Page 31 of Dead Man's Wish
Musing around, I grabbed travel mugs and started fixing our coffees. Heading down to the precinct wasn’t a quick visit, and lately, we’d been spending hours upon hours with each time. I even joked that we might as well just get a second apartment for business trips instead of toughing the drive back and forth. Jaiden had called me silly and patted my head, explaining that the traveling part was worth it because of the time spent with me.
He had a point. Road trips in general were often more fun than the destination where we were concerned.
Jaiden appeared in the doorway, already wearing his light jacket and holding mine in his hand. The weather was gloomy today, and it often meant unpredictable showers. I twisted the lids on tight and exchanged one mug for my jacket. He took a sip as I slid my arms in.
“Delicious,” he murmured, eyes traveling from my head down my body.
“No,” I said, beating him to whatever mischief swirled in his thoughts.
“What do you mean? I said the coffee was delicious.” He feigned innocence, but the sultry smile remained.
“You said the coffee was delicious, but your eyes said I was. Not to mention, your little fact about Bishop saying no rush didn’t go unnoticed.” I smirked and brushed past him down the hall.
“The great mind reader does it again—”
“Body language,” I correct.
“I won’t lie now that I’m busted. The thought of a quickie did occur.” I laughed at that and grabbed his keys from the hook. He opened the door with a smartass bow for me to go first. “After you, my sweet swallow.” Rolling my eyes, I stepped out onto the porch and locked the door after him.
“Can I drive?” I asked, throwing his keys up and catching them.
“Gonna have to move the seat about three feet forward, but I don’t see why not.” Walking down the path to the drive, he continued, “It’ll also give me the opportunity to catch up on emails and play around in our spreadsheets. The accountant called—”
A scream ripped through my chest and interrupted his thoughts. Dead swallows littered the hood of his car, and a few fell by the wayside on the concrete. Complete shock took over at the gruesome scene. Frozen in place, I looked around for any movement or anything else out of place. Nothing, again. Sheer rage engulfed me, and I turned to the partially wooded area of our property that offered decent concealment.
“Come out, you fucking coward!” I yelled. We lived in a small neighborhood and the houses were scattered apart from each other, but someone would eventually hear me. “Face me! You’re just like Brent—you don’t have the balls to come at me directly!”
“Bexley—” Jaiden’s hand wrapped around my upper arm. Unknowingly, I’d marched a few steps toward the woods.
“You know what I did to him? You’re up his dead ass enough so surely you do.” I scanned the property more, but there was no major movement. “I killed him—me. I shot his sorry ass point blank with no remorse, and I’ll happily do the same to you!” My chest heaved and burned. I refused to cry, knowing the sick fuck could be watching. He could have my rage, my hatred—but he would never have my heartache.
“Bex, let’s get inside,” Jaiden urged, pulling me to him and walking us back.
My hands clenched around the keys, and my thoughts were on overdrive. He peeled them out of my grasp, and I looked at him in confusion. He didn’t say anything as he pushed me inside, not stopping until I was seated on the couch.
“I’m going to message Bishop and then call the police to make a report. Don’t get up, and don’t answer the door. I’ll be right back.” He disappeared from my view and shortly after, his voice drifted in from the kitchen.
I’m in hell.
* * *
Blue lights paintedthe walls of my living room through the open blinds. Bishop was pissed and brought the calvary with him. Anywhere from five to seven law enforcement vehicles occupied our drive, the street, and part of our lawn over the last hour. The black SUV had the most officers around it. There were evidence bags, kits, and gloves everywhere. It was a surreal nightmare.
“Bexley?” Bishop’s voice came from behind me. I turned around to see a sullen and exhausted man. “Are you able to handle the case today?” I nodded in response. He remained quiet, stepping into the hall and returning witheveryone.
Andy and Stan emerged first, followed by the team replacing Detective Wescott—Katherine and Grady. Jaiden walked in last, hands shoved in his pant pockets with a glare that could kill. His stoic appearance was well practiced, but today he had no care to hide what warred inside him.
“I want to go over the changes first,” Bishop announced as they all took seats, except Jaiden. He settled against the wall with his arms folded over his chest as he watched out the window. “Around the clock surveillance at your residence. You can come and go, no one’s going to follow you around, but whether your home or not, there will be a patrol here. I have two men from my department, and they graciously gave me two men from your local precinct.”
“Do you think that’s necessary?” I asked. Jaiden scoffed, leaning harder into the wall.
“Of course, I do. Death was delivered to your doorstep. You know what the mutilation of animals means for serial killers. Two uniforms will be posted at both entrances of your home. Anyone unfamiliar will be stopped and questioned. They know you two, Mari and Kel, and your parents. Is there anyone else we should put on the list?”
“I don’t have clients in-office and we don’t entertain many people beyond the Bellevues and you guys,” I admitted. “Besides, it’s still anyone’s guess who it is. He could be another person in my inner circle and I just suck at my job.” Jaiden scoffed in his corner but didn’t add to the discussion.
“I’m going to ignore that,” Bishop said, writing in his notepad. “We were going to cover the profile today, but with the sudden change of plans, I was hoping to continue the meeting here.”
“That works for me. There’s a lot, but there’s also so little that it should be quick.” I stood up and moved to the center of the room so everyone could see and hear me. “I’m going to start with Hale’s psychopathy. I think understanding the subject of emulation is the strongest lead here. The Hare Psychopathy Checklist is a tool used to determine a score out of forty-four possible points. One’s score isn’t a direct answer to anything, but it’s a starting point for analyzing problematic areas of behavior and risk.”
