Page 64 of Tell Me Your Desires

Chapter Thirty-Three

“Well, shit, Lady A. I sure as hell didn’t expect to see you here tonight.”

Anya’s stomach churned at the sound of Frank’s voice. He may not have been a part of the murders, but Anya was sure he was complicit in the trafficking. To Anya, Frank was no better than Sapphyre and Sonny.

“Don’t get too excited, Frank,” Anya said, using her best Lady A voice. “I’m only here to collect my belongings.”

Frank moved faster than Anya had ever seen him move. Before she knew it, he was in front of her, a frown marring his face. His angry, red face reminded Anya of a Pug. Or maybe that was his snorting.

“You’re quitting on me?!”

“I can’t believe you’re surprised. Haven’t you seen the news?

My lover—a cop—was shot right in front of me.

And while you may have forgotten her, I’m still grieving Maisie.

I don’t know what’s going on around here, but I’m out.

Hell, I can’t even drive here by myself because I’m under some ‘protection order’, whatever that means.

” Anya rolled her eyes for good measure.

“The only reason I was able to get at least an hour to myself here is because there’s security.

But, yes, I’m quitting. This is too much stress.

Maybe the younger girls can handle this shit, but not me.

” She gestured at his face and stepped closer.

“So, you can get all red and snorty, but you don’t intimidate me. And you’re not changing my mind.”

Anya walked away from him, subtly observing her surroundings.

The light above Sapphyre’s door remained on, which was a plus for Anya.

She just needed quality time with Teddy, and she was confident she could turn him against his sister.

Anya glanced at the surveillance camera strategically placed in front of her chamber door, but was careful not to linger too long in case Teddy was watching.

Given that very real possibility, Anya knew her chamber’s interior wouldn’t have the security of cameras, so she would have to rely on the one around her neck and hope Teddy wasn’t savvy enough to have any detection equipment with him.

I should have thought this through more, Anya thought as she closed the chamber doors behind her.

But her thoughts had been consumed by Jaime.

Would Jaime survive? Who shot Jaime? How would Anya get justice—or revenge—for Jaime?

And finally, how could Anya give Jaime closure for the pain she had been carrying for far too long?

Obviously, Anya wanted justice for the women who lost their lives over the years because of these two killers.

That was the agent in her. Hell, that was the human and psychologist in Anya.

That innate need to ensure people like Ruby and Teddy pay for their heinous crimes.

But it was the woman in Anya who wanted to punish them…

badly. Anya absently ran her fingers over the chains that hung from the ceiling as she walked past them.

What she wouldn’t do to have Sapphyre chained up there, a whip in her hands.

Only this wouldn’t be fun or sexy. No, Lady A would make it hurt. She would make Sapphyre bleed.

There was a stutter in Anya’s step when she realized she hadn’t thought of doing the same to Teddy.

Oh, she wanted him to pay, no doubt. But not by her hand.

He killed Maisie, yes. He brutalized women she cared about.

And he deserved every bit of retribution that came his way.

But the difference was, he didn’t try to kill the woman she loved. Loved.

When had that happened? When had she allowed herself to fall in love with Jaime?

Allowed. Anya nearly scoffed at herself.

No one allows love. It happens, and people can either open their hearts to it or try to deny it, but it won’t wait for anyone to be ready.

Whatever happened tonight, Anya made Jaime a promise that she intended to keep.

They needed more time to explore what they had begun.

So, be careful. Don’t make Jaime mourn another love lost.

Anya took a deep breath. With the hidden camera around her neck, she avoided standing in front of the mirror, unwilling to let Kate or her team see how nervous she truly felt.

Still, nervous or not, Anya didn’t have time to wallow in her anxiety.

Her window to get Teddy to talk was growing shorter with every minute that passed.

Now, if she could just stop thinking of what had happened the last time she was on a mission like this…

Yeah, except the last time you were in the surveillance van, not in the thick of it, she foolishly reminded herself.

She squared her shoulders and walked into the central area of her chambers. Lady A would miss this room and all it had to offer, but Anya wouldn’t miss what it now represented. The death she now felt there. The guilt that tainted the air.

“I know you’re watching,” Anya said aloud. “You have been since the beginning. Why don’t you stop hiding and come talk to me?”

She waited a beat, but Anya knew she was going to have to bait Teddy to catch him.

She did the one thing she had always hated doing as a profiler.

She allowed herself to dive deeper into Teddy’s psyche.

“Are you scared? You shouldn’t be. I know you saw my police escort leave.

I’m here by myself. And you know my lover won’t show up.

” Anya lowered her voice to a cold, icy tone.

“Your sister made sure of that, didn’t she? ”

Anya sat in the wingback chair by the fireplace and crossed her legs.

Her decision to stay in her casual clothes—simple jeans and blouse—was a deliberate one.

Teddy would never have the courage to speak to Lady A.

If Anya thought about it, Sonny the security guard was quiet around her unless she was in her ‘casual’ clothes.

“You want to come see me, don’t you? Are you afraid of Ruby?

” Anya smiled softly. “Don’t be. She won’t bother us. Come to me. Teddy.”

"She’s good,” Kate watched the feed broadcast from the small pendant camera on Anya’s necklace. “Shifting blame onto the club with Frank, feigning ignorance and frustration? Classic.”

Max nodded silently as he sat next to Kate, his eyes focused on everything else the cameras captured, searching for any signs of Ruby ‘Sapphyre’ Arnold or Theodore ‘Sonny’ Arnold.

He felt awkward watching Anya alone in her chambers, so his eyes remained on the monitors that showed footage from cameras strategically placed by UCs that had gone into the club for a beer and a show earlier in the day.

He hated that Anya’s entire room wasn’t rigged up.

The camera was clear, but the range was limited.

For Max, it wasn’t enough. But it was better than nothing.

This whole fucking operation was giving him heartburn.

If anything happened to Anya, Jaime would never forgive him.

Fuck, why did she choose him? He didn’t even have a badge or a gun!

“Yeah, she is,” he agreed finally, adjusting the volume slightly.

If this hadn’t been so fucking dangerous, Max would have enjoyed watching Anya work.

The way her mind worked was fascinating.

It was no wonder Jaime fell head over heels for this woman.

But it was dangerous, and if Max was this antsy, he could only imagine how Jaime felt.

“I have a question.” This came from a team member whom Max had not yet met. “Why did he call her Lady A? And… she’s quitting? Like, she’s been working here?”

Max and Kate eyed each other, but it was Max who answered.

“The city has been trying to shut this place down for a while now. But sex work is legal here, so we needed to catch them doing something illegal. Dr. Grant has been working undercover with RPD to do that. We had no clue it would turn into this, though.”

“So, why was she a suspect if she’s working for you?” the agent asked, causing Max to wince inwardly.

“We don’t give up our UCs,” he answered gruffly. “We didn’t know the other women were connected until Maisie. Once we did, we had to treat Dr. Grant like every other suspect.”

“Sorry about the questions,” Kate spoke up. “You’d think my team was a bunch of rookies.” She glared at them, ordering them to stop with the questions and pay attention, then turned to Max. “Maisie was their mistake.”

Max tapped his ear. “Can she hear us?”

“No, she doesn’t like to be distracted. Besides, she won’t take direction from anyone, so it would be a waste of time.”

Max chuckled. “Sounds like someone I know. But, yeah, Maisie was their mistake. Killing on ‘home turf,’ so to speak, will be their downfall. I just wish this wasn’t the way to do it.”

“You and me both.” Kate sat back in her seat and crossed her arms, but her eyes never left the monitors.

“I feel as naked as some of those gals in that club without my gun. I don’t know what the hell she was thinking bringing me along.”

“She was probably thinking she wanted someone here she could trust. And if it couldn’t be Jaime, it had to be you.

She also thought you deserved to be here because you were the one who caught the connection between the cases in the first place.

” Kate glanced at Max. “That was impressive, by the way.”

Max lifted a shoulder as though catching a serial killer was a common occurrence. “I’ve been doing this a long time, Agent Sullivan. You pick up a thing or two.”

“True. And, please, call me Kate.” She reached behind her, digging in her bag until she found what she was looking for. She placed the gun in front of Max. “Let’s hope you don’t have to use it.”

“She won’t get anywhere by agitating him,” Agent Anderson said, interrupting Max and Kate’s bonding moment. “If she wants to coax him out, she needs to act younger. More…demure. This suspect likes to be in control. Dr. Grant needs to cater to his dominant tendencies.”

Max narrowed his eyes at the young man. He didn’t know this guy, but he was beginning to know Anya pretty well. “Aren’t you the dude who didn’t think the cases were connected?”

Agent Anderson opened his mouth, then closed it again and turned back to the screen without another word.

Kate grinned at Max before turning her attention back to the monitors.

He hoped he hadn't stepped on any toes, but if this Anderson kid thought he knew more than Dr. Grant, he had a lot to learn.

Movement caught his eye, and Max sat up abruptly.

“There!” Max pointed at the screen. Teddy stood outside Anya’s chambers, seemingly arguing with himself.

“He fucking took the bait! Jesus, I don’t know whether to be happy about that or not.

” His hand involuntarily closed over the butt of the gun that still lay in front of him.

“This is good. She’ll get him to talk.” Kate’s leg was bouncing rapidly, contradicting the calmness of her voice.

“Yeah. Well, one thing is for sure, she had the right approach.” Max eyed Agent Anderson for a moment. “Sometimes experience is more reliable than what’s learned from a book. People may be predictable, kid, but you gotta put all the factors together.”

“She’s rubbing off on you,” Kate chuckled.

“Could think of worse things,” Max mumbled, then nodded at the monitor when Teddy reached for the doorknob. “Game time.”