zoo menagerie?'
'Our vicious hyena is curled in his lair, but as you expected, he did make another reconnaissance run early this morning ... and he wasn't alone this time. I think he had planned an unexpected party. Needless to say, he was not pleased to find the nest of the Raven abandoned.'
'Abandoned? How so?'
'My resources were divided at the time. The uniforms were noticeably absent. But I will find out where the bird has flown if you order it.'
He sipped his coffee, pondering his next move. 'Yes, I'm curious. See what you can find out. But first, locate a suitable replacement and get some rest. I have a feeling our beast will soon be more frenzied in his hunt. What is your opinion, Mantis?'
'A very astute observation. I would agree. Should I put him out of his misery? You only have to give the command.'
'This is developing into an interesting standoff. The timing could prove to be most. . . entertaining.'
He stood, brushing off his dark gray suit with his linen napkin. Walking to a window, he gazed upon the drab day, a true reflection of his disposition.
'My contacts abroad have informed me that my recent trip to Paris had some effect. And if I had to guess, I'd say guilt will soon be winging her home.'
Silence. It took Jasmine a moment to respond.
'Are you okay, Nicky?' The beautiful woman was most perceptive. 'I can end it now; just give the word.'
He considered her words, then responded, failing miserably to keep the melancholy from his voice.
'There is still time, Mantis. I'm not ready for such finality. As you've said before, it shall not be difficult to lay the blame at the feet of the dearly departed hyena.'
'Not so dearly departed from my perspective. But I shall respect your wishes. I will see you shortly.'
'And I will be waiting.' He ended the call.
He knew Jasmine perceived a change in him whenever he talked about Paris. She allowed him to keep his distance on the subject of Fiona, even though he suspected his bodyguard knew more than she let on. He confided so much in her, but not about this. His pride and his disdain for vulnerability would not allow it.
After a quick breakfast, Raven set up a work area in the study, spreading the case files over a table near the fireplace. A steady flame burned atop a bed of white ash with orange embers glowing through the pyre. Finally looking up from her work, she gazed toward the windows. Through the sheers, the gray morning must have dispersed, leaving a sunny day, without much notice from her. The work had been tedious.
Burrowed into the corner of an oversized black leather sofa, she tucked the edge of a comforter under her legs, an ankle resting on Christian's thigh. Earlier, she had ventured the bold move, forgetting herself. Once she realized what she had done, the intimacy of the act sent chills across her skin. But he took it all in stride, only sharing a faint smile and a steamy glance from those bedroom eyes. Now he intently studied a file as he sipped from a coffee mug. She winced when she spotted the bruise on his lip, then fought to hide her smile at the memory of last night.
After a while, he broke the comfortable silence between them.
'So, if I'm reading this report correctly, the investigation on Fiona came to an end without any link found to the murder of her husband. According to this, her phone and bank records were clean.' He thumbed through the last pages of a detective's findings, his eyes searching the details. 'No indictment.'
'At the time, yes. But I've started a new search on Mickey's past. We've already instigated a look into his phone records and banking information. We'll be looking for any frequently dialed phone numbers or deposits of any significant size. If there's a connection to Fiona, or anyone who might've given the order, it may still turn up.'
She saw defeat in his eyes. 'It's standard operating procedure for an investigator to look at the person who had the most to gain by the victim's death. I'm exploring all my options, that's all.'
'I know. But Mickey could have worked for someone else, even if he was the shooter, right?'
'Yes. But keep in mind that he got his security job at Dunhill shortly
His eyes fixed upon her, letting the silence fill the void. Then in a soft voice, he began. 'Fiona gave me a home when I had no one. I would have been a ward of the state if she hadn't intervened. To this day, I don't know why she did it.'
'You were a young boy needing help, and she had the resources. Still, it was very generous of her. But why you, Christian? Did you have any other connection to her?'
'No. She said she took pity on me from reading the story in the newspaper.' He shook his head, a sad smile on his face. 'I was a real basket case. The fear, the anger—I fought her every step of the way, like it was all her fault. But she never backed away. She waited for me to reach out to her.'
Raven's cell phone vibrated on her belt. The timing couldn't have been worse. 'Mackenzie.'
The voice of CSI Scott Farrell recited his findings on the ballistics test conducted on the sniper rifle found at the marina locker. It looked as if Christian were holding his breath until she finished the call.
'The ballistics report came back positive. The striations matched the bullet retrieved from the body of Charles Dunhill. And Blair's prints were the only ones found on the rifle. Pretty good indication that Mickey was the shooter.'
He swallowed hard as he digested the new information, clutching the file on his lap. 'I just want you to understand that I owe her everything. And she's not the kind of woman that would kill her own husband. Don't get me wrong, she's one of the strongest women I know. But to kill for money? It's not possible.'
'But she might kill for another reason?'
At first, her suggestion that Fiona could kill for any motive looked like it surprised him. The shock of it registered in his eyes. Yet his silence told her all she needed to know. Fiona Dunhill was indeed a strong woman. But what would force her to condone murder as a necessary evil? And the cop in her was plagued by another piece of the puzzle.
'It still bothers me that the killer staged the old armory, suggesting there's a tie to the death of your family and the murder of Dunhill. Have you thought about the link?'
He shook his head, pulling a hand through his dark waves in frustration. 'That's been bugging me, too. I was always told police had a hand in the killings, some kind of botched police raid on the wrong house. But no charges were ever filed. Any way for you to check that out? I've blocked so much from my memory.'
'I've got an old family friend checking on that one. He was a partner to my father. Sam's got a pretty long memory. Maybe something will turn up.'
Christian's sad gaze drifted toward the crackling fire, his mind clearly rooted in his past. With his chin resting on the back of his hand, his expression grew more solemn.
'What's the matter? Did you think of something?' she prodded.
After a long moment of silence, he finally confided in her. 'You were right about Fiona being gone. And it's not like her to run from a fight.' The fire flickered in his eyes. 'I just found out how little I know about her. I've been so wrapped up in my own misery, I forgot how much she's done for me.'
Coaxed by his words, she turned her thoughts to the memory of her father. He had made parenting look effortless. At least, that's how she chose to remember him.
As a bulletproof teen, she believed he would be with her forever. Now all that remained was the foundation of love he'd built for her.
'No matter how all this turns out, Christian, it's important that you always remember that.' It was all she could say to comfort him.
Vinnie stepped quietly up the stairs, then knocked on Logan's bedroom door. The heavy tray in his hands carried the man's dinner. If everything wasn't perfect, Logan would unleash on him. These days, it didn't take much
