She pulled up her sleeve, and when she did, they saw the tattoos there. On them, there were squiggles, lines, and symbolsNOTfound on the bodies.
As far as they could see, nothing matched what she was currently sporting as her own personal sigils.
As if reading their minds, she shared.
“This one means I’m a witch,” she said, touching it. “This one is a protection symbol of the Voudon, and this is a symbol of power. What’s all over those victims is literally gibberish. It’s not a Pagan alphabet, or anything but garbage. Who would put an evil eye on a dead body? The evil eye is to protect a person. This person is dead. It’s a little too late.”
She had a point.
“Where were you last night?” Gene asked. “You need an alibi.”
She didn’t hesitate.
“I was atDark Spiritsin the VIP lounge with Roddy. He’s my alibi, along with all of my staff, and all of the patrons.”
Ethan pulled up a different picture.
“Do you know this man?”
It was a picture of the dead banker found not that long ago on his lawn.
“Yes, I know him. That’s Samuel. He works at the bank, and is part business partner, or was, to Jaden—off the books. He is his personal finance guy.”
Both men’s eyebrows went up. Again, this was all tying back to the original dead man, proving they were likely on the right path.
The dead cop and agent were not involved, just being handled for working this case.
“So Jaden was running guns, and now, his money backer at the bank turned up dead?”
She nodded.
“This isn’t me. I’m not violent by nature. Yes, I know I have scary tattoos, and I know that I practice dark arts, but we don’t hurt anyone. I didn’t kill Jaden, the two officers of the law, or Samuel.”
Well, if they both had an alibi, they didn’t kill Samuel, but he was at the club last night.
“He was atDark Spiritsyesterday evening. We have already gained access to his financial records.”
She nodded, and didn’t even try to make an excuse.
“He joined us for a few minutes in the VIP lounge. We had a few drinks, and talked business,” Rodrigo said.
“About?” Gene asked.
The man kept his mouth closed.
“Listen. You want us to keep her safe and out of jail, then maybe you need to stop being an idiot.”
The man glanced over at Esmeralda, and they both saw the genuine love in her eyes for him, and vice versa.
This wasn’t just some random sex thing. They were legitimately a couple in love.
Finally, he spoke.
“I’m working on a business venture. Is it legal? No. It’s not.”
Both men sat there.
“How illegal?” Gene asked.
