Chapter 12

Leonie got to work the same time as she usually did, her sense of well-being slightly better than the day before, thanks to Ephie no longer being in town. That felt like a burden lifted, even if her daughter was with Remy.

There were worse choices and definitely worse vampires. It wasn't an ideal situation, but it was still better than having Ephie here where she could easily be targeted.

Leonie planned on reaching out to the police commissioner today. She let herself into her chambers, turning on the lights. She doubted he'd be in his office for another hour or so. She'd call as soon as was feasible.

Her phone chimed. She closed the door behind her and checked the notification. Ephie had responded to her text.

Leonie frowned at the words. It hadn't exactly been her idea for Ephie to leave with Remy, but she supposed there was no point in correcting her daughter's supposition. The end had justified the means, even if Ephie thought it was something else entirely.

Leonie tucked her phone back into her purse and went to her desk. She stopped a foot away, her gaze pinned to the envelope resting on her closed laptop.

How was it possible another letter had arrived so soon? It wasn't with any other mail, just sitting by itself. This was different. This was more direct. She felt sick to her stomach. Only herself, her clerks, and the janitorial staff had a key to her chambers.

Someone was on Turner's payroll.

She looked around the office, wondering if anything else had been touched. Was it possible he'd planted bugs? Could he be listening to what went on in here?

The idea made her feel unsafe. Violated. She couldn't call the commissioner. She'd have to go see him. That was better anyway. She'd take him the letters. If those didn't spur him to action, nothing would.

Darryl Tyson wasn't just the police commissioner. He was also a longtime friend and Ephie's godfather. The man was duty-bound to help.

Leonie didn't care that he probably wasn't in his office yet. She'd sit outside and wait. She couldn't be in this room any longer than she had to. She got a large manila envelope from a drawer in her desk, then used a pen to nudge the new letter into it, careful not to touch it.

She doubted there were prints on it or any of the previous letters, other than her own and Remy's, but if there were, she wasn't taking any chances that she might ruin this one.

The letters she'd already touched went into another large envelope, then she put both into her briefcase and took one more look around. Nothing looked out of place, but then, that would be how they'd want to leave it.

So that she wouldn't suspect a thing.

No one should come into this room. It might be a crime scene. She'd tell Mervin. He'd keep everyone out.

Unless he was part of it.

She shook her head. That wasn't possible. He was a good man, one she'd known for nearly eight years. She'd been to his house and he to hers. She knew his family. They'd been in New Orleans longer than her own.

It wasn't Mervin. She could trust him. She had to believe that. She needed to trust someone. Maybe that person was Darryl.

She left, locking the office door and leaving a note for Mervin that no one was to go in until she got back. Then she drove directly to the commissioner's office.

When she pulled into the parking lot, he was just getting out of his car. She parked and hustled toward him, her heels clicking on the pavement, her briefcase banging against her thigh.

He smiled when he saw her. "Leonie, what a pleasant surprise." He pulled her into a hug. "It's good to see you. Are you here for me?"

"It's good to see you, too." His warm embrace had given her comfort, but she couldn't return his smile. "And, yes, you're the reason I'm here."

As if sensing something was going on, concern took over his face. "What's wrong?"

"Abraham Turner."

Darryl's brows furrowed. "What about him?"

"I need help, Darryl. He's been sending me threatening letters. He's threatened Ephie, too."

"What?" The word exploded out of him in an angry bark. He looked around. "You have the letters?"

"I do."

He put his hand on her shoulder. "Let's go into my office."

Not another word was spoken until they were seated, door closed, in his private space. Him behind his desk, her in one of the chairs before it. "Now," he said, "tell me everything and show me these letters."

She gave him every detail she could remember, including sending Ephie out of town with a friend. That was as much as she was willing to tell Darryl about Remy. Darryl was human, and while he'd lived in New Orleans long enough to have a healthy respect for the supernatural, she doubted he'd understand a real-life vampire.

She finished her story by pulling the two big envelopes from her briefcase. "This one has the letters I've already opened and touched." She placed the second one on top. "And this has the newest letter. I found it on my desk this morning. I got it in the envelope without laying a finger on it. I haven't read it, either."

Darryl nodded. "Let me get some gloves. We'll have a look at it together. While we do that, I'm sending a tech guy to your office to sweep it. If there's a listening device present, he'll pick it up."

"Thank you." She leaned forward. "Wait. If he removes it, Turner will know I'm on to him. Can he just sweep and tell me where they are, if there are any?"

Darryl narrowed his eyes. "Yes, but don't you discuss sensitive information in your chambers?"

"I do, but there are ways around that. I was thinking maybe we could use the bugs to feed Turner some false information. See if we can draw out whoever's working for him that way."

Darryl frowned. "If you're implying we should use you as bait, I don't like that, Leonie. I won't approve that. A sitting associate justice shouldn't be subject to that kind of danger. Better to pull the bug and let Turner think it malfunctioned."

"Darryl, I love you and I appreciate you, but we've known each other since grade school. Have you ever known me to shy away from hard times?"

He laughed mirthlessly. "No, I haven't. But we're also not talking about hard times, Leonie. This is life or death." He stabbed the desktop with his finger. "Turner blames you for putting him behind bars. He's not a man to be trifled with."

"And I'm not a woman to be trifled with. I've already had to send my daughter away without her knowing anything about this. If I can help you take down some of his crew, I would be glad to." She lifted her chin. "No one threatens me or my family and gets away with it."

"I'm sure he's calling the shots, but his crew is no joke. They are dangerous men. Willing to do whatever he tells them."

"That just means we need to set things up properly. So that I'm protected. I'm not afraid to do this, Darryl. I'm afraid not to."

Darryl let out a deep, resigned sigh. "Let's read this letter before we make any decisions, all right?"

She nodded. "All right."

He got up and left, coming back with a pair of latex gloves and an evidence package. "We'll read this letter, then I'm sending all of this to the lab for fingerprints and DNA."

"DNA?" That surprised her.

"If the envelopes were licked, there will be DNA. It's a slim chance, but it's worth checking."

"I'm all for that."

Gloves on, he pulled a penknife from his pocket and used the blade to slit the envelope open. He carefully removed the folded letter from inside and set it on his desk. He looked into the envelope, pushing the ends together to open it.

"Anything?"

He turned the envelope over. A small black feather fell out.

Leonie didn't like that. It felt like a voodoo talisman. "Another threat."

He nodded. "That's how I'd take it, too. Let's see what this says." He unfolded the paper and read. "You think I don't know what you've done. I have eyes and ears everywhere. Nothing escapes me. Your daughter won't either."

Leonie gasped and put her hand to her throat. "He knows I sent Ephie away."

"Maybe," Darryl said. "But just because he knows she's gone doesn't mean he knows where. This friend she's with, is it someone who can protect her?"

Leonie nodded. "He's a friend of Ephie's from school. He's a cop now."

"Good. He knows what's going on?"

"He does."

"I'd advise you to fill him in on this latest letter."

"Let me take a picture of it to send to him."

Once she'd done that, Darryl refolded the letter and put it back in the envelope along with the feather. "I don't think it's wise for you to be on your own right now, either. You're as much in danger as she is."

"What are you going to do, Darryl? Assign an officer to me twenty-four-seven? That's not practical. And I doubt you have the budget for it."

"When you're at the courthouse, I'm not as concerned about you. There's already a lot of protection there. But when you're home on your own, I'm very concerned. I was thinking you could come and stay with me."

She couldn't keep her surprise from showing on her face. "That's a kind offer, but I cannot imagine the tongue-wagging that might start."

He frowned. "Leonie, we're talking about your life. Who cares what people say?"

She knew he was right. She had an alarm system on her home but no way to actually defend herself if someone broke in. No dog, no gun, no weapon of any kind. "I understand this is a serious situation. But it's Ephie being targeted, not me."

"I don't share your confidence. If you won't stay with me, then I have no choice but to assign you protection."

That would be like walking around with a neon sign announcing her vulnerability. Turner might see it as a challenge. "What if…" Did she dare? She supposed she had no choice. She liked her privacy. But she liked Darryl, too. Always had.

"What if what?"

"You came to stay with me?"

He smiled. "If that's your compromise, I can live with that." He picked up his phone. "I'm going to get your office swept immediately."

"Thank you." There would still be talk. Darryl's presence at her house would not go unnoticed. But it was a small price to pay to sleep at night.

It might be nice to have the company, too. She and Darryl had always had something between them, a spark of more than just friendship.

But he'd been married until a few years ago, when his wife had tired of her life as a police officer's spouse and left him. Since his divorce, he'd stayed single.

He hung up. "What time do you normally get home? I'd like to be there so I can do a walk-through of your place and assess your current security."

She smiled. "Six. And Alphonso usually has dinner ready by seven. I'll tell him to make it for two this evening."