An old mausoleum sat dutifully at the intersection of two outside rows, and I put on gloves as I went back to it with my work flashlight. I pried the stone door open, same as I had last time, and went inside. There was a thick casement taking up most of the space, the type of thing you just didn’t see anymore, which was made to surround a coffin for all time. I carefully slid the stone lid around until it laid sideways across the base.
I’d snooped the last time I was here, curious if there was a coffin inside, and there wasn’t. I had no idea if the corpse had been stolen or no one had ever been laid to rest—I was betting on the former—but it was the perfect spot to dump a body. It was clear no one ever came out here. I brought the tarps in and was careful as I unwrapped the package and let the gross remains slide into the casement, and then I shoved the lid around again so it appeared as undisturbed as when I’d started. It was tedious to roll up the tarps and not get blood everywhere, but I did it.
I was tired by the time I shoved the door closed again. It was thick, solid stone and didn’t want to go the last inch, so I had to put all my weight against it. After I was certain I hadn’t left behind anything that could give me away, I went to a small illegal dump and tossed the tarps down a hill in the dark. I held on to the drill and the screws until I was in the city again.
It was the perfect time of day to visit the New Gothenburg Car Wash, a local chain with self-service bays, and I simply dumped the screws in the trash. The drill went in a different can. No one was searching for murder weapons, and no one would find a body, so I wasn’t worried about the drill. It would go out with the trash. Happy with the world, I took the truck into one of the bays that had a nice sprayer. I spent nearly an hour making the truck gleam.
When I was done, I pulled out near the vacuums and began the tedious process of making sure the inside was as DNA-free as the outside. I would do this a few more times over the next couple of weeks. I was just hopping out to throw away a pile of Armor All cloths when someone nearby honked and startled me.
Paxton waved and smiled as he got out of his Red Ford. “You’re up early this morning.”
“Wanted to clean my girl.” I hooked a thumb toward my truck and threw my trash in the garbage can.
He nodded and smiled. “Had the same idea, and this is the closest car wash to work. Hey,” he said, and his tone let me know he was about to be overly friendly. He was nice, and I didn’t hate that or anything, but I held in a sigh. “I was wondering, since you never said anything about liking men before....” He flushed and rubbed the back of his neck. “You know, my friend Slater was the same way, and we were planning on having him and Madden over for dinner tonight to watch the UFC fights. I mean, we’re not much for that, but it’s something to do for laughs. Would you like to bring your new boyfriend and come over? We’ll have food.” He finally looked me in the eye again, and I could tell it had taken him some effort to make the offer. Maybe he thought he was getting too personal.
“Sure.”
He let out a long breath and smiled at me. “Good. We’ll see you tonight, then?”
“Yeah.” I nodded. “I’m done, so I’ll see you later.”
“Yes, of course. I have a shift at my PI gig to get to, so I’ll be hurrying there after this.”
I didn’t honestly give a shit what he did with his downtime away from me, but I smiled and nodded because it was expected.
When I got home, Ari was sleeping like an angel in my bed. Tonight would be a perfect opportunity to start teaching him how to fit in. Uneasiness slithered through my gut as I got into the bed and cuddled his warm body close.
What would I do if he couldn’t learn? I didn’t want to lose him. I’d planned to drag out the kills in my box hidden in the attic for years—if I ever got started—and he’d murdered so many people in such a short time. He would get caught eventually if he kept up that kill rate. I had to rein him in. The problem was, I didn’t want to do that. Maybe if we were very careful and just stuck to the scum of the earth no one gave a shit about, no one would try too hard to solve the cases and catch him.
I kissed Ari’s lips, which were still slightly swollen from earlier, and he rolled toward me, snuggling in against my chest. I would keep him safe, whether he wanted me to or not. I would do my best to clean up his kills if I could. After all, he belonged to me now.
10
ARI
I staredat the small house we stood in front of with disinterest. Nothing about this little place called to me, but I’d promised Jules I would be well-behaved when we visited his coworker for dinner. Jules said we wouldn’t be here for long, and that the more time we spent socializing, the less likely it was that we’d have suspicion cast on us, and I couldn’t argue with his logic.
So, now we stood in a bland neighborhood, dressed in casual clothes and each holding a pizza box from a local shop. To say I felt out of place was an understatement. I preferred the shelter because at least I didn’t have to pretend to like people there.
The house itself wasn’t bad—small, with deep blue siding and white trim. The windows were wide and rectangular, and the first floor had a small wraparound porch with a white railing. Everything about this place shouted “family,” and as much as I hated acting like everyone else, at least we weren’t standing in front of a mansion and hanging out with people like my parents.
“Are you ready?” Jules asked. There was a tone in his voice that told me he was preparing, too, and that made me feel a little better.
I nodded, gripping the pizza box tighter. It was almost as if we were going to war. “Ready.”
We walked toward the front door together, and once we took the steps up to the porch, the door flew open and a man with short dark hair and gold-rimmed glasses greeted us. Wearing nothing but a pair of loose pants and a T-shirt, he looked relaxed. This wasn’t Jules’s partner.
The man held out his hand. “Jules.”
Jules balanced the pizza box on one arm and shook the man’s hand. “Hey.”
The man nodded. “Good to see you. How did you know I would want pizza? Are you psychic? Because you could turn a quick buck that way. We could make a commercial for you and put it on YouTube. It could be one of the annoying ones that cut off my favorite BDSM shows.”
Jules laughed, and I scrunched up my nose, hating that this good-looking person could makemyMaster happy like that. No one but me should amuse him.
I stepped in closer to Jules in a small movement I hoped told thisassholethat Jules belonged to me, and it was enough to make him pause and glance at me. He smiled, but there was an assessment in his gaze, as if he couldn’t quite decide what he thought about me. What annoyed me was how quickly his attention returned to Jules.
Mine!
