Killer Scents (4 page)

Randy straddled a chair and opened the file, listening to the chief.

“
Y
ou
can see
here that
so far he’s killed three women and one man.
We believe
he
gets them to
answer
the door under the pretense of delivering flowers. 
However,
there hasn’t been a witness who can confirm this
theory
.”

A knock sounded on the door. He looked up to find the perfect candidate for the calendar of
Hot Cops
for charity. The officer had perfectly cropped bleach-blond hair, bright white teeth and golden tan.
Everything I’m not, which is more than okay by me.

“Sorry to interrupt, but you wanted to know right away when Becca was being released from
the
hospital. Jerry left a few minutes ago to pick her up and take her home.”

“Thanks
,
Danny. This is Detective
Bates
, he’s going to partner with Becca to try and find
the
killer.”

“Randy, this is
Detective
Danny
Redman
. I’m sure you’ll be seeing lots of each other in the coming days.”

The officer
briefly skimmed
Randy’s
hand
before
he spun on his heel and disappeared into the busy precinct.
Randy
got the distinct
impression
the man
wasn’t too happy about him being there.
Chief assured him there wouldn’t be any hard feelings about him coming on board. Even so, did the detective feel he should’ve been the one to partner with Becca?

“Okay, where were we
?
Oh right, once
the murderer
gets inside
, he forces them to the couch at gunpoint. There
he binds their hands and feet. Each victim has had a different item stuffed in their mouths before he meticulously sews their lips together. We find them laid out on the couch with a
flower
in their hands
and
a single gunshot to the center of their foreheads.

“They
’
re alive when he stitches them?”

Chief Thomson nodded. “Unfortunately,
but
there was one small difference with Susan. The killer walked right in and came at her from behind
where she stood
at the kitchen sink.”

Randy shrugged. “The door was open so he didn’t need to knock?”

“Becca left her house a short time before the killer showed up. Susan asked her to lock the door behind her.”

Randy winced. “Oh
,
crap.”

“
On top of that, Becca promised her sister, Darla, on her deathbed to watch over Susan.
So you can well imagine just how
our detective
is feeling right now. She needs someone to keep her grounded.”

“Okay, when do we start?”

“The sooner, the better.”

Chapter Five

Becca studied the snapshots strewn across her kitchen table. A shudder
pass
ed across her lips
, and
she wiped her
eyes
on her shirtsleeve. 
Get your shit together, woman.

She
held her chin up
and took a deep
,
cleansing
breath
before casting her gaze on the haunting stares of The
F
lorist’s victims.

Susan’s murder and her return to the force
all seemed
so
surreal
. She’d even been
assigned a partner...something she swore she’d never have again. Chief left her no option—agree to work with Randy or not work the case.

This is nothing like having Jack as a partner.
I have
no emotional connection to ‘Randy’, outside of this case. Jack
was
family
, my
family.

No matter how many times she looked at the photos, she couldn’t come up with a common thread. They ranged in age from twenty-seven to
sixt
y, all had different professions—a school teacher, a mechanic, flight attendant, and Susan, a retired nurse. A sexual motive was highly unlikely given the fact there were three women and one man
and all remained fully dressed
.

Becca startled, her coffee sloshed up the sides of her cup and splashed the front of her shirt. The rumble of a motorcycle pulling in her driveway stole her attention.

“Shit. Who can that be?” She rushed out her back door to find a tall guy climb
ing
off a sweet
-
looking Road Glide.
If he’s my new partner, maybe having one won’t be so bad after all.

He released his shoulder
-
length brown hair from the confines of a ponytail and
removed his sunglasses
. “You must be Becca. I’m Randy
.
I believe you
’
re expecting me?” He offered his hand
and narrowed his gaze on her.

Oh God, it can’t be him.
She
feigned interest in his bike, purposely avoiding contact. “Of course, I wasn’t expecting you on a motorcycle.”

He shrugged and hung his helmet from the handlebars. “Chief Thomson figured you’d be much more comfortable riding. Besides, it
’s
a good cover, don’t you think?”
His slow smile and arched brow made her wince.

Damn, he recognizes me.
Becca
quickly turned and
headed for the house, desperately needing to put some distance between them.
“
C
ome in and we’ll go over
the case
.”

Randy
chuckled lightly
. “Nice to
see you again,
too.”

She
flinched
,
very aware his comment warranted a response.
I have to work with him or I’m off the case. How the hell am I going to pull this off?

Randy closed the door behind him.

“Oh!” Her hand flew to her chest.

“I’m sorry, didn’t mean to startle you.”

Becca faced the counter. “Coffee?”

“Black, please.” A chair scraped the floor and then creaked under his weight.

She briefly closed her eyes before setting a steaming mug of coffee in front of him. Her breath hitched as he gently touched her arm.

“Red.”

“You must have me confused with someone else.” She pulled away and sat at the other side of the table. “Here are the crime scene photos.”

“I know you recognize me, Red.”

Becca looked at him. “Listen, I need to find this killer, and in order for me to do so, I have to work with a partner. I can’t focus on this case if I’m distracted by you.”

“So what you’re saying is that you want me to forget that night ever happened? I don’t know if I can do that, especially since you’ve haunted my dreams ever since.”

Becca cursed the heat rushing to her face. “Okay, maybe we can’t put it completely out of our minds, but can we please try to keep our focus on solving this case?”

“If that’s what you want I’ll try, Red.”

His sexy smirk set her pulse racing. “And stop calling me Red. I have a name.”

The sexual tension between them made it very hard for her to focus, but they managed to go over the case. Randy agreed with her that the victims had nothing in common, and while the killer’s methods were consistent,
there were two variations in each case
:
the type of flower and the object stuffed in their mouths.

“I think our first step is to track down the source of the flowers. They’re not something your average
florist
shop keeps in stock. In fact, a couple of them have to be special ordered.”

He stroked his jaw. “Or he grows them himself.”

Becca nodded. “Yes, that’s a definite possibility
. We should check out stores in the area first.”

“Sure, we’ll tell them we’re planning our wedding.”

His lopsided grin brought a smile to her lips. “If you’ll excuse me for a minute, I’ll meet you at the bikes.”

Randy hung onto the railing and expelled a long breath.
How am I going to be her partner when all I want to do is replay the incredible night we shared so long ago?

She locked her back door and without giving it a second thought, he took her in his arms and captured her mouth in a kiss.

“Just what do you think you’re doing?” She swiped the back of her hand across her mouth. Anger flashed in her eyes.

“I’m sorry, Red. I had to get that out of the way if I have a hope in hell of working with you on this case.”

“It cannot happen again. Do I make myself clear?” Becca stormed off, stomping down the steps and jogging to her bike.

Randy ran a thumb over his lips and smiled. For one brief moment before pulling away, she kissed him back.

Normally he was the
decision maker
, but it seemed his new partner fully intended on taking the lead.
Fine by me.
H
e
was
thoroughly enjoy
ing
the view
of her
oh
-
so
-
sweet ass
,
straddling a mighty fine turquoise and cream
Harley
. Her obvious comfort in the saddle told of a seasoned rider.

Under any other circumstance
s
, blue skies and the sun
’
s warm rays were an open invitation to ride. Unfortunately, with a guy like The
F
lorist on the loose, there wouldn’t be any afternoon runs to the water until they found him.

Randy followed
Becca
into the parking area out front of
Jack’s
Flowers
.
After parking and walking across the parking lot
to the front door
,
n
o words were exchanged. The jingle of a bell announced their arrival. An overwhelming wave of floral ambrosia
caused
him
to
sneeze. He’d never seen
so many flowers
in one place.  Potted plants, decorative foliage,
and freshly
cut
arrangement
s
filled the small shop on either side of a narrow path to the counter.

“Good morning, how can I help you?” A silver-haired man, his shoulders slightly hunched, stood behind a wooden counter
.

Becca
offered her hand. “Hi there
.
My name is
Becca, and this is my...”  She looked
in his direction
. “
F
iancé, Randy.”

He
s
tifled a laugh at her obvious discomfort
. “We’re hoping you can help us. We’re looking for very specific flowers for our big day.”

The store-owner
stroked his stubbly chin. “Well
,
I’ll sure try. What kind of flowers are we talking about?”

F
rom
her
inside pocket
she took a folder paper and
smoothed it out on the counter. “White orchids.”

The shop owner whistled long and low. “That sure is one pretty
specimen
.”