Lin gave him a cold look, but Adelaide just smiled sadly. “It's a fair question.”
She stood and unbuttoned the cuffs of her blouse. She rolled up the sleeves to show off the bruises from the rope. The pulled down her collar to show the purpling marks on her neck. Her throat still hurt from where Bruce had strangled her.
Lin sucked in a breath through her teeth. “You should have a doctor look at that after we get some prints.”
Adelaide shook her head. “I washed it off, remember? My whore's bath?” She leveled her gaze at Lin. “There won't be anything. You can have the dress I wore last night, but I don't know what good it'll be to you. I don't think the killer touched it.”
“That'll be fine,” said Gregory. “We'll have a uniform drive you home.”
Adelaide felt a wave of panic. “What if that creep comes back?”
“I don't think he will,” said Gregory, “but we can leave someone there for a day or two to make sure.”
“I would like that,” she said.
“I do have one more question,” said Lin. “Why go back?”
“To Mrs. Devais?” said Adelaide. She dropped her head and sat back down. She took a deep breath and looked at Detective Lin. “I need the money and I'm good at it.” She shrugged.
Lin shook her head. “That doesn't make sense. You live in a shoebox apartment you share with one of the other girls. You could work as a waitress and afford that place. What hold does Judy Devais have on you girls?”
Adelaide found herself laughing. “Don't be ridiculous. Mrs. Devais doesn't have a hold on anyone. The most terrifying thing about her is she can fire me. That and her non-competition clause in our contracts. I need that job.”
“But why?” asked Lin.
“Where else can I make six figures a year and save enough to retire before I'm thirty?” said Adelaide. “Look at me, Detective. I'm young and pretty now, but I'll get old. My service fee will go down and eventually, Mrs. Devail will let me go. I have dreams and those dreams have a price tag. This is the fast track.”
~~~~~
Detective Gregory walked Adelaide out of the squad room when a strange man stopped in front of them. He was tall with olive skin and closely cropped black hair. He wore a dark suit with a red shirt and black tie. He smelled like citrus fruit and musk. The man smiled at Adelaide.
“I'm Joshua Carpenter,” he said. “Mrs. Devais sent me to take you home.” He extended a hand to her.
Adelaide frowned and shrank away. “I don't think we've met,” she said.
“He doesn't work for Judy Devais?” said Gregory.
“I work for the legal department,” said Joshua. “There's no reason Miss Hunter should have met me yet. I take it you've already spoken to her?”
“She's not a suspect,” said Gregory. “There's no reason she would need a lawyer.”
“Oh, I'm not a lawyer,” said Joshua. “I'm just from the legal department.”
“I don't understand,” said Gregory. “Why does she need someone from the legal department who's not a lawyer?”
Joshua turned his smile on Gregory. “That's between Mrs. Devais and Miss Hunter,” he said. “I assure you, Miss Hunter is very safe with me.”
“We'll need to check with Mrs. Devais,” said Gregory.
“Of course,” said Joshua. “Here are my credentials.” He handed Gregory a business card and turned to Adelaide. His smile fell. Carefully, he drew back the collar of her blouse. “I always knew Bruce Madison would be a liability. I'll have the company doctor look at that, take care of all the legal proceedings, and get her home.”
Gregory gave Joshua's business card to one of the other officers and stared at Joshua. “Are you alright with that?” he said to Adelaide.
“I think so,” she said. “I'd feel better if an officer was with us.”
“I would insist,” said Joshua.
The police officer returned. “Mrs. Devais confirmed. Joshua Carpenter works for the agency.”
Joshua extended his hand to Adelaide again. She took it this time.
As soon as he touched her, she felt a warmth come over spread through her body and a web of safety wrap around her. He smiled at her again and she found herself smiling back.
“Miss Hunter?” said Gregory.
“Huh?” she said, turning away from Joshua.
Gregory frowned. “Here's my card. If you think of something else or you need anything, and I mean anything, give me a call.”
“Uh huh,” she said turning back to Joshua. She couldn't explain why she suddenly found the man so fascinating.
Joshua wrapped an arm around her shoulders and escorted her out. All her troubles, worries, and fears melted away. Detective Gregory said something else to her, but she didn't hear it. Joshua walked her to his car. It wasn't flashy, but she could tell it was expensive. He opened the passenger side door for her and she slid into the seat as if it were made for her.
Joshua got behind the wheel and turned to her. His gaze was icy and her world turned frigid.
“Now we can talk,” he said.
All Adelaide wanted to do was run.
~~~~~
“I don't like him,” said Gregory.
“Only because he's cock-blocking you,” said Lin.
“Wait, what?” he said.
“Oh, please,” she said. “You were drooling over that bimbo from the second you saw her. There's good cop, bad cop and then there's letting your dick do the interview while you let your partner look like a bitch.”
“The man strangled her, Lin,” he said.
“And that poor little girl could have ripped him apart, Dirk,” she said.
“Jennie, she's barely a couple of inches taller than you,” he said. “She has what, maybe twenty, thirty pounds on you? Could you tear a grown man's head off? While tied down?”
“Adrenaline's an amazing thing, Dirk,” she said.
“You don't believe that,” he said. “Hell, I don't think I could. What's your real problem?”
Lin sighed and shook her head. She crossed the squad room to her desk and and started stacking case files. She yanked open her desk drawer and slammed it shut.
Gregory went to her. “What's going on, Jennie? What's the problem?”
She gripped the edge of her desk. “She's a whore, Dirk, a high class whore. She gets by on her looks and no talent. She makes the rest of us look bad. I've worked hard to get where I am in a male dominated field. She hasn't even tried.”
Gregory smiled at her. “Maybe she's worked harder than you think. Let's run a background check on this Joshua Carpenter and look at the evidence from the scene. I also want to know as much about the victim as we can.”
Lin took a deep breath and flexed her hands. “Yeah,” she said carefully, nodding.
~~~~~
Time stopped for Adelaide. Why did she leave the police station with this man? Something about him screamed dangerous. She knew it the moment she saw him, but she still left with him.
So why was she in his car?
She rubbed her arms and Joshua looked at her, his eyes hard as glass.
He smiled and the glass shattered. “You must be freezing,” he said, his voice lightly accented. She hadn't noticed that before. It was very faint.
“I'm really sorry,” he continued, “I laid it on a bit thick. It can have that effect sometimes.”
“What can have that effect?” she said.
He just laughed and shook his head. It was a pleasant sound, but she still felt uneasy.
“Please,” she said, “I haven't done anything wrong.” Her voice shook as she spoke.
He turned and cupped her face in his hand. “You poor girl. You have done something wrong, but you have no idea, do you? It's not your fault really.” He dropped his hand and turned away. He revved the engine and they took off so hard, Adelaide was pressed against the seat.
She managed to look at
Joshua. “You don't work for Mrs. Devais, do you?”
“No, I don't work for her,” he said. “She works for me. Indirectly, as it were. She pays me a percentage of her profits and I keep her out of trouble.”
“The legal department,” said Adelaide.
He laughed again. “After a fashion.”
“So I'm causing trouble for Mrs. Devais,” said Adelaide, trying to keep the tremor out of her voice. “What are you going to do to me?”
His brow creased as he hung a sharp left turn, driving Adelaide into the door. “Do to you?” he said. “I'm not going to do anything to you, Adelaide. I'm here to help you. You're just as much a victim as Bruce Madison. Maybe more so. What's been done to you is inexcusable. It's not how things are done. We have rules for situations like this.”
She let out a nervous laugh. “It's not the first time a John's tried to kill a hooker.”
He smiled warmly, but his eyes still disturbed her. They weren't cold or hard anymore, but there was still something in them. It was almost primal. She still felt as though she were in terrible danger.
“It's perfectly natural to be afraid of me,” he said. He put a hand on her knee, still smiling, using the other to steer. He glanced sideways at her. “I would question your intelligence if you didn't. I'm capable of great violence, but not against you. I won't harm my own kind. Maybe Bruce Madison sensed some of that same violence in you and that's why he tried to kill you.”
“I don't understand,” she said. “I couldn't hurt anyone, wouldn't hurt them. The most I've ever done was slap a client who liked to be knocked around. Now, if my hands had been free, I would have clawed his eyes out. Even I'm not that much of a pacifist.”
“Oh you did much more than claw the man's eyes out,” said Joshua. “I'm afraid what has happened to you isn't exactly fair or right. Someone broke the rules and they'll pay for it.”
“You're not making sense and you're scaring me,” said Adelaide.
He sighed as the car came to a stop. It was much smoother and quieter than the detective's car, despite Joshua's wild driving. “I am sorry for that,” he said. “I sometimes forget myself. I really didn't mean to charm you as heavily as I did back there. I needed you to trust me. Please don't make me do it again. It's tiring and it could hurt you.”
He got out of the car and came around to open Adelaide's door. He extended her hand to her again. She looked at it and bit her lip.
“I won't do what I did before,” he said, “as long as you try to trust me for just a little bit. And I swear to you, on my honor, I will not harm you. I only want to talk.”
She swallowed and took his hand. She held her breath, waiting for the warmth to spread through her, the euphoria to wash over her, but it never did.
“I gave you my word,” he said.
He helped her from the car and walked her to an expensive high rise.
“You live here?” she said.
“This is one of several properties I own,” he said.
She gave him a puzzled look. “Why so many apartments?”
“Apartments?” he said with a quizzical smile. He patted her arm and chuckled, shaking his head. She immediately felt silly. A man like Joshua Carpenter didn't own apartments, he owned buildings.
“I like to keep my options open,” he said, “and, sometimes, I find it's effective when I don't want to be found. I'm sure you'll feel the same soon enough.”
The door man smiled and nodded to them as Joshua handed the man his car keys.
“Good to see you again, Mr. Carpenter,” the man said. He had the look of a boxer or military man gone to seed. He was a little red faced with a day's stubble and a bright smile.
“It's always a pleasure, Reggie,” said Joshua.
Reggie nodded to Adelaide and opened the door for them. He didn't seem like a man afraid for his life. He seemed to even like Joshua. So why was she so scared of him?
They took an elevator up to the fortieth floor. She half expected the penthouse suite, but was relieved when he didn't select the button. The penthouse would be too private. If she had to get out she felt better on one of the regular floors. Maybe then, someone would hear her scream.
He led her to room 4013 and stopped. He reached in his pocket and retrieved several items.
The first was an old-fashioned Motorola flip phone she recognized as hers from the purple case.
“I believe you left this in Mr. Madison's car. Don't lose it again,” said Joshua. “I've taken the liberty of putting my number in there for you. Call me if you need me.”
She stared at him, dumb-founded. She started to speak, but he shook his head. He held onto the rest of the items from his pocket and opened the apartment door.
Adelaide gasped.
The room was huge with white and blue walls, gray drapes, and matching leather sofas. The windows were tinted for privacy. There were books littered across the apartment, ranging in subjects from beneficial botanicals, to herbalism, to how to start a successful small business. Paintings she was fond of hung on the walls and her favorite bluegrass echoed through the room.
“What is all this?” she said.
“I've watched you for some time, Adelaide,” said Joshua. “I've suspected what was done to you, but I wasn't sure. I prepared this in the event I was correct.”
“Correct about what?” she said.
He handed her the remaining items from his pocket. “These are your apartment keys. One for the flat you share with Miss Dorne and this one. This is yours if you want it, or if you ever need a place of refuge, and you will. You have some very trying times ahead of you.”
“I still don't know what you mean,” she said. “What's going on? Am I in trouble with Mrs. Devais or not?”
He smiled and shook his head. “No, this has nothing to do with Mrs. Devais and everything to do with what happened to that bastard Madison. Please, have a seat and I'll try to explain.”
He gestured to one of the lush gray, leather couches. She sank into the one nearest her and was struck by the faint odor of bergamot and vanilla. She found it warm and welcoming. It reminded her, for a moment, of Detective Gregory. She smiled a little.
“Good,” said Joshua. “I'm glad to see you relax. Let's start from the beginning, shall we?”
She inhaled deeply and looked him in the eyes.
~~~~~
Detective Lin sighed and rubbed her eyes. “This doesn't make any sense.”
Dirk peered over his monitor. “What's up?”
“Bruce Madison,” she said. “I can't find anything on him past two years ago.”
“So a fake identity?” said Dirk.
“It looks like,” she said. “I mean, before two years ago, this guy didn't exist. No finger prints, no social, not even a damned driver's license. It's like he dropped out of the sky. It's insane. Even if this is a fake identity, it should tie to an older identity or even the real person. And what's a wealthy guy like Bruce Madison doing with a false identity?”
Dirk raised an eyebrow and smirked. “Usually guys with fake IDs don't want to be found. The question is why? And why choose such a high profile identity.”
“He's hiding,” said Lin. She stood from her desk and walked over to his, crossing her arms.
“The man's a multi-millionaire who pays for expensive prostitutes,” said Dirk, tapping his finger next to his mouse. “He's got a funny way of hiding. I see what you mean. This doesn't make sense at all.” He looked up at her.
Lin pursed her lips. “So he's hiding, but he's having a hard time leaving behind old habits. Some people like to live a certain lifestyle. Look at your little girlfriend.”
Dirk frowned. “She doesn't strike me so much as a creature of habit, but more as a creature of necessity. And she's not my girlfriend, I just feel bad for her. To go through what she went through...” He stopped. “Madison strangled her,” Dirk said looking back at Lin.
>
“So you keep saying,” she said. “I don't feel any more sorry for the woman now than I did a few hours ago.”
Dirk shook his head. “Not that. I mean, you've got issues, but that's not what I'm getting at. This guy gets off on it. Or got of on it before someone ripped him a new one.”
“Well, yeah, he's a sicko,” said Lin and then her eyes went wide and her mouth made a little 'o.'
“What do you want to bet this wasn't his first time?” said Dirk.
“I wouldn't,” she said. She went back to her desk. “I'll look for missing escorts and other working girls. I'll also check strangulation cases over the last two years.”
“Go back five,” he said. “Madison changed his name for a reason. Let's also check the DNA we found at the scene, see if anything matches another case.”
“You think he's that sloppy?” she said, raising a thin eyebrow.
“The guy didn't bother to cover his trail past two years and he's gotten away with it until now,” said Dirk. “He's cocky. Or he was. Let's talk to Thomas Kent, the limo driver, again, see what else he knows.”
Lin nodded. “We should question Mrs. Devais' girls as well, see if any of them remember a girl or two going missing. Maybe one of them had a jealous boyfriend or an angry father. One of them may have even done it.” She gave Dirk a pointed look.
“Fair enough,” he said, “but Adelaide's a victim too. It could have been self-defense.”
His partner snorted. “Right, ripping a man to pieces is self-defense. She may have set him up. She could be working with one of the other girls. The right power tool and liberal amount of tork and they could have pulled his head right off. Someone might even have it in their freezer as a trophy.”
“Or maybe Carpenter killed Madison and he's come back to finish the job with Adelaide,” said Dirk. “No witnesses.”
Lin pointed a finger at him. “You let her leave the precinct with the man. Where'd you get with that anyway? Find any dirt?” She came back to his desk.
Dirk sighed and leaned back in his chair. “Not a thing.”
“Another fake?” she said.
He shook his head. “Not like that. This guy is squeaky clean. He donates to charity, hell he's on the board of a charitable organization, he owns eight properties around the city, offers low rent to struggling families, no priors, not even a moving violation.”
“So she's probably okay,” said Lin with a smile.