Playing Their Parts

Stone sighed, looking down again at the small, feminine hand on his knee. He had heard Cassandra refer to herself as a “curvy girl” or “plus sized” on occasion, which seemed to be a bad thing, here on Earth. But she was simply what the Twin Kindred called an “Elite”—a female the Goddess had blessed with extra-generous curves. And she was still so much smaller than him that he felt he had to be careful around her. Her little hand looked like a child’s compared to his own when he took it in his.

Cassandra didn’t try to pull her hand away. Instead she shot him a sympathetic look and squeezed his fingers.

“Still worried? Look, I’m sure we’ll find out it was either a human perp or some kind of accidental death. It’s like you said—Kindred warriors don’t kill women, human men kill women.”

“I hope you’re right.” Stone gave her little hand an answering squeeze and then made himself let it go, though he would have been happy to hold it all evening. There was an easy physical affection between himself and Cassandra now that they had settled into their roles as best friends and partners—they sat close together and she often patted his cheek or rubbed his shoulders if she thought he was tense. She even fell asleep with her head against his arm during their “movie nights” sometimes.

But Stone was careful not to push it—not to get greedy when it came to touching her. If he’d had his way, he would have run his hands and mouth over every inch of her lush body, but he was well aware that Cassandra didn’t feel that way for him. So he carefully monitored how much he touched her, not wanting to make her uncomfortable and drive her away.

He wished, not for the first time, that the Goddess had sent him to a female who could return his love. But if it was his fate to live his life in an unrequited relationship, well, then he would do it.

Because he couldn’t imagine his existence without Cassandra—he didn’t even want to try.

Five

They got to the Bayshore address before the ambulance or the crime scene crew, which was nice for a change, Cassie thought. They didn’t have to warn any EMTs not to track through the crime scene.

She wondered if the owner of the house who’d called the homicide in had bothered to call an ambulance at all or if she’d just asked for the police. If that was the case, the vic must be really obviously dead with no chance at all for resuscitation.

To their left, the long stretch of unbroken sidewalk unspooled and beyond that Cassie could see the blue-gray waters of Tampa Bay. The mansion—because it really was a mansion—towered over them impressively with its perfect view of the water.

“Well, here we go,” she said to Stone, who only grunted in reply. He was back to being his silent self after opening up in the car. Cassie hoped for his sake that they weren’t going to find out the perp really was a Kindred. The idea seemed to bother her partner in a way none of the other homicides they’d worked had.

The owner met them at the front door, dancing from foot to foot in apparent agitation. She was a blonde girl dressed in expensive yoga pants and a t-shirt with a designer label that probably cost as much as one of Cassie’s car payments. She looked to be in her early twenties—too young to own the huge mansion they were in. Maybe a college student home on break, Cassie speculated.

“Hello, ma’am,” Stone began. “We are—”

“Are you the police? Please say you’re the police!” the girl interrupted him in a high, anxious voice. “I called ages ago. Oh my God, please hurry!”

“We came as soon as we got the call,” Cassie said, frowning. “We understand there’s been a homicide here?”

“Shhh! Don’t say it so loud!” The girl looked around as though someone might be watching. Actually, someone probably was—a lot of someones. Bayshore was a busy street with people biking and walking and skating up and down the long sidewalk day and night. There was even a business at the far end of it called Bikes and Blades on Bayshore that rented skates and bikes to people. It was a very popular exercise location.

“Can we come in?” Cassie asked, raising an eyebrow, since the girl was still blocking the doorway with her skinny ass.

“Oh, yes! Yes, of course—right. Come in, come in!” The girl stepped back and gestured them frantically inside.

Her eyes widened when she saw Stone’s immense size—he had been standing several steps down when Cassie rang the doorbell. But once he was on the level with her and the girl, he dwarfed them both.

“You’re a Kindred, too, right?” she asked in a small, trembling voice, looking up at him and taking a careful step away.