Scorpio (Zodiac Killers Book 12) Read online

  “I work out at night,” said Bay. “I like to have the place to myself, and besides, Mia and Lila are usually in there in the mornings.” At least, Lila used to be. He’d made her stop her early morning workouts since the pregnancy, and now, all he allowed her to do was some stretching and walking.

  “Well, I’m jealous. I hope you don’t mind me making myself at home.”

  “Not a problem,” Bay said. “I’m glad someone is getting some use out of it. Lila insisted we have it. I have to give her credit. I enjoy it more than going to the public gyms.” He looked over as Lane took another donut out of the box and took a bite. “Feel free to use it again later. At this rate, I’m going to have to roll you out of the fucking car when we get back.”

  He picked the box up and moved it to the backseat of the rental.

  “Hey, there are still more in there,” Lane said.

  “Which is why I didn’t toss it out the window,” said Bay with a monotone voice. “I can’t believe a chef such as yourself, who prides yourself on fine Cajun cuisine, would be so tempted by something so basic and innutritious.”

  “Actually, I’m trying to figure out the recipe for a spicy beignet. I need something like this on my menu. Something that will set me apart.”

  “It would do that, all right.” Bay didn’t hate the idea, but he hoped Lane would do it with a bit more class.

  Lane sighed. “I guess it’s going to be a long fucking ride with you. I should be back at Nona’s, getting shit ready to ship off, but instead, I get to play ride-along road trip with the Slayer.”

  Bay looked out the window and saw the landscape changing as they headed north. They had already been in the car on the open road for a little over a half hour. “How much longer to Otis Jr.’s house?”

  “We have about twenty minutes, so not too long.”

  “Good,” Bay said, taking out his phone to look at Mia’s photo. “I’ve had my fill of road trips.” The last one, he’d had to come home from alone.

  “I don’t mind it so much,” said Lane. “But I’m ready to be on that plane home.”

  “You’ve got a lot waiting for you?” Bay asked, wondering how his social life was back home.

  Lane shrugged. “I’m still talking to Jennifer. She’s sweet, and I gave her a call last night. Her voice was enough to get me excited, you know? I felt kind of bad, all things considered, but—”

  “Nona’s dead,” Bay said flatly. “You still need a means of release. I understand.” Bay was getting about overdue for one himself, and he would need more than the soft lips of his servant, Jasmine, who was always eager to please. “I have to go to the club soon, or else I’ll end up fucking the help again.”

  Lane grinned. “You bone your staff?”

  “You saw Jasmine, didn’t you? She’s a goddess. I hired her because she’s Rose Marie’s niece, but she’s useless without her aunt around. I put her to good use, on her knees of course. I was raised not to fuck the staff, but a blowjob doesn’t count, right? Besides, she’s giddy for me.”

  “Geez, I need your life.” Lane slowed the car and turned off the main road, into a neighborhood where all the houses were too close together. The yards were so messy, one spilled over into the other.

  “Which one of these shitholes does his brother live in?” asked Bay.

  “That one on the end,” said Lane. He pointed ahead to a brown house where a man stood out front, working on a motorcycle. “That’s him.”

  Bay noted the man’s facial features when he rose up and looked at the car as if he were policing the neighborhood.

  “I can see the family resemblance,” said Bay.

  “He’s a mean-looking motherfucker.” Lane wasn’t kidding. The man was ripped, and his long dark hair and neck tattoos made him look like the criminal in the family.

  Bay wondered what the chances were that the man didn’t know anything. Lane killed the car, and Bay got out. Otis was already walking over.

  Bay stuck out his hand. “I’m Bay Collins.” Fuck an alias. He wanted this asshole to know exactly who he was speaking to. “Are you Otis Gough, Jr.?”

  The man hesitated to take Bay’s hand. “Yeah, that’s me.” Despite the man’s threatening appearance, he had a softer look in his eyes. “Look, I’ve already told your associates, I’m not interested in making a movie about my father. I’m not looking to cash in on a family tragedy. I’ve put all that behind me.”

  Lane and Bay exchanged a look, and Lane stepped forward to shake his hand too. “We’re not with a production company.”

  “Or the press,” said Bay.

  Otis narrowed his eyes at them. “Then who are you with? Because no one ever comes here unless they want something.”

  “We just want to talk,” said Bay. “Off the record. We’re not here to exploit you in any way. I just need to ask you about your brother Max.”

  The man’s chest swelled as he took a deep breath. “Shit, is he dead?”

  Bay shook his head. “No, he’s not dead.”

  Otis breathed a sigh of relief. “Good for him. I’m glad he’s okay, but I’m afraid I’m not interested in anything he’s gotten himself into. He took a step back and picked up his wrench.

  Lane walked over to him. “That’s a sweet bike.”

  “Thanks,” he said, looking over his shoulder. “So, what has he gotten himself into now? Because I know you really don’t give fuck all about my bike.”

  “Your brother is in jail,” said Lane. “He’s been arrested for committing several murders.”

  The man’s face paled. “What? Murder?” He shook his head and closed his eyes. “I knew he’d end up in prison or dead over this bullshit. He never could let shit lie.”

  “Let what lie?” Lane asked.

  Otis rolled his eyes. “Come on. You know who my father is, so don’t pretend. My brother has been fucked up ever since our dad was falsely imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit. I tried to help Max out years ago, but that came back to bite me in the ass. He’s got his own strange habits, and my wife didn’t like him around the kids with his women, so I kicked him out. Then he got it in his head to be a cop. I don’t have a whole lot of respect for cops, but even I know my brother wasn’t cop material. He was too sadistic. Too angry.” He tossed the wrench to the ground with his other tools. “I’m not helping him out if that’s why you’re here.”

  Bay approached Otis and looked him in the eye. “No one expects you to do anything for your brother. In fact, I’m not sure you could help him even if you wanted to. But you might be able to help us. One of Max’s victims is still missing. A young girl. My girl. Do you have any idea where he might take someone?” Otis was already shaking his head. “Do you know anything that could give us a clue?”

  “Look, I’m sorry for your girl,” Otis said. “I really am. But I kicked Max out because he was into some weird shit. The last straw was when I came home and found him with some wild, black-haired, emo chick tied up in the basement. That was too much for my wife. She told him he had to leave, and he packed up his things and hers, and they were both out of here.”

  “A black-haired girl?” Lane looked at Bay. “Was the first victim black-haired?”

  “No, she was a blonde. But her name was Black Betty.” Bay searched the man’s eyes. “Does that name ring a bell?”

  “No, I never asked her name,” Otis said. “I just wanted him to get the fuck out before my kid saw what I saw. I don’t know how he turned what happened to our father into his pass to do the things he does, but I know that girl. She was into it. I mean, the girls he was with were all consenting as far as I could tell.”

  Bay was the last person to judge Max for strange sexual proclivities, but the dark-haired girl was very interesting. “You say it was black hair? Was it dyed? Dark brown?”

  “Black, like almost fucking blue. She was hot, but shit. The things she liked were fucking scary, you know?”

  Bay’s back stiffened. He knew one woman with black hair like that, and she j
ust so happened to like a lot of kink in her life. She had also spent more than enough time with the Zodiacs, including him at his own fucking club.

  Otis shrugged. “Not long after that, he joined the force. The two of them got a shitty apartment uptown, but I was done. My wife said if I ever tried to do anything for him again, she’d leave me. In case you can’t tell, she’s kind of all I have going for me.”

  Bay wasn’t going to insult the man, but he wished he had more to tell him. “Was there any family property in the city? Did you ever hear him talk about a secret place or a place he liked to go?”

  Lane spoke up. “Anything you could tell us would help.”

  “Sorry,” said Otis. “I wish I could help. I probably already said too much. I’m not getting my family dragged into this. I remember how horrible it was with my father.”

  Bay looked into his eyes. He thought of the old man who had done time for his crimes, and how the man would probably hate him if he knew who he really was. Suddenly, there was a noise from the house.

  “What’s going on?” asked a skinny woman in a dingy gray shirt. She looked like her hair hadn’t been combed in weeks, or washed.

  “It’s nothing, honey,” Otis called back sweetly. “It’s about Max. I told these gentlemen we don’t want anything to do with it.”

  “You have a phone call,” she said, standing in the doorway with no smile for Bay or Lane.

  “I really should go,” Otis said. “Thanks for coming by and telling me about Max, but he’s not my problem anymore.” He turned to walk away, and as he went into the house, Lane put his card in the man’s toolbox and shut the lid, hoping he’d find it later. Bay thought it was pointless. The man was done talking.

  “You ready to go?” asked Bay.

  “Yeah,” said Lane. “So much for getting those answers.”

  Bay didn’t think they’d done that bad, but he kept the thought to himself.

  Chapter 10

  Darek

  Lizzy’s voice was a welcome sound in the morning, but not when she was so adamant that they get to work. “Get up, Darek. I’m not going to be late today.”

  Darek rolled over with sleepy eyes and reached for her.

  She slapped his hand away. “No! I’m not falling for it again. By the time we had sex and then went to breakfast, you made me miss my chance to check on the weapons yesterday. I’m not losing focus.”

  “We don’t have to be the first people at the station, Lizzy. Let’s snuggle a bit, and then we’ll go in.” He’d told her the night before that he wanted her in his bed in the morning, but he didn’t mean for her to be there to kick him out. He meant morning sex.

  “I mean it, Darek. Come on.”

  “We shouldn’t go in together anyway. Reed will be on our ass if he sees us roll in at the same time. So, I’ll just stay here while you head in first. I’ll be right behind you.”

  “I can’t believe you’re being so lazy,” said Lizzy. “After yesterday? You kept me in bed all day, and we didn’t get anything accomplished.”

  Darek smiled. “Oh, I beg to differ. I accomplished a lot and so did you.” He hadn’t gotten off so many times in twenty-four hours since he’d been with Raven, but never with Lizzy. She was much more reserved.

  “Stop it,” she said. “You’re going to make me blush, Detective.” She reached for his hand. “Come on. You’re getting up.”

  “Yes, I am, but not how you think.” He couldn’t help but laugh when she gave up and crossed her arms.

  “I’m not laughing.” Her tone was serious, and Darek could tell that he’d taken the playtime too far.

  “Fine.” He moved to the edge of the bed, and when he got to his feet, she handed him his pants and shirt. “But if I’m not sleeping in, you’re driving me to work.”

  After he dressed, they headed down to the station, and on the way, Lizzy’s mood hadn’t improved. “I hope they have good news,” she said as she drove into the parking lot.

  “Me too,” Darek said. “Then maybe you’ll be in a better mood.” He actually liked that she was serious about her job. It took a lot of drive and passion to stay so focused, and that was why he was so attracted to her. But he still liked to tease her.

  “Darek, you know how much this means to me. This could be what seals the deal, and then we’re done.”

  “And then what?” he asked.

  She shrugged. “We see it through trial and move on to other things?”

  He understood why she was sick of working on this case, but he had enjoyed working with her. With the case closing soon, they wouldn’t have the chance to spend as much time together. Then again, they might be able to go public with their relationship, which would be even better.

  They walked into the building and made their way down to the lab, where Miles stood with his superior who had a disappointed look on his face.

  “I don’t like that look,” Lizzy said to the two lab techs. “Please tell me that you got it done.”

  “Oh, it’s done, all right,” said the other man. “I’m Joel. I ran the samples for Miles, and we have come to a conclusion.”

  Lizzy planted her hands on her hips. “Well, let’s have it.” She stared at the men like she could slap the two of them.

  Joel took a deep breath as if trying to muster up the courage to speak. “I know this means a lot to you, but the only match we found was to Max. This weapon, to the best of my knowledge, was never used in any type of murder.”

  Her shoulders slumped. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

  “I wish we were,” said Miles. “I went through hours of testing, and nothing was matching up. I forgot to do Max’s for a control first.”

  Darek’s heart sank. How the hell was that possible? The victims had all been slaughtered with a knife that had a blade matching the weapon they’d found. “He won’t walk, will he?”

  Lizzy scowled. “Not if I can help it. We already had other evidence, including the positive ID from Noah and the fact that he hasn’t denied anything.”

  Joel gave Lizzy an apologetic look. “You might want to get back to the scene of the crime or even his house. See if there is anything else you can bring in for us. Once we get back to our regularly scheduled fun, it could be a week or more before we have time for special requests.”

  “Fuck it,” said Darek. “Let’s go to his house. He might have more to find.”

  “The officers already went through the house with a fine-toothed comb.” Lizzy let out a growl of frustration. “Come on.” She didn’t bother to thank the guys as she turned and stormed off.

  Darek stayed back. “Hey, thanks. Even though the results sucked, I know you tried.” Joel gave Miles a dirty look, and Darek hurried out after Lizzy, who was already halfway to the car.

  “Can you believe that shit?” Lizzy asked. “He wasted all that fucking time for something he could have told me two days ago!”

  “He fucked up. He’s new, and he’s trying to impress you.”

  “If he wanted to impress me, he could have gotten shit right the first time. So, I guess we’re headed to Max’s fucking house?”

  “Unless,” said Darek, who had an idea. “Why don’t we go and talk to Marvin? He was close with Mia. He might have some more information that would help us out.”

  “That could be good, I guess. He is bound to know something, and now that he’s got a clear head, who knows?”

  Darek held out his hand. “I’ll drive. You’re too pissed off. I don’t want to give you a loaded gun like the Rover. You’ll be making ten-point hits on pedestrians.” He hoped to make her laugh, but instead, she didn’t even look at him as she passed him the keys and got in the passenger seat.

  He climbed behind the wheel and found she wasn’t any better. “Can you believe that shit?” she asked. “I mean, really?”

  He had to hear about it the entire way to the hospital. He was glad when they finally parked, and Lizzy refocused her thoughts on Marvin.

  They found his room and knocked on
the door. “Marvin?” called Darek after there was no answer.

  The girl with purple hair opened the door. “Oh, it’s you. Marvin’s waiting on his lunch. He’s got his headphone on.” She stepped away from the door and went to the chair to grab her jacket. “Hey, boo, I’m going out for a smoke. Do you want anything?”

  Marvin shook his head and gave Darek a hard look. “Did you find her?”

  “No, not yet,” said Lizzy. She walked over by his bed, while Darek took the chair. “We had hoped that maybe we could ask you some more questions.”

  Darek could already tell that Marvin’s demeanor had changed. He raked his IV hand through his hair and looked toward the window. “I don’t have anything to help you.”

  “Maybe you do, though.” Lizzy wasn’t going to leave without questioning him, and Darek made himself comfortable, knowing it. “Did Mia ever talk about Max bringing her anywhere?”

  Marvin shrugged. “She told me a few places they’d been together. That son of a bitch was a kinky man, and she was just as bad to go along with him.”

  “What do you mean?” Lizzy asked. “Where did he take her that was so bad?”

  “They did it in the bathroom at the park, for one,” Marvin said. “I told her she had better watch out, doing risky shit like that, but she laughed it off. She also said that they did it in his car in the police station parking lot. She only had a short time for lunch, herself.”

  Lizzy cleared her throat. “Did she ever say anything about a storage building, a container? Any type of place like that ring a bell?”

  “She said that they went to a sleazy motel, and sometimes, he would blindfold her. She didn’t seem to think it was a big deal. She trusted him because he was a cop, you know? So, he could have taken her anywhere, done anything, and I think she’d have been good with it.”

  “But nothing ever more specific?” asked Darek. Marvin looked like he was hesitating. “If there is anything you’re holding back, please don’t. Mia’s life is in danger, if she’s alive at all. But we have to act fast.”