Chapter Nine

Sunday, January 13, 9:00 A.M.

‘Thank you for meeting me so early,’ Dana Miller said.

Nicole smiled and extended her hand to the woman dressed in mink and a sleek Armani suit. Dark hair was brushed back in a smooth chignon and one-caret diamond studs winked from her earlobes. Dana had made a fortune in real estate in the last decade.

Nicole smiled. ‘No problem. I often meet with clients early in the morning.

‘But Sunday is above and beyond the call. My schedule is insane right now.’ Dana shrugged off the mink. A diamond broach clung to her lapel. ‘And then my marketing director called me yesterday and said she absolutely had to have the new publicity shots by Monday afternoon. We’re revamping the Web site and my marketing director needs new head shots of me.’

‘You live a hectic life.’ Nicole accepted her coat and hung it on a rack by the door. The shades were open and morning light poured into her studio. Outside the winter sky was a crystal blue.

‘Usually it’s manageable. But I’m selling the units for the River Bend site, and with all the recent headlines I’ve had my hands full with damage control.’

‘Didn’t they find a dead woman on that property?’

Dana grimaced. ‘Yes. Horrible. Poor woman.’

‘The murder must be hurting business.’

‘Actually, traffic by the sales office has skyrocketed. The problem is the cops won’t release the scene and Adam Alderson is falling behind schedule with the surveying, which of course delays the site work. It’s a mess.’ Dana’s gaze flickered to Nicole’s belly. ‘I guess you know firsthand about unexpected surprises.’

The reference to the baby caught Nicole off guard. Dana’s boldness put her on the defensive and that made her angry. As color rose in her cheeks, she reminded herself again that she had done nothing wrong.

‘My comment has made you angry.’

‘Frankly, yes.’

Dana wasn’t put off. ‘This baby must be turning your world upside down.’

Nicole lifted her chin. ‘Nothing I can’t handle.’

‘Good for you. I like women with a spine.’ Dana grinned. ‘You are a doll for working me in today.’

Nicole needed the interruption of work. She’d spent most of last evening looking at adoption family profiles. Again, she was left conflicted, worried, and confused over the decision. ‘I’m just glad you called and we could find a time to meet. Can I offer you coffee or tea?’

Dana smiled. ‘Tea would be lovely.’

Nicole moved past the camera set up in front of the backdrop and settee. She had a small kitchen with an electric teapot and a white porcelain jar filled with a collection of teas.

‘You will join me, won’t you?’

Nicole shook her head. ‘My taste for tea has diminished somewhat since my pregnancy.’

Dana chose a flavor from the jar and Nicole poured the steeping water into one of the antique porcelain cups she’d found at a flea market. The mismatched style of the cups suited her.

Dana sipped her tea. ‘I’ve heard a woman’s taste buds change when she’s pregnant. I’ve also heard her sense of smell becomes stronger.’

‘Very true.’ She could barely stand the smell of her dark-room chemicals, which she told herself was a valid reason for not working on anything for an art show. All the work she’d done of late was digital. After the baby was born, her life would get back to normal.

After.

‘While you enjoy your tea, I’ll set up the camera.’

‘I’m in no rush,’ Dana said. She sipped her tea and moved around the room, studying Nicole’s prints on the walls. Outwardly calm, Dana exuded an energy that barely seemed contained. ‘So when is the baby due?’

Nicole pressed a hand to her belly. ‘About three weeks.’

Dana grinned. ‘Wow. You must be very excited.’

Scared was a better answer. But she wasn’t about to share that with Dana. ‘Lots of changes are happening very fast.’

‘It must feel wonderful to feel the baby moving inside you.’

More like an alien invasion. Nicole extended her arm toward the waiting settee. ‘If you need those pictures quickly, we’d better get started. Touch-ups will take me a few extra hours.’

‘Of course.’ She set her cup down by the hot pot and moved into the photo area.

Nicole stood behind the camera. She felt a measure of control return. ‘Would you like to touch up your makeup?’

‘No.’

That didn’t surprise Nicole. The woman’s makeup was perfect. ‘Then have a seat.’

Dana sat down as Nicole started to turn on the spotlights around her. ‘So have you chosen a name for the baby?’

Bands of tension squeezed her chest. She adjusted the lights.

In the last few months, talk often turned to babies around her. Women of all ages reminisced about pregnancies and children. Some even touched her stomach as if it were public property. All of it made Nicole unhappy. Not knowing if she could love her child, she felt like a fraud when people asked her questions. ‘Not yet.’

Nicole held a light meter next to Dana’s face and took a reading.

Dana stared up at her. ‘I’m in sales, Nicole. I’m an expert at reading people.’

‘Really?’

‘You’re worried about something.’

She swallowed but managed a smile. ‘The only thing I’m worried about is taking a great picture of you.’

‘Oh, I don’t think that’s true.’

Nicole ignored the comment. ‘Here, turn your legs to the side and face the camera.’

Dana complied. ‘So do you have family in the area?’

‘No. My folks passed several years ago.’

‘Brothers and sisters?’

‘Only child.’

‘So it’s just you and the baby now.’

Nicole retreated behind the camera and peered through the viewfinder. ‘Let’s get started on your pictures.’

Dana’s eyes narrowed a fraction. ‘You dodge questions about the baby.’

‘I’m here to take pictures of you, not bore you with talk of the baby.’

‘I love to talk babies.’ Dana settled on her perch and smiled toward the lens. Her eyes brightened. ‘Not having a baby is my one regret. I was always so busy making money. I didn’t want to stop to raise a child.’

Nicole didn’t respond. Dana’s gaze grew pointed. ‘Are you going to keep the baby?’

‘That’s personal.’ Nicole could feel her cheeks flush.

‘I know. I’m sorry.’ She didn’t seem the least bit sorry.

Nicole had been excited about this job this morning, but now she just wanted to be done with it. She snapped several dozen pictures. Dana’s practiced smile came easily. ‘You’re very photogenic.’

‘I know.’ No conceit in her voice, just confidence in an asset.

Nicole moistened her lips. The baby kicked hard. ‘Would you like to see what I’ve shot so far? I have at least forty pictures now.’

‘Yes.’

Nicole pulled the memory card from her camera and they walked to her desk. She popped the card in the computer and within seconds images of Dana appeared on the screen. Dana was photogenic but Nicole knew she’d also done an excellent job of capturing her. ‘What do you think?’

Dana leaned over Nicole’s shoulder and studied the pictures. ‘Start flipping through them and I’ll tell you what I like.’

Nicole hit the NEXT button and another image appeared.

‘No.’

Nicole hit the button again.

Dana lifted a brow. ‘Maybe.’

This went on for five minutes. By the end, Dana had chosen three pictures. ‘Excellent.’

‘I can take more pictures. I have other backdrops. Different lighting.’

‘No. What you’ve shot is excellent and it does the trick. Just send the disk to Brenda and she’ll cut you a check.’

Nicole glanced at her watch. ‘We’ve only been at this thirty minutes. Most sittings take several hours.’

Dana moved across the room and retrieved her fur coat from the rack. She smiled. ‘Not necessary. I got exactly what I came for.’

After the woman breezed out of the room, Nicole didn’t feel the relief she’d been expecting. Instead, she felt as if she’d just played a round of cat and mouse. She’d dodged the cat today but wondered when it would return.

Jacob had not gotten into bed until after four A.M. He had watched and rewatched the parking lot surveillance tape hoping to see something more. There had been nothing, and finally, his eyes were so tired he had had to stop.

He had turned off his alarm clock, determined to sleep in. However, his eyes had popped open at nine-thirty. His mind was alert, jazzed even, but his body was exhausted. He had tossed and turned and going back to sleep had proven impossible.

Groaning his frustration, he swung his legs over the side of the bed. He hung his head in his hands and then pushed his fingers through his short hair. He rose and walked naked into the bathroom, took a leak, and then turned on the shower. When steam filled the bathroom, he climbed into the stall and ducked his head under the hot water stream. He leaned his head against the tile wall and let the heat flow down his back.

Jacob soaped off and rinsed. He shut off the water and stepped out of the stall. After grabbing a towel, he dried off, dressed in jeans and a black T-shirt, and slipped his feet into worn leather shoes.

His apartment was simple to the point of Spartan. La-Z-Boy couch, wide-screen TV, coffee table, and a few lamps. The beige walls had a few framed posters on them from boxing bouts he’d fought in when he was a teenager. Several bookshelves lined the walls. They were crammed full of biographies, history books, and the random bit of fiction. No plants. No knickknacks. He kept his life simple, uncomplicated.

The coffee tin was empty and what was left in the coffeepot was a couple of days old. Jacob never had time to go to the grocery store. When he did, it was always a surgical strike: eggs, cottage cheese, cooked lean chicken, and of course coffee. Only he’d not even made a fleeting pass at a store in a couple of weeks.

When he’d dated Sharon last year, the fridge had been stocked. She loved buying, cooking, and eating. And she had a killer body. She’d brought life to the apartment and he’d known he could fall for her. That had scared the hell out of him. Love equaled vulnerability. He had broken it off.

Sharon had been devastated. She’d cried. Staring at the mascara bleeding around her eyes, he’d felt like hell. He’d let her call him a coward and a bastard. And yet he didn’t try to make it work.

Dr Christopher would have a field day with that tidbit. No doubt she’d link the incident back to his mother.

He opened the refrigerator and discovered he had three boiled eggs and a juice carton. He peeled the eggs, ate them right over the sink, and then drank the remains of the juice from the carton.

Kendall Shaw’s face flashed in his mind. He couldn’t picture her drinking her morning juice from a carton. If she were standing here right now, she’d no doubt bust his chops for being such a slob. The image made him grin. When she was mad her eyes sparked, and he got hard.

The juice tasted all that much sweeter just knowing he could get under her skin.

The carton spent, he tossed it into the trash can under the sink and shrugged on his leather jacket. He retrieved his nine millimeter from the locked box in the hall closet and clipped it to his belt. He’d just snagged his cell from the charger by the back door when it rang. ‘Warwick.’

‘This is Zack.’ He sounded awake and alert. ‘I just got a call from dispatch. A convenience store owner found a murdered woman. Her body was dumped behind his store. She was strangled.’

Jacob tensed. ‘Anybody see anything?’

‘You know as much as I do at this point.’ Zack gave him the address.

‘You call Ayden?’

‘Not yet.’

‘Let him know what’s going on. I’m on my way to the crime scene.’

A second murdered woman meant the stakes had jumped exponentially. Jacob snapped his phone closed and headed down the stairs of his apartment complex. The cold burned his lungs as he crossed the parking lot to his car, a police issue Crown Vic.

The windshield was covered in ice. He slid behind the wheel, turned the heater on full blast, and then got out and scraped the windshield.

Two women strangled. The press would be all over this case. The press. Kendall. Damn.