Hostile Desires (13 page)

“It’s tough losing a baby,” he said gently.

“Yes. But, it was worse for us. We didn’t know how to help each other. How could we? We barely knew each other. So, we did the only thing we understood and threw ourselves into work. It was the only thing we could talk about. By the time we started on the last case, we barely spoke if it wasn’t about the case. When the last case tore us apart, there was nothing left. We didn’t have work anymore, so everything dissolved.”

“But he wasn’t there for you.”

It wasn’t a question, but a statement. It told her that Graeme understood easier than many other men.

“No, he wasn’t. He started working odd hours and I didn’t even care. I spent a month in the house without ever leaving it. I just could not bear to be outside. Even though I know they had the bastard and I was safe, I could not get out of the house. When I learned he was cheating on me, I didn’t really give a damn. I was just happy he wasn’t there.”

“And the people you worked with turned on you.”

She nodded. “They said I had taken too many risks, but I didn’t. They blamed me, which is quite ironic since they told all the victims it wasn’t their fault. Colleagues I cherished, and whose houses I had visited, went to the rags and talked about how I was greedy for attention. That I had caused the department embarrassment. They spread lies about my fidelity when I was the one who had been cheated on.”

“I am not going to ask what happened when you were raped, but if you ever want to tell me, I will listen.”

“That means a lot. I’m not sure I’m ready yet.”

He nodded, understanding filling his expression. “No rush.”

He moved closer to her and kissed her forehead, then leaned back and smiled. “Why don’t we walk down to the beach?”

The heaviness that seemed to lie on her shoulders dissolved. “Yeah. That is actually a smashing idea.”

“Let’s go, Dumfries,” Graeme said. Dumfries came galloping up and then trotted beside them as they walked hand in hand down the street to the beach.

A dog on one side and his sexy master on the other. Elle couldn’t think of a better way to end a Saturday night.

M
onday arrived quietly
, if you could call a main line break on Dillingham quiet. It was a common occurrence on Oahu, but it didn’t make it any easier to deal with. There were only so many roads to take, and when everyone had to change their path, it ended up being a right mess.

By the time Elle made it into the office, she was already thirty minutes late. The first person she ran in to was Marcus—who was also late. He jogged up the path to catch up with her.

“I take it the main line break slowed you down too?” she asked.

Marcus nodded. “One thing I never had to worry about when I lived in DC was traffic coming to a stop because of a water main break.”

She laughed. “From what I remember during my visit, traffic is always at a standstill in DC.”

“I didn’t say it moved, I just said water main break wasn’t the reason.”

She shook her head as they climbed the steps to the back door.

“You seem different,” he said, opening the door and holding it open for her.

“Different?”

“Good. You just seem happier.”

“Well, it is a beautiful day, and I’m no longer on call with HPD.”

“That is always a good thing.”

“How’s your case going?” she asked, as they walked side by side down the hallway.

“Easy. I handled this kind of thing all the time when I worked in DC.”

“And the company isn’t too bad?”

He slanted her a look as they walked down the hall. “Where did you get that idea?”

“Emma. You know she doesn’t miss anything.”

He stopped in the hall, and she kept walking to the door. This time, she held it open and waited. Marcus’s eyes narrowed as he pursed his lips. She knew that laser stare had made more than one person confess their crimes. She didn’t budge though.

“There’s a damn bet going, isn’t there?” he asked.

“
A
bet?”

“Yes. A bet..
dammit
, how many bets are going on?”

“I’m not allowed to reveal the wager or wagers. I always find it somewhat amusing that all of us get so upset when we find out we are a subject of one of the bets.”

“It’s all fun and games until everyone is talking about you,” he said.

She waited until Marcus reached her, but he insisted on holding the door open. She rolled her eyes and stepped into the office. The moment she did, Graeme appeared like he had been waiting for her to show up.

“Morning,” he said, his gaze solely on her.

He drew out the word, making it sound even more intimate. When his accent deepened like that, it felt as if fire danced over her nerve endings. She also seemed to have lost the ability to speak. Or think.

“Speaking of wagers,” Marcus said, his voice laced with humor.

She shook herself out of her stupor. “Shut it,” she warned.

“Good morning. Is there a reason you’re meeting us at the door, McGregor?” Marcus asked.

“I didn’t want to meet you. I wanted to see Elle. She’s prettier.” He said all of this without taking his gaze from her. Her cheeks burned, but she didn’t care. It was actually kind of...cute. He was meeting her like he was courting her.

Marcus smiled. “Can’t argue with that.”

“Floyd, you’re late,” Del yelled out from the other side of the room.

They all turned toward the sound of his voice.

“
Bloody hell
,” Graeme muttered.

“Brother, you said a mouthful,” Marcus said under his breath.

She had no words. Del looked as if death had warmed over and died again. Dark circles bruised the skin beneath his eyes. Of course, it could be just shadows, but it definitely wasn’t shadows that was turning his skin green.

“Del, are you feeling okay?” she asked, walking toward him.

“I’m fine.” His curt response was definitely not like him. He was always straight and to the point, but this was downright cranky.

She opened her mouth, but Del decided to continue.

“What I want to know is why everyone thinks it’s okay to stand around and gab in the morning after showing up late is beyond me.”

Then, his face went white so fast, she was sure he would pass out right there and then.

“Del,” she said, rushing forward.

“I’m fine,” he said, holding out his hand to stop them all from coming to his aid. “Just feeling a little under the weather right now. I think it is something I ate. Be with you in a minute, Floyd.”

When they were alone, Marcus hummed. “Do you think he’s got bridal jitters?”

“Martin Delano is not someone who would have bridal jitters,” Graeme said.

Drew came walking from the direction of the bathrooms. He stopped. “What?”

“Did you see the boss?” Marcus asked.

“No. I just came up from the lab.”

“I say bridal jitters,” Marcus said. “Who is going to take care of the bet?”

“You were just complaining about people wagering on your sex life,” Elle said.

“Wait, Marcus has a sex life?” Graeme asked. “Who won that one?”

“I do not have a sex life.”

“I wouldn’t be so proud of that if I were you,” Graeme said.

“Shit. I do, but...never mind. Just leave Tamilya out of your bets.”

“Doc, you want in?” Drew asked, ignoring the byplay.

“I’ll sit this one out. I have a report to write up.”

She turned to leave, but Graeme stopped her by grabbing her hand. “We still on for lunch?”

She smiled. “Yes.”

“Good. See ya then.”

Still smiling, she walked toward the lift. She really couldn’t ever remember feeling this happy in a long while. As she waited for the lift, Del came out of the bathroom. He didn’t look any better. If anything, he looked worse.

“Del, are you sure you’re okay?”

He nodded. “It seems that Emma isn’t the only one with a sensitive stomach right now. But I can’t blame mine on pregnancy.”

“And you’re trying to keep it from her?”

He studied her for a second. “Yeah. She is freaking out about Mom getting here this afternoon. If I tell her I’m sick, she will assume it’s because of the wedding.”

“Then she will think you are having second thoughts? Is that what you are worried about?”

He nodded again.

“First, Del, you pretty much were set on having her as yours from the moment you two got together. I doubt very much she’s going to think that.”

“You don’t know how insane she has been the last few weeks. The hormones have made her lose her mind. And she’s making me lose my ever-loving mind.”

Elle smiled. “And, that is the reason you might be having sympathy morning sickness.”

His face went blank, then he frowned. “I’m not having morning sickness.”

“It’s been known to happen, which also makes me think you are going to be a good daddy—as if I had any doubt.”

That made him pause. “Why do you say that?”

“That I had no doubt?”

He nodded.

It amazed her that this man needed confirmation, but everyone needed to be reassured every now and then.

“You handle this ragtag family very well. We all come from such diverse backgrounds, and you roll with the punches. We all respect you, and that is not an easy thing to acquire.”

“I think you are blowing smoke up my ass, Doc.”

She shook her head. “How many of your bosses have you respected, or had the respect of the entire team? I bet not many. Those men and women who follow you into danger are the top of the field. But, you also make us all feel like we have support outside of work, and that is important. We
are
a family because of you. Each of us knows if we need to reach out, you’re there. You are going to be a smashing father.”

“Well...damn.”

Elle laughed, enjoying the way Del’s cheeks pinkened. “Studies have also shown that men who have sympathetic morning sickness are often more in tune with their wives and with their children.” She took his hand and gave it a squeeze.

“Truth?”

She nodded. “Keep some crackers in your desk, and cut back on anything greasy, and definitely cut back on caffeine. That will help a lot.”

He nodded. “Thanks, Doc.”

“Anytime, Del.” She turned toward the lift, but he stopped her.

“I understand that you went home with McGregor the other night.”

She glanced at him. “We did not go home together. I went too long without eating, got a little dizzy. He gave me a ride home.”

“Okay.”

The door dinged open.

“Anything else?”

He shook his head. “Thanks for your help.”

She stepped into the lift. “Like I said, anytime. Remember, we are a family, so make sure you let us support you every now and then.”

G
raeme had
a few people to hunt up for questioning, and since Floyd was in for the day, he decided to drag him along. It wasn’t that hard of an assignment, but since it could be boring, it was always better to have someone along. Plus, you never knew if things could go sideways. Always a good idea to have someone with you when you were hanging around drug addicts.

“So, you and the Doc, huh?” Floyd asked as they got out of the truck.

He waited until they were standing in front of the truck to answer. “Yeah. What about it?”

Floyd shrugged. “Just didn’t see that one coming. She didn’t like you much when you first arrived here.”

“There were reasons for that, which are none of your business.”

“Okay, gotcha. But I do find it interesting.”

“I’m sure you do, seeing that you volunteered to help with the terrorism task force. Want to tell me your reasons for that?”

Floyd frowned. “I have a background in terrorism.”

“True, but Cat was already tapped for it. They don’t need both of you.”

“Got it.”

One thing about Floyd, he didn’t pry much. He was kind of quiet a lot of the time, but that was probably because his brain was working something out. The former DC cop had the ability to look at a problem from different angles. It was one of the reasons Graeme had been happy that Floyd could come with him today. He had driven though, because the driver picked the music. Floyd had a love for Willie Nelson, and always wanted to play it at full blast. It was painful.

“So, you’re looking for someone who might know anything about this Sam Katsu?”

“I have a list of known associates. This is the first one, Fred Vicker.” He handed Floyd the printout of Vicker’s last mug shot.

“Sounds like a damned farmer.”

Graeme chuckled. “Well, Farmer Fred was tagged last time Katsu was arrested. They were both selling and smoking ICE, so there is a good chance he’s high right now. From what Adam said, he heard Fred hung out here in Chinatown.”

“A lot of them do.”

Graeme looked over the multitude of drug addicts hanging out in the park.

“This might take a while,” he murmured.

“I’ll head down to the other end. We can meet in the middle,” Floyd said.

Graeme nodded, as he continued to look over the group. It was hot out and even hotter in Chinatown. The close buildings cut off a lot of the air supply, so even when they had trade winds blowing, it could get oppressive.

As he walked along the street, he ignored the prostitutes hanging out in plain view. At the moment, that wasn’t his job. Truly, it wasn’t his job. They were tasked with only certain things, and when they stepped over the line, it always ended up with Del dealing with the mayor.

Floyd caught up with him. “Don’t see him, but there’s a good chance that he doesn’t look like this anymore.”

Graeme looked at the picture again. “If he looked any worse, he would be dead.”

Vicker was twenty-four in the picture, but he looked older. He was missing teeth, his face was pock marked, and there was a sallow cast to his skin.

He was ready to give up when he spotted the kid. He was sitting on a bench. Graeme tried to be quiet, but it was hard to hide who he was, especially in this area. The moment Vicker noticed the attention, he took off.

“Aw, damn, I hate when they run,” Floyd said.

Both of them took off after him, with Floyd turning down an alley to make sure the little bastard didn’t double back. Thank God, Vicker was shorter and so unhealthy from his habit that he couldn’t keep up the pace he had started. Graeme caught up to him after three blocks.

“Bloody hell, Vicker, I just wanted to talk to you.”

When he looked up, Graeme could see that Vicker’s eyes were definitely dilated. It was bad enough they had to rely on a drug addict and a thief, but if he was strung out, questioning him was probably going to be fruitless.

The alley they stood in smelled of rotten food, produce, and feces. With the humidity, the stink hung in the air around him. It took everything for Graeme to keep from losing his breakfast.

Floyd caught up to them then. He glanced around their surroundings and made a face.

“Nice morning jog.”

Graeme chuckled. “I just want to talk to you about Sam.”

“What about him?” Vicker asked. He looked like he’d lost a few more teeth and dropped a few pounds. His clothes were filthy, and he stunk of ICE and body odor.

“I want to know where he might have gotten that gun.”

Vicker shrugged and looked down the street. The mutinous expression on his face told Graeme that Vicker was trying his best to find an escape route.

“Listen, kid, I’m not too pissed about that little run, but if you make me do it again, I’ll shoot you,” Marcus said, deepening his voice. Graeme knew he was only joking, but it apparently drove home the point.

“No idea where he got it. Hadn’t talked to him in weeks.”

“I asked around,” Graeme said. “You two were tight. What happened?”

Again, the kid shrugged. “He said he found a family member who was going to help him. I didn’t know what the fuck he was talking about. Sam was always a little weird, you know?”

No, Graeme didn’t know, but he nodded.

“Then, he just went off. I didn’t know what the hell he was talking about half the time. He kept going on and on about how he was owed stuff. I gave up trying to talk to him. It’d been at least a month since we talked.”

“A family member? Here?” Floyd asked.

He nodded. “I never thought he had anyone. That’s what he always said. But lately, he’d been rambling on about some person who had left him a legacy.”