shoulders as they left.
It was a warm summer evening, but a light breeze was blowing and cooled things off a bit. The fresh air seemed to enliven Carly somewhat. She straightened slightly, no longer sagging against Keller.
“Where’s your car?” Keller asked.
“Hmm,” she said, considering the question. She gestured vaguely down the street. “Down there, somewhere,” she said. Then she began to sing in a surprisingly clear soprano. “Somewheeeere…out theeere…” She laughed. Then she looked at him. “I don’t think I should be driving, do you?”
He sighed, but she had a point. “Okay,” he said. “I’ll drive you home.”
“What about my car?” she said. Her voice was playful as she added, “Will you bring me back in the morning to get it?” The hidden meaning was anything but.
“I’m not staying the night,” he said. “Come on.” He led her down the street to his car. She was silent as she got in.
“If you don’t like me,” she said as Keller started the car, “why are you doing this?”
“I didn’t want you driving,” he replied. “If you’d gotten into a wreck…”
“Bullshit,” she said. “I could have gotten a ride from any of a dozen men in there. You could have walked away. Why didn’t you?”
He had put the car in gear, preparing to pull away from the curb. He put it back in park. “You asked for my help,” he said. “If you don’t want it now…”
“Aha,” she said, smiling triumphantly as if he had confessed to something. “So that’s it. That’s what makes Jack Keller tick. You want to hellllp.” She said the last word in a drawn-out, mocking singsong.
“Okay,” Keller said through clenched teeth, “I think…” He turned back toward her. She had leaned over so her face was inches from his, her eyes half-closed. “Help me, Jack,” she whispered. “Help me…” She kissed him. Her lips were soft and demanding at the same time. She placed one hand on his thigh below the knee, then slid it up in a bold caress. Keller felt his body respond instantly as her fingers traced his outline beneath the fabric of his jeans. “Mmmmm,” she murmured. “So strong…”
He broke the kiss and tore her hand away. “Cut it out,” he growled.
She didn’t back off, but she didn’t resume the kiss. Her eyes held his. “I need someone tonight, Jack,” she whispered. “I don’t want to be alone. You can help me.”
“You don’t want help,” he said. “You want to prove something. God knows why, but you were looking for a button to push. The minute you found it, you pushed it.”
She pushed herself away from him. “You think you’re so goddamn special,” she spat out. “A regular knight in shining armor. But I know how much you wanted me. You think I couldn’t feel it?” Her smile was as cold and sharp as a razor. “You’re no different than any other man.”
“Then I guess you proved your point,” he said. “And you didn’t even have to fuck me to do it. I’d call that a win-win. For both of us.” He put the car in gear and pulled away from the curb. She maintained a tight-lipped silence until they reached her apartment. She opened the door and prepared to get out. As she did, she turned back toward him.
“I’m calling my lawyer tomorrow,” she said. “I’m telling her to hire someone else. You and your girlfriend are fired.” She slammed the door without waiting for a reply. It was just as well, Keller thought; he couldn’t think of anything more original than “You can’t fire me, I quit.”
First thing Monday, Marie called Tammy Healy. “We need to talk,” she said.
“I agree,” Healy said. “Carly Fedder was on my answering machine this morning, screaming mad. She was telling me to fire you and, and I quote, ‘that sonofabitch boyfriend’ of yours.”
Marie felt a tightening in her stomach. “What happened?”
“She wasn’t specific, but apparently your friend Keller got into some kind of argument with her last night.”
“That’s impossible,” Marie said. “He was with…” She stopped. She didn’t know where Keller had gone after leaving her. She swallowed. “So am I fired?”
“I don’t fire anyone, Miss Jones, until I hear their side of the story. Can you be here at ten o’clock?”
“I’ll be there,” Marie said.
***
It took Keller almost ten minutes to fight through the secretary’s attempts to divert him from Wilcox. Finally, the CID man came on the line.
“You asshole,” Keller said. “You mind telling me why you sicced the FBI on me?”
“Hold on a second, Keller,” Wilcox began. “Just calm down.”
“I will not calm down, goddamn it!” Keller yelled. “Two agents showed up at my office yesterday and tried to threaten my boss. They’re watching my girlfriend’s house. Now tell me what the hell’s going on!”
There was a pause. Then, softly, “You found the kid yet?”
“No,” Keller said. Something in Wilcox’s voice sent a chill down Keller’s spine. “Why?” he demanded. “Do you think she might be in danger?” Silence. “Damn you, Wilcox, talk to me!”
“Not on this line,” Wilcox said. “I’ll meet you. You still in Wilmington?”
“No,” Keller said. “I’m in town. I can be at Bragg in about a half hour.”
“Not at my office, either,” Wilcox said. “Meet me for lunch. You like Chinese?” Keller said yes. Wilcox gave him the name of a restaurant near Cross Creek Mall.
“Twelve thirty,” he said.
“Twelve thirty,” Keller agreed. He hung up, more baffled than ever.
***
The plastic sheeting had most likely kept any traces of blood or tissue from the floor, but DeGroot was a careful man. He scrubbed the floor thoroughly with soap and brush. Burning the abandoned old house to the ground might have done a more thorough job of eradicating any evidence, but it would have attracted attention, even in this secluded area. Plus, an empty house far away from prying eyes or ears was a resource a man like DeGroot didn’t waste lightly. He had a number of these personal safe houses scattered at various places around the globe, purchased through a variety of aliases and shell companies. The things that made such places useful to DeGroot made them unattractive to most people, and therefore cheap.
He stepped out onto the house’s tiny back porch and lit a cigarette. He looked at the neatly wrapped plastic bundle lying by the steps. He sighed. It had been a chore wrestling Lundgren’s body out the door, and getting him into the trunk of the car wasn’t going to be any easier, especially considering the things that
