Likely Suspects (25 page)

“
Oh my, I really am sorry about that.” I tried to sound sincere and embarrassed.

“I deserved it.
It’s fine. Have a good day.” He stood, briefly embracing me while I tried not to gag.

“Thanks, you
too.”

I
headed straight for the elevator, O’Connell at my heels. Once the doors shut, he took out an evidence bag, and I dropped the clipboard inside. He tucked it into his jacket, out of sight.

“Do y
ou think this will pan out?” O’Connell asked as we rode down to the lobby.

“It needs to.
” 

It had been two days since I had gotten Denton’s prints for O’Connell.
The lab was backed up, and I wasn’t sure when or if the identification was going to be made. Mark was still out of the office. He was working something undercover or was out of town for some other work related reason. Either way, I was irritated by the waiting. Martin was another story altogether. He was itching to get back to work and had decided, since I was the one preventing his return, he was going to hold me responsible for his constant entertainment and amusement.

“Join me.
” He was swimming laps in the pool and stopped to take a break.

“No.
” I was sitting on a lounge chair, my nine millimeter and cell phone next to me. “I don’t have a swimsuit.”

His eyes
danced with mischievous glee. “I keep them stocked just in case I have some unprepared guests. Guest bathroom, top drawer in the vanity.” I was trying to determine if he was kidding. “Go get changed,” he insisted.

I hedged
, but he kept staring expectantly at me. “Fine,” I growled, marching into the house. After changing into the least skimpy two-piece I could find, I went back outside. “Happy?” I practically snarled.

“Ecstatic.”
I descended the steps into the pool, so I was halfway submerged. “The blue brings out your eyes.” He was attempting to be charming by mentioning the shiny blue swimsuit I had selected.

“How would you know?
You’ve been staring at my tits the whole time,” I remarked, and he acted slightly offended.

“I have not.
Well,” he paused, giving me an admiring grin, “not the entire time.”

“So you were staring at
my tits?” I smirked at him, teasing.

“You just think you’re so
smart.”

“I am actually.”
Smiling demurely, I suddenly stopped, horrified. “Oh dear god, you’re rubbing off on me.” I cringed, and he laughed before going back to swimming laps.

I watched
him swim, glad to be in the cooler water instead of sitting on the lounge chair in the scorching sun; although, I’d never willingly admit that. Turning to make sure my phone and gun were still on the chair and I didn’t accidentally take them back inside, he used the slight distraction as the perfect opportunity to reach for my leg and pull me through the water towards him.

“I thought you
said you were going to join me?” he asked innocently, having dragged me into the middle of the pool.

“I’m in the water.
What more do you want?” As I tried to edge my way back to my perch on the steps, he grinned seductively, so I splashed him. And that was it. The stress of the last few weeks was temporarily forgotten as we swam and splashed about. “Stop.” I cocked my head to the side, listening. There had been a sound.

“What?”
I put my finger to his lips and frowned, straining to hear.

“I thought I heard something.”
Extracting myself from his slight grasp, I headed toward the pool steps, still listening intensely.

I went to the chair,
grabbed my gun, pulling the slide back to chamber a round, slipped on my shoes, and carefully walked around the side of the house as I checked for intruders. There was no one to be seen, out front or anywhere else. When I returned to the pool area, Martin was toweling off.

“What did you hear?” he asked, watching as I put the safety back on and
took the towel he was offering.

“I don’t know.
I must be losing it. It sounded like a car door or something.” I squinted into the distance just to be sure I didn’t miss anything. “Let’s head inside anyway. It’s better to err on the side of caution.” He knew my serious mode and didn’t question it. After he deactivated and then reactivated the alarm system, he went to shower and change while I checked, then double and triple checked the security system and the monitors that Mark and Martin had set up, making sure no unwanted visitors were around.

“You’re cracking up, Parker,” I said to myself.
I activated all the exterior motion sensors and physically checked the four floors of Martin’s compound, making sure no one was lurking in the shadows. Once I was reasonably satisfied we were alone, I rinsed off and dressed quickly. Something had spooked me, and I couldn’t shake the feeling something horrible was about to happen. The entire time, the noise kept replaying itself in my head.

I put my still wet hair in
a ponytail and was back downstairs in less than three minutes. Watching the surveillance feed as the cameras rotated throughout the grounds and house, I searched for a vehicle. I was positive I heard a car door, the characteristic thump of the metal against the foam-like waterproof sealant, but there were no cars and no intruders. Before I could go outside to check for tire tracks, my phone rang, and I nearly jumped out of my skin.

“Goddamn,” I
cursed, trying to calm my heart which was now pounding loudly in my ears. I fumbled for the phone and hit answer. “Hello.” I took a few deep breaths, trying to slow my racing pulse.

“Parker?” O’Connel
l’s voice sounded over the thumping in my ears.

“Yeah, what’s up?”
I tried to sound in control.

“We
got a match.” He was absolutely gleeful. “We’re waiting for the arrest warrant to be issued, and then we’re bringing in Denton.”

“That’s great.
” I guess my excitement seemed anti-climactic.

“Is everything okay?
Are you okay?”

“Sorry, something just spooked me earlier
, and then the phone nearly gave me a heart attack,” I admitted. “But that really is excellent news. What are the charges?”

“For now
, we’re just trying to get him on the B&E, but it will place him close enough to our murder scene.  It should be enough to gain access to his financial records, and hopefully, we can get him on conspiracy. Maybe even murder.”

“Okay, keep me updated.
”

Pacing
in front of the screen, my eyes never left the video feed. I was trying to be rational. There was no sign of anything amiss outside. Maybe I hadn’t heard a thing with all the splashing and tomfoolery. Running scenarios through my mind, I was trying to decide if leaving the house would be worse in the long run. Maybe I should call O’Connell back and see if he could get some uniforms to drive by, just to be on the safe side. I decided to check outside once more before phoning for back-up, when Martin came down the stairs.

“Yo
u look like you’ve seen a ghost.” He scrutinized my face.

“I
don’t know.” I double-checked the magazine in my gun and put on my shoulder holster out of habit.

“Are y
ou going out?” He tried to get my attention again.

“No,”
I came out of my focused mode, “um, O’Connell called. Denton’s prints match the partials on the box. They’re bringing him in.” I gestured oddly with one hand as I clipped the gun into the holster with the other.

“Are you going with them?”
He was confused by my unusual behavior.

“
No,” I repeated, leaning against the back of the couch. I felt a little shaky. The ringing from the phone had thrown my parasympathetic nervous system into fight or flight mode. “I’m going to call O’Connell back and see if he can spare someone to drive a patrol car by, just to make sure I’m clinically insane and having auditory hallucinations.”

“I think that’s ca
lled paracusia.”

“Thank you
, Mr. Word-of-the-day,” I snapped, and he raised his eyebrows but kept his mouth shut. Calling O’Connell, he promised someone would pass the house as soon as they could, and I thanked him and hung up. “You really didn’t hear anything outside?” I asked Martin. Either I heard something, or I had gone mad. Maybe my erratic sleep habits had made me a little crazy and put me far enough on edge to intensify the unshakeable feeling of impending doom.

“Not a thing.
” He watched me cautiously as if I were a rabid animal.

“Great.”
I was being sarcastic. I slid down to the floor from my position against the couch and shut my eyes, trying to clear my head and force my brain to think rationally.

“Hey.
” Martin was on the ground next to me. He touched my cheek. “You’re okay.” He was trying to be soothing. “Stress and heat and all this can mess with anyone, but you’re fine. Everything’s fine.” I opened my eyes and looked at him. Things did not feel fine.

“Shit.
” My eyes got wide.

I
f there was a vehicle on the private road, I wouldn’t be able to see it because the road winds up to the house and is surrounded by trees. He seemed even more worried by my outburst, but I ignored him as I frantically flipped through the cameras, trying to determine if any of them covered the road that far from the compound. Could I have even heard a car door from that distance? Maybe I was spiraling into some kind of nervous breakdown.

“Call O’Conn
ell and tell him to get some guys here ASAP.” I stood up and went to the closet, pulling out the flak jackets Mark had left. I tossed one to Martin, and then I fastened the other one around my torso. “Put that on and keep away from the windows.” He was still watching me nervously. “Do it. I might be crazy, but honestly, that’s a much better option right now than what I’m thinking.”

I carefully
peered out the front window, but I didn’t see anything. I needed to know what was coming in order to devise a feasible plan. “I’m going out the back. Make sure you lock the door behind me and keep the security system armed.” I deactivated the exterior motion sensors to avoid tripping the alarm myself, but I still wanted the house to remain as impenetrable as possible. He seemed frightened by my outburst and even more so by my barking orders.

“Al
ex,” he said my name forcefully, and I caught his eye. But he decided it was best to do what I asked. “Be careful.”

“Always.
”

Slipping out the back door and
staying against the house as I circled around to the side, I listened for the sounds of cars, voices, or pretty much anything else. I didn’t hear a thing. Avoiding the driveway, I went through the yard, trying to stay hidden within the shrubbery. As I approached the treed private road, I saw it. A black SUV, tinted windows, brush guards – the works, parked just far enough up the private road to avoid being seen by drivers on the main thoroughfare but still far enough away to avoid detection from the house.

I flattened myself against the ground.
What to do? How many people were in the SUV? It was definitely large enough to hold an entire assault team, and I tried to remain calm. Back-up was on its way. I just had to keep the situation under control until then. Slowly, I edged away from the tree line and went back to the house, trying to keep myself as invisible as possible. When I got to the back door, I entered the security code, went in and shut the door, locking it, and re-engaging the security system. Some good that was going to do, I thought bitterly. Martin was where I left him. Luckily, he had put on the bulletproof vest.

“Ok
ay, you made the call?” I asked from the kitchen as I retrieved the shotgun and loaded it with shells.

“Y
es, they’re on their way.” He came into the kitchen, and I handed it to him.

“Do y
ou know how to use one of these?” I was serious, and he knew we had a problem. He nodded. “Good.” I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came out. I tried again. “There’s an SUV parked on the road, black, looks like what the paramilitary types drive. My guess would be they’re mercenaries. I don’t know how many guys are in there, but it could be an entire assault team. Best to prepare for the worst. I need you to get to the safest location possible.”

“We should call 911.
” He was listening, but he was also panicking.

T
he entire situation was surreal, and I wasn’t sure if calling for a squad of police cars was a good idea. The flashing lights and sirens could mean a death sentence, or it could scare them away. It was a coin toss decision, and O’Connell already had guys en route. 

“I don’t know
if that’s going to be a good idea,” I cautioned, but Martin picked up the phone.

“It’s dead.
” He looked confused, and the blood drained from my face.

“Move now!”

I shoved him from the room and to the staircase. Up or down, my mind was racing. The front window shattered as a small metal canister hit the ground, and simultaneously, the home security system began to wail. The flashbang went off disorienting me with the bright light and sound. I pushed Martin up the steps. They’d be closing in any second.