A video was playing already when she reached and picked it up. From the sounds of it, it was some kind of raunchy skin flick … lots of moaning, grunting, and profanity. Having never seen herself in that kind of situation before, it took her a second or two of watching to realize exactly what was going on.
“Bastard! You sick … bastard!” Her eyes flared like lightning across a dry, desert sky as she shot a look at Cutter that could have bent hybristeel bars. “Was that the plan all along? To make a goddamned porn vid?”
“Not really,” he shrugged nonchalantly. “It just kinda hit me while I was watching. Gotta admit, though … you don’t look like an amateur. At first, I thought it was the skin patch, but after a while … I dunno … I think there’s more to Tallulah Carter than meets the eye. Whadda you think?”
“I think I should shoot you where you stand! There isn’t a jury in the Zone that would convict me …”
“I wouldn’t suggest you do anything,” he replied calmly. “Not unless you wanna copy of this very vid sent to Chrissy Boy’s attorney.”
Her face went pale, and her heart sank. She knew if this got out, she would lose the kids. She’d be declared an unfit mother, and Chris would ask for supervised visits. Hell, I’d do the same thing if it was him with three girls! Not only that, but she could easily lose her job if this kind of smut went public.
“I’m thinking about putting that little clip on the ultranet. You know, I got several hot little websites I … shall we say, back financially, if you know what I mean. Whaddaya think?”
“I think if you wanted to do it, you’d have done it already,” Lulah sensed something. Did Cutter want to deal? What was it she had on him that he felt he needed to negotiate? “Let’s quit playing games. Whaddaya want?”
He took the PDC back from her and put it away, “I don’t want my friendship with Tiger ever fucked up over you. Understand?”
“Well, I’m certainly never going to tell him.”
“Very well,” he nodded grudgingly. “You’ve won, for now. But, I ain’t promising you I’m gone forever.”
“I’ll take what I can get.”
“It’s worked for me.” He winked as he turned to walk out the door. “Everything I took from you, I enjoyed … every last, tasty drop.”
“Oh, Cutter.” She stopped him at the door. When he turned around, the look on her face and the tone in her voice made it clear the forthcoming words were meant to hurt. “I just want you to know … I’m glad you were out on a run the night I showed up at the Cockpit.”
He stood silent for a moment, and she could tell she’d stung him. At least, as much as a man like Cutter Hawkins could be stung. He looked at her curiously, and she could tell he was pondering just how to retort. She was expecting him to make another snide remark about how slutty he’d made her and how much he’d enjoyed debasing her. She never expected what she got.
“Y’know, you should ask your Mister Goldenheart just where he was the three weeks Luna was burning. You might be surprised by the answer. Ask him who kept him warm ‘til Cleveland took it up the ass.”
He grinned, enjoying her face turning pale. “Go ahead. You might find it interesting.”
Chapter 6
Matt waited for almost an hour for Stella before he began to worry in earnest. The first thirty minutes he’d thought maybe she’d stopped on the way home for a bottle of wine or Chinese takeout. The girl loved her some Moo Goo Gai Pan. But when his calls still went unanswered, and he couldn’t locate her PDC on iTraceU, the bad feeling started to settle deep in his gut.
Sure, she’d been upset with him earlier in the day about the whole Frost debacle, and looking back, she had every right to be. He’d intended to apologize for that as soon as she walked in the door. There’d been no excuse for his behavior, even if there’d been no excuse for the mix-up. A senior officer should never dress down a subordinate in front of the bad guy, especially when they’re as fine an officer as Stella. Throw in the fact that this damned good cop is your lover, and you really got a SNAFU on your hands.
After more than an hour of frustration, his calls going unanswered (he’d even reverted to text messaging), he was sure something had gone horribly wrong. Stella Jones wasn’t the kind to give him the cold shoulder without first telling him, in no uncertain terms, to fuck off. Besides, she might run him out of her apartment, but it was her apartment. Why would she avoid her own home? Stella wasn’t one to stop off at a watering hole and unwind. She wasn’t a shopper, preferring to order online whenever possible. She rarely dined out, preferring takeout or delivery. Most of the time, she was already home and awaiting him when he arrived. Early in their affair, she’d given him the access code to her apartment, but including today, he could probably count the number of times he’d used it on one hand. And in all the times previous, she’d always called to say she was running a few minutes late and for him to go on in and make himself comfortable.
His instincts as a cop were screaming, and it was almost deafening in his mind. All kinds of tragic scenarios flashed through his imagination. Even if foul play was ruled out, there were still dozens of other things that could’ve happened. Unable to control himself any longer, he pulled out his PDC and ordered it to call the Precinct.
A middle-aged female trooper, her hair pulled back into a ponytail, appeared before him. Sergeant Mickles was working the
