Consumed by Wrath: An FBI/Romance Thriller (An FBI/Romance Thriller ~ Book 8) (48 page)

“Then
, you were my square dancing partner in music class too. I believe you wanted to do more than do-si-do afterwards, especially when you asked me back to your secret fort in the woods.”

“
Lyzee, stop!” he hissed, as he loosened his tie and the flush creeped up his neck.

It’s when she pounced. “A lot of time has passed, Jacob. I grew up
. We both took different paths, and I’ve spent the last twelve years eating my way through the jackwagons in this country. I’ve left bodies and blood in my wake. So, what you need to ask yourself, is if you think I’m more than these beat up boots, because you only get one shot before I really show you what a mean bitch I can be.” She pointed at the woman who was about to speak. “Zip your trap, or your ass is going to be too damn sore to ride a horse, or your Native play thing.”

The jig was up.

The woman closed her mouth and went red.

“Right now, we’re here to ask some questions. If you want me to do it officially in the sheriff’s station,
I’m good with that. As it stands, all the news crews are camped out there, so be it. You have fifteen seconds to talk it out.”

Elizabeth turned around and glanced at the men in her life. She could tell that they were entertained
and irritated at the same time.

When the talking stopped, she turned around and faced them. “Have you decided
what option you would like to partake in?”

Jacob Brome went to talk, and was interrupted by
Barbara Harris.

“Unfortunately, my attorney thinks I should waste my time talking to you, since I have nothing to hide. I personally think that I have better things to do
instead of standing here and being spoken to like some common person. My husband is missing, and your lack of care and compassion is horrifying. I may even wish to speak to your boss.”

She jerked her thumb over her shoulder. “First, he’s the boss, so feel free to confab when I’m
done. Just don’t give him crabs. I like my husband to be pestilence free,” she fired back, not buying the mourning widow bullshit that Barbara Harris was trying to shovel.

The barb hit its mark and the woman looked horrified
and for real this time.

“Are you going to let her talk to me like that?” she snapped at her attorney.

“When dealing with Elizabeth LaRue, you just have to go with it, and it hurts less. Just stick to the topic, and she’ll be more lady-like.”

Ethan snorted in response.
There was a fat chance of that happening. A lot of time had passed, and this man was totally clueless.

“Can we just get this done
?” he stated. Normally Jacob would love racking up the bill, but this was one adversary he didn't want to tangle with.

“Certainly,” she began. “I need to ask you where you were on the night
that your husband went missing.”

She crossed her arms and thought about it. “I really was at home the entire time. I didn't have anyone over, and I wasn’t out planning his demise. I think I took the horses out around six that night.”

“Can anyone verify your whereabouts?”

Barbara
Harris began to look panicky. “Wait, yes, Xavier was here with me.”

She called the man over
, and he wiped his hands on his jeans. “Please tell them that I was here.”

Elizabeth stopped her. “Yeah, that’s not how it works.” She looked at the man in question. He stared at he
r with worried eyes, and she could understand. The guy didn't want to lose his job as gardener, or have the manacuda make his life hell. “Xavier, do you recall the night Mr. Harris went missing?”

The man thought about it. “I think it was a Wednesday night. He took his car out of the garage that
evening, and in passing he mentioned that he needed me to come in early and wash it. Thursdays are usually the day I come in later.”

“What time did you leave here that night?” Elizabeth inquired, staring at the woman.

“I leave here by seven on most nights, ma’am. I stayed later to get the car done, so I could keep my normal work schedule.”

“Was Mrs. Harris here when you left?”

He thought back to that night. “Yeah, she was. She told me that she was planning to take out Bolt, and that she would see me the next day. I said goodbye to her, and finished up my work.”

“SEE!” she practically shouted. “I told you that I was here! Now
, maybe you three can actually go solve this and leave me the hell alone.”

Jacob Brome just shook his head.
He really wished for once, one of his clients would take his advice and shut their mouths. It made his job ten times harder when they got nasty with the police.

“When did you leave, Xavier
?” Elizabeth asked.

Again, he pondered it. “I stopped at the grocery store and picked up a pizza, so I think I was home by
nine.”

She faced the woman. “Yeah, you’re not clear for that night. If he left by eight, you still have hours unaccounted for, Mrs. Harris.
It doesn’t tell us where you were when your husband went missing. He was at the meeting until nine. That’s the timeframe that we’re most concerned with.”

She huffed.

“May I go?” the gardener asked, clearly trying to escape.

Barbara
dismissed him with a wave of her hand.

The man took off as fast as he could
, and no one there could blame him. When the FBI left, there was probably going to be some rich bitch explosion.

“I can’t prove
that I was here, okay?” she held out her wrists and made a face. “Arrest me then.”

Elizabeth reached for her handcuffs at her back and when the woman saw them
and looked worried, she grinned. “You do not want to push me, Mrs. Harris. I can promise you that I’ll win any pissing match you throw down.”

“I don’t know what to tell you,” she whined. “I didn't kill my husband.”

Elizabeth didn't doubt that. What she did have bouncing around in her brain was that she would likely pay someone close to her to handle it.

Like
one of her men.

“How many people are you sleeping with?” she asked.

Jacob objected immediately.

She held up her hand. “This isn’t my first day
at the questioning rodeo.” Her focus was back on the woman. “I’m asking, because we may be able to use one of them as an alibi, not to prove that you’re a cheap, oversexed, Native dick junkie. That’s already been proved with the STD.”

Callen made some choked snort that he tried to cover with a cough.

That changed her tune, but she still glared at Elizabeth. “I’m sleeping with Jason Walters and that’s it. He’s pretty possessive.”

Yeah, well who wouldn’t be when their bed mate was an all you can eat crab fest.

“Honestly, his stamina is amazing
.” She stared over at the men behind Elizabeth. “I find that Native men are spectacular in bed.”

Elizabeth
popped a piece of gum in her mouth and didn't make a comment. What could she say? There was no argument there, but she wasn’t telling more about the men in her life to this woman.

“Are you sure that’s it for bed companions?
How about the sheriff? Word has it that you stopped by his office to ‘convince’ him to bury your domestic disputes.”

Barbara laughed. “Please, one blowjob does not make a relationship. Haven’t you ever used sex to get what you want?
I needed to make sure he kept his mouth closed.”

“No,” she replied without hesitation. “I use sex as a way to show the men in my life that I love them, not as leverage. That’s what makes you look skeezy. Well, that and your crab infestation.”

The woman growled and had to be restrained by her attorney.

“
Could we focus on the facts?” Jacob asked, hoping to end this conversation as soon as possible.

“Those were the facts, but sure, why not.
Would Jason kill for you?”

She had to think about it, and that threw up flags
in all of their minds.

“Kill for me
or because of me?”

“Either.”

The woman smiled at Elizabeth. “Yes, I guess he would. Not every woman can say that about their bed mates.”

Elizabeth didn't know if that was a good or bad thing, per say, but it did give them someone
else to look at. She’d take what she could get for now.

“Thank you for your time,” Elizabeth said, glancing over at Jacob Brome. “Please inform your client that if anything that she has told us misleads us
, or hinders the investigation, I will throw her ass in jail for obstruction.”

He stared at her. “You’re definitely not th
at sweet little girl with freckles and sundresses anymore, are you?

She placed her glasses on her face. “That girl died on her first crime scene when she saw a woman cut into pieces, Jacob. At some point, we all have to grow up
, but may innocent Lyzee LaRue rest in peace.”

Turning, she walked between the men in her life. At the vehicle, she watched the woman
predatorily. When Ethan and Callen got in, Barbara’s glare was directed solely at her. Generally, that would please her, but after Circle Rock, she knew not to let her guard down.

There wouldn’t be a repeat performance.

“Well?” Blackhawk asked
, buckling his seatbelt.

“She’s not bright enough to pull this off, and I can’t
foresee her getting her nails dirty with dead bodies. If she’s involved, it’s because someone is doing the shitty part for her.”

“People can kill for lots of reasons,” offered Callen.

She didn't disagree with him. “Yeah, but my gut tells me that the princess is used to being on the throne. If she had anything to do with offing her husband, then we need to connect all the victims to her.”

“If
that’s possible.”

“Yeah, and that feels like a big if. I really wish we had proof that these people were dead. It would make my life a hell of a lot easier.”

Callen laid his hand on her shoulder. “Maybe the universe will provide.”

She hoped so. They could
really use a lead.

“I have a few questions,” Ethan said, as he started up the Navigator. “First, where to?”

“Let’s pop into the morgue. I want to bitch at someone, and that means the tech team and our doctors.”

He laughed. “Fair enough, and then my next inquiries.”

“Shoot.”

“Was that man really the first boy you
made out with, and did you really wear pretty, girly sundresses?” Ethan asked, grinning.

She glanced over at him. “Yep, he was my first and yeah, my dad was trying to feminize me from an early age. We see how well that worked
out. When he saw me gravitating towards wanting to shoot his gun and climb trees, my stepmother tried to talk him into making me a girl.”

“
I think it’s sweet. I don’t remember my first kiss,” Callen said.

Elizabeth began laughing. “He was also the first boy I had sex with. Are you still finding it
so sweet?”

Both men growled.

“Hell no!” objected Ethan, reaching for his seatbelt. “I’m going to go kick his suit wearing ass!”

When Callen began cursing
along with him, Elizabeth started laughing and stopped both of them from getting out of the vehicle.

“Let this be your lesson on asking questions,” she said, snorting at their tirade.

“He’s a dead man,” Ethan grumbled.

“I’m going to hold him down for you,” Callen added.

“Ahhhh, home sweet Salem. It brings out the best in people.”

             
                  *   *   *

At the morgue, Chris Leonard was incredibly distracted. While everyone worked, he had snuck out to find a present for Cyra. Since Salem was small, it was no easy task. Rarely was Chris one to throw money around in an effort to get his own way, but in this case, it was important.

Finally,
one of the shop keepers agreed to engrave it for him, so he could pick it up before they headed out for the evening. Now, it would all come down to his ability to get everything else taken care of in time.

When he heard his bosses, he was actually glad to see them. They were on his list of
‘to do’ things for the day.

When they walked in, Elizabeth was
grinning, and that gave him hope that they would come through for him.

“Hello, fine
tech team, you may be wondering why I am smiling. Well, I’ve just had a defense attorney and snotty rich woman for lunch. For dessert, I’m aiming for some techs, unless you have something for me.”