The Hangman (The Forgotten Files 3)

“Better than good.”

He moved inside of her, driving her back into the mattress. He came and collapsed against her. He lay on top of her, their hearts beating furiously.

He rolled on his back beside her. Neither spoke as they caught their breath.

“Thanks, Novak. I needed that.” She laughed.

Ken arrived at the city jail after visiting hours. He’d not been here in over a year. Wendy would be pissed when she found out he’d taken the car out alone, but assuming he got back safely, he’d deal with her then.

He moved up to the front desk and grinned at the guard as he pulled out his badge that he’d broken out of the shadow box the department had given him when he retired. He didn’t recognize the guy and hoped they’d never met. He didn’t need a lot of time here, but he needed to get inside.

The deputy glanced at the badge. “What can I do for you, Detective?”

“I’d like to talk to one of your inmates. Won’t take long. Just pulling together details.”

“Sure. Who?”

“Benny Santiago.”

“Sure. Might be a minute. Get checked in and I’ll buzz you in at the door.”

He did as told, and when the door buzzed, he moved through it, realizing how much he missed the job. Retirement hadn’t been optional. It sucked. He settled in an interview room, asking the guard not to tape the session.

He sat in his chair and leaned back as if he had all the cards in a high-stakes game. He tugged at his cuffs and then the front of his jacket, which had gotten tight in the last year.

The door opened, and a shackled Benny Santiago was ushered into the room. The deputy locked the prisoner’s handcuffed hands to a metal ring secured to the table.

The dealer showed no emotion. That was the way guys like Benny played it. Show nothing. But Ken knew the gears in the dealer’s head were spinning as he tried to figure out what the hell was going on.

Benny slouched back in his chair. “What do you want?”

Ken waited until the guard left. “To see you. And to let you know that I’m the guy who’s going to kill you.”

That prompted a grin. “Really? How you gonna do that, old man?”

“Won’t have to raise a finger,” Ken said. “See, I was in the game a long time. Made a lot of connections, both friends and enemies.”

“There a point to this?”

“I know the prison where they’re sending you. I made calls and asked a few of my buddies who work there if they could spread the word about you.”

The grin faded. “What have you done?”

He was old, his memory abandoning him more each day, but there was still enough left of him to hurt this bastard. “By the time you arrive, the right people will know you sold them out for a reduced sentence.”

“I didn’t tell no one shit.”

“Benny, that’s not what they’re hearing. These very nasty guys think you snitched like a little bitch.”

“Fuck you.”

Ken didn’t flinch. In this moment, he felt like his old self, and it felt fucking good. “No, pal, fuck you.”

“Why you doing this?”

“You made a mistake when you hurt Julia Vargas.”

“I didn’t know she was a fucking cop.”

“Doesn’t matter. You did, and now you will pay.” Chuckling, Ken stood and moved to the door.

Benny’s chains rattled against the ring and he tried to jerk them free. “You can’t do this!”

“It’s done. You’re a dead man.”

“I’ll tell. They’ll come after you.”

“Maybe the cops will. But I don’t give a shit. I got nothing to lose, Benny.”

Novak liked seeing Julia in one of his white shirts, which skimmed her long, tanned legs. He’d slipped on gym shorts. A frozen pizza cooked in the oven as she sipped coffee.

“So, what have you heard about what happened with me and Santiago?” she asked.

Novak sensed she was trying to figure out if she could trust him with more than her body. He pushed aside a surge of pure outrage over what he now suspected Santiago had done to her. “I heard it was rough.”

“Yeah, it’s common knowledge he beat the hell out of me. It took several weeks for the bruises and cracked ribs to heal.”

He was silent as he waited for her to keep talking.

The word she’d yet to utter made her flinch. “A friend of mine is a forensic nurse at a local hospital. I saw her the next day. She did the full work-up, including evidence collection. Her unit will hold the evidence for two years in case I decide to use it. Other than a bad memory or two, he gave me no other nasty extras.”

Without saying the word, she’d admitted to him what happened.

“Why didn’t you press charges?”

“I couldn’t handle my coworkers seeing me as a victim. The beating was bad enough. The other would have made it unbearable.”

He closed the gap between them and wrapped his arms around her. She stiffened and pulled away. He let her go, dropping his arms.

She ran a trembling hand through her hair. “I’m not a victim, Novak.”

“You’re certainly not.”

She hesitated. “I’ve never been good at intimacy. And what happened in Virginia Beach didn’t help.”

“You did a good job of it twenty-five minutes ago.”

That startled a shaky laugh out of her. “Come on. You know that’s different. Sex and intimacy aren’t the same thing.”

“What we shared, well, let’s say it was charged with a lot of emotion.”

“Maybe.” She shrugged and threaded her fingers through her hair again. “Standing here like this, Jesus, talking . . . it feels far more intimate than I’m com

fortable with.”

“But you’re doing it.”

“I’ve created the impression of intimacy, but is it really there?”

“Who else have you spent time like this with lately?”

She didn’t answer.

“Who?”

“No one.”

He carefully took her face in his hands. “So this is different.”

“Yes,” she whispered. Suddenly her gaze glistened with tears. She tipped her head back. “I hate tears. Hate them.”

“Why?”

“I saw my mother cry over my father enough times. Tears don’t fix problems.” And still they filled her eyes. She tipped her head back farther. “I’m getting all girlie on you. When emotions get sticky, it’s usually the signal to leave.”

“Whose signal?”

“My signal.”

“Why leave? It’s getting good.”

When she tried to pull her head free, he tightened his hold on her face enough so she knew he wanted her to stay, and yet loose enough so if she really wanted to break free, she could.

She drew in a ragged breath. “I don’t want to talk anymore. I can’t.”

Novak kissed her, showing instead of telling her that he wanted her again. “So we don’t have to talk.”

She wrapped her arms around him, her body pressing against his. “I might stay. If you can convince me it’s worth my while.”

He was rock hard as he smoothed his hand up under the shirt and cupped her breasts. He knew when he touched her, she wanted him.

He backed her up onto the counter as he pulled a condom from the pocket of his shorts. As he slid it on, she kissed him and opened for him. He pulled her to the edge, freed himself, and with one thrust pushed deep into her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned back.

This time, not able to hold back or go slow, he was faster, more urgent. He needed her to know how much he wanted her. Her body tensed.

“Open your eyes,” he said. “See me.”

She hesitated, then looked at him.

“If you don’t want this, say it.” He continued to move inside her. “Tell me what you want.”

She didn’t speak at first but then whispered, “You.”

“I won’t hurt you. Ever.”

She moistened her lips. And reached for her center as if she simply wanted to lose herself in the sex again.