Before the Dawn--A Novel of Romantic Suspense

  Fuck. Because they still see me as a suspect. “Where is Dawn?” Was she still out in the bullpen? Was she waiting on him? He needed to talk to her and explain what was happening. The perp is setting me up. And the cops seem to be falling for the ruse.

  Samantha took out her phone and read through a few texts. “She’s with Macey. They’re heading back to Dawn’s place. I told you, we’re going to make sure that Dawn is protected.”

  He wanted to be with her. He needed to be the one at her side.

  “I want you to back away,” Samantha said flatly. “And that’s an order, Agent. So you need to tell Dawn that you’re pulling back. From here on out, you’re not part of the official investigation team.”

  No, he wasn’t part of the unit hunting the killer.

  He was a fucking suspect.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  “OKAY, THE PLACE is clear,” Dawn said, forcing a smile for Macey. “You’ve searched it thoroughly. I’m here, I’m good and I’m just going to crash for a few hours.”

  Macey frowned at her. “You’re trying to get rid of me.”

  “Absolutely.”

  “Do you want to paint a target on yourself?”

  “The way I figure it, I already have a target on me.” No painting necessary. Her breath heaved out. “But no, the plan right now isn’t to be bait. It’s to have a few moments to myself so I can think. The building is secure. Hell, you and I both saw the patrol car parked outside. My safety is being monitored by the NOPD’s finest. I’m good. And I just want to be alone in my own home.” She didn’t think that was too much to ask.

  Macey opened her mouth to argue, but then there was a sharp knock at the door. Macey’s eyes widened. “So much for the building being secure, huh? Seems as if someone just got past the security system downstairs. The system that just had the code changed.” She turned for the door and checked through the peephole. Her hand had automatically gone to her holster. “Your detective...”

  Her detective?

  Macey opened the door. Anthony stood there, shoulders hunched, gaze worried. First, his stare focused on Macey, but then he glanced past her to find Dawn. “Patrol called and told me you were here.” He seemed to hesitate. “I think we need to talk.”

  No wonder he got past the system downstairs. Anthony had been the one to change the code after the crime scene team finished up. He’d texted it to her that morning. He’d said that she shouldn’t change the code, not until she got the go-ahead from the PD. The officers wanted to be able to access her building in case of an emergency.

  Her gaze swept over him. Now she had a cop at her door and an FBI agent in her home. And she didn’t particularly want either of them there. “Fine, let’s talk.” But she looked grimly at Macey. “I’m okay here. The patrol unit is downstairs. If I leave the building, I’ll be sure to let you know.”

  “I’m supposed to stay with you...” Macey began.

  Anthony frowned as he stepped forward. “That patrol is staying here. I’m the one who got them cleared with the captain. They’ll be watching this house. If Dawn is here, she’s safe.” He blew out a breath. “Though I don’t know why you came back to this place. After what happened to Jinx, I thought you’d be staying far away.”

  It was because of Jinx that she was back.

  But, first... “Thanks for bringing me here, Macey. I appreciate your help.” She would deal with one problem at a time. Very determinedly, she steered the agent toward the door. “I know Julia can use your help back at her lab. If she’s going to find more evidence on those bodies, a backup pair of hands will be useful.”

  She could see the struggle on Macey’s face.

  “Go,” Dawn said flatly. “I’m fine. I’ve got the NOPD keeping watch.”

  And, finally, finally, Macey left her. The door shut quietly behind her.

  Dawn locked that door, then she turned to square off with Anthony. “Look, if you’re here to attack Tucker—”

  “The captain let him go. We don’t have enough evidence to hold him. Just like we didn’t have enough with Torez. Both men were questioned and released.” He paced a few feet then swung back to face her. “How can you even bear to be here? Knowing the killer came in your home, your bedroom...”

  “He can’t get in any longer. That access point is closed.” Courtesy of Bowen. He’d done that and told her about it. “And I’m here because I need fresh clothes. I need my things. I need my home.” Passion rang in her voice and Anthony looked back at her. “This is my place, and I won’t be run away.”

  “You aren’t scared?”

  “I have room for more than just fear in my life.”

  He nodded. “I...need to ask you a few questions, Dawn. That’s why I’m here. Not so much Tucker this time as it is...you.”

  “Me?” Her brows rose. “What do you possibly want to know about—”

  “I was watching you when it was revealed that Tucker had been coming down to New Orleans at least once a year. You didn’t look shocked.”

  Because she hadn’t been. But now, she schooled her expression.

  “You knew he was here those times, didn’t you?” He frowned at her, his hands on his hips, his coat pulled back so that she could see the edge of his holster and the badge clipped to his hip. “You’re one of the best PIs that I’ve ever encountered. If you’re being watched, you know it, right?” He motioned to their surroundings. “That’s how you knew the perp was here. You pick up on the small details. You saw Tucker when he was in the city, didn’t you?”

  Sometimes, it wasn’t about seeing. It was about a primitive awareness. A knowledge that you were in someone’s sights.

  “You haven’t answered my question.”

  “Yes.” She licked her lips. “Yes, I knew he came down here.”

  “And you weren’t alarmed by that?”

  “Tucker doesn’t alarm me.”

  He took two quick steps toward her, but then seemed to catch himself. “His brother tortured you. Someone is killing in the exact same method that Jason Frost used. You find out that Tucker has been stalking you—”

  “He wasn’t—”

  “—and you’re not alarmed?” His voice rose. “Why the hell not?”

  “Because all Tucker has ever done is protect me.”

  “He’s a killer,” he rasped, staring at her in disbelief. “I got a friend to dig into his service records. Do you even know how many confirmed kills that man had when he was a SEAL?”

  She didn’t want to know. Or rather, she didn’t want that news coming from Anthony. It was another tale for Tucker to share.

  “He’s a killer. His brother was a killer. And you magically think you’re somehow safe with him?”

  She crossed her arms over her chest. There wasn’t anything magical about it. Tucker was a good man. She...trusted him.

  “Jinx lived right below you. You make a living by learning the secrets that people keep...” His head cocked. “Am I truly supposed to believe you didn’t notice that she was having an affair with someone? That you didn’t try to learn the guy’s identity?”

  “I don’t spy on friends,” Dawn gritted out. “Jinx had her life and I had mine.”

  He nodded. “Right. Okay. Say I buy that... There are just... Things are bothering me, Dawn. Things aren’t adding up.”

  Her phone rang, vibrating in her pocket.

  “You found those gloves right away. Gloves that had basically been preserved so no evidence on them would be tainted.”

  “Red gave them to me—”

  “Did he? Because he isn’t around to back up that story.”

  She didn’t like where this was going. Dawn pulled out her phone and glanced at the screen. Tucker. “I have to take this. Excuse me.” She turned her back on Anthony. “Tucker? What’s happening?” br />
  “I’m off the case.”

  She’d expected that after the news about the DNA and Heather Hartley. Knew it had to be coming, but...

  “And I’m supposed to stay the hell away from you.”

  Her heart squeezed in her chest. “I see.”

  “Reporters are closing in. Samantha says my presence will just draw more attention, that the brass at the FBI wants me to back the fuck off. It’s an order, not a request.”

  She swallowed. “I...I understand.”

  “No, you don’t. The last place I want to be is away from you, but at least Macey is there and—”

  “Macey isn’t here. I sent her away.”

  The floor creaked behind her. She looked over her shoulder and saw Anthony’s frown.

  “You sent her away?” Tucker’s voice sounded strangled.

  “Julia will need extra hands in her lab. She’s slammed with all of the bodies, working day and night.” Tension gathered at the base of Dawn’s neck. “But look, Julia said she found skin cells beneath Jinx’s fingernails. Those could give us the identity of the killer—and there could be more evidence. The victims are the key right now. So dealing with those bodies? That’s priority.” That was why Macey needed to be at the lab. Dawn forced her voice to lighten. “And I’m not alone. The NOPD has a patrol right outside my building. Anthony is here now—”

  “What?”

  “Dawn.” Anthony’s voice was sharp. “We aren’t done.”

  “Apparently, he has questions for me. Maybe I’m the new suspect.” She laughed and the sound was ragged to her own ears. “Wouldn’t that be interesting? The only victim who survived the Iceman turns into a killer.”

  “You aren’t a killer,” Tucker snapped.

  “I’ll call you soon, okay?” He has to stay away. Why did that hurt so much?

  “Dawn—”

  She ended the call and faced Anthony once again. “It seems Tucker is under orders to stay away from me.”

  “That’s a good thing, Dawn.”

  Not to her.

  She straightened her shoulders. “Did I have that last part right? You’re here asking me questions because now I’m suddenly on the suspect list?”

  He looked uncomfortable but said, “The questions have to be asked. You did have access to the inside of Jinx’s condo. Maybe you slipped inside—”

  “And killed my best friend? Why? Why in the hell would I do that?”

  “Because you’re an amazing PI. And you knew the identity of her lover. You knew that Jinx was sleeping with Tucker.”

  “This is bullshit.” She moved toward the door. “I need you to leave, now.”

  But he didn’t move. “What if I told you that during his interrogation today...Tucker Frost admitted that he was intimately involved with Jinx?”

  Her heartbeat thundered in her chest. “Then I’d say you were lying.”

  He blinked.

  “Don’t play your games with me.” Her heart raced even faster. “I’ve seen you do this—mislead suspects as you try to get them to slip up. It’s not going to happen with me...”

  “Because you’re too careful to make mistakes?”

  “Because I haven’t done anything wrong, and neither has Tucker.” She opened the door. “Goodbye.”

  He walked toward her, but stopped before exiting. “Do you think I like having to ask you these questions?”

  “I have no idea.”

  “I hate it. But I have to do my job. My captain says interview you, says use our friendship to get close and find out the truth—”

  She flinched.

  “So I play my role. I come over here and I do my part, and I hate it.” His breath expelled. “But I’ve got a morgue that’s filling up with bodies. I have a killer to catch, and I will catch that perp, no matter what I have to do or who I have to hurt.”

  She inclined her head toward the door.

  “How are you so certain he wasn’t sleeping with Jinx? Why do you have this blind trust with him? That’s not the way I thought it would be.” Genuine confusion showed on his face. “Why?”

  Because maybe I never stopped loving him. Maybe despite all the hell that came calling, I couldn’t cut the link that bound us.

  And I don’t think he could, either.

  “Sometimes—” her voice was soft “—you meet someone who seems to fit you so perfectly. As if a part of you has been missing and then—bam. It’s there.”

  His brows rose. “He’s your fucking missing part?”

  “No. I’m his.”

  Confusion appeared again. She didn’t have time for his confusion. She guided Anthony out of her home, shut the door, locked it and then nearly collapsed against that door frame.

  Her breath came too fast. Her heart was racing hard enough to rattle her chest. And her hands were damp with sweat.

  Fear could do that to a woman. Fear could make your whole body shake and quake. But fear could not hold her back. She pushed away from the door and headed into her bedroom. She went straight for the closet. She yanked open the door, turned on the light and stared at the back wall, the wall that had been nailed shut by Bowen. Dawn studied that space for a moment, then she turned on her heel and marched into her small utility room. Her washer and dryer sat to the side, and her tool box... Ah, yes, there it was. Top shelf. She grabbed the tool box and shoved aside the assortment of screw drivers that she had.

  Her fingers curled around her hammer.

  Time to get to work.

  * * *

  JULIA SAT BEHIND her desk. There were too many bodies. Too many dead. Too many victims. In the last few days, she’d seen too much violence. Even when she wasn’t at work, the victims haunted her. She could never seem to shut them out of her mind.

  She needed to give them justice.

  She rose to her feet. Julia started to reach for her gloves, but the door to her lab swung open. She tensed immediately. Was the guy at the check-in desk just letting a parade into her office?

  “Baby, did I scare you?”

  Her father gave her a big smile. The kind of smile that had always made her feel safe when she was a little girl.

  “Sorry, Dad.” To her, he was always just Dad. To the rest of the world, he was Jones. A force to be reckoned with. Her force. “This case...it has me a little jumpy.” A little? Try a lot. Maybe it was because of Jinx. Because she looked at that woman and thought...

  She’s my age. We have the same friend. Live in the same town. Probably go to the same bars.

  “The whole city will feel better when this Iceman is gone.” He walked toward her desk and put a white paper bag on her calendar. One look, and she knew he’d brought her a po’boy. That was her dad—food was always a comfort. The way to heal any ill.

  But she didn’t have an appetite. Not that day. Not with Jinx’s wounds still in her mind. “The Iceman is dead. I have to find clues to tell me who this guy is.”

  “Hmm... I read in the paper that it was the Iceman. That he was hunting again.”

  “You can’t believe everything you read.”

  His head tilted as he studied her. “You always let the dead speak to you. You’ll find your clues.”

  She wished she had his confidence.

  “Is...Red here?”

  She motioned to the back, to the cold storage. “Yes.”

  His hands twisted in front of him. Such big, strong hands. Hands that had always touched her with such gentleness. “And the other one...the boy?”

  “He was brought in, but...I haven’t been able to see him yet.” Too many bodies. It was literally an all-hands-on-deck situation and she would be getting more backup in her lab.

  “Wish I’d kept him with me. So many lost souls out there. We should be able to save them.” Sadness
flashed on his face. That was her dad—a heart as big as the world.

  Julia went to him and gave him a tight hug. “Thanks for the po’boy.”

  “You eat it. Put more meat on your bones.”

  She couldn’t promise to eat so she didn’t say anything. She never lied to her father.

  He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “When you get ready to go home, you call me. I’ll be taking you.”

  “Dad, no, that’s not—”

  “A serial killer is in my city. You’re the thing that matters most in the world to me. If you want me to sleep at all tonight, you’ll call me.”

  And she knew he meant those words. “I’ll call you.”

  Because Jinx’s image was too strong. Jinx’s pain was too real. Her father left a few moments later. She put on her lab coat. She put on her gloves. And then she turned on her music—soft, drifting music. Light jazz. The kind of music her father had raised her to love.

  She went back to Jinx. Julia pulled back the sheet, studying the other woman’s knife wounds. Measuring them, noting them. Then studying her body, looking for bruises that had developed. And there were plenty of bruises. She photographed them—the bruises and Jinx’s tattoos. Her body had truly been a work of art.

  Before he turned his knife on her.

  Jinx was still clad in her bra and panties. Carefully, Julia took a pair of scissors from her instrument tray and cut the panties away. She’d had to wait until they thawed, too, because when Jinx had first come in, the cotton had nearly been melded to her flesh. But now the panties slid away as the scissors cut through the fabric.

  Her eyes narrowed. Another tattoo had just been revealed. On the side of Jinx’s hip, one that had been covered by the underwear. Julia pulled a light toward Jinx, shining it on her left hip. “Well, I’ll be damned.” Her gloved fingers hovered over the area—it was raised, scabbing...because the tattoo was fresh.