From Sanctum with Love (Masters and Mercenaries #10)(95)

Jared. Kai’s brother would be looked at. If Mia had managed to gather that much information, it stood to reason someone else would, too. Hell, the very presence of the FBI led her to believe they’d likely been watching Jared. “Why are the feds here so soon?”

If this wasn’t a serial case that crossed state lines, there would be no feds. This should be handled by the DPD. The body wasn’t even cold yet but here was a guy in a suit. She’d done enough research to know when and where the feds would be called in. Likely the Rangers would be called in if the murder case was big enough or crossed county lines, or the locals weren’t equipped to handle them. The Texas Rangers acted like a state bureau of investigations for Texas. The FBI would only be called in for special reasons.

Like the search for an international serial killer.

Was all of this about hiding something Jared had done? How well did she truly know him? He was sweet and funny and charming, but then she suspected Ted Bundy had probably been, too.

“What do you know about Jared Johns?” Rush asked, obviously getting down to interrogation mode.

She shrugged. “He showed up last week. I’ve spent some time with him. He’s living at my office right now. That sounds weird. Uhm, you see my boss owns the building and his office is downstairs and he lives upstairs.”

“Your boss or your boyfriend? Or is he better described as both?”

She felt herself flush. Some exhibitionist she was. It was funny how she could be naked in front of a crowd at Sanctum and it didn’t bother her at all, but having someone know her emotions made her feel so damn vulnerable. Still, it was apparent that he knew what was going on. “Kai and I have a relationship outside of work.”

Had, she amended silently.

“Did you know he had a brother? How often did he talk about him?”

She shook her head. “Never. I didn’t know about Jared until he showed up.”

“Do you think he would cover for his brother?”

“I don’t know.” She would have said no. Absolutely not. She would have said Kai was incapable of protecting a killer. But then they came to the problem of Mia and her phone. What other reason could he have? Mia was investigating Jared. Case and Kai had worked very hard to figure out a way to bug Mia’s phone. The only reason Kori could think of was they wanted to know how much Mia had figured out. “They aren’t close. I can’t tell that Kai has anything but negative feelings for him.”

Which would be a good front to put on if he wanted to help his brother get away with murder.

Had she really thought that? It was inconceivable. That wasn’t Kai. But then she would have said Kai wouldn’t use her, wouldn’t manipulate her emotions in order to get what he wanted and then dump her.

I’m happy to help, but this stuff with Kori has to stop. It makes me sick. I can’t keep this up.

Sleeping with her made him sick.

“Would you cover for your boyfriend? Would you allow his brother to go free?”

She wanted to go home. “I don’t know anything.”

Rush flipped open the folder, turning it so the photos were facing her. “This is why I’m here. These women are why I’m here, and I want to make sure you don’t allow your soft heart to aid and abet the man who killed them. Kori, I’m here to make sure you’re not next, that your friend Sarah isn’t next.”

She looked down and her stomach flipped. The women in the photos were all dead, their vacant eyes staring up. They’d all been stabbed like Lena had been. Kori couldn’t forget the way the white shirt Lena had been wearing had turned to a bloody color, the way it smelled.

There were so many of them. So many.

She couldn’t help it.

“There’s a trash can to your right, sweetheart,” Rush said.

She stumbled out of her seat and dropped to her knees, emptying the contents of her stomach into the can. She could hear Rush at the door calling for someone as she heaved.

Who could do that? She’d worked on movie sets and they always laughed as they poured blood on the “dead” actress, who usually joked and complained the whole time. She’d played around with retractable knives and goofed off with prop guns.

This was real. Those girls were dead. Mia’s friend was one of them. Someone had stabbed her over and over and left her behind like she was nothing more than trash to be picked up.

She didn’t know Jared. She didn’t know Kai the way she thought she did. She would have said Kai wouldn’t hurt a fly, would never do anything secretive. How could she think she knew Jared if she didn’t even know the man she’d fallen in love with?

An emptiness swept through her. How could she know anyone if she couldn’t know Kai? He’d been everything to her.

Maybe this time she would go somewhere and be truly alone. She had some money saved. There were places she could go where no one could ever touch her again.

“Here.” Rush stood over her, a washcloth in his hand. “When you’re ready, I’ve got a cold soda for you. It should settle your stomach.”

She took the cloth and ran it over her face. It was cold and it seemed to seep into her skin. She rose, refusing Rush’s hand up.

She was alone now.

Kori made it back to the table. Loyalty had kept her mouth shut, but there was something more going on now. Those girls were real.