Scent of Gardenia (Scott Tucker Series) Read online

  When I arrived at the office, I was greeted by laughter from both Paddy and Mike. Mike broke his laughter with, “You look like you need more than one coffee this morning. Make those doughnuts tomorrow jelly-filled, okay? Welcome back to the real world. I take it you had a pleasant weekend.”

  “I called Mercedes.”

  Paddy responded, “I can believe that, but judging from the look on your face—you must have…well…talked to her in person.”

  “You know guys; I should have gone into some other line of work.” I paused trying to think of how to say it, then added, “Working with detectives is like living in a glass house…you have no secrets. Mercedes’ hallway image came to mind, “Oh by the way, Mercedes did ask me to say hello to you guys.” I smiled, remembering her image and headed for the coffee.

  Chapter 12

  She went into the house to take a quick shower to wash the perspiration away. She thought about not doing that and just seeing the men this way. Ten minutes after she was with them she would be all sweated up anyway. However, the cool shower heightened her anticipation of meeting with the men. She thought about the men she had recently killed. They had served her purpose and despite their begging for their lives, there was a special thrill having the ultimate power over life and death.

  She replayed the killing of each of those earlier men and tried to recall the others she had tortured. It was either those thoughts or the pulse of the water, or both, that weakened her knees. She put one arm against the wall for balance and let her body respond.

  *.*.*

  She studied her reflection in the full length bathroom mirror. The sun was coming in the open ocean window and it lit her body with an early morning glow. The water droplets beaded on her body from her forehead to her feet. Maybe the sight of me like this will make the men ravish me without my urging. She had seen what the image of her naked body did to the men, despite their attempts to control their bodies’ reaction. She just loved the feeling she got when they could no longer control themselves.

  Only one man had ever gotten away from her clutches. She was so close to satisfying her need. He was extremely reluctant, but was coming around with her expert touch. She closed her eyes and remembered him naked and defenseless. Now, he had become her fantasy, which she hoped to fulfill. These other men were her attempt to fill that void. She forced these men to tell her the truth. They would suffer the consequences if they lied.

  Her excellent contingency planning allowed her to build this wonderful facility. A few additional and necessary changes smoothed the transition. The supplemental income provided by the sale of their yachts helped some, but it was not her main support. The dive business helped immensely.

  She put her face close to the mirror, studying her face like she had never seen it before. It’s new, but not that new. The London plastic surgeon did an excellent job...he should have, based on what it cost. However, she got the money back. He was an incredible lover for several days. He allowed her to tie him up. That was all she needed to get her money back. She showed him what a scalpel could do when in a novice’s hand. She turned her head and watched her long red hair cascade over her breasts. Her smile was much more beautiful, and an excellent lure.

  She slipped a sundress over her still damp body and headed to the basement. It still surprised her how quickly she could get excited and how many times. She could feel the cool sand between her toes as she walked along the narrow hall leading to each of their private cells. At least one light was on, enough to light her way.

  Shit. In all her excitement she forgot to make breakfast for them. Oh well, they’ll just be that much happier to see me tonight. She could feel the cool temperature of the chamber despite the warmth above. She heard the clank of a chain, wondering if one of them heard her coming. She stopped moving, noticing her excitement as she looked down at the front of her sundress. That’s good. One of them will see that too. I have to make one of my first decisions of the day—who will be first? I’m coming, and soon you will be too. This is all practice for the day I see you again…and I’m positive I will. You will come to me…to complete what was started years ago.

  Chapter 13

  “Good morning Ms. Strong.” The receptionist interrupted her thoughts of last night with Scott.

  “Good morning Sarah. Did you have a nice weekend?”

  “Yes I did, thanks for asking. You look like you’ve got a glow on this morning. Did you have a nice weekend?”

  She smiled at the thought of not leaving her apartment all weekend. “Yes, as a matter of fact, it was incredible.” She could feel herself blushing.

  “I hope I’m not out of line here, but I’ve never seen you…well…radiating.”

  She was anxious to get to the privacy of her office. Almost beyond Sarah by now, she commented, “Keep up that ability to read people and you may have my job.” She chuckled at the receptionist’s ability to read her body language.

  She quickly unlocked her office door, closing it behind her. She turned on the light, sat down at her desk, removing the pocket mirror from her purse. She studied her face. It did look like it had an inner fire. Oh Scott, I waited so long to be with you. Thanks for the offer of the Cape, but I like my choice better. I can’t wait to see you again. Amazing, I never told him about my trip to Bermuda. He did comment that he liked the hint of a tan…but he liked the parts that didn’t see the sun better. I hope I can get some work done today. There was a knock on the door. She quickly put her mirror away.

  “Come in.”

  Carol, her secretary, stuck her head in the door. “Good morning, Mercedes. Did you want me to pick up where we left off last Friday?”

  Carol was standing by her desk now, looking at her intently like she had something from breakfast on her face. “I have a call to make first. Give me fifteen minutes, okay?”

  “That’s fine,” she said. However, it looked like she wanted to add something. “Mercedes, you look like you had a great weekend. Did you?”

  She quickly replied, “Does it show that much. I had a wonderful weekend. Thank you for asking.”

  “Did you get to go away?” Carol asked.

  “Yes, in a manner of speaking. It was someplace I can’t wait to visit again. Would you bring me a coffee, and if there’s something to go with it—that too…please.” She needed to get Carol out of her office before she said too much.

  “Well judging from how you look, if you ever want company please give me a call. I could use one of those weekends.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind. Would you bring my trip report, I need to check something. I’ll be on the phone, but you can bring in my coffee. Thanks Carol.”

  *.*.*

  She dialed the number she knew by heart. She made her introductions, waiting to be connected.

  “Hello sweetheart. How are you today?”

  “I’m great. I heard you met with Scott Tucker. How did that go?”

  “It was very productive. He did a marvelous job on the process I asked him to document along with the proposed methods. He’s quite the young man. I’m so glad you introduced him to me. He’s certainly going to make a difference.”

  “Yes, he certainly is.” Her secretary came in with her coffee and a very large cupcake. She nodded and mouthed thank you. She thought about the words she uttered as she entered—yes, he certainly is.

  Her father responded, “Do I detect something more than a business associate?”

  She thought, maybe too long, before responding. “Well, we had a nice meeting at the pub the other night.”

  “That was days ago…this sounds like a more recent comment,” her father prodded.

  “Keep this up and you will be one of the investigators here. Dad, I’m glad you enjoyed his company. Now that I have spent some time with him, he could be more than a business associate.”

  “Good. I’m glad you’re happy. He made my day the other day,” he commented.

  Without thinking about it she replied, “He made mine too.” />
  *.*.*

  After she said goodbye to her dad she picked up the trip report and read what she had written. She realized she had left her thoughts out of the report. Although the authorities in Bermuda did a thorough investigation on each of the missing men, they were stumped as to what happened to them. One minute they were enjoying their vacations and the next they were never seen again.

  She thought about her sister Melanie’s rampage and revenge against several men. One of them was almost Scott. She had tried to rescue him only to be knocked out and tied up. Fortunately, Mike Miller had figured things out and had rescued both of them. Although rare, women have been known to take an offensive role, kidnapping and torturing men. Her sister and her friends were one example. What is happening in Bermuda could be the work of another woman, or group of women. Although she felt that is what is happening in Bermuda, she didn’t want to put that in the report.

  She decided she would add a line to the report to indicate ‘although not confirmed by any evidence, it would seem that the men were being held, or are possibly still being held. Although their financial assets have not been touched, it is unclear why there are no traces of these missing men.’

  After the weekend with Scott, she was so happy he wasn’t killed. She was reminded of her sister’s escape and jump into the freezing waters of Boston Harbor. Had she not found him and tried to rescue him, he might have been another statistic. She and the other authorities have long wondered why her body, or parts of it, has never been recovered. There is no way she could have survived that plunge into the freezing water of Boston Harbor.

  The more experience she gains in this role the more things seem to come to her like a picture. She couldn’t get the image of someone like her sister capturing these men and holding them against their will. Since the authorities in Bermuda have not found any trace of any of the missing men, the image of women playing a role in their disappearance is becoming easier to accept. Her profiling mind started to take over and she was glad she had some food for thought.

  That reminded her about how many meals they skipped over the weekend. If we keep that up, we will both lose an incredible amount of weight. Being with Scott is never going to be the same. Being with Scott for an entire weekend was a dream come true. She quickly closed her eyes, giving some thought about how to make their next time together as memorable. She thought about a return trip to the cabin where all of this started. Maybe, I’ll just kidnap him for the weekend. She loved how her body reacted to the thoughts of Scott being her prisoner for the entire weekend. Oh my God, what is wrong with me…am I turning into my sister?

  Chapter 14

  She studied the man in the first room. She could really pick them. Not only was he good looking but he had a body of a Greek God. Although he would resist her promptings, nobody could ultimately successfully resist her. She was too good and had too much experience now as to what to do, and how to do it. The more they resisted, the more passion they would demonstrate when the barriers were finally broken. He even admitted to her the last time that their time together was incredible.

  She moved so he could see her. She just stood there motionless while he watched her. He couldn’t hide his body’s reaction. She moved to the bottom of the bed, licking her lips. Her excitement was plainly visible through the fabric of her sundress. She smiled, swaying to a beat only she could hear. She slowly removed the sundress, holding it with both hands over her head so it draped down her back. She continued the slow erotic dance for him. He showed his restlessness. She threw the sundress so it covered his lower body. Ever so slowly she uncovered him. She smiled at how quickly he was ready.

  She shackled his ankles to each bed post and then climbed onto him. Although the room was not all that hot they were both perspiring. She let her nails dig into his skin. She loved the control she had over the men. She loved it even more when they couldn’t resist her any longer.

  *.*.*

  She cursed herself for being with him for such a long time. She was going to be late for work, and wouldn’t have time for Nils now. She unlocked the ankle braces, but left his wrists tied to the chains coming off the wall. They had made a lot of noise. She didn’t want to leave, wanting to make love some more. However, Shawn looked pretty spent and probably couldn’t perform so soon.

  She took her discarded sundress and moved it across his manhood. To her surprise he was getting excited again. She worked him to the edge again and then planted a kiss on him and jumped off the bed. She smiled, licked her lips and finally said, “Now you stay like that until tonight you hear. Hopefully you will miss me and be hungry for food and some more fun.” She picked up her sundress and walked over to Nil’s room and waved to him. “Sorry Nils, I’ll see you tonight. Can I make you anything special to eat tonight?”

  He didn’t answer. “What’s the matter Nils? Has a cat got your tongue? Don’t be upset. You’ll have your own fun tonight. You better get some rest…you’re going to need it.” She turned and threw her sundress over her shoulder, blew a kiss to Shawn and left.

  As she locked the door leading to their area she thought to herself, what a life, living in paradise, with an endless amount of love making, plenty of money and no one to bother me. Can I do this until I’m eighty? This is all practice for my special someone. I think I need to add one new rich young man to my crew.

  She didn’t want to, but she took a quick shower. So what if I’m late? She put on her flimsiest set of underwear and a bright pink sundress with a low scooped neckline. She bent over the sink and checked herself in the mirror—yup, that ought to make an interesting lure. Maybe I’ll be lucky to snare another millionaire today.

  She had perfected her process so well. All she had to do was smile and bring them here to bed. The rest was the easy part. She sprayed her perfume and closed her eyes. Her chest was heaving and her breathing rushed. It’s hard to leave you guys, but someone has to earn a living. You’re earning your own living, but that only lasts until I get tired of you. You need to remember—shit happens.

  Chapter 15

  I picked up the daily paper, scanning through the highlights listed on the first page. A man’s decomposed body is found off the Bermuda coast.

  I quickly turned to the article to see if this related to what Mercedes had mentioned.

  Authorities in Bermuda have identified a body to be that of Roger Elliot, reported missing nearly eighteen months ago. Although the authorities are withholding many of the details they did confirm the decomposed body was found over the weekend in a cage anchored near one of the more popular dive sites about ten miles off the East coast of Bermuda. Dental records confirmed the body to be that of Roger Elliot. There are three other reported missing men, and the authorities were previously hoping the men would be found alive, but now they fear the worst.

  It dawned on me that although we had all weekend to talk about Mercedes’ trip to Bermuda—neither of us brought up the subject. Now I wished I knew something more about what she had learned. I headed to talk with Mike about this development.

  *.*.*

  I stuck my head in Mike’s office waiting for him to acknowledge me.

  “Yes Scott. What do you have there?”

  I handed him the article. “Mike, this is about one of the missing men in Bermuda.”

  He quickly read the article and offered, “This puts a different perspective on the missing men. Now that one of them has turned up dead, it doesn’t look promising for the others. What did Mercedes share with you about her trip to Bermuda?”

  I hesitated answering. “You know Mike we didn’t talk about her trip at all.” I could feel my face flushing.

  He looked up and handed the paper back to me. “Well I guess you had a better weekend than you told us about.” He smiled, but didn’t look like he was expecting a response.

  “I’ll have to call Mercedes to see whether she knows about this development, but I would imagine they would have alerted the FBI.” I turned and headed back to my office.<
br />
  My thoughts went back to our weekend. I knew why we hadn’t talked about her trip. Maybe this would give me an excuse to see her about this development. Did I really need an excuse to see her? From my perspective, it seemed unlikely we would ever be distant again.

  *.*.*

  I dialed Mercedes’ number and could feel my heart beating faster. The phone rang three times. I wondered if anyone was going to answer.

  “Hello, Agent Strong.”

  “Mercedes, it’s Scott, good morning.”

  “Wow Scott, I’m impressed. Did two years go by already?” She laughed softly. “That wasn’t fair. Thanks for calling. What’s up?”

  “I saw the article in the paper and was wondering if you were aware of what was discovered in Bermuda?”

  “As a matter of fact, our office was alerted with the details. Thanks for calling to let me know.” She started laughing. “I’m a little ashamed we never talked about my trip. It wasn’t like we didn’t have time. Scott…” She paused. “Scott I can’t describe what the weekend meant to me. Do you want to get together and talk about the developments from my trip? I also need to give you the details on the family that would like their own investigation conducted.”

  “I would love to see you…and if you want to discuss the trip and this development that would be fine.”

  “Scott, I knew once you got your motor going you wouldn’t be able to shut it down,” she said with a chuckle. “What does your schedule look like? I have several meetings during the day, but if you’re available we could talk about this over a beer or two this evening.”

  “I can make tonight, but didn’t you want to cover the details with Paddy and/or Mike about the family who wants their own investigation?”