JUDE: Book 2 The Justice Brothers Series (11 page)

Dragging his hands through his unruly hair he faced his colleagues and said with a groan, “Jesus God. We knew that the perps were vicious. But goddammit, Doc, what you and Sky are describing is beyond my ability to comprehend. Two and likely three or more individuals, not only tortured the victims to death in horrendous ways, but they added drugs that ensured that the victims would suffer to the extreme.”

He huffed and exchanged a pained look with his brother. “Jesus Fucking Christ, Jared. You and I have both seen the unimaginable evil men can do. But for Christ’s sake that was in Somalia or Afghanistan or fuckin’ barbaric Kenya.
Not
the pristine Northwoods of Duluth fucking Minnesota!”

When no one responded, Skylar added, “The presence of the drugs also confirms that the murders were carefully, strategically planned, Detective Justice. This is far from a spontaneous attack. It took knowledge of the chemical properties of the drugs and understanding how the combination and extreme dosages would exacerbate the effects.”

Solly asked, “Does that mean we are looking for people who were medically trained or in some way acquainted with the effects of the drugs?”

Doc Evens and Skylar shook their heads at the same time. Jude wasn’t surprised when the coroner deferred to Sky.

“No, unfortunately the Internet has made it possible for individuals with no formal medical or pharmaceutical training to learn what these hideous individuals learned.”

Jude nodded in agreement. “Hell, thanks to the Internet, all the tweakers need is a camp stove and a Googled recipe to cook up a batch of crank in their backyard. E is available behind the bar in any decent-sized saloon. As for acid, which we used to call Instant Zen, the way the perps used it couldn’t be farther from ‘Zen-producing’.”

Jared asked with a questioning frown, “So, bro, are we looking at a bunch of crankers, liners?”

Jude shook his head. “No, Jared, too much preparation went into this attack. That and the magnitude of the evil speaks to more than a bunch of candy cane tweakers high out of their minds. I assume you agree, Sky?”

“Yes I do. This was an extraordinarily intentional attack. The personal nature of the torture indicates that the perpetrators believed that the Parkers had wronged them, damaged them in some horrible way. They believed that the Parkers deserved everything they did to them. This was a crime stoked by revenge, retribution, and most important in my mind, rage.”

Jude focused on the serious young woman for a moment then included the others in his gaze. “Skylar is right—in all respects. Which makes our job either simpler or harder than hell. We just need to find out who the Parkers wronged and who hated them enough that their chosen recourse was to barbarically torture them to death.”

Jude shoved the coroner’s reports into a folder preparing to leave, when Skylar asked Dr. Evans, “Given your assertion that the Parkers could have screamed themselves to death, were you able to determine the sequence of the tortures that were inflicted? Specifically, do you know when Mrs. Parker’s eyes were put out and her tongue removed?”

The coroner shook his head. “No, Ms. Hughes, not at this point.”

Remembering Skylar asking that question before, Jude focused on her and asked carefully, not wanting to imply that he was questioning her, “Why is that important, Squirt?”

Sky shrugged. “I’m not sure. But I’m working on it.”

Seeing Skylar staring intently at a blank spot on the wall, Jude concluded that the young woman was working on a hell of a lot more in that tenth-generation processor hanging out in her encyclopedic brain. Which he admitted was making the bespectacled pixie more interesting to him by the moment, ‘nerd glasses’ and all.

Chapter 12

“I told you I don’t want to have lunch with you, Jude.” Skylar pressed her lips together and glared at the grinning man beside her. “I have work to do, Detective Justice. Besides, I’m not hungry.”

Jude ignored her as he pulled into the parking lot of the Shipwreck
and bounded out of the car. In seconds he was at her door. Swinging it open, he gave her an exaggerated bow and held out his hand.

“Madam, your double-bacon cheeseburger awaits you. As does mine. But this time I’m going to man up and order cheese on my fries.”

Fighting not to give into his infectious humor, Skylar called on her anger instead. How dare this arrogant man think that he could tell her when she should eat and then have the audacity to make fun of what
she ate? That was bad enough, but he was brazenly returning to last night’s scene of the crime as though to rub her nose in the debacle. The memory of Jerri Ross sneering at her gargantuan burger sealed the deal. Skylar shoved at his hand and planted herself firmly against the back of the seat, determined to sit there all day if she had to.

When he reached for her hand she folded her arms firmly across her chest and held them there.

Jude was still grinning but there was a distinct edge to his voice. “Hmm. I see the little pixie really does have a problem following orders. Knowing that you didn’t eat anything last night and didn’t touch your morning fix of grease and sugar...”

Sky glared at him and spit out, “I told you, I’m not hungry. Even if I was, I do not want to have lunch with you. Moreover it is absolutely none of your business what I eat or if
I eat. Now, will you please take me back to the precinct, or better yet get out of my way so I can call a cab.”

To Sky’s surprise, Jude crouched down beside the open door so that he was at her height, and reached for her chin. When she jerked her head away he said firmly, “Look at me, Skylar.”

As hard as she tried, Skylar couldn’t keep from obeying him. Seeing his rigid jaw and slight frown, her stomach took a dizzying dive to her groin. Only the curve of his lip and twinkle in his eyes confirmed that while he looked scary as hell to her, he obviously was enjoying tormenting her.

“You are correct, Ms. Hughes. It is none of my business what you eat, but I’m making it my business to see that you
do
eat. Given that I’m at least partially responsible for the fact that you probably haven’t eaten anything since your breakfast doughnuts yesterday, you need to eat now.” He added, “And I’m going to see that you do.”

His lip quirked up in a grin and his eyes sparkled with amusement. “I’m not sure how your father handled your temper tantrums, Skylar, but I’ll tell you how I intend to.”

To her shock he reached across her waist and unsnapped her seatbelt. Before she knew what he was doing, he grasped her under her arms and lifted her out of the car. Ignoring her shocked gasp, he stood her on the ground in front of him then tipped up her chin forcing her to look at him.

“You have a choice, Skylar. We can walk nicely together into the Shipwreck and order our lunch. Or I can pick you up and toss you over my shoulder. If you choose to go into the pub with your ass in the air, once inside I will sit you on my lap and feed you your lunch—bite by

bite.”

Stunned by his outrageous threat and the firm set of his jaw, Sky struggled to respond. The best she could do was to stammer, “You…you wouldn’t dare do that!”

He shrugged and tightened his grip. “You should know by now, Squirt, that when I say I will do something, that is
exactly
what I will do.” He paused for a moment and then cocked a brow.

“Your choice, Squirt. While I’m sure the Shipwreck patrons would be delighted to see you enter with your ass in the air, you might want to be a good girl and do as you’re told.”

Skylar was shaking so hard she had to grab hold of his arms to keep from falling. Staring at his chest, she forced herself to take one deep breath after another. When she could finally stand on her own, she squared her shoulders and lifted her chin. Glaring at him, she pushed him back, then turned and strode toward into the pub. His taunting “Good choice, Squirt.” and soft chuckle followed her as she stormed into the crowded restaurant.

Skylar stumbled in the darkened doorway and might have tripped if Jude hadn’t caught her arm. He held her next to him then nodded at the hostess who was gazing up at him with a glowing expression. The long-limbed beauty smiled and leaned forward against the podium. The practiced movement accentuated her impressive chest, which was already shown to advantage in the scanty Shipwreck uniform. “What can I do for you, Detective?” Her sultry insinuating voice brought back memories of Jerri Ross. If she wasn’t so upset, Skylar might have laughed at the open invitation in the young woman’s breathy question. Instead she snorted softly, acknowledging that it was clear Jude had a type. Which was voluptuous, eager women panting for his attention.

“Good afternoon, Amy. My colleague and I would like a table. Somewhere quiet if that’s possible.”

Amy tossed her head and nudged aside the server who came forward to take them to their table.

Smiling sweetly at the surprised waiter, Amy said, “It’s okay, Denny. I’ll show Detective Justice to his table.”

Swaying her curvy bottom from side to side, the pretty young woman led the way though the crowded saloon, making the most of her abbreviated sailor costume, the back of which showed as much of her ass cheeks as the front did her breasts.

When she stopped at a booth in the back of the room, Skylar moved ahead of Jude and slid into the booth, pretending not to see the flirty young woman gazing up at Jude. Amy brushed up against him as he moved to the booth and Sky heard her murmur, “Don’t be a stranger, Jude. I’ve been missing you.”

As she sauntered away Amy said over her shoulder, “Have a productive business lunch, Detective.”

Her catty remark underscored what Jude had already made clear with his request for a quiet table. Obviously, the overwhelmingly handsome cop was a known commodity. Just as Sky was sure that it was equally obvious that he wouldn’t be here with
her
for anything but business.

Fortunately, their waiter had followed them to the table, negating the need for them to talk. When Denny started to give him the menus, Jude held up his hand.

“It’s okay, Denny. We’re ready to order. My colleague will have a double-bacon cheeseburger with everything on it. And a side of cheese-covered french fries.”

Denny wrote the order on his pad and looked to Jude. “How about you, Detective? What do you want?”

Jude smiled. “Against my better judgment, I’ll have the same.”

“Sure thing, Detective Justice.”

As an afterthought Jude asked, “What kind of pie did Selma make today?”

Denny smiled. “She must have known you were coming, sir. She made her famous strawberry-rhubarb pie fresh this morning.”

Jude grinned at Skylar. “How about it, Squirt? Think you can handle a piece of pie on top of your burger?”

When Sky pressed her lips together in a hard straight line and looked away, refusing to answer, Jude chuckled. “Let’s take that as a yes, shall we, Denny? Oh, and be sure to add a couple scoops of ice cream to our pie.”

Denny returned Jude’s grin. “How about something to drink, Detective?”

“Water will be fine.”

Skylar whirled on the server and said curtly, “Please bring me a Scotch.”

Jude pulled back, then shrugged at the surprised waiter.

“On second thought, bring us each a double Scotch. Skylar prefers Glenmorangie. I know it’s early but we’ve had one hell of a morning and it promises to be a long day.”

When the waiter scurried away to place their order, Jude settled against the back of the booth and studied his companion. It took real effort not to grin at her. She was staring at the wall, her body language throwing off visible shards of anger. Her cheeks were flushed, and her bottom lip was puffy from her chewing on it. Jude admitted that he’d surprised himself by challenging her. Hell, make that threatening her. But, goddammit, the little squirt honestly thought she could decide whether or not she would have lunch with him? Not gonna happen. He had some apologizing to do for last night, the least of which was to excuse Jerri Ross’s rude behavior. Even more importantly, Jude knew Skylar hadn’t had a damn thing to eat in twenty-four hours, which was at least partially due to him. No, whether she liked it or not, the Squirt
was
going to eat. That he would ensure.

As he studied her, Jude admitted that he was intrigued. Damn, how could he not be? Who would have guessed that the studious, seemingly oblivious young woman with the spiky hair, black plastic glasses, and shapeless clothing would be feisty as hell and not the least bit afraid to confront him? Christ, for a moment he thought he was going to have to make good on his threat to toss her over his shoulder and carry her ass-up into the saloon. Remembering warning her that unless she did as she was told he would hold her on his lap and feed her lunch, he should have been surprised that his dick perked up in interest. But the more he studied the tempestuous young woman glaring at the wall, the less surprising it was that his dick was eager to get to know her.

Looking into her eyes last night, Jude had been able to see past the black-rimmed nerd glasses to the gorgeous tanzanite spheres secreted behind them. At the moment, the stormy, multi-hued pools rimmed with purple were flashing with anger and a hint of tears—which Jude confessed made them even more mesmerizing. In fact, the more he studied the angry young woman, the better he understood why Jared found the sprite attractive.

He nodded when Denny appeared with a tray of glasses. The earnest young man put a water glass in front of each of them, then placed the double shot glasses of Scotch on napkins before them. Jude waited until the server was out of earshot, then raised his glass in a teasing salute. “Bottoms up, Squirt. Here’s to a pleasant lunch.”

Skylar glanced up, and without answering, grabbed the shot glass and in one swift move tipped up the glass and drained it. The rush of three ounces of 66-proof potent alcohol was too much. She choked, spraying a stream of alcohol across the table. Unable to catch her breath, she sputtered and coughed, then choked again. Her cheeks turned bright red, and a flood of tears ran down her cheeks.

Jude was on his feet and beside her in seconds. He smacked her on her back and murmured, “It’s okay, kiddo. Take it easy. You’re going to be fine.” When she coughed harder, fighting to breathe, he rubbed her back and said firmly. “Listen up, Squirt, take a breath. And when you can, I want you to take a few sips of water.”