Profile of Terror (2 page)

Chapter Two
            
 

It was early August in Indiana, sunny with temperatures in the low eighties. A light breeze whistled through the tall trees surrounding the huge yard and sparkling blue lake on the Chase property.  Balloons and streamers adorned the outside living area, and a banner reading "Happy Birthday, Carly" hung above the stone fireplace.  Three long tables with crisp white tablecloths displayed real china and glassware from the catering team. 

Gabe Chase inspected the decorations and grinned with pleasure.  He and his oldest brother, Brody, had done a good job planning the party.

As a child, Gabe had always envied his friends who had big family gatherings to celebrate life events like graduations, Thanksgiving or Christmas.  His two brothers were his only family, and until now, they'd never had a large get-together at their home.  He hadn't known how good it would feel to have family and friends together to celebrate a special event.

As planned, Jennifer Brennan-Stone, Frankie Douglas-Hansen, Megan Brennan, and Anne Mason-Brandt had whisked Carly Stone away for a day at the spa and shopping, not mentioning they knew it was Carly's birthday.  At six o'clock, the women would return for the surprise party and dinner.

Their husbands, Blake Stone, Lane Hansen, Tim Brennan, and Michael Brandt, were spending the afternoon playing with a Wiffle ball and plastic bat with five kids, and making a valiant effort to keep them out of the lake. 

"Don't you and your brothers know anyone but cops?"  Gabe's date, Abby Reece, asked with her hands on her hips.

"Why?"

"Look around.  Every man here is a cop. This party is a cop convention." 

Gabe lifted his eyebrows over the tops of his sunglasses as he scanned the crowd.  "Not true.  See that big guy in the yellow shirt over there, helping the little boy with the Wiffle ball?"

Abby nodded.

"That's Michael Brandt.  He's a county prosecutor."

"Oh, excuse me," Abby said sarcastically.  "This party is more like a
Law and Order
episode."

"That's very funny, Abby," Gabe said, without smiling.  "How about using your inside voice for those kinds of remarks?"

For at least the tenth time that day, Gabe Chase realized what a mistake it was to invite his current girlfriend to Carly's surprise birthday party.  What was he thinking?

Although he'd told Abby the party was a family event, when he picked her up at her apartment, the petite blonde wore a red knit, strapless dress that was so short and tight she could barely walk.  Add to the getup a pair of four-inch heeled sandals.  She was a good candidate for a
What Not to Wear
television episode featuring outfits to avoid wearing to an outing kids and parents would attend.  Typical Abby.  Her motto was strut-your-stuff and show-what-you've-got.  An attitude he used to find a turn-on, but now found downright embarrassing, especially when he saw Brody's look of disapproval.  Brody was the county sheriff, and appearances were important to him.  Obviously, he was not impressed with Abby's appearance.

"Where did you say the wives and girlfriends are?" she inquired.

"They took Carly out for a spa day — facials, pedicures, and shopping."

"Why didn't I get invited?" Abby's lips formed an exaggerated pout.

"I told you before, I forgot about it until we arrived.  I'm really sorry, Abby.  I'll make it up to you."

"Oh, that's for sure, hot stuff," Abby grazed her hand over his zipper in a blatantly sexual way.  "I'm making a list."

That was the thing with Abby.  It was all about sex.  She was the most overtly sexual woman he'd ever met.  When it came to bedroom Olympics, Abby was gold medal contender.  Early in their relationship, Gabe more than appreciated her skills in bed. The woman was unbelievably inventive.  A gymnast in high school, she had moves that Cirque de Soleil would envy. 

Lately, he'd found her one-track mind a little insulting.  Was his body her only interest?  Dissatisfaction was setting in, and he knew the time was nearing when he'd break up with her.

Gabe and Abby had been dating for four weeks, a record for him.  In the past, he'd go out with a girl just a couple of times before he moved on.  Brody wasn't entirely incorrect when he once referred to one of Gabe's dates as the flavor of the week. He'd leave the relationship soon, and it wasn't because Abby wasn't pretty, intelligent or sexy enough. 

Gabe would leave the relationship because it wasn't a relationship, nor would it ever be.  Abby had made it abundantly clear she was in it for the heart-stopping, world-shaking, five-alarm-fire, multiple-orgasms kind of sex, and not much else.  This was okay in the beginning, but he'd changed, and it was no longer enough.  Gabe wanted to make love to a woman to express how deeply he felt about her, and Abby would never be the woman to appreciate that.  Not in a million years.

If someone had told Gabe a couple of years ago that he'd tire of fast cars and hot women, he would have laughed in his or her face. But that was exactly what had happened. Call it maturing or growing up, whatever it was, Gabe Chase had changed.  He wanted more than sex from a woman.  He wanted the kind of relationship Brody had with Carly. 

Watching Brody and Carly interact the past couple of months made him realize what he was missing.  They'd become best friends and lovers.  Gabe rarely saw one without the other, whether it was fishing in the lake, going for a run, or taking walks through the woods.  He envied their closeness.  It was something he'd never had with a woman.

When Brody brought the profiler from Florida to Indiana a year ago, no one could have predicted Carly Stone would make such a positive impact to their sex predator investigation, or to his brother's life.  The two had been inseparable ever since, and Gabe was delighted to see his brother so happy. 

"What did Brody get Carly for her birthday?"  Abby asked, twirling a lock of hair between two fingers.

"He turned one of the guest rooms in the Honeymoon Cottage into an office for her.  The furniture arrived this morning, and then I set up her new computer equipment."

"An office?  That's an odd gift.  Not very romantic."

"Actually, it's the perfect gift.  Carly is a profiler and has her own consulting business.  She's never complained about working in the dining or living room with her laptop, but Brody wanted her to have a professional home office.  She's going to love it!"

"No big, sparkling engagement ring?"

"Not yet," Gabe said quietly.

He wished that Carly would agree to marry Brody, but she wanted more time. Brody accepted that, and so did he.  But it didn't stop him from wishing.  He'd never had a sister, but if he had, he'd want her to be just like Carly.  Unlike his two brothers, Carly never gave him a hard time about how he lived his life.  She respected him and sought his advice about computer technology.  Best of all, she was fun, easy to talk to, and unlike Brody, she wasn't judgmental.  Although Gabe was twenty-seven-years-old, Brody still parented him like he did when they lost their dad and mom years ago.

"So what's going on with Cameron?"  Abby wanted to know.

"Why do you ask?"  Gabe scanned the backyard until he discovered his brother, Cameron, sitting on a picnic table alone near the lake.

"He's been sulking all afternoon."

"Cam has a couple of tough cases he's investigating.  They're probably on his mind today."  Gabe rarely told a lie, but he made his response an exception. 

A few months earlier, Cameron had found the love of his life holding his brother, Brody, in her arms in his hospital bed as she planted kisses on his face.  The fact that his brother was barely conscious from a surgery didn't make it any better.  That was the day Cameron cut things off with Mollie Adams.

Mollie and Brody had been an item in high school, but their relationship ended when their sheriff mom was shot by a drug dealer she'd stopped for a traffic violation.  He had no time for a relationship with Mollie or any other woman.  Brody spent years dividing his energies between graduating from the police academy, attending college, and caring for his two younger brothers.  Mollie moved on, got pregnant, married, and then became a widow. Cameron never left her side, giving her his friendship and support.  But last year, something happened between the two of them, and Gabe knew Cameron was hopelessly in love with Mollie.  Seeing her holding his brother was something Cameron couldn't deal with, especially since he'd asked Mollie repeatedly about her feelings for Brody.  She'd violated his brother's trust, and Gabe knew earning it back would be next to impossible.

Lane Hansen shouted, "Just got a call from Frankie.  The girls are five minutes away!"  Scooping up his four-year-old daughter, Ashley, he put her on his shoulders and moved toward the house.

With eight-month-old Mylee strapped to his chest in her baby carrier, Blake Stone grasped his son Shawn's hand and did the same.  They were followed closely by Michael Brandt and his twins, Melissa and Michael, Jr.  The group gathered in the outdoor living area until the birthday girl's arrival.

Soon they heard the van coming down the driveway and stopping in front of the house.  The vehicle's doors opened, and there was a lot of giggling and chatting as the women got out.

"Carly, let's sit in the outdoor living space," suggested Frankie Hansen, who was eight months pregnant and had a big baby bump stretching the front of her yellow sundress to prove it.

"Great idea," said Carly.  "That's my favorite part of the house."

Walking to the side of the house, Jennifer, Frankie, and Megan slowed to see Carly's reaction.  Finally, she looked up and noticed the balloons, streamers, and banner. 

"Oh, my God.  I don't believe it!"  Carly was clearly astonished, her jaw dropping in disbelief. "This is the best surprise ever.  I don't think I've had a birthday party since grade school."

"You haven't!" her brother, Blake, chimed in as the entire group of men applauded.

"Thank you so much, everyone.  I don't know whether to laugh or cry!" Carly said as she did both.

Brody rushed across the lawn, threw his arms around her, and kissed her soundly.  "Happy birthday, baby."

"Did you arrange all this?"  Carly asked. 

"Nope. Gabe was a big help."

While the other women greeted their husbands and children, Brody held Carly out at arm's length and scanned her body from head to toe.  "Wow, if that is a new dress, I like it."

Carly pulled out the full skirt of her vintage rose printed strapless dress and curtsied.  "Frankie urged me to buy it.  She said she was tired of seeing me in my usual conservative suits with buttoned-up white blouses."

"Remind me to thank Frankie later." Brody kissed her again and picked up her shopping bags.  "Victoria's Secret?  My favorite ex-federal agent shopped at Victoria's Secret?  Sweet!  Do I get a fashion show later?  I'm getting turned on just thinking about it."

"Down, boy.  We've got guests and a birthday to celebrate, but I'm sure I can arrange something for you later."

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