True Love Lost (An FBI Romance Thriller (book 3)) (9 page)

~ Chapter three ~  

Monday Mid-morning

Elizabeth
sat in her office, her boots up on the corner of her desk, as she rubbed her belly with her hand. She was absently staring out the window and didn’t hear her husband enter her office. Thoughts were plaguing her mind, and the predominant one was regarding her brother-in-law and his safety.

Blackhawk just sat and watched his wife massaging their child as it
grew protected in her body. She’d told him that when the baby started getting bouncy, rubbing her belly helped soothe him. It still amazed and captivated Ethan that she was pregnant and by summer they’d have a little one of their own.

Elizabeth felt him near and looked over. “Hi handsome, were you there long?” she asked.

“Baby all hyper?” he asked, as he closed her door and walked over to her. “I haven’t been staring at you long,” he winked.

“Good
to know I haven’t lost my instincts,” she answered. “Baby Blackhawk is really hyper today. I think he knows we’re heading into the field and is all excited.”

Blackhawk kneeled beside his wife on her chair and pulled up her shirt and gave the bump kisses. “Daddy loves you,” he whispered to her belly.

Elizabeth’s heart went all mushy, that her tough Indian warrior was kissing her belly and talking to their child. There would never be anyone she could love more than this man.

“We nee
d to figure out a name for you,” he whispered to her growing belly. “Or your momma will seriously call you ‘
Baby Blackhawk
’ all your life.”

Elizabeth snorted. “I will not!
Stop lying to the child already!”

“Want to tell me what you were worried about?
I’m going to guess it’s not about what to name our child. That only leaves a few more possibilities.”

“No, I already have my choice for baby names. It’s a done deal for me. I’m just waiting on your choice so we can figure it out.”

Blackhawk rubbed her belly and felt his child moving again. “I have a few thoughts on that, but I’m not one hundred percent sure yet.” He looked up at his wife. “What has you worried, baby?”

“
I’m worried about Callen.”

Ethan Blackhawk would like to be surprised, but he knew the two of them had a special bond.
“What specifically?”

“We just sent him there alone until we get there
, and that has me wondering if it was a good idea.”

Blackhawk laughed and stood
. The love he felt for this woman was immeasurable, that she’d be worried about his brother this much. “Don’t worry momma bird; the baby bird is ready to fly the nest, and he’s been trained to keep himself safe. As for Doctor Adare, Callen’s a man and his natural instinct will kick in fast.”

“Oh, so are you saying a man can protect a woman better than a woman can protect a man?” Elizabeth crossed her arms and rested them on the bump
, daring him to pursue that line of thought. “I’m sure you didn’t mean to make that sound as chauvinistic as it sounded, Ethan.”

Blackhawk laughed and leaned down to kiss his wife on the lips.

“No answer and kissy-face. I guess that’s my answer.”

“I’m simply saying that my brother is a smart man, he’s been trained, and he’ll do the job. Have faith in him, Elizabeth.”

Standing she tucked her shirt in and looked him in the eye. “
My faith in your brother isn't at question here. I happen to believe the Blackhawk men are a superior set of individuals. What has me worried is a killer that is taking pieces of men.”

“
Callen will be perfectly fine. I know my brother,” he said, pulling her against his body. “Come here, Mrs. Blackhawk,” he whispered, before he kissed her long and slow. Her mothering instincts were out in full force, and she was even more protective than usual. She was a miracle to the men in that family normally, but now she was over-the-top protective. It was ironic, because that was usually his job. The role of control freak and worrier was generally all his.

When the baby began kicking like crazy, she broke the kiss. “Even he says no kissy-face in the office,
and I think he’s offended that you’re kissing his mommy,” she grinned, wickedly. “Baby Blackhawk doesn’t like to share.”

“Funny.
I see it’s now two against one, and he’s going to have to share because you were mine first.” He was about to comment more when her office phone rang. “Don’t think you’re getting away from me yet, Elizabeth,” he winked lecherously. 

“Blackhawk,” she
replied, answering the phone.

“Elizabeth,
hey it’s Gabe.”

She put it on speakerphone. “Hi Gabe, what’s up?”

“The files have been sent, and I handled the accommodations for you both, the doctor and Agent Whitefox. The tech team will be staying in a different location.”

“Okay, thanks Gabe.” Elizabeth was suspicious. “You didn’t
roach coach us,” she asked him. “did you?”

Blackhawk started laughing.
Gabriel Rothschild was notorious for torturing his employees with really horrific accommodations. It was like a game to him, and they all knew it.

“If you did, I’m telling your wife that you
’re torturing a pregnant woman.”

Gabe
began laughing. Elizabeth Blackhawk and his wife were best friends, and there was no doubt that his wife would give him hell for pulling that stunt. “For the record, I go by the allotment that the Bureau allows me.”

“Right,” muttered
Blackhawk, not buying that line for a second. He too was in charge of finding his people accommodations, and Gabe was just sadistic.

“I hear
d that and I am still your boss, Special Agent Blackhawk.”

Elizabeth laughed
at how he dropped the ‘
Director
’ portion of her husband’s title when it suited the moment. “Where did you put us, Gabe?” If they were going to be in a roach coach, hopefully it wouldn’t be too bad. She’d stayed in some scary places while working under Gabe.

“Because it’s a small town, they only had one hotel. I appropriated the remaining rooms for the tech team. I managed to finagle a private dwelling for the three investigators and the ME.
ONLY because it’s owned by a friend of the Sheriff, and he’s desperate for our help. He pulled strings to get it into budget.”

“Thank you, Gabe,” she said sweetly
, winking at her husband.

“
I’ve transmitted the information and you should have it by now. Forward it to Whitefox and the ME so they’re prepared before they arrive in Red River.”

“We’re swinging home for clothes and heading out
shortly,” said Blackhawk, wiggling his eyebrows at his wife. Maybe he could even convince his wife for a pit stop in their bedroom.

When Elizabeth laughed, Gabe became suspicious. “What’s so funny
?”

“Ethan wants to have sex,” she said laughing, and then she laughed harder when her husband flushed red and looked embarrassed.

“Elizabeth!” He couldn’t believe that she actually said that to their boss.

“
Blackhawk, this is exactly how I ended up with six kids and had to trade in my sports car for an SUV,” he said laughing, as he hung up the phone.

“I’m never trading in my Mustang,” he replied, and then looked at his wife. “Am I?” Now he felt sick to his stomach. He loved his car.

Elizabeth laughed and patted his cheek. “I’ll take one for the team and get the SUV. I don’t want to face your midlife crisis fifteen years from now, as you blame me for the loss of your beloved Mustang Mistress.” She’d started referring to his car as the Mistress, when she caught him waxing her and talking to her like she was a real person.

“
If he’s trying to deter me from having a brood, it’s not going to work. There’s nothing wrong with six kids and you driving an SUV,” he said, laughing and then offered his wife his hand. “Shall we head home and then out into the field, Mrs. Blackhawk?”

Elizabeth took his hand and grinned. “Absolutely,
Cowboy. Look out Red River, here come the Blackhawks!”

Ethan dropped his arm around his wife’s shoulders. “I’m sure the place won’t ever be the same again.”

Whitefox sat on the couch and waited for the woman upstairs, as she finished packing. He definitely liked her house, and he couldn’t help but want to wander around and look at all the memorabilia. When curiosity finally won out, he meandered to the book shelf, and checked out the pictures and little trinkets. One of his secret pleasures in life was books, and whenever he saw copious amounts of them, he was immediately drawn to them.

First thing that caught his eye w
as the picture. It was of her standing with another woman. They looked to be the same age, but the other woman was taller and looked aloof, where Desdemona looked approachable and friendly. They were standing by what looked like a swamp and both women were wearing bikini tops and cut offs.

Whitefox
was curious since it was the only picture there. He thought about his own table beside the bed with quite a few pictures of him and his family, then of Elizabeth’s bookshelves covered in photos. To him it seemed sad and lonely.

Whitefox
was charmed by the collection of miniature coffins and macabre items on her shelves. There were some skulls housed in plexi-glass boxes and even some antique doctor’s kits that looked more like torture devices than ones to heal. Doctor Desdemona Adare had a very eclectic taste in collectables.

“I like unusual things,” she
stated, carrying her travel bag and suitcase down from the second floor. Her first instinct was to defend her collection, like she always had to with strangers. Just one more thing that made her ‘odd’ and a spectacle.

“I
really like this one,” he commented, feeling the tension in her voice. “It’s odd but truly beautiful,” he said, pointing to one small box.

Desdemona moved closer to see which piece he was discussing.
“That’s a Cyanide box.” She informed him. “Doctors were sometimes quacks, and they prescribed treatment with the stuff.” She stood beside him. “I like to collect all the different medical items I can find, and the more unusual the item the better. I find it fascinating to see where we once were as doctors, and how we progressed as technology also evolved.”

Whitefox grinned at her.
If he closed his eyes she sounded much older than she looked. Doctor Adare was indeed very smart.

“Do you collect anything?” she asked, wondering more about the man.

“I collect books,” he answered, offering up the information.

“Then you’d like my reading room,” she answered, laughing. “I seem to like them too.
Growing up I had to hike miles to the local library, and when I was able to start acquiring books, I seemed to lose total and complete control of my ability to stop. ”

He could appreciate that. Books were always a way for him to escape a life he hated as a child. He’d hide for hours in the stories of books, and then one day he connected with his brother and didn’t need to hide. It still didn’t diminish his love of literature
, but gave him a close friend to share his books with too. When they weren’t raising hell, they were reading all about it.

Whitefox noticed she’d changed. “You actually have a winter coat with tiny skulls on it?”
He was grinning now. Something about this woman entertained him and fascinated him.

“Yes, I happen to like them
. I collect kitschy clothing too. Obviously.” Then she paused and considered it. “Is this inappropriate for a crime scene? Sometimes I forget that not everyone sees the humor in an ME wearing a jacket with skulls.”

He laughed. “
I think it’s just the opposite, Desdemona. They seem very appropriate to me.”

She chewed on her bottom lip.

“Is there something on your mind?” he asked, as he carried her suitcase to the door.

Desdemona wasn’t sure she could trust the man yet. In her past she’d noticed that men would betray easily, and she didn’t want to get burned. Something about the man made him likable and easy to talk to about things.

“We’re going to be partners on this assignment, so you can trust me and share anything you wish with me.”

It was like he read her mind. It freaked her out how astute he was with her.

“Really?”

“Yes, really.” Something happened in her life that made her this distrustful and worried about what people thought about her.
That was blatantly obvious, and now he felt the need to heal it for her.

“Do you think that Director Blackhawk doesn’t like me because of what I wear to work?”
She just spilled it, and hoped he wouldn’t tell her what they discussed. “If my work attire is the issue, I’ll wear the standard FBI attire to keep the peace between us.”

He looked confused
at her words. “I don’t know why you think she dislikes you, Desdemona. In fact, she thinks you're smart and really good at your job.” It was truth; Elizabeth said those words, so it wasn’t betraying confidence. There was no way he’d tell the doctor that his sister-in-law was just as worried as she was about being liked. Protecting Elizabeth was priority one, she was his family and the love of his life.