Darkest Journey (Krewe of Hunters #20)(43)

The more agents around, the better, Ethan thought, though he still wasn’t so sure about the plan for the women to work aboard the Journey. Having to spend time worrying about their safety didn’t seem like a plus in any way. A number of the agents in the Krewe were partners, in every sense of the word, from Jackson Crow and Angela Hawkins on down. But Angela and many of the others had gone through the academy and joined the Bureau; they had training in both investigation and firearms. But in this case, all three women were performers, for heaven’s sake.

It was good to have Jude there. They’d become friends quickly when they’d met up after joining the Krewe. They were both from Louisiana, which created an immediate bond, though unlike Ethan, Jude had been in the New Orleans field office before becoming Krewe.

Jude also knew Charlie’s friends Alexi and Clara. Both women had been contract performers on the Celtic American Line’s Destiny when a serial killer had been aboard. Jackson Crow himself had been involved in both Celtic American cases, and Ethan was certain Crow was poring over everything to do with this case, as well. Not only was another Celtic American ship potentially involved, incidents that had occurred on that same ship over a hundred and fifty years ago might also play a role in the current murders.

Ethan finished the last of his coffee and rose. He had an eight o’clock meeting with Randy, and, with Jude here, he could leave without worrying about Charlie’s safety. It bothered him that—just like Albion Corley and Farrell Hickory—she was in the killer’s sights and he had no idea why.

And despite the lack of any real connection, his gut told him that the cleaning woman who had been killed in Baton Rouge had run afoul of that same killer, too.

“I’ve got to get to my meeting with Randy. I doubt he has anything new, unfortunately. He’s a good cop, but there hasn’t been a damned thing to go on with this case.”

“I’ll be here. The Journey arrives in New Orleans on Tuesday night and leaves again Wednesday, so we’ve got time before we need to board.”

“Good.” Ethan hesitated. “I’d like to stop in Baton Rouge on our way to New Orleans.”

“Something going on there I should know about?”

“I know the police are on it, but a cleaning woman was killed right outside the college where she worked.”

“The connection?” Jude asked.

“Same college where Albion Corley taught,” Ethan said.

“I see. It’s a thread—a slim thread.”

“I know, but the way I see it, we’ve got no choice but to grasp at threads.”

“You’d better wake Ms. Moreau first and let her know I’m here. I understand she’s a crack shot, and I’d really hate for her to think I was an intruder and plant a bullet in me.”

Ethan agreed. He headed upstairs and knocked on Charlie’s door. She threw the door open a second later, easing any fear he’d had that he would have to wake her. She had showered and dressed for the day in jeans and a tank top—both blue, enhancing the sky blue of her eyes.

“I’m heading into town,” he said, “and I didn’t want you to freak out when you went down and found Jude at your dining room table. Your plan is certainly coming together.”

“Hey!” she protested. “I wasn’t sitting around cackling and plotting. I just wanted to help catch a killer.”

He didn’t reply, only turned to head down the stairs. She followed.

Jude stood to greet her, and she smiled and reached out a hand to him.

“Ms. Moreau, Charlie, I’ve heard all about you and seen your face often enough in Alexi’s pictures and on screen. It’s a pleasure,” Jude told her.

“And I’m delighted to meet you, since Alexi is alive and well—not to mention happy—because of you,” Charlie said.

Ethan watched the exchange between them. They were going to be just fine. “I imagine I’ll be an hour or so.”

“We’ll be here,” Jude said. “And if Charlie needs to go anywhere, I’ll be happy to accompany her.”

“Let me know if you head out,” Ethan said, and caught Jude’s eye. The reassurance he saw there confirmed what he’d already learned in the Krewe. They were a tight-knit group and always had each other’s backs. “You’ll want to get packed,” he told Charlie.

“Oh?”

“We’re leaving this afternoon.”

She had the grace to look away, uncomfortable.

“For New Orleans?” she asked.

“For New Orleans,” he said. “The Journey was in Baton Rouge yesterday, she’ll be down by Houmas today, and tomorrow she’ll return to New Orleans. She’ll head out again the next morning. As you wished, you’ll be on it. And so will we.”





8

Charlie had a guard—or a babysitter. Whichever way she chose to look at it, Jude McCoy was here and not with Ethan or anywhere else because he was watching over her.

And she was grateful for that.

He was friendly and charming as he told her about the theater Alexi and Clara were renovating. It was an entirely new experience for both of them, though Clara had at least been a stage manager and worked as an assistant casting director several times, but neither of them had actually managed a theater. The building itself was historic, and they had plans to bring in both professional shows and to offer the space for community outreach, bringing in free children’s theater to benefit the area.