“Cold?” Jordan reached over and turned the heat up.
“No.” Rebecca’s face was tinged pink. “Just thinking about the case. You really think that Richard Hudson did it? It seems kind of extreme, don’t you think?”
Jordan shrugged noncommittally. “Maybe not. However, I do think the guy is hiding something. We already know he has a temper. It may be a stretch to say he killed seven other women just to cover his wife’s murder. But my gut is telling me he is dirty.”
“Guess we will see.” Rebecca watched Jordan ease into a spot outside the morgue. She stepped outside and sucked in a breath at the rush of cold air. “I suppose it would have been too much to ask him to wait until summer to go on a killing spree.”
“Oh yeah.” Jordan shoved her keys in her pocket and pulled her coat tighter. “When you meet a criminal who wants to do it our way, let me know.”
Rebecca smiled. “And we’ll call it the Burger King of crime. Have it your way.”
Jordan started laughing, and Rebecca had to admit even her laugh was sexy. She shook her head, trying to get Jordan out of her thoughts and maintain her distance. “You ever been to a morgue before?”
“Once. It’s been a long time.” Jordan’s mind flashed back to her first year at the FBI. She and Tony Wozniak had been investigating a crime ring around the city, and one of their informants had gone missing. Turned out, he wasn’t lost, just dead. They had the unfortunate job of identifying the body, her stomach turned at the memory. It was the first time she had seen a dead body, and this one was especially gruesome. He had learned the hard way that being caught as a snitch was a very bad thing.
“Well, you will find it hasn't changed much.” Rebecca came to a stop in front of two Chicago Police Officers. Jordan could tell from the chilly reception, this was another place that Rebecca’s presence wasn’t liked. She shook her head. It was tough to get anywhere in a man’s world. Rebecca had done it, but she hadn’t made many friends along the way. “You got him?”
One of the uniforms nodded his head behind him. “Had to take a leak.”
“Okay. Listen, thanks for bringing him down. I’ll handle it from here.”
“Sure thing, Detective.”
Jordan saw him smirk as they walked away. “Nice guys you work with.”
Rebecca shrugged. “Some of them can be. It just depends on who you get.”
Jordan opened her mouth to respond, but kept quiet when she saw Richard Hudson walking back down the hallways.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Rebecca offered him one more chance to refuse, knowing the scene on the other side of the doors was not something any person, let alone someone whose wife had just been brutally murdered, should ever have to see.
“Yes. I need to see her.” His tone was quiet, but adamant.
Rebecca led him into the examination room and nodded at Sylvia. She stopped at a table with a white cloth draped over the obvious outline of a body. Her eyes met Richard Hudson’s one more time and when he met her inquiry with a silent nod, she pulled the sheet back.
The y-shaped incision across and down her chest was enough to catch most people off guard, and if that didn’t, the closed incisions across her neck and abdomen would certainly tell the story of her brutal death. Her skin had an unnatural grayish tint that was reserved for the very ill, or in her case, the fallen. She lay so still, that if not for the mutilation of her body, one might suppose, she was just sleeping.
For the first few moments, Rebecca thought he might not react at all, and she had started to question his innocence, but then an ungodly moan had filled the room.
An unnatural pallor crept over his face as his eyes took in every inch of her. She could see his hands tighten reflexively, until they were balled into such tight fists that she felt like he might lash out again. His body, once still in calm repose, visibly shook, and she thought she could feel the tremor.
His last look at her reminded Rebecca of a wounded animal trying to understand why it had been hurt. She barely heard the uttered why before he sank onto his knees and dropped his head in his hands, sobbing uncontrollably.
Chapter 12
“Two, with mustard.” Jordan pulled her wallet from her back pocket and handed the vendor a couple of bills. “Keep the change.”
“You know when I said you were buying me lunch, this isn’t exactly what I had in mind.” The words came out almost as a stutter against the cold Chicago air. The wind blowing off the river sent chills up and down Rebecca’s spine. Truth be told, she hated winters here in Chicago. Growing up in southeast Texas meant she had never experienced a real winter aside from a few freak storms. When she had opted to go to Northwestern for school, she got the shock of her life the first winter she had been here. It was almost enough to drive her back south to the warmer, balmier Texas temperatures. Almost.
Jordan handed her a hotdog and smiled. “Come on. You’ll love it, I promise.”
Rebecca took the food with a shaky hand. She didn’t bother taking her gloves off, so when a glob of mustard stained her glove, she swore silently. She took a bite and moaned appreciatively. “So, it’s good, okay. Can we at least sit in the car?”
“Nope.” Jordan smiled cryptically and pulled her closer towards the bridge on Michigan Street overlooking the river. “Gotta get the whole experience.”
They walked until they were midway across, and Jordan leaned her elbows on the cold concrete. They could see Lake Michigan in the distance, and Jordan shivered involuntarily. Despite the cold temperatures, the Magnificent Mile was a hurried rush of people, and they ate in silence, watching the world pass them by.
“See, I told you. It’s fucking freezing.” Rebecca stuffed the last bite of her hotdog in her mouth and chewed quickly.
“Hungry?” Jordan said with a throaty laugh.
“Starving. But I was afraid if I didn’t eat fast, I was going to be eating a meat flavored Popsicle, and I have to admit, I’ve never had a taste for those.”
“Hmm.”
“Hmm, what?” Rebecca queried.
“Hmm, that answers one question.” Jordan finished her dog and said the next words around a mouthful. “Whether Detective Foxx is really one of the guys or not.”
“Ahh.” Understanding dawned on her face. “You thought maybe because I didn’t fall for your tortured bad-guy act, that perhaps I liked dick.”
Jordan laughed. “Something like that. Of course, Agent Riley will be sorry to hear that. He’s nursing a little crush on a certain beautiful redhead.”
Rebecca studied her face as if trying to figure out if Jordan was just teasing her. An uncomfortable look broke out across her features when she realized she was serious. “Well, that will make it a little more awkward when he’s around.”
“Don’t worry about him too much…until after the case.” Jordan caught Rebecca’s furrowed brow. “That’s when he is planning to ask you out.”
“Argh.” Rebecca dropped her head in her heads dramatically. “God this happens all the time. Why do all the guys have to fall for the bitchy, red-headed Detective?” Her voice held just enough sarcasm to be humorous.
“Don’t give him too much grief. It’s pretty easy to get a crush on you.” Jordan admitted with a rueful smile. “I’m sure he isn’t the only one that has fallen for the tough as nail's Detective.”
Rebecca met her eyes and looked for a sign that this time, she was teasing her. She found none. Realization dawned on her, and she mentally chided herself for the feelings she was starting to reciprocate. This was suddenly becoming very complicated, and Rebecca didn’t do complicated.
Jordan sensed her discomfort and changed the subject quickly. She felt a rush of warmth in that few seconds when Rebecca let her guard down. Somewhere hidden behind the mask of cool indifference, she sensed a mutual attraction and cursed the inability to pursue it. “So, tell me what got you into this business?”