Smolder (15 page)

Chapter Fourteen

In the morning, I planned to march straight to Owen's office and tell him what we found out. It bothered me that one of his guards worked for the security company. It also didn't make much sense to me at that point, but I wanted to put the pieces together. His office had gained a plant and picture since I was there last.

“Nice additions," I said.

“You aren't the only one who mentioned being uncomfortable here," he replied. “What can I do for you today?”

His eyes sparkled, and it was clear he made an effort. The smile on his face more gritted teeth than easy grin.

“One of your guards here moonlights for the security company that installed my system. Did Officer West call you?"

“She left a message, but I haven't gotten back to her. It's not usual for someone to moonlight with a second job, Ellie.”

“I know, Owen. But this is important. The person who wrote on the glass didn't show up on any of the videos. Officer West investigated and found the camera on that side of my house had been running a looped recording.”

While I spoke, he became noticeably angry.

“Do you know which guard it was?”

I heard his teeth grind.

“No, she didn't tell Josh when he called last night. I hoped you would know,” I said.

“I will know in a few minutes,” he said. He played the message, and as he listened, he tensed up. “I’ll take care of it.”

I went to my office a little shaken. Lee asked me what was wrong. I explained to her the security company link to Owen’s staff. I found myself angered by his not telling me who the individual was as I spoke.

“That’s horrible. How could he find out who it was and not tell you? I’m not sure about him, Dr. Quinn. Hang on to your surgeon and back away from this guy. Something seems a bit off about him."

“I've had that feeling from the beginning, but he keeps trying to make it up to me. I can tell he is making an effort, and he was pissed off that he didn't know. Whatever it was, he just found out.”

“Do you want me to ask around?” she asked.

“Not this time. I've got a sick feeling in my stomach.” I headed to the kitchenette.

“Is your gut usually right?”

“Unfortunately, yes.” I waited for whatever was going to hit me.

My stomach functioned as a warning signal whenever my mind couldn’t put the pieces together. It couldn’t be a coincidence that the same person worked both for Owen and the security company, but I couldn’t figure out the angle.

Owen was correct, a lot of people had to work two jobs and if you worked as a guard you would be familiar with the surveillance equipment needed to monitor a house. How that would tie into the system playing a loop for the side of my house, I didn’t know, and that was why my stomach knotted up.

I sent a text message to Josh to give him a heads-up. He replied and told me he had the house closed up and was headed to the gym. At least, no one was at the house this time. Damn, I might have to move in with Dmitri after all. That scared and excited me. We were just getting to know each other and I certainly didn’t want to move that fast, but if we were in serious danger at my place, I would take the chance it might ruin the relationship to survive.

Shouting down the hall got Lee’s and my attention. We walked to the noise, just outside of Dmitri’s office. Owen argued with one of his guards, although each tried to keep their voices down, the sound traveled, and a crowd gathered. We heard the guard telling Owen he didn't know who the guy was when he hired him. That he came in with recommendations and passed the background checks, three other guards came from the same place and he never had a problem with them.

I started to walk away when Owen shouted, “You hired The Carver’s nephew! You didn't think that was important?”

The skin on the back of my neck slithered with fear and disgust. He’d been in my house.

All discussions stopped, and a few people slunk away. Others glanced around to see who else was there, and when they saw me, they stared. I couldn't blame them.

The knot in my stomach felt like a boulder. Lee put her arm around my waist. I was vaguely aware of swaying a little. The pieces all fell together, and it made an ominous sound in my head. Like the loudest clap of thunder I’d ever heard.

Next to me, Lee said, “This is bad.”

Yes, it was. Owen breathed heavily and kept clenching his hands. It looked like he struggled to keep from pummeling the man.

The guard stood his ground and didn't flinch. He waited for Owen to calm before saying, “If I had known that, I would not have hired him.” His voice was calm and firm.

“Why isn’t he in charge, Mata?” I heard from one of the people gathered. “He doesn't lose his shit every time someone sneezes.”

Owen turned to the woman speaking.

She was a nurse, appeared to be in her forties and not flustered at all. “Sir, this is a hospital. Life, death, and crazy... all due respect… Happens here every day.”

“I like her,” I said to Lee.

“So do I. Owen could yell at her, and she would just stick a thermometer in his mouth and walk away.”

That visual made me laugh. I covered my mouth with my hand to hide it.

“Right now, I'd use an ass thermometer,” she said and left.

Dmitri now stood in the doorway of his office suite. “You hired who?”

“The Carver’s nephew got onto my staff and joined the security company using a fake name,” he said. “We didn’t catch it because he had a full identity set up.”

I felt ill. “He knows where I live and has been in my house.”

“And he knows where your office is," Lee said.

“He's not a threat to you right now, Ellie," Owen said. “Officer West said they found another Carver victim this morning. If he is copying his uncle’s crimes, it will be a few days before he kills again.”

“Ellie's life hangs on that
if
, Mata.” Dmitri came to my side. “I’m not willing to leave her life up to an if.”

“Neither am I,” Owen replied. “I never said I was going to take it for granted and let her hope I’m right. Where the hell do you get that idea?”

The guard put his hand on Owen to try and calm him down, and he reacted fast enough to duck under the punch.

“Whoa, Boss,” the guard said. “You cannot take this personally. The police are handling this case, not you."

I didn't feel comforted that the same police force who hadn’t caught the original serial killer would keep me safe from the serial-killer-in-training nephew.

Lee leaned over to me. “You can come stay with us. We have extra room, and we’d throw a party for you.”

“As much as I would love to stay with you, Lee, I would never forgive myself if this guy hurt you, Nick, or your daughter. Let Josh and I figure how we want to handle this. We’ll talk to the police and see what they have to say.”

“You think I can’t protect you?" Owen asked.

“You haven't so far.” Dmitri stepped between us and motioned behind his back for Lee and I to go into his office suite.

“Are you threatening me?” Owen asked.

“No, I’m not threatening you, no one is. You need to calm down.”

At that, Owen lunged for Dmitri. The surgeon stepped aside with little effort, and Owen tripped as he tried to stop his own momentum.

“I’ve had some experience with fighting, Mata. I would suggest you calm down before someone gets hurt.” Dmitri said it calmly, but I could hear the angry tone in his voice.

“I’m calm,” he said as he tried to punch Dmitri.

Again, the surgeon stepped out of the way.

“Seriously, Mata. I’ve trained to fight. It’s a necessary skill growing up in Russia. Either you learn to fight or you end up in the river where your family finds you floating days later.”

I recognized his technique from karate class. The idea was to let an angry opponent tire himself out before you engaged him. I caught his gaze, and he smiled at me as Owen gave up on punching, grabbed him around the waist and threw him to the ground.

Dmitri winced when he hit the ground, but managed to kick Owen’s legs and knock him over. They started to wrestle, and I couldn't tell who was winning, if anyone.

“What the hell are you doing?” I asked. “This is nuts.”

That was the wrong choice of words, and I knew it the moment I said them. Owen turned to me and something in his gaze let me know I’d crossed a line.

“This is over,” he said and walked away.

Dmitri sat on the ground with his arms resting on his knees. The dress shirt he’d worn to work had been ripped open. As he stood up, I noticed something I'd missed before. He had a slim, cut physique with abs to rival Owen’s. I wiped my mouth absently, not sure if I drooled as my eyes wandered slowly over his body. An urge to run my hands over every muscle ran through me, and my heart started to race.

“You need to go hug that body. And check every inch for damage," Lee said.

“I agree,” I said, breathing faster.

“I can hear you two,” he said. “And thank you.”

“No. Thank you.” There was a huge smile on my face.

He pushed Lee and me into his office and closed the door.

“I know I don't have any right to say this to you, but I want to make a request as someone who cares for you,” he said.

“Stay away from Mata,” we finished for him in unison.

He laughed, kissed Lee on the top of her head, and pulled me into an embrace.

“This is really getting to him. There is something about this Carver thing that has tipped him over," I said.

“You don't have to make excuses for him,” he said.

I shook my head. “I’m not. My job is to explain intent and reasoning behind thoughts and behaviors that fall outside of the acceptable norm for the situation.”

“I love when you talk work,” he said.

“I need to call Josh and let him know what is going on. He may decide to head back to Atlanta now. Either way, I’ll let him know about your offer to stay with you. Are you sure you still want to do this? Things got more dangerous today.” I wanted to give him a way out if he wanted it. I also knew that if they didn't catch this guy soon, I was going to accept his offer for my mental health.

“I’m not backing away from you.”

That is when I fell for him, Your Honor.

“My hero,” I said. “I’ll call you later, and let you know what we’ve decided.”

He gave me his address in case I chose to move in with him, he wanted us to be able to find it even if he wasn't home. He called the security gate at The Landings to find out what he needed to do to get us passes.

I was out of his office and down the hall before I realized how strongly I was considering moving in with him. And not just for the safety reason. I’d never felt like a damsel in distress before and it seemed there might be something to it.

I could explore all of the parts of Dmitri’s body I had seen, and those that I hadn’t, all while he got to play the hero saving me from danger. My imagination began to explore the possibilities. He was an excellent kisser and the memory of being pressed up against his car by that body triggered a happy, heavy sigh.

“Who knew he had a stomach like that?” Lee said. “I got a little weak-kneed myself there.”

“I like the way you think,” I said.

She shrugged. “Well, it doesn't do me any good to think about the other stuff. It’s a nightmare. Just when we get one serial killer off the street, his family jumps in to fill the void. At least, they could have given us a week off.”

“I’m sorry, Lee,” I said. “And I know I’ve been saying that a lot lately.”

“Look here, missy. You didn't bring the serial killer to Savannah. He’s been in this area his entire life, and if you hadn’t been there to encourage his wife to leave his worthless butt, they could be dead, and he'd still be loose. Don’t you take responsibility for this. You helped catch him, and now his nephew has some grand plans. I trust that if he kidnaps you, you’ll end up doing a long therapy session with him, and he’ll call the police on himself,” she said.

“Thank you.” I laughed. She had great confidence in my ability to get someone with psychopathic tendencies to either confess, or prefer jail to therapy with me.

“Not a problem. Now you need to get home and talk to your brother. If I were you, I’d take the sexy surgeon up on his offer. If something does happen to you, at least you could have that memory to savor.” Her wink covered her fear.

“If he’s as good as I've imagined, I will die a happy woman,” I said.

She laughed. “Get out of here, I’ll take care of anything else that comes up today.”

The drive home was hard. Lee’s reasoning made perfect sense, but I still felt guilty. At the very least, I was going to call Dmitri and ask him to cook me dinner at his place. I was falling for him, and if the copycat killer found me, I wanted it to be in a more satisfied state. My cell phone rang on the way, but I let it go to voicemail. I wasn't interested in talking tonight.

Josh and Officer West were sparring in the back yard. My brother never met a broken heart a new fling couldn’t fix, and I was glad to see him happy. I waved at them and changed into workout clothes.