Page 35 of A Dead Man’s Pulse (Trident Security Omega Team #1)
Chapter Nineteen
D akota gnawed on the inside of her cheek as she tried to focus on the real reason they were at Heat and not on Logan’s hand he insisted on keeping glued to her left hip as he stood on the opposite side of her, guiding her around the room.
While the club was much nicer than most of the ones she’d been in over the years, it had nothing on the elegance of The Covenant.
It was like sitting in Coach after experiencing First Class for a few trips.
The warmth of his hand permeated the thin material of her floor-length skirt which exposed her legs up to her mid-thigh through a slit in the lacy material.
A red and black corset gave her a little more coverage up top and allowed her to carry several weapons undetected.
The place was pretty packed tonight, which was a help and a hindrance at the same time.
It gave them the cover to blend in, while also making the search for a killer, who might be selecting his next target, more difficult.
There hadn’t been any evidence at the utility shed where Georgia Branneth had been held that could give them the killer’s identity, but with multiple samples of blood belonging to different people, it was a sure bet they’d come back as DNA matches to his victims. It might help them identify any victims they weren’t aware of yet when compared to missing persons.
She was still pissed as hell at Logan, but now wasn’t the time to show it.
Scanning the crowd, she looked for anyone who seemed out of place or was too focused on a female submissive.
It was like looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack.
If only Georgia would wake up and tell them she’d recognized her kidnapper, because no one knew how this bastard would respond to losing her.
Would he step up his game? Or would they get lucky, and he’d make a mistake .
. . one that would cost him instead of someone else?
It was difficult to tell in this crowd who belonged and who didn’t.
“Eight o’clock, black vest, silver buttons,” Logan whispered in Dakota’s ear, and she silently cursed the shiver she felt run down her spine to her core.
Turning into his arm, she glanced in the direction he’d indicated, which had originally been over her left shoulder.
In this position, it appeared she was hugging her Dom while giving her a direct line of sight at the person he’d wanted her to check out.
A male, about twenty-five years old, was standing alone while staring at a group of three female submissives.
Tucked into his waistband was a bullwhip, which in itself wasn’t unusual in this setting.
What had sent Logan’s hackles up, and then hers, was the way he was practically drooling over the scantily dressed women.
While he was younger than the profile Dr. Suki Ralston had come up with for their killer, they still had to rule him out.
Pivoting a little further, she pointed her chest at the man, which gave the agents in a van outside a good look at him through the camera hidden among the silver adornments on her corset.
She didn’t need to repeat who they were singling out since the microphones they were both wearing had picked up Logan’s earlier description.
They had a club staff member with them, identifying anyone they needed information on.
A male voice came through her earpiece she was wearing. “Got it. Hang on.”
Seconds passed and Dakota stiffened as the target approached the group of women, clearly having made his selection—a dark-haired submissive wearing a royal blue corset, matching panties, and nothing else. “C’mon, Davis,” Dakota murmured into her microphone. “Hurry up.”
“Cool your engines, Swift. The manager just ID’d him as Joe Kowalski—a new Dom, but not our guy. He was in the county lock-up for three of the murders. Larceny with no violent priors.”
“Shit. What the fuck is he doing with a whip if he’s a newbie?”
“He carries it for show, apparently, nothing else.”
Dakota rolled her eyes. It was assholes like that who helped give the lifestyle a bad name.
The rest of the evening was more of the same.
They’d spot someone who sent their radar blasting, before their backup agents shot down any possibles.
By the time their shift was over, eight men had been eliminated as their killer, including another one who’d been hanging out in a vehicle in the parking lot.
That one had been a private investigator on a divorce case, waiting to get pictures of the cheating wife when she came out of the club with her new Dom.
Logan drove her to the condo in silence. Now that they were alone again, she couldn’t stop her anger from boiling over once more. If he thought he could talk his way back into her bed tonight, he was sorely mistaken.
When he parked the SUV, she didn’t wait for him to climb out and come around to open her door.
She was out and halfway to her unit before he’d turned the engine off.
The driver’s door slammed shut, and she heard him muttering under his breath as he followed her.
Keys in hand, she unlocked the door and stepped inside the condo, but his hand and foot prevented her from closing it again.
“Damn it, Koko. Enough of this bullshit. What the fuck is up your ass tonight?”
He pushed his way into the condo, then shut the door. Turning on her heel, she tossed the keys and her small purse on the couch. A glance in the direction of the bedrooms told her that her roommate wasn’t home yet. Perfect, because otherwise the woman would have gotten an earful.
Spinning around, she pinned Logan with a glare that had made many a criminal worry about getting their ass kicked. “Fine! You want to know what my problem is? It’s you and your wandering eyes and dick.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?”
She crossed her arms over her chest and cocked her hip to the side. “Don’t play dumb with me, asshole. I know all about your fling on the side. Or am I the fling, and she’s your main squeeze?”
Logan’s jaw dropped as he stared at her. His eyes narrowed as he shook his head. “Okay, I repeat, what the fuck are you talking about? I’m not seeing anyone but you.”
“Liar! You fucking shit! I can’t believe you’re looking me in the eye and denying you’re screwing someone else.
That takes balls, Reese, fucking balls.” He opened his mouth, but she cut him off with a slice of her hand through the air in front of her.
“I saw you with that dark-haired chick from the hospital. The Asian one with Tiny. I saw you and her getting quite chummy this morning at The Covenant.”
“What are you talking about? You were at the club this morning? For what? And there’s nothing going on between me and Charlotte.”
“Bullshit! Oh, my God, Reese! Give it up! You were caught red-handed. Now get out. I’m going to bed—alone!”
She’d barely gone two steps in the direction of her room before he grabbed her arm and spun her back toward him. Without hesitating, she brought her knee up and dropped him like a stone. Yeah, he wasn’t going to be using his cock and balls anytime soon, but she couldn’t care less.
“Fuck!” On his knees, he cupped his aching groin, moaning in pain. Wincing, he tried to catch his breath. “Woman—shit—you’re going to regret that . . . when I can move again. Are you . . . out of your fucking mind?”
“I must have been when I got involved with you . . . I must have been fucking insane.” Tossing her hands in the air, she paced back and forth.
Logan struggled to his feet, shifting his hips as he stood.
His eyes were watering. “Damn it, woman! Shut up and listen to me, will you!” Stopping in her tracks, she glared at him.
He lowered his voice, although it was clear he was trying not to raise it again.
“I am not having sex with anyone but you.”
“So why were you and that woman taking things . . .” She made quote marks with her fingers. “‘. . . into one of the playrooms where there’s a bed, love.’”
“Jesus.” Running a hand down his face, he eased onto the couch.
“I’ll explain that in a minute, but you’ll probably knee me in the balls again if I don’t tell you what led up to it.
I am not, repeat, not sleeping with Mistress China.
” He ignored the shocked expression on her face at the mention of the Domme’s title.
“Nor am I sleeping with the other Whip Master, Mistress Roxy, who couldn’t make our appointment this morning.
You walked in at the wrong time and misinterpreted everything.
They’re helping me with desensitization therapy.
” He winced again. “Shit. I’ll tell you everything if you get me some ice for my balls.
My mother still has hopes I’ll give her grandchildren someday, and if I freeze the little swimmers right now, I might be able to save some of them. ”
His attempt at humor didn’t draw any laughter from her, but she did relent, striding into the kitchen, retrieving a bag of frozen peas.
Tossing them to him, she sat in the recliner.
“What do you mean, desensitization therapy?” She knew what it was but had no clue what he needed desensitized and why.
Placing the ice-cold bag on his crotch, Logan moaned.
“God, I’m going to spank your ass after you realize I’m telling you the truth.
” Taking a deep breath, he let it out slowly.
His gaze wasn’t on her, but on the ceiling directly above him.
“All right. Let’s start at the beginning.
I was . . . shit . . . I was a prisoner of war in Afghanistan, Koko.
Me and my team. I can’t tell you a lot of it—it’s classified—but my teammates were tortured with a bullwhip before they were killed.
Their deaths were just as brutal. There were only two of us left by the time another team of Raiders and some SEALs found us. ”