Chapter 6

"Rough diamonds may sometimes

be mistaken for worthless pebbles.

–Sir Thomas Browne

Rayne

The last thing I wanted to do on a windy, rainy Monday morning was stand in front of the City and County Building. There were a dozen or more cameras shoved in my face as I gave an update on the mayor's murder case.

I was upset that I didn't have anything new to tell them from the last time I'd stood there a week ago. What pissed me off was the possibility that whatever I said this time would be taken out of context, like it had the week before.

The photo of me hovering over Sharon Taylor's body had gone viral after the murder, thanks to Sabrina DeRouen.

Okay, so maybe she was a little pissed at me for hauling her butt down to the station and locking her in an interview room for an hour or so until she finally coughed over the camera drive. Hindsight, I should have seized her computer to make sure she hadn't already copied the photo from the drive.

The fact that it had been an entire week since the mayor's death and I was no closer to finding who had stabbed the woman thirty-two times and then tried to skin her face, disturbed me. It wasn't the gruesome details of the crime that kept me up at night, it was the fact that none of the puzzle pieces fit.

Henry Taylor's alibi checked out. The man was at the bar until he climbed the back stairs with Faye to her apartment above the bar, where he stayed until he drove home. Apparently, it wasn't the first time the guy had slept over at the younger bartender's place.

The Taylor twins were both accounted for as well. Just as they'd said, Beau had been in Lafayette for the week for a job and Wyatt had spent the night with Clara Mangrum.

The biggest clues in the case I'd gotten during my interview with Sabrina DeRouen. The woman had been a wealth of information as far as the Taylor family's goings-on.

That fact disturbed me almost as much as meeting Jameson Lorenzo at the BBB.

My mind hadn't been able to relax from the case until after my chat with Aria. She didn't bring her work to the party so I figured I'd better leave mine at the office and enjoy my makeshift birthday party, which had entailed flirting with Jameson.

Yeah, the first thing I did when I got into the station the next morning was to pull up his info. The fact that he was clean only solidified my thoughts about the man.

Every single member of the Reapers had a rap sheet. Most had several pages full of misdemeanors and time they'd spent behind bars.

Jameson Lorenzo only had two misdemeanors. Speeding tickets.

Which didn't add up. Then I found out he'd been living in my town for a year. A full fucking year!

How in the hell had I missed the man?

Plus, his address was only a few blocks from the station, and he had worked at the Red River Iron Gym for the past eight months.

I wasn't a member of the gym myself but had been there a few times with Aria and Tobias. Not once had I seen Jameson there.

Trust me when I say I would have noticed him. I had a radar when it came to men like him.

Which is how I found Quincy Ingram. The man had transferred to our station a little over two years before from Baton Rouge. We didn't normally get transfers and I'd been upset that we'd hired the position of patrol division captain from outside, but then I'd seen him and, well, you know the rest.

Jesus, why can't I control myself around men like them? I'd learned my lesson with Quincy though. The man was a snake. Still, I was smart enough to know that not all snakes were the same.

I'd gone out on a few dates with a couple of men after that, some of which went against my physical attraction code, and both of those had been even bigger snakes than Quincy.

With Jameson, however, things felt different. There was something that I couldn't quite put my finger on about the man. I hoped to bump into him again, but interviewing everyone attached to the case was keeping me busy.

After running through my pre-planned statement, I was stupid enough to take a few questions. When I spotted Sabrina in the crowd, I purposely avoided her hand and answered a question from a state-run news station.

"Can you confirm whether there are any suspects or persons of interest in custody related to the murder?" the man asked.

"As I mentioned in my statement," I started, trying desperately not to sound annoyed at the question, "at this time we are looking into several different suspects. No one is in custody at this time." I motioned to the next hand raised.

"Can you comment on any potential motives or theories that your team is exploring in connection with the murder?" the woman asked.

"At this time we are exploring several potential motives," I reiterated, sounding one hundred percent annoyed. Didn't they listen to my statement? It was as if the media were nothing more than children.

Finally, Sabrina was the last to have her hand raised, so I called on her.

"Is it true that Mayor Taylor was being investigated by the State Attorney General's Office for public corruption and embezzling?" Sabrina asked with a smirk.

Damn it. How in the hell had she gotten wind of that? I had only just found that out earlier that morning.

"No further questions at this time," I said into the mic. I turned on my heeled boots and started marching through the rain.

"Rayne," Sabrina called after me.

"Go away," I called over my shoulder.

"I can help you," she said, catching up with me.

"Go away," I said after stopping and turning to square up with her.

She narrowed her eyes at me. "I'm sorry about posting the picture," she blurted out. I let my shoulders relax. "You know, you and I used to be friends."

"Used to be."

"Rayne." She reached up and touched my arm. "I heard Edith is doing well through her chemo," she said, a little softer.

I jerked my arm away from hers. "She's a fighter. How did you find out about the attorney general?"

She sighed and then her smile grew. "I have sources."

I raised my eyebrows. "Are you still dating what's his name?"

She shook her head. "Nope, I have a new guy in my life." Her smile doubled. "A little more local."

"Stay clear of me during this, Sabrina," I warned. "Let me do my job."

"Let me do mine," she threw back, lifting her chin.

I closed my eyes. "How about a truce?" I suggested.

"Go on." Sabrina waited.

"If you let me in on any new details you happen to hear before me, I'll call you first when I haul the killer in," I suggested.

Sabrina's left eyebrow arched slightly, then she nodded slowly.

As I turned to go, she held my arm.

"You might want to check into Mr. Taylor's girlfriend," she said. "She has a few other… side hustles."

With this, she dropped her hold on my arm and marched away quickly.

Shit. How in the hell did that woman know what was on my to-do list?

Feeling pissed, I jumped into my patrol car and headed across town. When I pulled into the parking lot of Bayou Brews, I glanced at my watch and winced. They wouldn't be open at nine in the morning.

Shit. Pulling out my phone, I scanned my list of suspects and decided to visit the mayor's office instead. Heading back across town, I somehow ended up passing the Red River Iron Gym.

What the hell? I pulled into the parking lot when I noticed Jameson's hog sitting out front.

Nine in the morning, the gym was pretty empty. It was just past the time for the early morning fanatics that hit the gym before work and too early for the stay-at-home types who were finishing their avocado toast and lattes before hitting their yoga mats.

Seeing Jameson through the wall of glass windows, I narrowed my eyes and watched him talking to a male gym goer.

God, the man looked sexy as hell in a gray T-shirt and black shorts. His hair appeared slightly wet, as if he'd just come inside out of the rain.

Had he just gotten there?

When my phone rang, I answered Randy's call on the second ring.

"Hey," I answered, shifting slightly in my seat.

"Hey, Edith wanted me to see if you'd be up for dinner on Saturday," Randy said.

"Sure," I answered without even thinking. "How was this morning's round?"

Randy grew quiet. "She'd kill me for letting on that she was hurting."

"I know," I said softly. "Even so, you should tell me."

"Right," he agreed. "She says that the chemo is better than the radiation burns from last time. She's starting to lose her hair."

I closed my eyes to the pain. Edith Cordova had the most beautiful silver-gray curly locks that I'd ever seen. It was one of the first features I could remember seeing in my young childhood. That and her soft brown eyes, which had always been filled with love and kindness, like Randy's were.

"I can take her into Aria and see what she can do?" I suggested.

"She's talking about shaving it all off," Randy said with a sigh.

My chest grew heavy. "I can be there," I said. "Saturday?"

"Saturday," Randy agreed. "See you then."

When I hung up, tears burned my eyes. Until my passenger door flew open and Jameson jumped in the seat beside me.

"You know, if you sit out here much longer, you're going to give the gym a bad rep," he said with a smile.

I moved my hand away from my gun and narrowed my eyes at him. "You know, if you spook a cop like that again, you might just have a few more holes than you'd like."

His smile grew. "Checking up on me?" he asked.

I knew there was no logical reason for me to be sitting outside his work for… shit, had I been on the call for ten minutes? I answered, "It's not a crime."

He chuckled. "You know, my friends and yours don't play too well together. If you want to meet up, we should do so someplace more… private."

I tilted my head. "I haven't made up my mind yet about that," I said honestly. "Why do you only have two misdemeanors?"

He tilted his head to match mine. "Should I have more?"

"It doesn't add up," I pointed out. "You don't add up."

"Not everything in life adds up all the time."

"I don't like puzzles that are missing pieces." My statement had an odd effect on him. He suddenly seemed to be thinking deeply about something.

"Why Rayne?" he asked.

"Why what?"

"Why is your name Rayne and only Rayne?"

I tilted my head. "As I said, I don't know you well enough?—"

He held up his hand to stop me. "Okay, how about we agree to an answer for an answer? But…"—he glanced back at the building—"not here."

"Where?" I asked, trying to hide my excitement.

"There's a cabin on Red River Road, on the bend along the river near Barns Street, just outside of town. It's red with a blue door, off by itself," he said.

"I know of it," I said, and his eyebrows rose slowly. "I know my town," I added with a chuckle.

He nodded. "Noon? Don't drive the patrol car."

I didn't know what I had expected, maybe a late-night rendezvous, but the middle of the day worked for me too. I nodded and Jameson climbed out of my car and dashed through the rain back inside.

Glancing at my watch, I groaned. I'd effectively wasted an hour. Deciding to try my luck at Bayou Brews I was happily surprised when I saw a light on inside.

I knocked on the door and waited until Faye Baker opened the door. Seeing me, she quickly glanced up and down the street before pulling me inside.

"What?" she hissed as she shut the door behind me. "I answered all your questions the other day."

"I have a few more," I said, walking into the empty bar. There was only a low light on behind the bar area and by the way Faye was dressed, I'd wager she'd come downstairs for something. She wore hot pink sleeping shorts and a tank top that said "Hot Stuff" on her butt and boobs, and her jet-black hair was at the nape of her neck in one of those messy buns I could never get to look right on me.

"Coffee?" Faye asked, moving behind the bar.

"Sure," I said, pulling down one of the stools and sitting on it.

"Black?" she asked over her shoulder.

"Cream and sugar if you have it," I said.

Faye glanced over her shoulder as her eyes narrowed. "I thought all cops like their coffee black?"

"That's a stereotype," I said with a sigh. "Don't group me in with the rest of the cops in town."

"No," Faye said with a sigh. "I forgot, you're some sort of super-cop."

I rolled my eyes. "Detective."

"Right." She set a mug in front of me and leaned on the counter as she sipped from her mug. Her dark eyes ran over me slowly. "Ask your questions."

"How is it you are lucky enough to live upstairs?" I pointed at my mug before taking a drink. Up until the mayor's death, I hadn't known there was an apartment on the third floor of the building or that Faye was living there.

"I'm friendly with the owner," she said smoothly.

The owner—Jackson Pennington. In my book, Jackson Pennington was a suspected sleazeball in a suit. That didn't mean he had anything to do with my case. He was extremely rich like the Taylors, but that didn't automatically mean that he would stoop to murder. From all the information I had on the man, he was friendly with the Taylors.

Still, I mentally added his name to my interview-again list, just in case.

"Plus, I pay rent and watch out for the building," Faye added. "Next question."

"What do you know about the Taylor's trouble with the State Attorney General's Office looking into them for public corruption and embezzling?"

I watched the sheer shock on Faye's face and knew the answer before she even opened her mouth.

"They're what?" Faye asked, setting down her cup.

I sighed and set my cup down. "Are you friendly with either Beau or Wyatt?"

Faye glanced down at her hands. "Wyatt comes in now and then."

"Who does he hang out with?" I asked.

Her eyes jerked back up to mine. "Who doesn't he hang with? Jocks, bikers, yuppies, ma and pa types." She shrugged. "The man is far more popular than his brother, that's for sure. It's funny," she started, but then she stopped and shook her head.

"Funny?" I prodded.

She rolled her eyes. "It's just… Beau is far better looking than Wyatt." She smiled.

"Does Beau come in often?"

She shrugged. "Sometimes he comes to pick up his father. I've never seen him drink."

"Wyatt's involved with…" I pretended to pull out my notepad to look, but Faye beat me to the name. "Clara Mangrum."

I nodded. Clara Mangrum worked at the station, but I still didn't know whether in Internal Affairs or records. I was going to make a point to find out.

"They've been going out again for a few months," Faye added. "Before that… we used to be a thing."

"Is that why you started shaking it up with his old man?" I asked, not caring to go light on her at this point. "Couldn't keep the son?"

Her eyes jerked to mine. "Henry takes care of me, unlike Wyatt."

"Financially? Because I can think of a few laws?—"

"No, in other ways." She picked up her coffee to sip. "Do you have any other questions? Because I need to head up and shower."

"How often do the Reapers come in here?" I asked instead of asking any other questions about the murder.

Faye looked surprised. "Too often if you ask me." I waited. "At least five times a week. Every day during the winter."

I nodded. "Troublemakers?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

She shrugged. "Sometimes. Only twice we've had to call you guys in to help out. For the most part, I think they know we're the only ones in town that will deal with them, so they play nice."

"Right," I said, knowing that was probably the reason Felix Woolf had pulled Declan O'Malley out of my grip and out of the bar last week. There was no doubt in my mind that Felix and Declan knew who I was. Even though I didn't work the beat, they knew. "What do you know about Jameson Lorenzo?"

Faye's eyebrows arched and she smiled for the first time. "Now that's a man I'd like to sink my teeth into." She purred and when I didn't respond, she continued. "He's quiet. Watchful. Kind. A good tipper. I can tell he doesn't like the shenanigans that a few of the others get into. He seems all business. Like Felix and Ben, though I've seen those two cut loose. I haven't seen Jameson relax so much as a muscle. Oh, he looks relaxed, but there's just something…" She dropped off.

"Right," I agreed. There was something unexplainable about the man. The piece of the puzzle I hadn't quite found yet.

I stood up from my stool and downed the rest of the now lukewarm coffee. "Thanks for that." I motioned to the cup. "Let me know if you think of anything else."

"Sure."

"Oh, one more thing." I stopped. "What other tricks do you have going?"

I watched her eyes widen slightly before she lied. "None."

"Make sure it stays that way," I warned and walked out.

I had a couple of hours to kill before I went to meet Jameson. Just enough time to head into the mayor's office and ask the mayor's coworkers the new questions that I had.