he was ready to explode. The words he just heard from the sheriff reverberated through his body. It made sense and he didn’t want to believe it, but really the only person who didn’t like the sheriff was his own partner.

Before they came
, anyone on her team could have leaked the serial killer part, but they didn’t. It had to be her, and it pissed him off. She was the damn FBI and this was dangerous. Lily risked someone’s life playing this game. Worse yet, she had risked the sheriff by tossing her in front of the killer like she was a loss she was willing to accept.

If there was one thing he knew, he trusted Elizabeth LaRue’s instinct
. She was smarter than Lily gave her credit, and that’s why she probably saw through it all. There was this icy chill that went through his body, at the mere idea that his own partner had betrayed him. Betrayal was something he couldn’t forgive, ever.

When he entered the conference
room, she sat there alone working on some files. “Lily, I need to speak to you,” he tried to push the anger down out of his voice.

“Oh, you have time for your partner today?” she commented, sarcastically. “Not too busy rolling around in the sheriff’s bed to see if I still exist?”

The anger clawed its way back up and was ready to explode from him in torrents. “What have you done, Lily?” he seethed, astounded at the hatred in her voice for both him and Sheriff LaRue.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she lied, looking back down at her file and wondering what approach to take.

The words erupted from him, “You leaked the information about the serial killer and the religious aspect, why?”

“Oh please!
Elizabeth is some small town hick who hasn’t got a clue, and now we finally have control of the assignment. You let her run it, and look where it got us. One big circle.”

“That small town hick has a degree from Cornell, and over ten years in the FBI. You need to give respect where it’s due,” he wanted to shake some sense into his partner.

Lily laughed. “And yet she was taken down by sleeping with her partner. Yeah, that screams smart.”

So, the sheriff had been right, and now he didn’t know what to say.

“Think of it as me doing this assignment a big favor.”

“She figured out the connection
to Salem witch killings, not me. She found all the key information not us. I can’t believe this. All this hate stemming from what?”

Lily shrugged. “You won’t understand, you're sleeping with her, but
when she tosses your ass aside don’t be shocked. She’s ruined enough lives. Take a look at where it got Ray. He’s dead, and his wife is a widow because of Elizabeth LaRue.”

“I don’t know what to even do
with this,” he said, pacing. “You sabotaged an assignment because of Ray? This is a personal vendetta?”

“No, I swayed it to get the FBI in control, and that
’s how I’ll play it, and it’ll be seen. The FBI wanted control, and I just handed it to you. You can’t vilify me for my actions on this one. When we’re called in, our main directive is to control the situation, and I did just that. The only reason you're pissed is you’re sleeping with her.”

“I’m pissed because you betrayed me!”

“That’s perspective. I think I’m saving the assignment. Once again Ethan, you’re playing with the rules. There’s nothing you can do.”

“Lily, there’s one last thing I can do
. I can get you pulled out of here,” he snapped, pulling out his phone and calling his boss. Once Gabe heard about this there would be hell to pay, and then he’d help him save the assignment and the sheriff’s reputation.

Elizabeth sat with the tw
o girls, enjoying their company. She remembered what it was like to be young and have a good group of girlfriends. She sadly let them fall away when she went into the FBI. When she saw the girls were starting to get nervous again, she knew they were thinking about their dead friend, and past the fried food.

“Now, what do you know about Melissa?”

“Melissa was having sex with a much older guy,” said the one girl.

The other added, “Much older, as in
OLD. He had to be forty-five at least.”

Elizabeth took out her pen and paper
and lifted a brow. She remembered being their age. Forty did seem old then and now... not so much. “Okay, can you give me a name?”

Both girls looked at her, and then each other and then spoke, “
Are you sure you won’t tell anyone we came to you?”

She nodded and
made the vow.

“He made her promise, and she made us
swear. She said the only reason she was doing it was because he bought her nice things.”

Elizabeth leaned forward, and looked into the eyes of the tw
o teenagers. They were so young and innocent. It was an innocence she once remembered. “I need to know, so I can get Melissa justice.”

“
It was the mayor,” the one girl whispered and continued, “She said he liked them young.”

The outrage filled her, and
she wanted to walk over to Argot’s office and kick the shit out of him for touching a girl so young. Elizabeth took a calming breath, and she knew she had to stay calm and keep this under wraps. As soon as she got back to the office, she would tell Blackhawk…

A
nd then she remembered the situation. He was very angry at her for accusing his partner of betraying him and may never speak to her again. No, he would still handle official business; he was all about the FBI and the assignment. He might not want to deal with her, but surely he would follow through on the assignment.

They both stood and the one said, “Can we head home now?”

“Want me to drive you?” she stood herself, tossing her money on the table. “It’s not really safe out there for wandering girls.”

“Can you?” The girls looked relieved
at the offer.

“Come on ladies, I can bring you home.” Elizabeth nodded at her brother, and
walked the girls out to her Jeep, parked down the street. They laughed and giggled the entire way back to their homes.

When
their parents came out, as she dropped them off, they looked nervous. Elizabeth covered for them, telling them she didn’t want them walking home alone. It seemed to mollify the suspicious adults.

After all, it was her job to serve and protect even young eighteen year olds.

Blackhawk dialed his boss’s private number, the one he was instructed to use after hours and in a case of emergency. The line rang twice before he picked it up. “Gabe, I have a big problem,” he blurted into the phone, waiting for the response.

“Is Lyzee okay?”
He knew it had to be bad for his agent to call him on this line. Ethan Blackhawk was very self-sufficient as an agent.

He replied, “Yes, and no.” He went into details at great length, told him about his partner’s confession, and also what the sheriff had told him to make him see the truth. He told Gabe about Tony’s screw up, and how they were trying to keep it under wraps to protect
both of their jobs.

“What am I supposed to do?” he inquired, “If Lily keeps this up, and get
s that one piece of information she’ll leak it to bury Lyzee, and I can’t let that happen.”

“You
’ll do nothing, Ethan. Your team is on the ground. You get that organized and you manage that situation. Leave your partner to me. I’ll call her and yank her out of there. Lily Sanderson is leaving Salem tonight to come back here.”

“Are we going to be able to do anything?” he hoped there would be karma at least. Something to pay her back for the wounds she tried to inflict
on Elizabeth.

“She’s right about how the FBI would view it, but what she forgot is
how I’ll view it. I’ve been playing this game at Quantico for quite a while. I know how to handle agents that cause shit and try to make it a political game.”

“
I have no doubt. You’re a vicious SOB, Gabe.”

“Take care of
Elizabeth, and you’ll stay on my good side. If you make her upset, she’ll tell my wife. My wife then cuts off sex and before you know it, Cowboy, I have a nice new doorstop made of your testicles. I will have them bronzed for posterity.”

Blackhawk believed him completely
, and couldn’t help but laugh at the imagery, even if it was his testicles in question.

“Go meet your team,” and with that, he ended the call.

Blackhawk laughed all the way back to the front of the station. He stopped at Martha’s desk, and waited for her to hang up the phone. “Martha, can you call the local press, and have them here in thirty minutes for a press conference?”

“Can do, Mr. Blackhawk, is there anything else?”

“No thank you, Martha,” he said, turning and walking back into the sheriff’s office. The door was open, her hat was gone, and so was she. Blackhawk rushed back outside to Martha. “Where’s your boss?” he pointed at her door.

“No clue, she had two visitors
. It was regarding one of the victims, and then she disappeared. I figured she went to find you.”

Suddenly, his heart began pounding
. He was supposed to stay by her no matter what. The slight distraction with Lily had given her the opportunity to disappear. Maybe she had just stepped outside for some fresh air. It wasn’t easy to walk coolly towards the door, especially when he felt anything but calm. When he saw the Jeep was gone, his heart began hammering in his chest. He pulled out his phone, as he stepped outside to begin tracking her down.

Elizabet
h was just turning the corner from the station, when her phone started ringing. As she read the display, her stomach knotted. It was Ethan Blackhawk. Placing the phone back down, she opted to ignore his call. Elizabeth didn’t want to have a fight with him while she was driving. All she wanted was the last few minutes to believe she still had some hope that he would still feel something for her. Once she faced him, she was sure the anger would be there between them.

Blackhawk paced and dialed again. At the sound of her Jeep pulling into her reserved spot, he looked up hopefully. Seeing her,
the tension in his chest loosened and he was able to breathe again. Immediately, he rushed to her.

Elizabeth saw him racing towards her, as she stepped out of her vehicle. She wasn’t sure what was going on, but he looked panicked and relieved all at once. “Ethan,” she spoke, afraid they were going to have a fight in the parking lot.

“Where were you?” he demanded, his hands on each side of her face, as he looked expectantly into her eyes. “Never mind, as long as you’re safe. Come with me,” he practically pulled her up the stairs, past Martha, and back into her office.

Elizabeth was about to speak
, but paused when he stuck his head back out to the lobby.

“Martha, my team should be here in ten minutes, send them into
the conference room and buzz us. I need to speak to your boss without interruption.”

“Okay Mr. Blackhawk,” she just stared at the man, thinking the pressure was
finally getting to him.

Blackhawk turned and Elizabeth didn’t know what to say
. She just watched him looking frazzled and angry. She’d never seen him lose his temper before, and she wasn’t sure how to handle it. He generally was calm, collected and under control, but now he looked as if he was just on the edge. Maybe she should apologize. 

“How mad are you?” she inquired
backing up, as he moved towards her.

“I’m
furious,” then he paused, “Why are you backing away from me?”

“Because if I shoot you, I
’ll have to fill out paperwork,” Elizabeth tried to joke. “I just accused your partner of being a leak. You left here furious, and slammed my door so hard you broke the glass.”

Blackhawk looked over his shoulder at the door and was horrified that he scared her with his temper.

“I’m sorry about that,” he said, reaching for her cheek. When she tensed he felt worse, if that was possible.

“It’s okay,” she said, but he
r face must have said otherwise.