Home Is Where the Heart Is (15 page)

“And just what inmate might that be?” Fox asked, sweat beading on his brow.

“McAllen. As of right now, he’s property of the FBI.”

The worried look became one of boredom. “Well, if you want him, you can pick him up at the morgue.”

“What happened to him?” Joe asked.

“The pathetic fool hung himself in his cell before chow this morning,” Fox said. The corner of his mouth quirked up in a quick smile before the bored look returned.

“You better hope that’s what happened to him,” Ty growled, unable to hide his anger any longer. “If we find out otherwise then you’re screwed, Fox.”

The agents left the department, heading to the morgue, hoping to find some shred of proof that McAllen hadn’t hung himself. As gutsy as these dirty cops were, he bet they’d been very careful to cover their tracks with this one. They couldn’t risk making a mistake.

The medical examiner, Dale Fountain, was a portly man in his fifties that had seen better days. His skin was as washed out as the corpses he examined. He really needed to get out more. A little sun would do him a world of good. He cracked open the chest of the body on his table, glancing at Ty and his partner as they entered the exam room. “Hey, Ty. What brings you down to the morgue?”

“Dale, this is my partner, Joe. We’re here to take a look at McAllen and get your take on what happened to the man.”

“Oh, well, just from my initial observations at the station, I’d say strangulation… but I haven’t gotten started on him yet so that’s not a final answer.”

“Could you take a look at him now?”

“Sure.” Fountain looked at the FBI logo on Ty’s jacket. “Guess you’re moving on up in the world. From detective to special agent in half a year?”

“I’ve been with the FBI for a while. I’ve just been undercover here.”

“Really? Why?” Fountain asked, one eyebrow raised in curiosity.

“There seems to be a lot of dirty cops in Sizzle and we’re here to take care of that problem. In the last few weeks, we’ve had entirely too many deaths for my comfort. I’m thinking they’re all connected,” Ty explained

“I’d bet my next check they are,” said Joe.

“I was wondering when the Feds would show up. I’m glad something is finally being done.”

“What makes you say that?” Joe asked, giving Ty a questioning look.

“Well... when I showed up at the station for McAllen, the chief had had the body moved to the medical facility at the jail.”

“That’s not the policy of the department,” Ty said. “Has he done that before?”

“No. He’s never done that before. Well… not that I know of, anyway. I just thought it was odd.” Fountain said shaking his head.

“Well, let’s give McAllen a good looking at,” Joe said.

“Alright.” Fountain removed the white sheet covering McAllen’s body and began his evaluation. Beginning at the head, he immediately noted that petechial hemorrhages appeared in both eyes. Unless they found something else on the body, it appeared McAllen died from strangulation.

As the medical examiner continued on, he found a small needle hole on the right side of the neck. It would have been easy to miss if Ty hadn’t questioned the suicide. “I’ll run a toxicology test on his blood and the tissue surrounding the injection site. If he’s been drugged we’ll know soon enough.”

“Give me a blood sample, too,” Ty said “I’m not sure I trust the department not to tamper with it.”

“Sure.” The doctor drew a tube of blood and handed it to Ty. “Here’s your sample. Should I be worried about catching hell with the department?”

“I’d watch my back if I were you. If something happens or if you receive any threats, you call me. Here’s my card. Cell number is on the back.”

Thanks,” Fountain said, sliding the card in the pocket of his lab coat.

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

Paula and Kyra had spent the last week sifting through her parent’s belongings. Kyra had donated all of their clothes to the area homeless shelters and Goodwill, knowing that her parents would have liked that. They had always helped others and donated to local charities. Deciding what to keep was difficult, however, as everything had a memory attached. Paula had helped her to box up photographs and sentimental items to take back to Houston with her. There was so much to do that she scarcely could handle it alone.

With the house almost completely packed up, Kyra felt relieved. There was still a matter of the furnishings to deal with, but that could wait. She still hadn’t decided if she wanted to keep the house                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             or sell it. Paula had told her to take some time making that decision. Hasty decisions often came with regret, so she took Paula’s advice and was giving it more time.

“Well, Kyra I’m all packed up and ready to head out,” Paula said, entering Dylan’s kitchen.

“I wish you could stay longer,” Kyra said. “It’s been so nice having you here.”

“I know. But I have to get back and check on things. If you need me, I’m a phone call away. And the drive isn’t that long.”

Kyra gave Paula a hug. “Be careful on your way back home.”

“I will. Promise me something, will you?”

“Anything.”

“Open yourself up to Dylan. He does love you. I can see it in the way he looks at you. Don’t run away this time.”

Kyra stood there, watching Paula toss her bags in the car. “I won’t run this time. I do love him, Paula. I never stopped.” Paula smiled and waved goodbye as she drove away.

Kyra sat on the porch, admiring the view while considering what Paula had said. She had opened her heart to Dylan already, but she hadn’t let the protective walls fall away yet. She feared being rejected that he didn’t feel for her the way she did for him. She’d made a promise to her friend and would keep it. Dylan had left early that morning to head to the office. He had made her a priority but Southern Gentleman’s Detective Agency had several other active cases that needed attention, too.

CHAPTER THIRTY

Paula had enjoyed her time in Sizzle with Kyra, even though the reason had been less than a happy one. Kyra was handling everything quite well, but Paula still worried for her friend.

Kyra had always been a sweet girl, but she wouldn’t open herself up to anyone. It had taken Paula the better part of Kyra’s first year working with her to get her to open up. Now she was facing so much turmoil that Paula was concerned Kyra would fall apart. Her crush on Dylan had driven her away from Sizzle, but during her short visit she had seen the love that was blooming between them. She hoped Kyra would wake up, allowing herself to see that Dylan’s feelings for her were real. After all she’d been through, the least she deserved was a love that would stand the test of time. With all that they were facing, she knew they could make it if they would just level with each other.

After leaving the bookstore for the day, Paula headed to Kyra’s apartment to check on things and pick up the mail. The mailbox was overflowing with junk mail and bills. She grabbed the pile of mail and headed to the elevator. Once in Kyra’s cozy little apartment, she put the mail on the bar near the phone. A large manila envelope caught her eye. It was stuffed to the point of bursting.

“I wonder what that is. It looks important.” she mumbled to herself. Picking up the envelope she noticed the return address was Kyra’s father’s law firm. Curiosity getting the better of her, she opened it. The first thing she saw was a letter from Kyra’s dad. After scanning the letter, she dug her cell phone from her purse and called Kyra.

“Hello,” Kyra chirped in a happy melodic voice

“Kyra, it’s Paula. How’s everything going?”

“Pretty good. I haven’t gotten an update from Dylan or Ty today, though. How are things in Houston?”

“Good. Listen… I checked your mail and there’s a large envelope from your dad. I hope you don’t mind, but I opened it knowing it had to be important.”

“Oh my god. What was in it?”

“There’s a letter from your dad to you, and a ton of papers that I haven’t had a chance to look at yet. Do you want me to bring them to you? They look really important.”

“Sure. Of course. I don’t know why he would send anything to me. It must be important, though.”

“I’ll bring them to you tonight. The letter… well, it sounds like he was worried and needed a backup plan to keep the documents safe.”

“Oh. I’ll call Dylan and let him know. Call me when you get close to town.”

“I will. You be safe, okay.” Paula said before hanging up.

Kyra couldn’t imagine what her dad had sent her, or what he thought she could do with it, if anything. Kyra dialed Dylan’s cell. He answered on the second ring.

“Hey, darling. Is everything okay?”

“Yes. Paula just called. She found a large package from my dad in the mailbox today. She opened it. I think there might be documents that can help in it. She said the note from my dad mentioned something about a backup plan or something. Maybe this is the hard evidence Ty needs. Anyway, she’s on her way here now.”

“Good. Ty’s damn sure going to need it, too. Word around town is McAllen hung himself this morning. I haven’t talked to Ty yet, so I don’t know details, but we need all the help we can get.”

“Shit. Have you tried to call Ty?” Kyra asked.

“No. But I’ll let him know about Paula and see if he can come to the house tonight.”

“Okay. What time will you be home?”

“I’ll wrap things up here at the office and be home in an hour or so.”

“Sounds good. See you then.”

Kyra grabbed her kindle and a glass of sweet iced tea and headed for the front porch. Taking a seat on the porch swing, she settled into a comfortable position and dove into her latest romance novel. After reading a few pages and not being able to immerse herself into the romantic entanglement the characters were experiencing, she sat her reader aside and took in the peaceful scenery. Birds chirped and fluttered about, causing her to smile.

Dylan’s home was wonderful. Hell, being here with him was a dream come true. Memories of the magical earth-shattering sex they shared together swept through her mind, her pulse racing at the thought of him touching her again, holding her and kissing her as if she were the only woman in the world.

Kyra closed her eyes, letting the images carry her into a blissful erotic world where they could make love forever. She imagined they were lying on a blanket in the middle of a lush green field, embraced in each other’s arms, their clothes tossed here and there in the tall grass surrounding them. His fingers slipped through her moist folds, finding her swollen bud, circling it slowly, teasing her. She moaned his name over and over again.

“Kyra. Kyra, wake up,” a female voice said.

Kyra moaned as the erotic images faded away, her eyes fluttering open to see Paula standing before her. “Oh, Paula. I’m so sorry. I must have fallen asleep.”

“You sure did,” Paula said, grinning. “It sounded like you were enjoying the hell out of it too. Just what were you dreaming about?”

Blushing a deep crimson, Kyra shrugged. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

“You know it.” Paula said, her grin growing wider for a second before her expression turned serious. “Here’s the package your dad sent.”

Taking the package, Kyra removed the contents and began reading. The letter from her dad mentioned how proud he and her mother were of her and her accomplishments. Then he began to explain how the town had changed and he could clearly see that he was in a very bad position. His partner at the firm, and longtime friend, had gotten involved in some shady dealing with the chief of police. He suspected the mayor of the town was also involved but had no proof of that. He didn’t know who else was involved, but he assumed there were many others.

He had enclosed financial documents that showed money being removed from city accounts that he couldn’t connect to work orders. The money just disappeared. At the end of his letter, he mentioned that he feared his partner was aware of his snooping around. He finished the note by saying, “If something happens to me, use these documents to clean up the town.”

Tears stained her cheeks as she put the documents back in the envelope. “He knew. He knew they might hurt him.”

“That’s why I called.”

“I better call Dylan and let him know you’re here.”

Paula followed Kyra into the house and waited while she called Dylan. From this moment on, Paula knew it wouldn’t just be Kyra’s life and family that was affected, but many of the people of Sizzle would be, too. Once respected individuals would quickly be viewed as anything but and it would take a lot of time for the citizens of the sweet little town to be able to trust law enforcement and city officials again… if they ever could.

Less than an hour later, two motorcycles rumbled up the driveway, announcing Dylan and Jake’s arrival. Paula had gotten a good look at Jake on her last visit and could just imagine what a treat he would be in the sack. Smiling as he swept one leg over his motorcycle, her eyes never left the thick muscular thighs rippling under his tight jeans.

Kyra dashed off the porch, crushing her body against Dylan’s, nearly knocking him down. “You won’t believe the things dad sent. He knew. He knew all along that he was in danger.”

Dylan leaned down and kissed her gently on the top of her head.

“You two make a very nice couple,” Paula said.

“They do, don’t they?” Jake added.

“We aren’t a couple, and you guys know it,” Kyra stammered.

Dylan looked into Kyra’s eyes. “I agree with them. You’re outnumbered, darling.” He laced his fingers through hers before she could utter a word and led her to the porch. She was stunned by his words. Maybe Paula was right, after all. Maybe she had believed for so long that he wasn’t interested in her that she now believed that, no matter what, it wouldn’t happen.