Conflicting Interests (26 page)

“Sorry, sweetie. Stephens is running down a lead on one of
our cases and I’m going to be stuck on a call with the DA for a while. I could
have Smith or Terrell meet you somewhere downtown and take you home?”

“No. It’s not a big deal. Imogen’s right here and she said
she doesn’t have anything going on. We’re going to hang out here for a while
and work on the scenery for her spring play. The school stays pretty busy with
after-school activities for a couple hours. The ball diamond and the soccer
field will be hopping and there will be people around. We’ll just hang ‘til
later. How about six o’clock? Will that give you enough time?”

“Yeah, babe. I’ll see you in a bit. Have fun with the
scenery.”

“It’s
Our Town
. There’s not really that much to do.
Also means there’s not much for us to screw up.”

“Love ya.”

“Love you too.”

“Aren’t you two just so adorable? You’re going to marry him
aren’t you?” Imogen’s brow was up as she waited for Kat’s response.

“If he asks, absolutely.”

“I’m going to be your maid of honor.”

Katrina busted out laughing. Only Imogen could get away with
simply demanding the role. “Of course, Imogen. And what of your other demands?”

“Well I’d like to wear a wedding dress too.”

“No.”

“Why not? I may never get married and if I’m going to take
on the responsibility of planning your wedding I don’t think it’s too much to
ask.”

“Planning! Who said anything about planning?”

“Oh, love, come on. Obviously out of the two of us I could
definitely plan a better wedding than you. Everyone knows that.”

“They do?”

“Sure. You’re, well, how do I put this delicately—you’re not
very creative.”

“That’s not true!”

“I’m in the arts and you’re, well—you help kids read.”

“You’re a junior high art teacher and drama coach. You must
be kidding.”

“Honey, I can’t help that I’m more talented than you.”

They were sitting on the stage in the auditorium and she was
ready to roll off the stage as she laughed at Imogen. She ended up lying on her
back as her stomach heaved and she fought to catch her breath. “Oh, Imogen.”
She pushed herself back up to sit. “You’ve lost your mind.”

“I have. There’s no doubt about it.” When Imogen reached out
and clasped her wrist suddenly, Katrina jumped and yelped at the surprise. “I
have a crush on your cop.”

“You know it’s poor form to crush on my boyfriend, right? I
mean, did you really miss that day of friendship school?”

“Not him! The other one. The one who doesn’t smile and who’s
kind of scary and who scowls at me when I talk and then tells me I need to
speak English if I’m going to live here, as though my people didn’t invent the
language.” She was watching Katrina with a wistful expression on her face.
Katrina wasn’t wistful in the least—she was shocked and when she burst out
laughing Imogen threw a roll of tape at her.

“Oh shit.” She was trying to talk through her hysterical
laughter. “I need a drink. That revulsion…” She erupted into laughter.
“Divulsion! It’s not a word but I don’t care. That deserves a drink.”

“Hell yes it does. It’s hard to secretly pine after someone
who’s mean to you and doesn’t seem to understand a word of what you say. I
mean, I’m from Kensington for God’s sake. It’s not as though I’ve got a bloody Cockney
accent.”

“Oh I’m sure you can hold your own. Really? Stephens?”

“He’s handsome in a roguish sort of way.”

He was in his own way. Katrina had always thought so and now
that she actually liked the man, she had no problem seeing the draw. But
Imogen? That was a hard one to wrap her head around. Imogen was something of a
snob. Perhaps not with her poor best friend but when it came to men…well, there
were expectations to say the least. She’d once ended a date because the man
didn’t cover his nose with the crook of his elbow when he sneezed. Apparently
the poor man had allergies and after three sneezes that he’d had the gall to
stop with his hand, she’d made her excuses and spent the next hour complaining
to Katrina on the phone.

Hell, Stephens couldn’t even go one sentence without
dropping the f-bomb but, seeing as Imogen usually couldn’t either when they
were out of school, perhaps Katrina was judging too harshly.

“Well Godspeed and all that. Now I really do need a drink.”
She looked around the darkened auditorium for a moment. “We could. That little
Mexican place we tried a year ago is on the way and they make fab fresh-made
margaritas. We have to go that way anyway. It’s always busy.”

Katrina was rationalizing and Imogen was watching her
expectantly, waiting for her to completely talk them both into it. It really
was as safe as anywhere. Hell, they were more alone in the school than they
would be there and it was on the way. It had been entirely too many months
since she and Imogen had gone on a margarita run. “Okay. One drink. Two max and
Dillon should be ready by the time we finish anyway. And hell, I’m hungry. I
want nachos. He wouldn’t want me to starve now would he?”

“If you get in trouble I’m telling him it was all your
idea.”

“The very fact you just said ‘get in trouble’ makes me want
a drink all the more. Since when have I let other people make these decisions
for me? I’m not being reckless. It’s totally safe there. Busy is better and
this place is always packed. Right?”

Imogen nodded.

Katrina was trying very hard to talk herself into it and she
recognized it full well but, damn, she was convincing and she believed every
word margarita-Kat was telling her. “Let’s go before I change my mind.”

They left as they always did at the end of the day to Imogen’s
car parked in the parking lot. The lot butted up against the sports field and
it was still busy with kids yelling and coaches doing the same. They pulled out
as they always did and they even took the very same streets headed toward
downtown they always did. It was easy for Katrina to convince herself and
believe wholeheartedly this was any other day.

They pulled into the restaurant parking lot, seeing it full
as they expected it to be. They parked close and waited five minutes for the
staff to clear a table by a window that would allow them to keep Imogen’s car
in sight. It was insane just how good she’d gotten at being conscious of her
surroundings at all times and she wasn’t letting her guard down. They kept
Imogen’s car in the periphery the hour they were there. She managed two
margaritas and they might have just been the best margaritas she’d even tasted.

When they stood to leave, she reached for her purse hanging
on the back of her chair and they walked from the restaurant no worse for wear.

They sat in Imogen’s car for a few minutes, laughing about
some random Imogen comment and when they pulled from the parking lot, the clock
said their timing was impeccable. Katrina popped a piece of gum in her mouth,
pushing away the pang of guilt quickly and when Imogen pulled into the parking
garage to drop Kat off on the fifth floor as agreed upon, her nerves left her
heart racing for a moment but she pushed them aside too.

He was standing by his Tahoe, looking beautiful and tall and
an incredible rush of warmth washed through her, pushing away her minor
indiscretion entirely never to be seen or heard from again. It was just a
drink. A long-overdue drink with her best friend, all cautions heeded and her
security and safety never far from her mind.

“Hi.” He smirked. She loved his smirk. It was a sexy thing
seeing his lip pull up in that way. She loved those lips and she especially
loved watching them. She enjoyed what he did with them even more and his smirk
was a reminder of just how good he was at doing things with that mouth.

“Hi.” She waved to Imogen as she pulled away from them and
she pounced. There was no denying even two margaritas had been enough to light
a fire in her already-healthy libido and now that he was within her reach, she
wasn’t going to be keeping her hands off him. She kissed, she thrust her tongue
between his lips as he gasped in surprise but he had quite a healthy libido too
and her kiss turned to their kiss very fast. His tongue ran over hers as he
pushed her body back to the side of his Tahoe.

She could feel his arousal hard against her stomach through
his pants and her mind was trying to figure out how exactly she could convince
him to screw her in a parking garage. When he pulled back from her, holding her
at arm’s length, he chuckled. “What’s gotten into you tonight?” That damn smirk
again.

“Nothing at all but I’m hoping you can rectify that
quickly.” It wasn’t really Katrina’s style to be seductive but she was sure as
hell trying her hand at it tonight.

“Home.” She moaned at his word and he chuckled again.

“You’re no fun.”

He laughed. “I’m a cop. That does not mean I can’t get
arrested for misbehaving in public. Now get in the car. You’re just slowing me
down and I apparently have to rectify your emptiness.”

They drove in silence. It was dark out and her body was
relaxed and content. It was the kind of peace she missed from her old life. She
never used to worry about her safety—not ever. Not that it wasn’t worth
worrying about but there wasn’t a reason to and so she didn’t. The quiet surrounding
her now with him sitting strong and silent beside her reminded her very much of
the security she used to feel in her life. The only difference was he shared it
with her.

As he turned the car off once he’d pulled into the garage
and closed the garage door behind him, he turned to her. “So I noticed you wore
a skirt today.”

“I did. I wasn’t aware you had a thing for skirts.” She
turned on the seductive again and he smiled.

“I don’t have any particular preference one way or the other,
but seeing as I can get my dick under your skirt, I do have an interest in it
at the moment.”

“So…” He leaned toward her, giving her no chance to fully
respond before his hand pushed up under the fabric, slipped past the leg of her
underwear and started toying with her already-wet sex. She gasped and groaned
and the second he gave her even one moment to contemplate, she launched herself
into his lap as he chuckled.

She undid the button and lowered the zipper of his pants and
he pushed the waist of his underwear down as his cock sprang free. He was as
aroused as she was and when she gripped the shaft, he hissed and reached
between her legs again, plunging his finger into her.

It didn’t take him long to abandon her body to lift her hips
and force her down over his erection. His lips met hers and he pulled her hips
tight to him, sealing their bodies together as she focused on relaxing around
his deep penetration. Their movements were restricted and subtle but she
squeezed hard around him as he started clenching his buttocks and pushing
himself deeper.

He nipped at her neck as he pushed into her and when she
fell apart he was right on her heels, groaning with his mouth to her ear. He
stroked her back and she snuggled into his neck as they relaxed into each other
and it wasn’t until his phone vibrated in his pocket that he finally lifted his
head from her neck and she sat up straight.

“Hey, Seth.” He sounded breathy as he answered. “Tomorrow?
Yeah that’s fine I guess. I have to go to the precinct for a while late morning
so I can’t go but as long Molly is with you boys and you’re somewhere busy, I’m
fine with it.” His brow was furrowed though and she could see worry regardless.
“Love you too, bud. I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon.” He hung up. “Kite
Festival tomorrow at Magnuson.”

“I could go too if you want me to.”

“I don’t. No offense.” He looked nervous about what he
wanted to say and she guessed what it was before he even opened his mouth.
“They’re safer without you. There’s no evidence suggesting our guy even knows
you live here, much less who Seth, Molly or Jake are. I’d like to keep it that
way.” She nodded. Of course it made sense. It also made her feel guilty.
“Someday, baby. Someday we won’t have to worry about any of it. I promise.”

She climbed from his lap as he slipped from her body and she
held her hand out to him as she stood by the driver’s door.
Someday
.
Someday she wouldn’t feel guilty anymore. Someday she could have a real life
with this man.

He woke her that night as he kissed her naked shoulder. He
nuzzled into her neck, purring a warm seductive hum against her skin. “I want
to marry you.” He whispered it from behind her as his lips met her ear.

She stared straight ahead into the dark as her heart rate
started to soar. She was in heaven just listening to his words and a smile
pulled her lips up despite everything wrong with what he was saying. Actually
his words and desire were perfect—it was her life that was so wrong.

“Someday.” She whispered and he pulled her close, tightening
his arms around her. He understood what she was saying. She didn’t question
that for a moment.

He was willing to accept someday. Someday meant yes. It
meant when the crazy was behind them, yes. He liked yes.

When his cell phone rang as they were making a late breakfast
the next morning, he had to peel his eyes from her body. He loved watching her
in the kitchen. There was something so sexy about seeing her cook. She’d lick
her fingers to taste—that was nice. She’d bite her lips as she measured
something out in a measuring cup and she’d hum while she putzed about.

“What’s up, Seth?”

“We just got here.”

“Good.”

“Why didn’t Kat just call us for a ride? I mean she could
have just rode with us. I didn’t know she wanted to go.”

“She didn’t want to go. Who said she wanted to go?”

“She did. She just texted me. She’s supposed to be here any
second. I’m meeting her at the Brig.”

“Wait, what?” He stood straight up from his place slouched
against the counter and he turned to her. “Kat, where’s your phone?”

“In my purse.”

“Get it.” Then to Seth, he spoke. “Seth, are you at the Brig
alone? Where’s Molly?”

“Dad, what’s going on?”

“Seth, listen to me. You have to—”

“Dude! Watch out!” Seth hollered to someone in the
background and Dillon fought to swallow as his panic started to set in. “Some
a-hole just tried to plow me over, Dad.”

“Seth—”

But before Dillon could say anything further, he heard
another voice. “Hey, kid. You okay? That jerk almost took you out!”

“I know, right?” Dillon could tell by the distant sound of
Seth’s voice that his phone was no longer near his ear and Dillon was stuck
unable to do anything to get his attention.

Panic was no longer something he could control and near
desperate to get his attention, he yelled into his phone as Katrina’s eyes
widened and she clutched at her chest when she heard Dillon’s voice. “Seth!”

“Dillon, I can’t find my phone.” His eyes flashed to hers
and she was waiting expectantly for him to say something to her. Just then his
landline rang. “I’ll get it.” She moved quickly to answer.

“Guy just plowed through the building on his bike.
Seriously?” Dillon heard his son speaking to the stranger and when he glanced
up at Katrina, he saw her brow furrowing and a quizzical confused expression on
her face.

“Dillon, it sounds like Seth. I thought—”

“Seth!” Desperate didn’t even come close to the blind panic
that was taking over Dillon’s body. “Put it on speaker, Kat.”

She looked shocked. She couldn’t possibly even know why she
was shocked and she was trembling at nothing more than Dillon’s fear.

When she reached to the speaker button on the phone console,
her hand froze as she studied the console. “Dillon, it’s my phone number on
caller ID.” Her voice trailed off.

He hit the speaker button on his cell phone as Kat finally
pressed the same button on the console and he set his phone on the counter. “No
doubt. I saw it, buddy. Some kids can be so rude.” The stranger’s voice was
echoing through both phones. The delay was off slightly and it was a haunting
sound that made the stranger’s voice sound as though it were coming from every
direction.

Dillon sank against the counter as the realization of
exactly what was happening hit him. His head hit his hands as he braced his
elbows on either side of his cell phone and he just stared. “What’s your name,
kid?”

“Seth!” He knew Seth couldn’t hear him but it still didn’t
stop him from trying to get his attention.

“Uh…I don’t give my name out to people I don’t know. Sorry,
dude.”

“Nah, it’s cool. I get it. Too many psychos out there, huh,
Seth?” The stranger’s voice had turned taunting and Dillon’s blood ran cold. He
was gasping for air.

“Oh my God.” Katrina moaned.

“What did you say?” Seth’s voice was loaded with suspicion.
He didn’t sound frightened but it didn’t mean Dillon wasn’t terrified. “Who the
fuck are you?”

“Just a friend of Kat’s. You make sure to tell her I said hi,
won’t you?” And then there was dead silence for a moment. Seth was saying
nothing and when the stranger started to whistle Katrina whimpered. The
whistling grew more and more distant from Dillon’s cell phone while remaining
strong from the console and Seth remained silent.

“Dad? Dad?” He snatched his cell up from the counter.

“Seth? Jesus, are you okay?”

“Dad, I think it was him.”

“You get away from him now. If you’re inside, you get out.
You find people. You get out in the open. Now! And you scream your ass off if
you see him again.”

“Okay.” Seth’s voice was a whisper. They were silent,
listening to the quiet rustling and shuffling coming through the cell phone. “I
see Molly.”

Dillon started breathing again. “Get to her. You tell her to
call 911 and you tell her what happened.”

“Okay, Dad.” They listened to Seth holler for Molly.

“Is that you, Katrina?” She yelped and jumped as the voice
came through the phone console on the wall. “Of course it is. Did you see how
easy that was?”

Katrina was trembling and tears were sitting on the lower
rims of her eyelids.

“What can I say? You just made it so easy. Too busy guzzling
margaritas last night with the British girl to even notice me picking your cell
up off the floor. Not my fault you let it fall out of your purse.”

Dillon’s face started to burn in a fast-building torrent of
fury that he aimed at Katrina. “You can tell a lot about a person from their
text message history. Like for instance your infatuation with a certain man
named Dillon. He’s the cop, isn’t he? Seth’s dad too apparently. Naughty naughty
what the two of you are doing.”

“What do you want?” Her voice was quiet but furious and
intense.

“Why, I’m going to kill you.” He was silent for a moment as
Katrina stared at the counter. “Don’t get me wrong. I’ll have my fun with you
first but ultimately…well, ultimately I’m going to kill you.” If Dillon’s blood
had been cold before it froze in his veins at the casual and almost
conversational way the stranger threatened her.

The sound of sirens was coming distantly through both
phones, echoing from different directions. He could hear Molly talking to
someone but Dillon had been forgotten at that point.

“Are those sirens for me? Too bad. I’m long gone. But don’t
worry. I’ll see you soon, Kat.” There was a click as he disconnected the phone.

There was nothing but silence and quiet distant murmuring
coming through Dillon’s cell phone. Dillon’s terror had passed but his fury was
building as they stood still. He was near critical mass when she finally opened
her mouth.

“Dillon?”

“Shut up.” He was seething.

“Dillon, please?”

“Shut up!” He yelled it at her as she grimaced and cowered.

“Dad?”

He had to force himself to take a deep breath before he
dared open his mouth again. “Yeah, bud?” He wasn’t hiding the nearly out of
control emotional turmoil coursing through him.

“Were you yelling?”

“Yeah. It’s nothing.”

“The cops are here.”

“I know. You’re going to have to go to the precinct to tell
them everything that happened. You tell them to contact Detectives Smith and
Terrell. I’m on my way. I’ll meet you there.” He disconnected quickly as he
turned from the room, heading toward the garage.

“Dillon, please.”

“I’m warning you, you do not want to talk to me right now.”
When he reached the door to the garage he stopped on a dime and without looking
at Katrina who was still standing in shock, he snapped. “We’re leaving
now
!”

“I can stay.” Her voice was weak and quiet and when he
glared at her she glanced away quickly. She looked as if she were two seconds
away from crying and though it was like a knife twisting in his gut, he
couldn’t seem to stop glaring. His anger was like a red torrent of hatred.

It was the most confusing feeling in the world being so
infinitely relieved Seth was okay and so furious with Katrina he wanted her to
feel the stabbing pain of his emotions.

“I said we’re leaving.” He turned from her. He slammed his
hand on the garage door opener mounted to the wall by the door and he stalked
to the driver’s door. He stood waiting for her to appear, stewing more the
longer she kept him waiting.

She stepped out the door and into the garage. “Please,
Dillon. I’m so sorry.” She was trembling and the tears that had only barely
been restrained in the kitchen were falling freely. He wanted to touch her so
much it hurt but he also wanted to scream at her.

“You were out drinking last night?” He was yelling. He
hadn’t even managed to get in the car and he was already losing control. “What
the fuck were you thinking? No. No. You obviously weren’t thinking at all. This
was far more about getting loaded than anything else, wasn’t it? So loaded you
didn’t even manage to notice what the hell was going on around you.”

“I’m sorry.”

“You’re an adult, Katrina. Not a fucking child.” He pulled
the door open as she took a couple tentative steps toward the passenger side
but he didn’t make it far before a wave of fury overtook him and he slammed the
door shut again. When he turned to her, she was quietly sobbing.

“He could have died! Fuck! I’ve done everything in my power
to protect you both, keep you both safe and you managed to fuck it all up just
like that! How dare you! My son could have died!” He pulled the door open and
then as he climbed in he yelled once more. “Get in the fucking car!”

She climbed in next to him and he threw the car in reverse.
He committed himself to not speaking to her again lest he have to pull over to
yell at her again and she sat quietly sniffling by his side as he drove. He
truly didn’t give a shit in that moment. He might care for her as much as
anyone in his life but she’d fucked up and she’d fucked up bad. She’d
endangered his son and intentional or not the anger wasn’t fading. She’d made a
stupid mistake and Seth had almost paid for it.

Whether he was yelling at her or not, focusing on driving
was nearly impossible. He stewed, he ran through every nightmarish thought and
image that came to mind of what could have happened to Seth and he blamed the
woman sitting beside him for every awful thing that could have happened.

He pulled in at the precinct and when he stepped from the
car he didn’t bother saying a word to Katrina. He ignored her as she followed
him into the building. He found Smith and Terrell quickly and Molly practically
mauled him into a bear hug. Seth stood coolly by Jake as though nothing of
concern had happened at all.

He knew it was just an act but playing it cool was just how
Seth operated. It was oddly calming to see Seth looking around as though he had
better things to do. When they asked if he wanted to be present when they took
Seth’s statement he nodded.

He sat silently through Seth’s interview. His heart rate
spiked continually as he listened to the events. Seth had received a text
message from Kat’s phone asking him where he was. When he responded the next
text asked him to meet her at the Brig at Magnuson Park. The building was
nearly deserted with most people milling about outside by the water and Seth
had been approached just inside the vestibule of the building.

The man had disappeared within the building when Seth caught
on to who he was and Seth made his way quickly back to Molly and Jake.

Smith and Terrell asked Dillon to go over what had occurred
at his house that morning and he gave them a detailed account of everything
that had happened. He didn’t much give a shit he was admitting Kat had been
there with him and they didn’t bat an eye when he said it. It was an understood
fact if nothing else at this point and there were more important things to be
concerned about than who he happened to be fucking. Dillon sounded bitter even
in his own head.

When Smith and Terrell put a photo lineup in front of Seth,
he picked out Clinton Lathrop immediately. It was the first eyewitness who
implicated him in Kat’s home invasion, arson and stalking debacle, and Smith
and Terrell couldn’t seem to keep the smile off their lips.

Dillon was too deep in his anger to react at all. They asked
Seth if he’d ever seen the photo of the man before, insinuating his
subconscious could have been tainted by Dillon’s involvement in the case and as
Smith’s focus shifted to Dillon as Terrell asked the question, Dillon sneered.
He said nothing. He didn’t want his bad attitude on record so he just shook his
head in frustration.

“I assume you’ve tried to locate her cell phone?” He was
still sneering even as he spoke.

“Of course and we’ll continue to try but it’s currently off.
Doubt he’s stupid enough to power it on now that he knows we know he has the
phone. Doesn’t mean he didn’t have free access to it for twelve hours.”

Dillon stood and Seth followed his lead. He returned to
Molly and Jake, waiting patiently in the corridor. “Where’s Katrina?”

“She left for the restroom shortly after you went in. She
was crying. You going to tell me what happened with her?”

He didn’t bother answering Molly’s question. “Can you find
her? Smith and Terrell need to ask her some questions.”

Molly’s brow wrinkled but she stood and walked toward the
restroom without questioning him further. It was less than a minute later that
she returned with a puffy-faced Katrina at her side. Katrina refused to look at
him and since he couldn’t wipe the nastiness from his own expression, he
couldn’t really blame her. He was itching to yell at her some more but it would
have to wait.

Katrina walked back with Smith and Terrell as Molly watched
her with concern. Her focus shifted between Katrina and him, bouncing back and
forth as she tried to figure out what was going on and once they were finally
out of earshot she turned her focus completely on him. “What the hell is going
on?”