Lethal Connections, page 12
Lance felt like a major puzzle piece was about to click into place. Whether it came from Lexie or not was irrelevant. He would deal with those feelings later. “Which are?”
Lexie touched each corner as she explained. “Top corner, that’s a new customer or someone who has been referred to us. The top two corners are for return customers. Middle of the road customers are sometimes given a small line of credit.”
“Interesting. Anything else?” Captain Donovan looked to be visibly cataloging the information in his mind.
“Three corners indicate a desire for more than just a quick fix.” Lexie flicked the third corner.
More than a quick fix? What was she implying? The only way to find out was to ask the most direct question. “And what does that mean?”
Lexie’s eyes met his, and there was a fair amount of remorse inside them, as if she had more experience with the meaning than she wanted to admit. “Sexual encounters, Sergeant. Your happy ending situation. Depending on the orientation of the diamond, it could be looking for a male or female.”
Lance’s eyes hardened as he focused on Lexie, and his jaw clenched as her words hit home. She was pretty much incriminating herself right before his eyes. That meant while she was with him, she had likely already been with someone else. Undercover life often meant putting oneself in the same situations as the people they were emulating. As an officer himself, he knew he should not judge her for the actions she took while undercover, but that was easier said than done. His voice was hard as he asked the next question. “And what about four corners?”
Lexie looked away from him and addressed her words to the captain instead. “Four corners, that’s for our top shelf customers.”
“Top shelf? It’s not like you’re serving alcohol.” Captain Donovan shook his head and scowled slightly.
“Yes, but these drugs are laced with something extra that more than takes the edge off.”
“Like what?” Lance crossed his arms over his chest as he stood next to the door. He felt like he was staring her down, and it must have felt that way to her as well, for she put her hands on her hips and tilted her head in irritation before she answered.
“Venom. Sasha Volari’s got quite a collection of exotic creatures.”
“Snakes?” Lance could barely believe what he was hearing. All this time, he was worried about bringing her too close to danger when she, in fact, was closer to it than he had ever been. Had she been the reason Lance was targeted? Were they after Lexie? Or were they after him? Both were good questions, neither of which he would ask in front of the captain, for he didn’t want anyone else to know about their connection at the moment. Lance had always kept his private life private. He was not one to parade his women around on his arms. It had never been his style. He much preferred keeping that part of his life separate from his work.
“From what I understand. I haven’t been able to work my way into the inner circle yet.”
But what had she worked her way up to? Lance definitely had questions to follow up with later. Although at this point, he was too upset to talk to her. He had never pretended to be anything other than what he was with her. How much of her was fake? How much of their relationship was real? The irony was Lance had been looking for a way to leave her behind, and she had just handed him enough ammunition to do just that. Although he knew deep down he didn’t fault her for doing her job, that didn’t mean he had to be all right with her playing him this way.
“How can we get in to see her?” The wheels were already turning as Captain Donovan was thinking five steps ahead of everyone else.
“It will be tricky. She’s not very trustworthy,” cautioned Lexie.
Lance snorted. “You don’t say. It’s hard to know who to trust nowadays, isn’t it?”
Lexie clenched her teeth together, and her cheekbones became more prominent. Her eyes hardened as she met his accusing glare. “It can be.”
Lance shrugged and looked away from her. “I guess I’ll just have to do it the old-fashioned way, then.”
“How’s that, Sergeant?” Lexie’s voice fostered a little concern as if she were worried about what he would do.
“The front door.”
“I wouldn’t recommend that.”
“Don’t worry, Special Agent. I won’t give your cover away.” Lance emphasized her title, knowing she would catch the innuendo.
“Sergeant Knight is good at his job, Lexie. He’ll keep your identity safe,” the captain assured her.
Lexie gave a half-smile before turning to look at the door. “I have to go. I’ve already stayed too long. They’ll be suspicious.”
“No problem. If you have any more information, please pass it on.”
“I will, Captain Donovan. If you could wait a while before you leave?”
“We will, Special Agent,” the captain agreed.
“Captain.” Lexie nodded to the captain. Her eyes turned to Lance, lingering a little longer. Her eyes were filled with the first flickering of remorse. “Sergeant.”
Lance watched her unlock the door before she exited into the cold morning air. His mind was racing with the new information, only part of which was related to the facts of the case. He didn’t need to get distracted with personal drama right now. There was still a threat out there. Whether it was this Sasha Volaria or someone else was yet to be seen. The signs did seem to be pointing to her.
“What do you think, Captain?”
“I’m still trying to wrap my head around anyone getting off on anything that comes from snakes. Nasty creatures.”
“You never really know what someone is capable of.” Lance still felt like part of him had been sucker-punched by Lexie.
“Truer words, Sergeant. Truer words.”
Lance fought the urge to laugh. Nothing about this was funny, but sometimes that was the way he reacted to conflict. It was far easier to laugh it away and pretend it never happened than to deal with the situation. He glanced at the door one last time, wondering what he would say to Lexie the next time he saw her. That would be a problem for another day, though. For now, he would focus on his caseload, which would be far easier if he actually got some sleep tonight. That would be the first thing he would do after he made sure no snakes were slithering around his apartment.
Chapter 18
Lance spent the next day ignoring any call that Lexie sent his way. He didn’t want to talk to her right now. Besides, his time was spent gathering enough evidence to warrant a visit to Sasha Volari. Tracking her down was not as easy as one might think. The woman had a busy social calendar, which often took her away from the area. There was no way of knowing if her schedule aligned with the murders or if she had paid someone else to take care of things. Right now, he was trying to piece it all together before he even alerted her to their knowledge of her. Even though he was pissed as hell at Lexie, he still respected the line of duty enough not to blow her cover if it were possible to avoid it.
With the papers spread out on the coffee table in front of him, he was trying to connect the dots between the cases. The problem was that even though they had some things that were similar, there was nothing else in their personal lives to indicate a connection to each other. Maybe it was not that simple. Maybe there was something deeper under the surface that he had not yet uncovered. “Damn it. What am I missing?”
At that moment, the doorbell rang, punctuating the moment with its intrusion. Lance shoved the papers together and slid them back into his bag. He had a pretty good idea who was at his door, and every inch of him wanted to ignore the intrusion. When he didn’t answer fast enough, the bell rang again, followed by a few sharp knocks. If Lexie was worth her salt in the field, she knew he was home. He walked over to the door and looked through the peephole. When he saw Lexie on the other side, he tensed up.
“I can hear you there, Lance. Please let me in.” Her voice was sharp as if the fact that he had not jumped to answer the door was an inconvenience to her.
Lance disengaged the lock and opened the door slowly. “Come in, Lexie. If that’s really your name.”
Lexie looked outside behind her and then back at him. “Please, Lance. Not now. There are eyes and ears everywhere in this town.”
Less than likely, really, but he gestured for her to come inside. Instead of coming straight in, she wrapped her arms around his neck and planted a kiss against his lips. Lance stiffened until he heard her whisper, “Please play along.”
She wanted him to play along? Fine. He wrapped his arms around her bottom and squeezed it tight as his mouth moved over hers. He was angry, and his lips translated it far more efficiently than his words could right now. When he decided it was enough of a show, he stepped away from her and waited for Lexie to enter his apartment. When she was safely inside, he closed the door behind them and put the lock back into place. “What do you want, Lexie?”
“To explain.” Lexie put her hand on his arm, and he shrugged it away.
“Explain that you’ve been lying to me this whole time?”
“I was just doing my job.”
Her job? What part of it? Had she been using him for her cover? How many men was she sleeping with right now? What part of Sasha’s ring did she actually belong to? Was she on the drug side or the extras? These things were only important to know if he was planning on having her in his life past this point. As it stood, he had already been looking for a way to break off any entanglement with her. Mostly because he hated dealing with complications, and this relationship had become far more complicated than he wanted to admit. “Is that what this is to you?”
“No. Lance, please. It’s not like that.”
“Isn’t it?” Lance took a few more steps, putting distance from himself and her troubled eyes. Her face was filled with regret and tears that were seconds from staining her cheeks. The cynical part of him felt she was just putting on an act to wield attention away from her actions.
“No.” Lexie gestured between them. “This, us…it had nothing to do with my work. I was just—”
“Killing time in between hours? I mean, I get it. It’s no different than a military man finding solace in whatever port he finds himself in, I guess.”
“Don’t be crass, Lance. It wasn’t just about sex. No matter how much you try to make it that way. We have a connection.”
“Do we? All this time, you had information that could have helped me with this case, and you knew it. You knew our cases were connected. It may not have started out that way, but I think you were using me to get information about your own case.”
“That’s not true. You didn’t tell me about the cards or the venom. All I knew was the identity of the bodies.” She was quick to defend herself.
“Identities that could have linked them all to that drug ring all along.” If these men truly were linked to Sasha and her drug ring, the names would have been known to the investigation. They should have popped up much faster if she was good at her job. Maybe that meant they weren’t connected at all. Then again, the FBI often waited to share any of its intel with other agencies until there was no way to withhold it. That could mean they were closer than they thought.
“Just because I’ve been undercover here doesn’t mean I know all of Sasha’s pawns. I’m not even sure she is responsible.” Lexie crossed her arms over her chest and held her head up high. “You can’t fault me for following my directives.”
“Perhaps. Even if it’s not openly connected, it’s still a lead I have to pursue.” Lance felt himself cooling down just enough to change the tone of the conversation between them.
“I know.” Lexie uncrossed her arms, and her face softened. “Be careful, Lance. I’m pretty sure that snake was a message.”
“For me, or you?”
“I’m not sure. I think my cover is still secure. Please be careful, Lance. You don’t know what she’s capable of.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” He hated to ask it because it was something he felt she should already have explained to him. Then again, he had not actually given her a chance to explain yet. Every time she had hit him up on the cellphone today, he had let it go to voicemail or declined her call. Lance had not been inclined to hear her out, but now that she was standing in front of him, he wanted answers.
“I didn’t want to put you at risk. It’s hard to find a balance between what’s real and what’s not.”
Having never done undercover work before, Lance had no real experience with that reality. All he knew was the one life he had, not walking between two worlds. “And us?”
Lexie stood before him, barely an arm’s width away. Her eyes were pleading for him to believe her. “I have real feelings for you, Lance.”
Lexie tried to kiss him, but he didn’t return the kiss. Instead, he put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her slowly away. He was not ready to let down his walls with her right now. It would not be easy for him to trust her from here, either. “I need time, Lexie.”
“How much time?”
“As much as it takes.” Lance could not give her a definitive timeline on how long it would take for him to forgive her. It was not that simple. The thing was, regardless of how they felt for each other, there were murders to solve. Someone was trying to send a message. Whether it was for Lexie or him was unclear at this moment.
“I understand.” Lexie stepped back from him and started to head back to the door. She put her hand on the doorknob and turned to look at him. “Don’t take forever, Lance.”
Lance never answered her. Instead, he watched the door close behind her. He stared at the door and wondered how in the world he had gotten to this place. Had he become so engrossed in his work that he was wearing blinders everywhere else in his life? True, she was a trained agent, one who had probably been undercover on many different cases before now, considering how effective she was at upholding her secret identity. He would never have guessed that she was not some socialite’s assistant, from how she swung her hips to how she plied her makeup. Lexie was like a chameleon, and that fact was something that made him question himself more than her.
Should he feel like a fool? Would he be able to carry out a mission the way she had? Pretending to be someone he was not just to get closer to solving his case was not something he would ever want to do, but he had to admit right now, he felt like he would do anything to bring this perpetrator in. Had it been a death warrant that had been put on their heads? Had it simply been an overdose? If they were given top shelf drugs laced with venom, was it not possible that the actual cause of death was the drugs themselves? That didn’t mean there was no guilty party, though. This form of recreational drug was and should always be illegal. They caused more harm than good. He just hoped they could get these drugs off the street before more people had to die.
Is that what the FBI was trying to do? Or were they fixated on something else? Did the body count even matter to them, or was their target the most important? Was Sasha Volari their prime suspect, or were they focused on someone even further up the chain? None of this had been confirmed or denied by the FBI up to this point. Lance was pretty sure they would not give them any information about it even if they had it. All they had done so far was share how this connected to Sasha’s drugs, not how they could help each other bring the responsible parties down. One small clue into the inner workings of Sasha’s world was all that had been shared. It would be up to Lance to figure out the rest, and he sure as hell would not share what he found with Lexie or anyone else at the FBI, for that matter. They could do their own dirty work.
Chapter 19
It was just another day at the morgue. Never a dull moment as the corpses seemed to be piling up around them. Gina was elbow-deep into a corpse on the slab before her. “Would you hurry up, Mark? I could use a hand here.”
“Sure.” Mark was just pushing the drawer back into place when Lance entered the room. When Mark saw him, he greeted him. “Hello, Sergeant.”
Lance was almost shocked to see Mark doing something productive without Gina reminding him every five seconds, although he was fairly certain she would before long. “I haven’t seen you around for a while. I almost thought Gina let you go.”
Gina smirked at his comment. “He hasn’t outstayed his welcome, yet.”
Mark gave him a cheeky grin. “See...she likes me.”
Gina rolled her eyes at his comment. “Like a hangnail.”
Lance was actually glad to see her taking her mirth out on someone else for a change. He had spent the past few days being razzed for the snake situation. Lance figured he would never live that one down. “I was wondering if I could pick your brain upstairs?”
“Sure. Let me just have Mark wrap this one up for me.” Gina closed the flaps of skin and took a step away from the table. She removed her gloves and tossed them into the metal trash can next to her. Giving her assistant a skeptical glance, she nodded to the body. “Close him up, Mark.”
Mark stepped closer to the body with almost a skip in his step. He picked up the stapler, looking almost like a kid at a candy store before doubt crossed his face. “You sure?”
Gina waved her hand toward the body. “Have at it.”
Lance shook his head as he watched the young intern’s glee at the prospect of stapling the chest closed. He leaned closer to Gina. “Should you trust him with that? You know how many people are killed every year with a staple gun?”
Gina didn’t even attempt to hold back her amusement. “That’s nail guns, Sergeant.”
“Sure about that?” Lance challenged.
“Don’t worry. I can handle this.” Mark scowled at them both. He held the gun up, and his finger slipped, pulling the trigger so hard that one of the staples released from the tip. It shot across the room and skidded on the floor with a small plink sound.
