Bloody Vows (Lilah Love 5)

I roll my eyes. “Metal is not a sponge.”

“I know that and my friend at the pharmaceutical company said the same. I’ll text you a photo of the devices.”

“Anything else worth mentioning?”

“This requires very specific skills of which I can’t even fully name. And Emma Wells was healthy until metal ripped her open. Photo coming. Let me know if you need me.”

“You’re still hitting on me, DD,” I say, and she gasps.

“I meant that professionally, Agent—”

“See that you do,” I say and hang up. She’s so gullible. If she’s a Society plant, she’s a soldier, not a leader. And sometimes soldiers can be useful. My coffee is set on the bar. I carry it to one of the tiny wooden tables all these Manhattan joints sport and sit down. The photo from DD arrives and she’s right. It almost looks like it could have been a tiny BB-like pellet that had sharp objects poking out from inside. It looks like she found about a dozen inside Emma’s body.

It’s evil.

And DD’s idea of a sponge-like device that explodes in your mouth is either foolish or brilliant.

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

I shoot the photograph of the murder weapon to Andrew and Tic Tac via a group text and label it the obvious for me but perhaps not for them: Murder weapon. The medical examiner believes this starts as what I assume to be a ball the size of the head of a pin that expands with water. I’m not sure how metal expands with water, but that’s her theory.

I don’t wait for either to reply. I don’t even give my brother time to look at the photograph. I dial Andrew and not only does he answer on the first ring, he gets right to the point. “Lucas isn’t at home or he’s not answering his door. I walked around back and looked inside and the lights are out. And the airport won’t release information. I’ve got a call into the big boss. I know him. He’ll help. Call me when you get a break or I’ll call you when I know something. And Lilah, this is Kane. He’s fine. He’ll call soon.”

“Right,” I say, and I’m now thinking of Kane’s warning to Lucas about getting involved in his uncle’s business being a good way to have a short life. Not long ago, when Kane’s uncle disappeared for a few days, Kane was pulled into the cartel, he had to prevent some sort of war between rivals. What if during that period, Kane burned someone and they wanted revenge?

“Lilah.”

At Andrew’s prodding, I snap back to the present. “Yes,” I say, and I move the conversation forward. “You heard about the new victim?”

“Houston called me,” he confirms. “Was she wearing a wedding dress?”

“No.”

“Did the killer leave you a jar of pig’s blood?”

“No pig’s blood this time.”

“Interesting,” he says, “And before I comment further, there are no reports of missing or dead pigs in our area, or for a sixty-mile radius.”

“What?” I say in mock disbelief. “The elites of the Hamptons have no pig blood donation center?”

“That was a bad joke,” he says. “Worse than most of your jokes.”

“Probably.”

“Absolutely.” He changes the subject. “We tested your food from last night. It’s all clear.”

“Somehow I knew that. I don’t think that woman was there to hurt us. Just distract me.”

“Okay, so let’s talk about that. Someone, the killer, we assume, wants to distract you and us. Why leave the blood and dress the first time, but not the second?”

“If my attention was the goal, the killer has that already,” I say, though it’s a decidedly lame answer. And I don’t have a better answer, not one I’m satisfied with, which I normally would by now. “Did you see the photo of the murder weapon?”

“I just saw it,” he says. “Craziest thing I’ve ever seen. It’s like black ops military weapons from a movie.”

“A good reason to see if anyone in Emma’s life, past or present, has a background in the military.” I think of the investment game Banking the Billionaire. “Or investments in a military project of some sort,” I add. “I’ll have our tech team work on it, too. Though we both know that’s the most obvious thing to do. The killer expects that.”

“What does the profiler in you say right now about the killer?”

Oddly, while I couldn’t answer that question for Houston, some pieces of the puzzle flow from me now. “He’s not easily challenged. He’s bored easily. He most likely plays that online game and wins every time and easily. He’s probably wealthy and highly educated.”

“Well, those two things describe this entire city. I’m back to why did he want your attention? You, Lilah.”

“I’m the challenge.”

“But why you? It feels personal. The wedding dress. The blood.”

“I told you. The Umbrella Man case grabbed his attention. My role in that case declared me the one who might challenge him. The blood was in the news. The wedding was most likely blabbed about by Samantha, and don’t tell me you didn’t tell her. Once she knows something, the entire town knows.”