Epilogue
“Love is both the blade and the wound, and Azrael writes that such endings are only beginnings in disguise.”
Mateo swayed on his feet as he was led past a row of holding cells, into the bay of desks where NOPD’s finest gathered around to gawk at him.
At least they’d let him take this walk without handcuffs.
This would be his second walk of shame, the first having occurred late last night when he’d been arrested.
The manager of the Marriott Bonvoy had called the police after reports of his violent outburst. After scraping himself off the floor, Mateo had staggered over to the door and swung it open to find an officer with his gun drawn.
Resigned, he had raised his hands with a sigh before clasping them at the back of his head.
He'd been cuffed, patted down, and shoved into the back of a squad car. Only after arriving at the station, where he had revealed his identity as a federal agent, had they tended to his bruised and battered knuckles. He had used his one phone call to inform Smith of his whereabouts. The agent hadn’t reacted to Mateo’s announcement that he was being held at the Orleans Justice Center.
He had simply grunted, “Have you out by morning.”
Mateo had been thrown in isolation and left to rot overnight, after threats of charges like destruction of property and disorderly conduct.
Mateo didn’t have it in him to try to explain what had led to his meltdown, not that these officers would understand.
He wouldn’t explain himself to anyone but the people responsible for his fate—and he wouldn’t have to face them until he was bailed out.
He'd spent the night laid on a rough cot in the corner of his cell, staring blankly at the ceiling. Surprisingly, his mind had gone quiet, eased by the silence and solitude of his current location. There was nowhere for him to go, nothing for him to do but wait and breathe. He closed his eyes but didn’t sleep, sinking into darkness and fighting off images and voices.
By the time morning came and his cell clanged open to free him, Mateo had gone completely numb.
All of his rage, all of his helplessness, all of his grief, had been poured out on that hotel room floor.
He had purged it from him in a volcanic burst, and now he’d been left cold. Dead inside.
As he was led toward a row of interrogation rooms, Mateo steeled himself for the upcoming confrontation.
He was going to have to talk fast and use his powers of persuasion to keep hold of his position as the lead on this case.
He had acted with conduct unbecoming of a federal agent.
He’d trashed his hotel room like a rowdy frat boy and left a smudge on the bureau’s name.
He wasn’t stupid enough to think he wouldn’t have to answer for it, but hoped he would be allowed to stay in New Orleans.
Because solving this case, finding this UNSUB, was the one thing driving him. The one thing that should have held his attention this entire time. He couldn’t stop now.
Mateo was pushed into one of the rooms and then the door slammed behind him, leaving him with the last person he had expected, but the one person he ought to have known would come.
She had to have taken an early flight, but was immaculately put together in a black power suit and crisp white blouse, her manicured hands folded in front of her.
The dark circles under her sharp blue eyes were the only hint that she was anything other than composed.
Mateo supposed he was mostly responsible for any recent sleepless nights.
“Ma’am,” he muttered, falling into the chair across from her. “I didn’t expect you to make the trip all the way down here.
Carlisle stared at him over the frames of her glasses for a moment before responding. “I came all the way down here so that you could look me in the eye while you try to convince me not to snatch you off this case, send you back to D.C., and chain you to a desk for the next six months.”
Mateo sighed and closed his eyes, suddenly exhausted beyond words. He couldn’t find the passion within himself to argue with or cajole her. He simply rattled off the facts.
“I’ve been the lead agent on this case from the beginning.
No one is more intimate with the details and evidence than I am.
I am the most experienced supervisory special agent in the CID in organized crime, trafficking, and tactical surveillance.
I developed the profile on the UNSUB, know his methods and his M.O. ”
“You’re a lightning rod,” Carlisle argued. “The UNSUB’s obsession with you has put the entire team in jeopardy.”
“They were in danger the moment he used those credentials to access federal personnel files. He didn’t just snoop into my background.
Smith, Williams, Jones … even Hart and Donovan.
He reverse profiled every single one of us.
And his obsession with me is what’s going to help me close this case.
He might not have killed again, but he’s devolving like you said—showing his hand, saying too much.
That call revealed more than he wanted it to. ”
Carlisle sighed, slipping her thumb and forefinger beneath her glasses to rub at her tired eyes.
“I was on the phone all night trying to smooth things over with the local PD. Fortunately, we have a good relationship with the local departments, and they agreed not to publicly report your arrest and to downgrade you to a criminal citation for disturbing the peace. Of course, I don’t think I need to tell you that I can’t do anything to keep this from going on your record. ”
Mateo stared dispassionately at the wall behind Carlisle.
A year ago, a stain on his flawless record would have destroyed him.
It would have disrupted his perception of himself as an agent beyond reproach, one whose dedication had earned him every accolade and promotion he had received.
Now, he felt nothing, just as he had all morning.
“Internal Affairs?” he prodded.
“I plan to use that record of yours to convince them that this was a one-time thing—a temporary psychological break due to trauma exposure. The UNSUB’s phone call had to have been …
difficult. After what he did to your family, they will understand your reaction.
They’ll likely want the word of a shrink that you’re still fit for duty, but I trust you can handle yourself on that front. ”
Mateo waved that off with a dismissive hand.
A true, in-depth assessment of his mental state would probably see him stripped of his gun and shield.
But Mateo was well-versed in the ways of tricking the head-shrinkers into seeing what he wanted them to see.
He would breeze through their questions as easily as he had after Mari’s loss.
But then, he would move forward with a surer footing.
He knew now what needed to be done—what would be required of him.
He was more focused now than ever, and would eat, sleep, and breathe this case until the job was done.
Until the UNSUB was turned to nothing but pink mist and body parts.
Until Angelica was safe in his arms again.
“I understand,” he relented. “I know I don’t deserve for you to keep going to bat for me after everything I’ve put you through. But you know that everything I’ve ever done, everything that I am … revolves around this UNSUB and this case. I won’t fail you.”
“Don’t thank me just yet,” Carlisle said drily.
“There’s more, and you aren’t going to like it, but it’s the only way I keep you from losing your position as the lead on this case.
Until Internal Affairs has cleared you to resume your post, you will take on the role of an observer and a consultant on this case.
I’m placing Smith in the lead until it has been determined that you are ready to resume your role.
You will lend the team your expertise, but they will take their orders from Smith until I say otherwise.
The team is ready to proceed with your previous orders, and Donovan informs me that some good intel was recorded on the Solstice wiretap last night.
You’ll have your hands full, even on the sideline. ”
Even this did not affect Mateo as it might have a month or even a week ago.
He simply blinked his unfocused eyes and nodded.
Smith was a good choice. He was experienced, and had a good enough record that this decision would mollify the brass.
As long as he could be here, close, his hand guiding the wheel in any way, Mateo would be content. He would have what he needed.
“Yes, ma’am. Thank you, ma’am.”
Carlisle uncrossed her legs and leaned toward him over the table. “Now, there’s one more thing we need to discuss. Another oversight that might have proved a disaster if we hadn’t gotten a handle on it. In a way, your arrest is responsible for us finding out.”
Carlisle raised an eyebrow and pushed a case file across the table toward him. “We aren’t the only ones investigating Roman Korenic.”
Melody pulled her jacket tighter around her body and folded her arms across her chest as she set out for home.
After the night she’d had, she wanted nothing more than to climb into bed and not come out for the rest of her life.
Taking a deep breath, she filled her lungs with the cool, early morning air and quickened her steps.
She needed to get as much sleep as she could in case Roman called her to him.
He didn’t like to be kept waiting, and she needed her wits about her if she was going to endure being in his company again.
The dark shadow emerging from a nearby alley caused her heart to sink into her stomach. Moonlight illuminated his face just before he reached out, taking her arm in a bruising grip before yanking her into the dark slit between two apartment buildings.
She went without fighting, agitation prickling along her spine at his boldness. She had warned him several times not to approach her in the open.
“Detective Riley,” she grumbled, pulling her arm from his grasp. “What the hell are you doing here?”
“Nice to see you too, Ms. Frank.”
An orange light flared between them—the flame on the end of his cigarette—illuminating his dark hair and cold, blue eyes. The acrid stench of the smoke wafted up her nostrils as he inhaled and killed the flame.
“We have scheduled meeting times and locations for a reason.”
Riley shrugged. “I have it on good authority that Korenic is already at his penthouse, probably in a cocaine coma.”
Melody winced. Roman had taken several hits of cocaine throughout the night and drank a bottle and a half of vodka by himself.
He seemed to be on a bender, which put her on a slippery slope.
He was easy to manage when just coming down off a high, but difficult to handle when in the midst of a bender.
“The feds are on Korenic’s trail,” Riley stated between puffs of his cigarette. “You happen to know anything about that?”
She pursed her lips, determined to remain unruffled. She hadn’t spoken to Riley in weeks, had even failed to notice his presence if he’d been lurking anywhere nearby. A certain FBI agent had stolen her focus. Now, she was reminded why it was so important that Mateo stay away from her.
“Why would I?”
“That innocent act might work on your johns, but it doesn’t affect me. Don’t play stupid … I’ve seen you at the club talking to that Hispanic guy. He’s not very subtle … might as well tattoo ‘FBI’ across his forehead. What’s his name?”
Despite the pulse beating rapidly at the base of her jaw, she kept her cool. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Dozens of Hispanic guys come to the club every night.”
“Do you flirt with all of them, or do you make exceptions for feds?” he taunted.
“Look, I’m tired, and I’ve had a long day. If you need something, say so. Otherwise, leave me the hell alone.”
“Careful,” Riley murmured, edging closer while the end of his cigarette glowed in the darkness. “I pulled you out of that jail cell in Texas, sealed your record, and gave you a new identity. But just as fast, I can put you back there.”
Swallowing past the lump in her throat, Melody fought down panic at the thought of going back to jail. After all she’d been through, going back there wasn’t an option.
Sighing, she folded her arms over her chest. “He’s no one … just some tourist who comes to the club to flirt with me. He tips well when I’m nice, so I let him think I want him. I’m good at it.”
“Yes,” Riley grunted. “I’d imagine you are.”
Her jaw clenched at the dig, but she remained silent. Riley knew he held power over her, and loved to remind her of her past. He knew that she would never fight back … not when he literally held her life in his hands.
“I’m telling you, the guy is a fed. He shows up in town, and all of a sudden, the entire New Orleans branch of the circuit is wiped out? That’s no coincidence.”
“Look, if he’s a fed, I wasn’t aware. I barely know the guy, and even if I did, I wouldn’t tell him anything.”
“Good. See that you keep it that way. You report only to me. I didn’t work as long and as hard as I did to take down Korenic just to have the feds come in and snatch him out from under me.”
“What difference does it make who gets the job done?” she asked with a huff of annoyance. “You’re a detective, you should want justice no matter what.”
Riley flicked his cigarette to the ground and put it out with his foot. “Because this is personal. Don’t worry about the why—you just get me those dates and times. You play along for a while more, and you never have to see me again.”
Without waiting for her to respond, he slinked out of the alley and disappeared around the corner, leaving her alone.
* * *
Melody & Mateo’s story will conclude in Love Me Truly.
Releasing January 2026!