Leopard's Prey (Leopard People 5)

"I know you all grew up with Robert, but the things he did, the people who were hurt and he could have stopped it, don' you think he should at least spend time in jail?"

"A leopard can't be locked up for long, Bijou," Saria explained.

"Still, it feels like everyone else gets punished, but he's goin' to be vacationing in Borneo. How is that teaching him a lesson?"

"Drake is from Borneo," Saria said. "The men there rescue victims of kidnappers. It's dangerous and hard work. We live in civilization here. They live in the rain forest. They won't tolerate mistakes. Punishments there are brutal and fast. Robert isn't going on any picnic. He'll either grow up and become a decent man, or won't survive."

Bijou shook her head. "I don' know how you accepted all this so easily, Saria. It's a real struggle for me. Sometimes I think it's all a dream, or maybe I've gone a little insane."

"But you are a shifter, Bijou and you belong in our world. Do you understand? Because you can't run from who you are."

"Your brothers think I'm goin' to get bored or scared and leave here, don't they?" Bijou asked.

"I don't know what they think. I know better," Saria said. "We're your family. You never had one, and you always wanted one. I think you'll be more loyal and more protective than anyone else." She laughed softly. "With the exception of Remy. No one can be more protective than my big brother."

Bijou glanced at her watch. "Speaking of, if I don' leave soon, I'll be late for our dinner. He had something important he wanted to talk to me about."

"I should have known you were goin' somewhere with him. You look . . . radiant."

Bijou flashed a smile at Saria. "I do rather like that man."

"I would never have guessed. I suppose Remy's locked up just about everyone he can that he thinks might be a threat to you, so it must be safe enough."

"That's what he said. I'm meetin' him at the station house. We'll probably be home early though. He needs to get to bed." Bijou found herself blushing when Saria burst out laughing.

Saria sobered. "You know, Bijou, Remy's always going to be a cop."

"I know. But he'll be my cop."

Saria touched her teeth to her bottom lip. "A lot of women start out thinking it's cool to be with a cop, but the reality of that world gets to them after a while. Do you think you can handle it long term? Remy is very good at what he does and, although if you really were upset I think he'd stop, he wouldn't be happy."

"I'm proud of who he is, Saria, and what he does. I'm going to make a success of the club and make certain he can be just as proud of me." Her eyes met Saria's. "Your brother really is safe with me."

Saria's answering smile was serene. "I know that, I just wanted to make certain you knew it as well. Have fun tonight, although," she added mischievously, "whenever my big brother wanted to talk to me about somethin', I was usually in trouble."

Laughing, Bijou hurried to the car with a wave of her hand. Saria and her brothers definitely enjoyed teasing one another and they already had begun to include her in the warmth of their circle. She had come home looking for her white knight and she'd found him. Remy was everything she remembered and more.

She would never forget his face, the way he yanked her out of the hotel room and shook the living daylights out of her. He'd cared. He'd been alarmed. That had been the moment she realized much more would have gone on in that room than her simply overdosing. She saw it in his eyes. In the expression on his face. He'd been horrified and he'd been angry. She would never forget his eyes as long as she lived.

Everything about Remy was beautiful to her, even his famous temper. He would always be a cop, but he would be her cop and she knew she could live with that. She had a home and a family and Remy had given both to her. There was no way to describe to someone else how much she loved him. The intensity of her emotions when she was around him sometimes overwhelmed her.

She drove carefully in Saria's car. She loved fast cars and often went to racetracks and drove. She'd never mentioned that little secret to Remy, or the fact that she owned more than one high performance car. He'd never asked her much about her life and he was in for a few surprises. She did like to live simply, but that didn't mean she didn't like nice things--or really fast cars.

Laughing at the thought of his pained expression when she told him, she pulled up to the police station. At night it looked different. Somber. Even haunted. During the day people were in and out, but at night there was only a single valiant light over the door and the place appeared to be deserted.

As she walked up the stairs to the station door, she glanced around her. Night had closed in completely and fog had drifted in. Lights from street and stores appeared dull yellow halos, unable to penetrate the gathering fog. She shivered and rubbed her arms. That other inside of her was restless and she could tell the female leopard's mood was affecting her as well. She told herself she was too imaginative and the fog and deserted streets were making her edgy.

Much more sober, she walked through the station, heading back toward Remy's office. There were only a couple of people working and they looked up and waved. She lifted a hand as she went through to the homicide bull pen. Remy didn't appear to be in his office. She glanced at her watch. She was a little late. Had he left her? Forgot? That wasn't his style.

Her mouth felt dry and her heart beat too fast. The other pushed at her, wanting her freedom. Bijou was too new in the ways of leopard to know what to do to settle her down. She took several deep breaths and prayed Remy would hurry up.

A woman came around the corner, both hands wrapped around a steaming cup of coffee. She smiled at Bijou. "Remy asked me to tell you he stepped out for a couple of minutes. He'll be right back. He's just down the street at the gallery. I'm Angelina, the computer nerd."

Bijou smiled at her, relief flooding. Remy wouldn't be gone long, and he'd know what to do. "I'm Bijou Breaux."

"Remy's woman," Angelina said. "You've made him very happy."

Bijou liked Angelina immediately. "I hope so. He certainly makes me happy."

"Would you like a cup of coffee while you wait?" Angelina asked.

"That would be lovely," Bijou said.

She wandered around the room, looking at the desks and computers, marveling at how the men and women working there solved murders and various other crimes. Her path took her nearly straight to the murder board. She tried not to look, but it was impossible not to stare at the horrendous pictures of a man brutally murdered.

"You shouldn't look at that," Angelina said. "It will give you nightmares."

"It's like the train wreck you can't stop watching, isn't it?" Bijou asked as she took the coffee. Her gaze went back to the board. "It's almost mesmerizing. Who could do such things to another human being?"

"Sadly, Bijou, working here, I've learned human beings can be very cruel to one another. I stopped being shocked many years ago--until this killer came along."

Bijou studied the altar. It was so bizarre. "Is that really a bowl of blood and a human hand? His heart? This looks like something from a horror movie, not real life . . ." She trailed off, peering closer.

Her breath rushed out of her lungs. Her hands went numb. The coffee mug crashed to the floor. "Angelina," she said without turning around. "Where did you say Remy went?"

"To the gallery. Are you all right?"

"No. No, I'm not all right. Call everyone. Call them right now and send them to the gallery." She ripped her phone from her purse and took off running, hitting the only other number she had on speed dial besides Remy.

Saria answered almost immediately. Bijou burst out of the station house. "Remy's in trouble, Saria. Send Gage and everyone else to the gallery just down from his station. He's there now."

She yelled into the phone as she tried to run down the street toward the gallery. Her high heels slowed her down so she kicked them off and ran in her stockings.

"What do you mean?"

"The stone. In the altar. It was Arnaud's. Remy went there t

o talk to him. I may be crazy but that stone is unmistakable." She was breathing too hard to continue talking so she just ran, her heart in her throat.

Her leopard had been trying to warn her something was wrong, but she hadn't yet gotten used to trusting her other side. There was no doubt in her mind Remy was in trouble. Everything in her screamed that he needed her. Every hair in her body stood up. Goose bumps ran up and down her arms.

"Gage says wait for help," Saria screamed into the phone.

She'd forgotten to end the call. She wasn't waiting. Was Gage crazy? Maybe he didn't believe her, but it all fell into place for her. All the clues that had been right in front of her.

Arnaud was completely disconnected from people. He didn't view them as human beings. Even his sculpture was about life-forms, not human beings. He was enormously strong from all the climbing he did over the years. He traveled all over the world and he went to most of her concerts. He had tremendous skill with cutting tools.

Remy wondered why the harvester had taken the same set of bones. Clearly he'd lost the first set. They must have been in the SUV that had gone into the bayou. Arnaud was merely replacing what he'd lost. He'd actually said to her that there was nothing in the vehicle that couldn't be replaced. He'd said he was behind on his timetable. And his sculpture . . . Oh, God, why hadn't she noticed? Why hadn't it registered? All those faces. His victims giving back.

"Please, please, please," she chanted. "Don' let me be too late."

She wrenched the door to the gallery open and ran inside without hesitation. Skidding to a halt, she could see the light coming from under the door to the back room. Heart pounding, she walked barefoot through the gallery to the door. Her mouth was dry. Her leopard was raging. Her heart felt wild and out of control.

Bijou took a deep breath and opened the door. Arnaud was standing over Remy's body, staring down at his face with a look very close to love. Remy was lying motionless on the long table. Beside him was a spread-open leather pouch. The light shining down into Remy's face also illuminated the array of cutting tools Arnaud had spread out beside the detective.

"Arnaud?" she called out to the artist.