Chapter 10
Maverick
Eclectic.
That was the only correct word anyone could use to classify Chase’s house.
You couldn’t identify his taste if you wanted to.
Light and dark wood. Leather and upholstered furniture.
Beachy while being intricately Spanish. And when I meant beachy, I meant bitchin’ beachy with two scarred, faded surfboards used for decorative art in the living room and that his bedroom had the most stunning canvas paintings of marine life.
While his kitchen was modern with gleaming black graphite appliances and a mottled ebony and emerald herringbone granite counter, his bathrooms were renovated nineteen-fifties or earlier.
One aspect was constant. He had the finest electronics in the world.
Whether for entertainment or security purposes, it was only the best for the often rogue DEA agent.
Somehow, I felt more comfortable in his house than I did half the time in my own.
And why? Because there was no pretention about it.
“You brought booze,” Chase said as soon as he answered the door.
“And the good stuff. You must feel really bad about missing not just one but three mental health sessions that the five of us decided we needed at all costs. Snow, sleet, rain, and even fog wasn’t supposed to keep us from getting together. ”
“I think you’re talking about the post office and yeah, I know how you all are.
A peace offering was needed.” I handed him the bottle of Macallan, cringing as soon as I did.
Chase was the kind of man who could chug an entire beer in five seconds.
Forget about cognac or a fine wine. He drank both like they were shots of cheap tequila.
Talk about a little rough around the edges.
But at least he and I were able to see eye to eye on several subjects.
“At least you didn’t bag out like usual.” He grinned in a way that had me snorting.
“Very funny.” This was one time I hadn’t thought about doing so. After I’d been unable to trace the phone call to anywhere but where it had been purchased at a convenience store in Everglades City, coming here and talking with my buddies was my best option.
Unless I wanted to contact my old human partner and I wasn’t ready for that yet. Not because I didn’t trust her, but because the last thing anyone should do was to give a single minute of exposure to a copycat. Or any serial killer for that matter.
It was entirely possible the asshole I’d talked to had gleaned everything from past news stories and my goddamn book since he was obviously such a fan. That didn’t mean he wasn’t dangerous.
“This will go a long way. Come on.” He didn’t need to lead me to his game room, but did anyway. I should have known why. “Look what our friend brought us.” He held out the bottle.
“Feeling guilty, I see,” Hudson threw out. The good Judge Armstrong was just finishing tossing pretzels into a bowl. His shit-eating grin meant he had something on his mind.
As soon as Kendrick threw me a similar look, I backed away.
“Don’t let him get away.” Kendrick Stark was one hell of an attorney and quite the actor given the undercover operation he’d been involved in.
He’d been theatrical in the arrests and convictions of three dozen men involved in sex trafficking.
In turn, he’d met the love of his life at the same time.
He grabbed the bottle of scotch, heading to the bar.
The guy could afford his own and he wanted to drink my peace offering. Oh, what the hell. I chuckled softly to myself. There’d been no good reason I hadn’t attended the last few poker games. None.
“What?” I threw out as Gabriel moved behind me, acting as the bouncer who instead of tossing me out would keep me locked inside the house. Like hell that was going to happen.
Gabriel Rawlins was also a judge, a man with his own taboo secrets and strong connections to the dark web and other underground organizations. Which had come in very handy with Raven Intel.
“Do you have it?” he asked, but the question wasn’t directed in my attention but to Chase instead.
When he held up the photograph of Alexia, I all but jumped on him to snatch the picture from his hand. Of course Chase ripped it over his head, dangling it as if some goddamn prize.
Well, maybe she was, but not to any of them. Hell, two of them were happily in love, one already married, for God’s sake. The other two could go fuck themselves.
“Alexia Martino, an attorney with Landers and Jacobson.” Chase was happy with himself, acting as if he had the tell-all secret of the day in his hand.
“So why the hell is she looking into the Wells case? She was a kid when the bastard was kidnapping young girls.” With Hudson’s words, it was apparent Chase hadn’t spilled the beans just yet.
Or maybe he was keeping him and Gabriel in the dark. By the way Kendrick was studying me, I could tell he already knew or had taken the time to discover why the case had become important.
He was the one who snatched it from Chase’s hand, studying it for a full ten seconds before handing it off to Gabriel.
Slowly, Kendrick headed in my direction, answering Hudson for me.
“Take a better look at Maverick’s latest flame.
To answer your question, Hudson, it’s because she’s the only living victim of the heinous crime.
” Now he was standing right in front of me, holding out a glass of my favorite scotch.
I guess he figured I’d need something of substance to deal with the lot of them.
“What?” Hudson said, taking another long look at the photograph. “That’s the girl you saved? She came to you?”
“Yep. At a book signing. She’s concerned the wrong person was arrested.” I glanced from one to the other again. I could tell by the looks on their faces they knew how serious the situation was.
“You mean the one that you arrested,” Kendrick clarified.
“The very one.” Exhaling, I glanced out at the backyard. “I guess there’s a remote chance if the evidence was tampered with. But I doubt it. The case was rock hard solid.”
“Is she looking for a stay of execution?” Gabriel tossed out.
“Only if the bastard is innocent.” I swirled the liquor before heading to the poker table. “And I’m beginning to wonder if there isn’t a slim chance.”
Chase slowly turned his head. “What happened since we talked?”
“A phone call from a dear old friend, or so he told me. An avid fan as well. He even mentioned we were a lot alike, although more so now that I wasn’t working for a mere sixty-three k a year. Laid claim to being the Python Killer.”
Hudson whistled. “Well, that’s interesting.”
I laughed. “I’ll say.”
“So what’s the game?” Kendrick asked. “Are you thinking a copycat?”
“I just don’t know.”
And I didn’t.
“Maybe a game of chess at this point. Initially, our boy was curious if Samuel Wells had a brother, which could account for the difference in the DNA match.” Chase walked over, staring me in the eyes.
“And no, I haven’t found out anything just yet.
The first two searches turned up the same as what you undoubtedly ran all those years ago.
No family whatsoever since his parents died.
The guy was nothing special. Went to college in New York.
Worked as a computer analyst for a firm in New York before suddenly going off the grid.
No job. He purchased a house in Miami six months before the first kidnapping.
Given the phone call, I’ll keep checking. I take it his voice sounded the same.”
“You bet.” I was still somewhat surprised.
“That would be a fucking incredible story if a twin brother committed the crime.” Kendrick shook his head as he laughed. “Other than convincing an innocent man to take the rap.”
“Maybe not convince, but he could have blackmailed Samuel into doing so. As far as with the DNA, check overseas for a birth,” Hudson suggested.
“It’s entirely possible his parents faked a birth in the United States.
If Samuel Wells was born somewhere else along with any family member, they’d have a record of it that’s not necessarily kept in the international data banks. ”
Chase nodded. “Good idea. What do you make of the phone call?”
We were all doing nothing more than tossing out spitballs, which was one reason I adored being with the group.
“Well, since Alexia had one as well, I’m worried she’ll be hunted again. She was the winner of the first game.” My need to protect her was even stronger than before. “She’s the sole survivor. The bastard read my books.”
“When did she get a call, after she met with you?” Kendrick asked.
“Before, which prompted her to come to the book signing.”
Hudson shook his head. “I don’t like this at all.”
“I know, but I also don’t want to jump to conclusions just yet. There are enough crazies out there who simply want attention.” Which was true and something I’d thought about all day. Even if my instinct continued to scream danger was waiting in the shadows.
The five of us looked at each other before Chase cleared his throat.
“Let me go make a call before we start the game. And I’m playing to win tonight.”
The others chuckled while I mulled over what Alexia and I had discussed.
What if she was being followed? Maybe the thing to do would be to have someone keep a tail on her just to be certain of what we were dealing with.
The decision was made. I’d contact a PI buddy of mine.
Maybe I owed him more favors than he did with me, but I had made him famous in my last book.
Keeping tabs on her couldn’t hurt. I’d also start a new file on Mr. Wells as well as the entire case.
Maybe I’d take a trip to the penitentiary and have a long discussion with Samuel himself.
Maybe he couldn’t be rattled, but after all this time, it was possible his guard would fall just enough I’d garner a few answers. At this point, he’d likely have nothing to lose and disclose what I wanted to hear.