Bloody Love (Lilah Love 6)

“We noticed,” Houston says. “Thanks, Joe.”

Joe leaves the room and Marco joins the huddle with me and Houston. “Now what?”

“You follow us to the mail center. She gives us what’s inside the lockbox. And then I withdraw the offer of Kane’s men. You offer her police support.”

“To what end?” Marco asks.

“Aside from the fact that she will decline police support, she’ll ultimately believe she’s free and clear of the murders.”

“You think she did it now?” Houston asks. “For sure?”

“She’s a Black Widow.”

“That’s a stretch. Don’t they usually kill their lovers?”

“They were her lovers and yes, there seems to be a revenge element here which makes her all the more complex to read. She seems to be targeting me and Kane, but I believe that’s because to her we’re somehow a part of the world she’d created with them. Perhaps in a way we have yet to fully understand. But everyone she sees as damaging that world, dies.”

“You’re in her sights,” Marco comments. “That’s a pretty hairy seat to sit in.”

“Let’s hope she’s hyper-focused on me and Kane and we’ll be her next targets,” I say. “That takes the heat off of others. But I also expect she’ll head to New Hampshire where she expected to meet Ann, or so I predict. And I will have men following.”

“All right then,” Marco says. “If you want to take that heat, we’ll go with it.”

I eye Houston. “I need you to try to get the info we need for that warrant the old-fashioned way. My team is looking hard at Marilyn and her connections electronically. I want to avoid anything that lets Marilyn know we’re looking at her at all. We need her to feel safe enough to do bad things while we’re watching. But you can work the hotel and the hotel staff. Follow leads you get from that angle.”

“Will do,” he says. “And I’ll get with Andrew and we’ll pool our resources.”

“Great. And I’ll prepare for the brotherly lecture about always doing things legally.”

“He’s in a small community,” Houston says. “He has a much narrower view than we do. The idea here is that no one else dies. So you get the facts. We’ll find a way to back into them the right way.”

“If we catch her doing bad things, she’ll convict herself for us.” I motion to Marco. “Let’s do this. Let’s go make Marilyn feel safe and secure, like our best buddy who is saving the day.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

Once we tell Marilyn that she passed her lie detector test with flying colors, and watch the satisfaction roll over her features, Houston has her give a written statement and asks her to include details about the Clementine as an event location. Thank fuck, that process is quick and easy, and we’re ready to get the hell out of the precinct and on with this.

I return to the parking lot with Marilyn in tow. Marilyn heads to Enrique’s SUV. He turns to me.

“What the fuck?”

“We’re going to the lockbox and then you’ll drop her at her apartment.”

Enrique looks like he just ate a raw oyster with this news. “Why not Jay?”

“Jay has bad luck. He’ll end up dead.”

“She’s right,” Jay says. “She’s all yours.”

“One more thing,” I say. “Insist that for her safety you go in and clear the box.” I reach in my bag and hand him the envelope that was taken out of the lockbox last night. “Walk in with this hidden under your jacket. Don’t let Marilyn know you have it. And then make a big deal of opening the box and grabbing what you already have.”

“Then I get rid of that bitch.”

“Yes. Consider getting rid of her a reward for good work.”

“I’m on it.”

“We’ll follow you,” I say, as we both head to our respective vehicles.

I laugh as Jay and I climb into the Mercedes. “The cartel Enrique can handle, but not a woman who he believes is nothing shy of a voodoo witch. He’s afraid of her.”

“So am I,” Jay says. “Word to the wise. Mexicans are superstitious. You get us going down that black magic train of thought, and we’ll lose our shit.”

Word to the wise, indeed.

I store that tidbit of information away for future use.

Enrique pulls out of the precinct driveway and we are right behind him.

The drive to the mail center is short. Jay pulls into a parking spot next to Enrique, who gets out of the car and heads into the store. Marilyn stays in the car, and with Jay shadowing me protectively, I walk to the passenger door. She rolls down the window. “Enrique said he wants me to be safe,” she explains. “He wanted me to stay in the vehicle.”

“Enrique’s a smart man,” I say. “It’s better to be safe than sorry, which is why I’m eager to get you on the road to New Hampshire.”