Deadly Deceit, page 6
Jolene smiled happily at Christina. “Thanks, Kylie,” she replied, taking the chair Christian had pulled out for her, “It was amazing. I wish we could have invited more people, but we wanted to keep the risks to a minimum.”
Kylie shrugged and passed out the menus. “Zane and Willow showed us all the pictures they took,” she explained, “They said it was almost as beautiful as Dej and Carrie’s wedding.”
Jolene and Joseph chuckled. Zane Walker had been a classmate of the twins at Willowbrook Academy in Marilynn. He and his best friend, Colton Parker, had been two of Joseph’s favorite people in school. Jolene had taken it upon herself to become an unofficial champion for Zane and Colton’s sisters, despite the four-year age difference.
“No wedding could rival Dej and Carrie’s,” Jolene replied, “No one outdoes a wedding planned by Andrea Davis. How is she, by the way?” she added, her voice taking on a note of consolation and concern.
Andrea Davis, Marilynn’s most well-known philanthropist, had lost her husband two years prior. Hank Davis was another pillar of the Marilynn community. Despite their home being technically located in Portland, an hour and a half away, the older couple remained active in Marilynn society.
“She’s coping the best way she knows how,” Kylie admitted with a heavy sigh. She’d known Andrea Davis since she was little. Her older half-sister, Kelly, had married Andrea’s daughter when Kylie was seven.
“She’s back to planning events and hosting fundraisers, trying to keep the loneliness at bay. Everyone is doing what they can to keep her company, but she’s insisting we give her some space.”
Christina reached over and patted Kylie on the shoulder. “We’ll be sure to tell Mama and Daddy how she’s doing. I’m sure they’ll reach out to her.”
Kylie nodded gratefully. Even though they were many years younger than Andrea, Robert and Shirley Hess were close to the woman. Robert’s winery often hosted events thrown by Andrea Davis, and Shirley’s bakery was frequently recruited to supply the decadent confections used in silent auctions.
Kylie thanked the group for their concern and excused herself, assuring them that their waitress would be right with them.
“I can’t believe Mrs. Davis is back to working,” Joseph said, perusing his menu needlessly, “I figured she would have gone further into retirement when Mr. Davis passed away.”
“Well,” Christian supplied, not even bothering to open his menu, “Kylie said she’s doing it to fill her time. Some people are like that. They handle grief best by being active. I think that’s what our mom would do.”
“Not ours,” Jolene said, surreptitiously rubbing her foot over Christina’s under the table, “Our mom would lock herself away from the world. Dad is her everything, and losing him would take away her reason for going outside.”
Joseph, unconsciously mimicking his twins action with Christian, nodded. “She would. We’d end up handling the company, or it would capsize.”
“Let’s talk about something else, shall we?” Christina said, pushing away the sadness that wanted to creep in at the topic of discussion, “How was work, honey?”
Christian and Jolene shared a look, before returning their attention to their spouses. “It was work,” Jolene said dismissively, “What did you two do all day?”
Joseph, who was seated next to Christina, and across from Christian, for appearances sake, shrugged. “I put together my conditioning plan for the week, went to the gym, did some cleaning. The usual.”
“I cleaned the house,” Christina explained, “I double-checked my lesson plans, went for a walk, then met up with Marcy for lunch. After that, I just binge-watched Netflix until you got home.”
Jolene smiled affectionately at her wife. Christina wasn’t a lazy person by any means, but the woman was hopelessly addicted to streaming television. Jolene couldn’t count the number of times she’d found Christina curled up on the couch, lost in the middle of a season of whatever show currently held her interest. Lately, it was American Horror Story.
The waitress arrived and took their orders. Once the woman left, the couples talked about this and that until their food arrived.
“Yum,” Joseph hummed, using his hand to waft the succulent aroma of traditional Italian lasagna toward him, “I love this stuff.”
Jolene followed her brother’s lead, an anticipatory groan escaping her lips as she doused the dish in black pepper. Christian and Christina shared a chuckle.
Although not identical, the twins did share several traits. Both liked most of the same foods, and always ordered the lasagna at Del’s. They also blackened their plates with pepper, before their first bite.
There were other things the twins did that mimicked each other, much to Christian and Christina’s amusement. Joseph and Jolene shared an affinity for Batman, and both had insisted that their bathrooms reflect that.
Batman symbols littered every surface in the bathrooms of both homes, from the toilet seat cover to the shower curtain hooks. They also had matching plaques made; wooden ovals painted like a Batman symbol, with the word Batroom etched in black across the depiction.
“Sweetheart, how do you even taste the lasagna through all that pepper?” Christina asked, when Jolene finally put down the shaker.
“I can taste it fine,” Jolene replied, using her fork to cut a healthy bite of the pasta. She put the bite in her mouth, moaning happily as the flavors ignited her taste buds.
“It’s good without the pepper,” she said, wiping her lips on a napkin, “but, it’s even better with it.”
Joseph hummed his agreement. Christian and Christina simply shrugged. When the meal was finished, the couples placed their orders for dessert and enjoyed a glass of wine while they waited.
“So, are you going to tell me what you didn’t want to tell me earlier?” Christina asked, sliding her foot up the inside of Jolene’s calf.
The couples often used their feet to offer affectionate caresses at Del’s, because the table cloths were long enough to hide them from view. Even in Marilynn, they were careful about not being discovered.
“What do you mean?” Jolene asked, glancing guiltily at Christian.
“Don’t do that, Jolene,” Christina said, crossing her arms over her chest, “I’ve known you way too long for you to play dumb with me. Something is up, and I want to know what it is. The only time you say, ‘it was work’ when I ask about your day, is when you are hiding something. Spill.”
Jolene chuckled nervously, and ran a hand through her hair. “You’re not going to like it,” she said, avoiding Christina’s gaze, “but, um… Christian and I are being temporarily reassigned.”
“What does that mean?” Joseph asked, looking to his husband for clarification, “Are you two moving to a different unit?”
Christian toyed with his wine glass, swirling the tart liquid a bit more than necessary. “Not exactly,” he said, “More like a different department.”
“You’re transferring?” Christina asked incredulously, “I thought you two wanted to stay with Marilynn. Are we going to have to move?”
Jolene shook her head quickly. “No, babe, we won’t have to move. Chris and I aren’t transferring, per se. We’re being sent to another department to fill in for a while, because they are short staffed. With any luck, we’ll be back in Marilynn within a month.”
Christina watched the way Jolene fidgeted with her hair. Jolene rarely played with her luscious red curls, but when she did, it usually meant that she was scared. Christina wondered what it was about the transfer that was scaring her wife, and all too suddenly, the answer hit her in the chest.
“No,” she said firmly, her posture stiffening as her eyes bored into Jolene’s, “tell them no. It’s too dangerous.”
“What is?” Joseph asked, oblivious to the revelation his sister-in-law had just experienced.
“Honey, it’s not as dangerous as you think. Everyone thinks I’m straight, remember?” Jolene reached across the table to cover Christina’s hand with her own, “We’ll be fine, Christie, and we might be able to help catch the guy who’s doing it.”
“What the hell are you two talking about?” Joseph asked impatiently, “Christian? Where are you transferring to?”
Christian shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “Dallas,” he muttered, bracing for the reaction he could see brewing in his sister.
“And that’s a problem because?” Joseph looked between his tablemates, not understanding the issue.
“Haven’t you been watching the news, Joe?” Christina asked, her eyes never leaving Jolene’s.
Joseph pursed his lips in thought. “No, not really. Oh, wait!” he said, pausing to thank the waitress when she set their desserts in front of them, “I did hear that one of the churches is protesting the PD again. Is that why you two are going to be working there? To help keep the demonstrators in line?”
Christina finally looked at Joseph, an expression of disbelief on her face. “Really, Joseph?” she asked, her voice harsh, “Someone is blowing up lesbian cops, and you can’t figure out why Chris and Jo working at Dallas PD is a problem?”
Joseph’s eyes went wide. “Oh, come on,” he said dismissively, “you don’t really believe someone is targeting them because of their sexuality, do you? Dallas PD has at least a dozen out lesbian and gay officers. If that was the case, the bombings would be a lot more frequent.”
Christina, Jolene, and Christian simply stared at the man. Joseph looked around at them, confused as to why they were looking at him like he’d just grown another head.
“What?” he asked, “Why are you all looking at me like that?”
“Wow, Joseph,” Christina said scathingly as she stood and threw her napkin onto the table, “Under all that muscle and charm, you really are a meathead, aren’t you?”
Her raised voice drew attention from some of the other diners, but Christina didn’t care.
“Christie,” Jolene tried, reaching a hand toward her wife, “Calm down and talk to us. There’s no reason to cause a scene. Let’s talk this out like rational adults.”
“I am calm,” Christina snapped, pulling her purse roughly onto her shoulder, “And, I’m apparently the only member of this group with enough sense to think this is a completely stupid idea.”
With that, Christina spun on her heel and stormed toward the door. Christian started to go after her, but Jolene laid a hand on his arm. “I’ll go,” she said with a defeated sigh, “You guys settle the bill. Next one is on me.”
Christian nodded and offered a little wave as Jolene left in search of her angry wife.
***
“Christie?” Jolene rapped her knuckles on the bedroom door again. She’d tried to catch Christina before the woman left in their car, but Christina had sped off without a backward glance when Jolene called out to her. “Christie, baby, please open the door and talk to me.”
“I don’t want to talk to you right now, Jo,” Christina yelled through the door, “I’m angry.”
Jolene scoffed at the obvious statement. “Really? I hadn’t noticed,” she retorted sharply.
“Why did you accept that assignment, Jolene?” Christina asked, forcefully yanking open the door.
Jolene looked at her wife and sucked in a breath. Christina’s eyes were red and swollen from crying. Her carefully applied eyeliner streaked down her cheeks, and her nose was an angry shade of red. It hurt Jolene to know that she had caused the look of pain and fear in her wife’s dark blue eyes, and she wanted nothing more, at that moment, than to soothe those fears.
“Honey,” she said gently, reaching out to pull Christina into her arms, “I didn’t really have a choice. It’s not like I could have said, ‘Gee, thanks, but no thanks.’ I don’t really have the luxury of picking where the department puts me, Sweetheart.”
Christina buried her face in Jolene’s shoulder, fresh tears spilling down her cheeks. “But, your Lieutenant knows, Jo. Why would he even consider sending you here, even temporarily?”
Jolene stroked Christina’s loose curls soothingly, holding her tightly with the other hand. “Yes, Tony knows, Christie, but not everyone else does. I don’t hide who I am, but I don’t flaunt it, either. Most of the department thinks Christian and I are married.”
Christina let out a sob, and Jolene carefully guided her toward the bed. She gently coaxed Christina to sit, and knelt in front of her, her hands resting softly on either side of Christina’s hips.
“There are six officers in our department who live here in Dallas,” she explained gently, “Dallas PD asked for help, and it made sense to send those of us who are familiar with the town. People here know us, and we know the streets.”
“The other four officers are all straight, and since this whole town thinks Christian and I are a couple, it’s unlikely that I will be targeted. Hell, Christie, we don’t even know if that theory is correct. It’s a possibility that the sexuality of those officers has nothing to do with the bombings.”
“I’m scared, Jo,” Christina said, needlessly, “What am I going to do if something happens?”
Jolene leaned up and placed her lips softly against Christina’s. “Nothing is going to happen, baby. We made sure of that with the wedding photos your parents released to the newspaper.”
“I don’t like this anymore,” Christina replied, her eyes pleading with Jolene to understand, “Hiding like this is putting you in danger. If I wasn’t so worried about losing my job, you wouldn’t be in this situation. You’d be able to be open, and your Lieutenant wouldn’t have put you on this assignment.”
“Christie,” Jolene cupped Christina’s cheeks, her thumbs brushing tenderly over the makeup smudges, “your job means everything to you. Teaching those kids how chemistry works, how to appreciate chemical reactions, how to respect the chemicals and compounds around them; that’s what makes you happy.”
“I’ve seen it with my own eyes, Honey. You light up when it finally clicks for them, and they discover how magical chemistry can be. Your happiness is all I want, Christie, and I will do whatever it takes to maintain that happiness. Even if that means pretending that I’m married to your fruit of a brother.”
Christina let out a watery laugh. “Honestly, I can’t believe how many people actually buy that. He’s so effeminate. Although, you aren’t big with the femme, so maybe they just assume opposites attract?”
Jolene smiled and kissed Christina again. “I don’t know. People will believe some weird shit. You want to hear something funny?”
Christina nodded, and Jolene moved to sit on the bed beside her.
“During our first morning briefing after we got home from the honeymoon, a bunch of the other officers asked Chris why he took my last name, instead of the other way around. He looked at me, winked, and told them that I made him do it.”
Christina barked out a laugh. “You’re kidding,” she said, her eyes shining with amusement.
Jolene chuckled and shook her head. “Hand to God. He said that I threatened to top him and make him my bitch if he didn’t.”
“Oh, eww,” Christina groaned loudly, shaking her head, “I didn’t need that image in my head. Gross.”
Jolene laughed and pulled Christina to her, kissing her deeply. “What image is that, my love?”
Christina wrinkled her nose. “You, strapping up and topping my brother,” she shuddered visibly, “We both know he’s too much of a bottom to top you.”
Jolene snorted and shivered dramatically. “Thank God for that,” she said, leaning back and pulling Christina to lay with her. She drew her fingertips over Christina’s jaw, feathering them lightly down the sensitive flesh of her throat. “Nobody tops Jo Preston,” she said, her voice dropping seductively.
Christina’s eyes darkened with desire. “Nobody, huh?” she asked with a devilish grin as she moved to straddle Jolene’s hips, “Liar. Would you look at that? I just topped you.”
Jolene sucked in a breath and ran her hands lightly under the silky material of Christina’s dress, caressing her thighs. “Being on top isn’t the same as topping me, baby,” she breathed, her emerald green eyes locking onto Christina’s, “It will give me a spectacular view, though.”
“Mmm,” Christina hummed as she leaned down to kiss her wife, “Well, then. Since you’ve got the best seat in the house, let the show begin.”
Chapter 6
“Good morning,” Lieutenant Leonard Dale boomed, bringing the morning briefing to a start. “As you have all been made aware, we have several new faces here this morning. These officers are on loan from Marilynn, Falls City, and the Polk County Sheriff’s office. They will be joining you on your patrols for a while, so I don’t want to hear any bitching that they are on your turf.”
A few chuckles rang out from the crowd. Lieutenant Dale motioned with his hands for quiet, a smirk on his lips.
“I’m sure you will all agree that their assistance is welcome. Until we figure out who is targeting our department, we need all the help we can get. Now, I know there is a lot of speculation going around, that the UNSUB is targeting lesbian officers, but the department refuses to publicly acknowledge that theory.”
“That’s bullshit, LT,” someone shouted from the back of the room, “Of course, that’s who’s being targeted. Why isn’t the Chief making it public? It might generate a viable lead!”
“Settle down, Colfax,” Lieutenant Dale said gently, “You know how the Brass works. If it is going to ruffle the homophobic feathers of the Mayor, it’s not going to be addressed. As far as I’m concerned, the theory is more than plausible. In fact, it’s pretty damned likely. For now, we have been ordered to deny any correlation between the sexuality of the victims, and their tragic deaths.”
“Alright, let’s meet our new partners, shall we?” Lieutenant Dale motioned with his hand, beckoning the visiting officers forward.
Twelve officers; six from Marilynn, four from Polk County, and two from Falls City, stepped to the front of the room and turned to face their colleagues. Lieutenant Dale moved to place a hand on the shoulder of each officer as they were introduced.
Kylie shrugged and passed out the menus. “Zane and Willow showed us all the pictures they took,” she explained, “They said it was almost as beautiful as Dej and Carrie’s wedding.”
Jolene and Joseph chuckled. Zane Walker had been a classmate of the twins at Willowbrook Academy in Marilynn. He and his best friend, Colton Parker, had been two of Joseph’s favorite people in school. Jolene had taken it upon herself to become an unofficial champion for Zane and Colton’s sisters, despite the four-year age difference.
“No wedding could rival Dej and Carrie’s,” Jolene replied, “No one outdoes a wedding planned by Andrea Davis. How is she, by the way?” she added, her voice taking on a note of consolation and concern.
Andrea Davis, Marilynn’s most well-known philanthropist, had lost her husband two years prior. Hank Davis was another pillar of the Marilynn community. Despite their home being technically located in Portland, an hour and a half away, the older couple remained active in Marilynn society.
“She’s coping the best way she knows how,” Kylie admitted with a heavy sigh. She’d known Andrea Davis since she was little. Her older half-sister, Kelly, had married Andrea’s daughter when Kylie was seven.
“She’s back to planning events and hosting fundraisers, trying to keep the loneliness at bay. Everyone is doing what they can to keep her company, but she’s insisting we give her some space.”
Christina reached over and patted Kylie on the shoulder. “We’ll be sure to tell Mama and Daddy how she’s doing. I’m sure they’ll reach out to her.”
Kylie nodded gratefully. Even though they were many years younger than Andrea, Robert and Shirley Hess were close to the woman. Robert’s winery often hosted events thrown by Andrea Davis, and Shirley’s bakery was frequently recruited to supply the decadent confections used in silent auctions.
Kylie thanked the group for their concern and excused herself, assuring them that their waitress would be right with them.
“I can’t believe Mrs. Davis is back to working,” Joseph said, perusing his menu needlessly, “I figured she would have gone further into retirement when Mr. Davis passed away.”
“Well,” Christian supplied, not even bothering to open his menu, “Kylie said she’s doing it to fill her time. Some people are like that. They handle grief best by being active. I think that’s what our mom would do.”
“Not ours,” Jolene said, surreptitiously rubbing her foot over Christina’s under the table, “Our mom would lock herself away from the world. Dad is her everything, and losing him would take away her reason for going outside.”
Joseph, unconsciously mimicking his twins action with Christian, nodded. “She would. We’d end up handling the company, or it would capsize.”
“Let’s talk about something else, shall we?” Christina said, pushing away the sadness that wanted to creep in at the topic of discussion, “How was work, honey?”
Christian and Jolene shared a look, before returning their attention to their spouses. “It was work,” Jolene said dismissively, “What did you two do all day?”
Joseph, who was seated next to Christina, and across from Christian, for appearances sake, shrugged. “I put together my conditioning plan for the week, went to the gym, did some cleaning. The usual.”
“I cleaned the house,” Christina explained, “I double-checked my lesson plans, went for a walk, then met up with Marcy for lunch. After that, I just binge-watched Netflix until you got home.”
Jolene smiled affectionately at her wife. Christina wasn’t a lazy person by any means, but the woman was hopelessly addicted to streaming television. Jolene couldn’t count the number of times she’d found Christina curled up on the couch, lost in the middle of a season of whatever show currently held her interest. Lately, it was American Horror Story.
The waitress arrived and took their orders. Once the woman left, the couples talked about this and that until their food arrived.
“Yum,” Joseph hummed, using his hand to waft the succulent aroma of traditional Italian lasagna toward him, “I love this stuff.”
Jolene followed her brother’s lead, an anticipatory groan escaping her lips as she doused the dish in black pepper. Christian and Christina shared a chuckle.
Although not identical, the twins did share several traits. Both liked most of the same foods, and always ordered the lasagna at Del’s. They also blackened their plates with pepper, before their first bite.
There were other things the twins did that mimicked each other, much to Christian and Christina’s amusement. Joseph and Jolene shared an affinity for Batman, and both had insisted that their bathrooms reflect that.
Batman symbols littered every surface in the bathrooms of both homes, from the toilet seat cover to the shower curtain hooks. They also had matching plaques made; wooden ovals painted like a Batman symbol, with the word Batroom etched in black across the depiction.
“Sweetheart, how do you even taste the lasagna through all that pepper?” Christina asked, when Jolene finally put down the shaker.
“I can taste it fine,” Jolene replied, using her fork to cut a healthy bite of the pasta. She put the bite in her mouth, moaning happily as the flavors ignited her taste buds.
“It’s good without the pepper,” she said, wiping her lips on a napkin, “but, it’s even better with it.”
Joseph hummed his agreement. Christian and Christina simply shrugged. When the meal was finished, the couples placed their orders for dessert and enjoyed a glass of wine while they waited.
“So, are you going to tell me what you didn’t want to tell me earlier?” Christina asked, sliding her foot up the inside of Jolene’s calf.
The couples often used their feet to offer affectionate caresses at Del’s, because the table cloths were long enough to hide them from view. Even in Marilynn, they were careful about not being discovered.
“What do you mean?” Jolene asked, glancing guiltily at Christian.
“Don’t do that, Jolene,” Christina said, crossing her arms over her chest, “I’ve known you way too long for you to play dumb with me. Something is up, and I want to know what it is. The only time you say, ‘it was work’ when I ask about your day, is when you are hiding something. Spill.”
Jolene chuckled nervously, and ran a hand through her hair. “You’re not going to like it,” she said, avoiding Christina’s gaze, “but, um… Christian and I are being temporarily reassigned.”
“What does that mean?” Joseph asked, looking to his husband for clarification, “Are you two moving to a different unit?”
Christian toyed with his wine glass, swirling the tart liquid a bit more than necessary. “Not exactly,” he said, “More like a different department.”
“You’re transferring?” Christina asked incredulously, “I thought you two wanted to stay with Marilynn. Are we going to have to move?”
Jolene shook her head quickly. “No, babe, we won’t have to move. Chris and I aren’t transferring, per se. We’re being sent to another department to fill in for a while, because they are short staffed. With any luck, we’ll be back in Marilynn within a month.”
Christina watched the way Jolene fidgeted with her hair. Jolene rarely played with her luscious red curls, but when she did, it usually meant that she was scared. Christina wondered what it was about the transfer that was scaring her wife, and all too suddenly, the answer hit her in the chest.
“No,” she said firmly, her posture stiffening as her eyes bored into Jolene’s, “tell them no. It’s too dangerous.”
“What is?” Joseph asked, oblivious to the revelation his sister-in-law had just experienced.
“Honey, it’s not as dangerous as you think. Everyone thinks I’m straight, remember?” Jolene reached across the table to cover Christina’s hand with her own, “We’ll be fine, Christie, and we might be able to help catch the guy who’s doing it.”
“What the hell are you two talking about?” Joseph asked impatiently, “Christian? Where are you transferring to?”
Christian shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “Dallas,” he muttered, bracing for the reaction he could see brewing in his sister.
“And that’s a problem because?” Joseph looked between his tablemates, not understanding the issue.
“Haven’t you been watching the news, Joe?” Christina asked, her eyes never leaving Jolene’s.
Joseph pursed his lips in thought. “No, not really. Oh, wait!” he said, pausing to thank the waitress when she set their desserts in front of them, “I did hear that one of the churches is protesting the PD again. Is that why you two are going to be working there? To help keep the demonstrators in line?”
Christina finally looked at Joseph, an expression of disbelief on her face. “Really, Joseph?” she asked, her voice harsh, “Someone is blowing up lesbian cops, and you can’t figure out why Chris and Jo working at Dallas PD is a problem?”
Joseph’s eyes went wide. “Oh, come on,” he said dismissively, “you don’t really believe someone is targeting them because of their sexuality, do you? Dallas PD has at least a dozen out lesbian and gay officers. If that was the case, the bombings would be a lot more frequent.”
Christina, Jolene, and Christian simply stared at the man. Joseph looked around at them, confused as to why they were looking at him like he’d just grown another head.
“What?” he asked, “Why are you all looking at me like that?”
“Wow, Joseph,” Christina said scathingly as she stood and threw her napkin onto the table, “Under all that muscle and charm, you really are a meathead, aren’t you?”
Her raised voice drew attention from some of the other diners, but Christina didn’t care.
“Christie,” Jolene tried, reaching a hand toward her wife, “Calm down and talk to us. There’s no reason to cause a scene. Let’s talk this out like rational adults.”
“I am calm,” Christina snapped, pulling her purse roughly onto her shoulder, “And, I’m apparently the only member of this group with enough sense to think this is a completely stupid idea.”
With that, Christina spun on her heel and stormed toward the door. Christian started to go after her, but Jolene laid a hand on his arm. “I’ll go,” she said with a defeated sigh, “You guys settle the bill. Next one is on me.”
Christian nodded and offered a little wave as Jolene left in search of her angry wife.
***
“Christie?” Jolene rapped her knuckles on the bedroom door again. She’d tried to catch Christina before the woman left in their car, but Christina had sped off without a backward glance when Jolene called out to her. “Christie, baby, please open the door and talk to me.”
“I don’t want to talk to you right now, Jo,” Christina yelled through the door, “I’m angry.”
Jolene scoffed at the obvious statement. “Really? I hadn’t noticed,” she retorted sharply.
“Why did you accept that assignment, Jolene?” Christina asked, forcefully yanking open the door.
Jolene looked at her wife and sucked in a breath. Christina’s eyes were red and swollen from crying. Her carefully applied eyeliner streaked down her cheeks, and her nose was an angry shade of red. It hurt Jolene to know that she had caused the look of pain and fear in her wife’s dark blue eyes, and she wanted nothing more, at that moment, than to soothe those fears.
“Honey,” she said gently, reaching out to pull Christina into her arms, “I didn’t really have a choice. It’s not like I could have said, ‘Gee, thanks, but no thanks.’ I don’t really have the luxury of picking where the department puts me, Sweetheart.”
Christina buried her face in Jolene’s shoulder, fresh tears spilling down her cheeks. “But, your Lieutenant knows, Jo. Why would he even consider sending you here, even temporarily?”
Jolene stroked Christina’s loose curls soothingly, holding her tightly with the other hand. “Yes, Tony knows, Christie, but not everyone else does. I don’t hide who I am, but I don’t flaunt it, either. Most of the department thinks Christian and I are married.”
Christina let out a sob, and Jolene carefully guided her toward the bed. She gently coaxed Christina to sit, and knelt in front of her, her hands resting softly on either side of Christina’s hips.
“There are six officers in our department who live here in Dallas,” she explained gently, “Dallas PD asked for help, and it made sense to send those of us who are familiar with the town. People here know us, and we know the streets.”
“The other four officers are all straight, and since this whole town thinks Christian and I are a couple, it’s unlikely that I will be targeted. Hell, Christie, we don’t even know if that theory is correct. It’s a possibility that the sexuality of those officers has nothing to do with the bombings.”
“I’m scared, Jo,” Christina said, needlessly, “What am I going to do if something happens?”
Jolene leaned up and placed her lips softly against Christina’s. “Nothing is going to happen, baby. We made sure of that with the wedding photos your parents released to the newspaper.”
“I don’t like this anymore,” Christina replied, her eyes pleading with Jolene to understand, “Hiding like this is putting you in danger. If I wasn’t so worried about losing my job, you wouldn’t be in this situation. You’d be able to be open, and your Lieutenant wouldn’t have put you on this assignment.”
“Christie,” Jolene cupped Christina’s cheeks, her thumbs brushing tenderly over the makeup smudges, “your job means everything to you. Teaching those kids how chemistry works, how to appreciate chemical reactions, how to respect the chemicals and compounds around them; that’s what makes you happy.”
“I’ve seen it with my own eyes, Honey. You light up when it finally clicks for them, and they discover how magical chemistry can be. Your happiness is all I want, Christie, and I will do whatever it takes to maintain that happiness. Even if that means pretending that I’m married to your fruit of a brother.”
Christina let out a watery laugh. “Honestly, I can’t believe how many people actually buy that. He’s so effeminate. Although, you aren’t big with the femme, so maybe they just assume opposites attract?”
Jolene smiled and kissed Christina again. “I don’t know. People will believe some weird shit. You want to hear something funny?”
Christina nodded, and Jolene moved to sit on the bed beside her.
“During our first morning briefing after we got home from the honeymoon, a bunch of the other officers asked Chris why he took my last name, instead of the other way around. He looked at me, winked, and told them that I made him do it.”
Christina barked out a laugh. “You’re kidding,” she said, her eyes shining with amusement.
Jolene chuckled and shook her head. “Hand to God. He said that I threatened to top him and make him my bitch if he didn’t.”
“Oh, eww,” Christina groaned loudly, shaking her head, “I didn’t need that image in my head. Gross.”
Jolene laughed and pulled Christina to her, kissing her deeply. “What image is that, my love?”
Christina wrinkled her nose. “You, strapping up and topping my brother,” she shuddered visibly, “We both know he’s too much of a bottom to top you.”
Jolene snorted and shivered dramatically. “Thank God for that,” she said, leaning back and pulling Christina to lay with her. She drew her fingertips over Christina’s jaw, feathering them lightly down the sensitive flesh of her throat. “Nobody tops Jo Preston,” she said, her voice dropping seductively.
Christina’s eyes darkened with desire. “Nobody, huh?” she asked with a devilish grin as she moved to straddle Jolene’s hips, “Liar. Would you look at that? I just topped you.”
Jolene sucked in a breath and ran her hands lightly under the silky material of Christina’s dress, caressing her thighs. “Being on top isn’t the same as topping me, baby,” she breathed, her emerald green eyes locking onto Christina’s, “It will give me a spectacular view, though.”
“Mmm,” Christina hummed as she leaned down to kiss her wife, “Well, then. Since you’ve got the best seat in the house, let the show begin.”
Chapter 6
“Good morning,” Lieutenant Leonard Dale boomed, bringing the morning briefing to a start. “As you have all been made aware, we have several new faces here this morning. These officers are on loan from Marilynn, Falls City, and the Polk County Sheriff’s office. They will be joining you on your patrols for a while, so I don’t want to hear any bitching that they are on your turf.”
A few chuckles rang out from the crowd. Lieutenant Dale motioned with his hands for quiet, a smirk on his lips.
“I’m sure you will all agree that their assistance is welcome. Until we figure out who is targeting our department, we need all the help we can get. Now, I know there is a lot of speculation going around, that the UNSUB is targeting lesbian officers, but the department refuses to publicly acknowledge that theory.”
“That’s bullshit, LT,” someone shouted from the back of the room, “Of course, that’s who’s being targeted. Why isn’t the Chief making it public? It might generate a viable lead!”
“Settle down, Colfax,” Lieutenant Dale said gently, “You know how the Brass works. If it is going to ruffle the homophobic feathers of the Mayor, it’s not going to be addressed. As far as I’m concerned, the theory is more than plausible. In fact, it’s pretty damned likely. For now, we have been ordered to deny any correlation between the sexuality of the victims, and their tragic deaths.”
“Alright, let’s meet our new partners, shall we?” Lieutenant Dale motioned with his hand, beckoning the visiting officers forward.
Twelve officers; six from Marilynn, four from Polk County, and two from Falls City, stepped to the front of the room and turned to face their colleagues. Lieutenant Dale moved to place a hand on the shoulder of each officer as they were introduced.
