“Smart-ass.”
She muzzled a grin. He was right. The lone-wolf act had not cracked the case so far. And yes, Shield was helping, but no guarantees there. Still, this case was a deeper quagmire than a guy like Novak deserved, especially with her on the team. “Be patient with me. I’m not the easiest person to work with.”
A dark brow rose. “You’re funny.” He pulled keys from his pocket. “I’ll drive.”
“We’re standing by my ride.”
Cindy emerged, carrying two to-go cups of coffee. “Julia takes her coffee black. How about you, Novak?”
“That’s perfect.” He accepted the cup.
“Take care of her,” Cindy said.
Julia sipped coffee. “I’m still here.”
“I will,” he said to Cindy, and then to Julia, “I’ll drive.”
“I can drive.”
Behind the smile lurked steel. “Not today.”
“I like this guy,” Cindy said.
For her aunt’s sake, she accepted this small concession. “Have at it.”
As they headed toward his SUV parked on the street, she asked, “What’re you going to do with the pictures?”
“Go through them.”
“Why?”
“They relate to my case.”
She was getting edgy for no rational reason and had to rein in her need to control. “Makes sense.”
Novak chuckled. “See, that wasn’t so hard, was it?”
He clicked his key fob, and the lights of a black Suburban winked. She climbed into the passenger seat, flexing her fingers, already itching to be behind the wheel of her own car.
“Play nice,” she whispered to herself. “He’s a means to an end.”
Novak put the photos in the backseat, then slid behind the wheel of the car.
“The easiest way to get there—” Julia started to say.
“Thanks, I got this,” Novak interrupted as he put on sunglasses.
She clicked her seat belt. “Sure.”
“What was your cover when you worked in Benny’s bar?” he asked.
She tensed, knowing where a question like that led. “Doubleheader. Bartender and a drug dealer.” It was a little more involved than that, but the less said the better. “I’m a natural seeing as I grew up slinging drinks.”
“I’ve pulled Benny Santiago’s arrest record. Heavy into drugs and prostitution.”
“You’ve really been busy.”
Novak didn’t take the bait. He moved easily in and out of the Main Street traffic. “You were saying about the undercover work?”
She’d feed him tidbits like she did everyone else. “I played up the fact that I was in the drug world. I created fake track marks on my arm and was quite the tease. I had a good feel for it most of the time. Soon Lana was my best buddy. And talking.”
“How badly did Benny beat you?”
Cut to the chase. Novak looked like the all-American guy next door, but she sensed a ruthlessness matched by the likes of Benny. “Don’t you know?”
“No one is saying much about that.”
“Good. I’m not interested in a pity party.”
He slid into a parking space across from the lab. “How bad, Julia?”
“Bad enough.” She looked out the window, staring at the city’s tall gray buildings.
He put the car in park and shut off the engine, but didn’t move. He just kept looking ahead.
“It’s water under the bridge,” she said.
Novak pulled off his sunglasses and looked at her. She sensed the patience of Job.
“When I kissed you the first time, you tensed,” he said.
She gritted her teeth. “Things heated up pretty quickly between us. And I don’t remember any complaints.”
“No complaints whatsoever. But I wondered why you tensed.”
“I’m high-strung by nature. And it had been a while since I’d been out with a guy,” she said. “Like I said, what happened at the beach is water under the bridge.”
Out of the car before he could ask another question, she pushed through the front door of the state forensic lab and showed her ID to the receptionist as Novak came up behind her. “I’m Agent Julia Vargas. This is Detective Tobias Novak. I’m here to drop off an item for testing.”
The receptionist buzzed them in, and they made their way to the elevators. As the doors opened, he stepped in close to her. When they closed, she pulled in a deep breath. The ride was only a couple of floors. The confined space was manageable.
When the elevator stopped, Novak held the door and allowed her to go first. She made her way down the long hallway past a series of glass windows that offered a view into the lab. At the end, she found the office and knocked.
Inside, a woman with graying hair and wearing a white lab coat and glasses looked up at her. “Can I help you?”
Julia pulled out her badge and introduced herself again. “Is Lucy Franklin here today?”
“She’s not in today. What can I do for you?”
“I have a section of rope I need tested,” Julia said.
The woman rose and reached for an evidence label. “The rope is in regard to what case?”
Julia pulled off her backpack and removed the bagged rope. “I’m not sure. It was left outside where I live.” She dangled the bag with the noose. “If it was meant to be funny, it failed.”
The woman nodded. “You want latent fingerprints and DNA?”
“If you can get them. Maybe you can lift them where the knot forms. Any touch DNA would be great. I’ll take what I can get.” She hoped whoever was sending her this message had also touched the rope with bare hands and left behind skin cells.
Frowning, the woman peered over her glasses. “Did you report the incident?”
“It’s a fluid situation,” Novak said. “Right now, your lab is our best shot.”
“Do you have any suspects in mind?” the woman asked.
“I think it might have been left by a woman by the name of Lana Ortega,” Julia said. “She’s not a fan, and this would be her way of trying to intimidate me. Be nice to know who left this little memento.”
The woman accepted the bag and attached a label. “Okay. I’ll call you as soon as we have any details.”
Julia left her card, and minutes later they were outside.
Novak fished his keys out of his pocket, jangled them in his hand. “You’re pretty calm about this.”
She didn’t dare permit fear as they got into the car. If she allowed it, others would sense blood in the water. Game over if that happened. “I focus on what I can control. And right now, I’ve done all I can do. I’ll worry later when I have more facts. Ready to view a crime scene?”
He started the car. “Sure.”
“The warehouse crime scene where the first victim, Rene Tanner, was found has been converted into a restaurant on the bottom floor and upscale condos on the top levels.”
As she paused, he said, “The second Hangman murder site is now an apartment building.” He drove down Cary Street, which cut through the heart of Shockoe Bottom.