Chapter Nineteen
Hotel
Sunday
Three A.M
When the call came in, Gene had been out cold in bed. The pain pills had knocked his ass out, and he’d stayed like that for a good five hours. That worked in his advantage because any less time than that, and he would have been high as a kite.
Hell.
He was still a little high.
When he heard his phone, it had sounded so far away, as did the voice answering it. Opening his eyes, he saw the alarm clock on the nightstand, and his man missing from bed.
That alarmed him more than anything.
Only, after waking up for a few seconds, he found Ethan at the little table not far away, laptops open, and working as Gene slept. He was currently on the phone, Gene’s phone, taking a call.
It took all he had to pull himself together.
Oh, the meds clouded his brain, and he was confused.
Then, he recalled the evening, and how he must have passed out after they’d shared cake.
Shit.
That probably was a mistake. It was clear that the man he loved had been up all night, carrying the weight of their team while he’d been passed the fuck out.
Damn.
It.
When Ethan hung up, Gene knew. It was the look on his partner’s face.
They were going to have another body.
He’d bet money on it.
“That was the detective,” he said, still using his phone to text the location to the FBI ME and forensics team that had arrived yesterday. “Dispatch called. The park has a little gift for us, and they think it’s ours because it’s a woman, and she’s skinned.”
Well, shit.
That was most definitely ours.
“We have to get there,” Ethan said, heading toward the coffee pot and hitting the button to brew a quick pot for them. Well, mostly for Gene. He was going to be drugged up still, and it was a good thing Ethan had only had one glass of wine.
“Okay,” Gene said, trying to focus. He was shaking his head and struggling. “How long was I asleep, EJ?” he asked. “And did you get to rest?”
Ethan looked at his watch.
“We were talking, and I lost you right around the cuddling after we had cake. I took a two-hour nap and then decided to do some work so we’d be ready for today,” he stated.
Gene immediately began apologizing, and the whole time, Ethan was staring at him like he’d lost his mind.
“I couldn’t stay awake…”
Ethan stopped him.
“Gene, you had surgery less than a week ago. It’s okay. I knew you were going to pass out. I’m not upset.”
Gene hesitated.
“Babe, really,” Ethan said. “I took a cat nap next to the bear rug, and then, I woke up thinking about the case. I’ve been profiling and dealing with the stuff we needed to handle. There was no way I was leaving all the research to the detective. I like to make sure we don’t miss anything.”
Gene couldn’t recall shit. He was barely able to string thoughts together.
“What did you do without me?” he asked.
Ethan told him.
“Doctor Fuentes arrived from Salt Lake City and commandeered the morgue. Greyson came through for us. He’s here and redoing the bodies. He sent a tech over, and I went down and gave them all the DNA evidence that we found.”
Gene was listening.
His partner had carried them, and he knew it. For that, he was damn grateful.
Ethan laughed.
“Well, he was redoing autopsies until this call came in. I sent him the location that Dannie gave me,” he admitted.
Gene listened as Ethan poured some black coffee into a paper cup and handed it to his man.
Then, he handed him something Gene was going to truly appreciate.
“I was able to commandeer a gun for you to use, so you’re not stuck with my backup piece.”
He pointed to the Glock on the table beside Ethan’s gun and badge.
“Oh, hot damn,” Gene said. “I’m armed and high as a kite. How could that go wrong?”
Truthfully, Ethan didn’t want to think about it. So, he continued on.
“I then was thinking about Megan, and what the bartender said. I ran any police records, but nothing popped with her name in it. So, I’m not sure if she had an incident and called the cops, or not.
I just can’t shake what Mitch said, or Jimmy said.
She was skittish, and women aren’t like that unless given a reason. ”
Gene blinked.
“You think she was assaulted before?”
He shrugged.
“It came to mind. I’m just covering our bases at this point,” he admitted.
Gene was sipping his coffee as he listened to Ethan walk him through what he’d managed to handle.
“There wasn’t a single thing out there with her name tied to it where she might be afraid of men. So, I might be wrong with what I picked up. It happens.”
Gene was waking up, and the coffee was helping.
He was naked, but appreciative.
Patting his knee, Ethan headed his way and sat down to connect them. If you couldn’t get your husband to sit in your lap, what was the point of life?
Blackhawk kissed him on the temple but continued.
“Then, you got a few text messages from the detective. He ran Randal Crest, and he doesn’t own any other properties in the area where he could be taking any victims to kill them. He’s not feeling like a good match on this one.”
Gene let him talk.
“So that’s off the table. This killer would need a place where he or she could go to do the deed. They appear to be hunting in the middle of the day, since that’s when they seem to be stalked. This person either works at night or is done early in the day.”
Gene took it all in.
Someone had gotten a lot covered in the few hours he’d been handling it alone.
Gene was impressed.
Blackhawk continued.
“I still don’t have a gender tied to this, but after Doctor Fuentes gives us more, I’ll have something.
If there’s sexual assault, we have our answer.
If there’s not, this could be a woman who is being controlled by a male personality.
The violence screams man, but the dumping of the collection tells me that the other personality, one of the main ones, might be trying to get back in control, and is losing the evidence to stay safe. ”
Gene went there.
“So, the main personality doesn’t agree with this?”
He nodded.
“Pretty much. Collectors get angry when you take their ‘things’, and while you were shot at, I’m thinking it was more an opportunity that the person took—maybe to slow us down. We found those bodies fast, and now, we have another.”
Gene let his partner carry them until he could get back to being focused.
“The detective also texted about the real estate agent. He was clean. There was nothing in his past that shared he might be killing these women. Dannie said that he’s in a relationship and getting married in four months. There’s nothing on his social media sites to scream killer.”
And Blackhawk wasn’t done.
“Now, don’t get angry.”
Gene lifted a brow.
“My new husband is in my lap, and my arm doesn’t hurt. So, the chances of me losing my shit are pretty low, unless you tell me you left the hotel without me.”
Ethan laughed.
“No, I met the tech at the door with the evidence, but the detective asked around and found out the leak.”
Gene stared at him.
Oh, and Ethan knew.
He was not going to be happy.
“Who?” he asked.
Blackhawk could feel his body go tense beneath him as he sat on his lap.
“The homicide captain. Jerry did us dirty.”
Gene began cursing.
“That motherfucker nearly got me killed by leaking to the media. When I see him, I’m kicking his teeth in.”
Ethan hugged him.
Yeah, that was pretty much how he assumed this would go. So, he calmed him down.
“You can’t assault a cop. We’re already up Gabe’s creek without a paddle. Don’t give him a reason to separate us.”
That hung there.
He sighed.
“You’re right,” he admitted. “I won’t knock his teeth out, but I will give him a dirty look if I see him.”
Well, no shock there.
“Dannie said the dude likes to yap. He likely didn’t do it maliciously. You know how people are when they are trying to save their jobs or are ambitious.”
Well, yeah, he did. That was the other reason he was letting it go.
Now, though, Gene was curious.
“How did they find the body this time?” he asked. “Do we know?”
He nodded.
“A guy’s dog ran away, and he was out looking for him. Since his dog liked going to the park, he thought to look there, and that’s where he found a bump in the snow.”
Well, lucky them.
“When we get there,” Ethan began, “be careful. This killer is going to want to see how we react. I’m thinking we missed an opportunity to go to the memorial.”
Gene knew why he was saying that.
“You think he’s going back to the scene of the crime to watch us?”
He nodded.
“I know I would. I’d be curious as to what was going down that the media couldn’t show me. For the last half a day, we dodged them, and that means no update for the killer.”
That was alarming.
“Make sure you’re in Kevlar,” Gene said. “I just got me a husband, and I’m not losing him.”
Ethan smiled.
It was the most genuine smile Gene had ever seen from him. There was a lightness in it, and it made his heart happy. Ethan was at peace.
“You too, big guy. You got shot at once, so I’m sticking close, just in case.”
Well, he didn’t mind that.
While Gene wished he could sit there with Ethan in his lap a few more hours, they needed to get moving. When Ethan got up, he knew the update was over.
Now, he needed to get dressed.
Getting up, he was a little wobbly, and Ethan hoped that didn’t bite them in the ass.
“Maybe you should stay here,” he began, but didn’t get to finish.
Gene laughed.
And laughed.
And laughed.
“If you think for one minute that I’m staying here while you’re out there? Well, you’ve lost that gorgeous head of yours, EJ. I’m high, I’m not dead.”
Blackhawk was amused.
Well, that was the most Gene thing that he could say.
“I figured as much,” he said. “We just can’t have you walking like you’re drunk. That won’t play well in the media. This is going to be all over the news.”
Oh, Gene was aware.
“You just get us there. I’ll be ready,” Gene said, heading for the bathroom to jump in an ice-cold shower to shock the shit out of his body and wake himself up.
If that didn’t work…