I knocked on the door while I balanced a bottle of wine and a case of beer in my arms. The autumn wreath shook when the door swung open.
“You must be the new detective.” A small woman in her late twenties gave me a devilish grin. “Please come in. Everyone is out back.”
“Thanks.” I stepped into the large lake house and looked around. Paintings covered every wall, and an impressive display of World War One rifles would warrant another look later.
“Oh, I hope you like red.” I went for a friendly smile as she took the wine from me and held it up to read the label.
“The detective has good taste.” Her eyes gave me a very slow once-over.
I went for another smile and wished I knew where the guys were.
“I’m Zoe, the sarge’s wife’s first cousin and very single,” she added without a moment of shame. She flipped back her blonde hair to show off her plunging neckline.
I offered her my hand as something to do. “Blake.”
“So, is that Detective Blake or…” She fished for more information.
“Just Blake is fine.”
Benny entered with an armload of empties and made a face when he saw who held me hostage in the kitchen. “Blake, come meet some of the guys.”
Thank God.
“Nice to meet you, Zoe. I’ll see you around.”
“Oh,” she bit her lip, “you will.”
I fished a beer from the box I brought and hurried outside with Benny
“You need to watch that one.”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning last month’s party, I went to the bathroom, and when I was halfway through a piss, she showed up. I caught her reflection in the mirror. Scared the rest of the piss right out of me. Missed the bowl like a little kid.”
“Who’s the badge bunny?” An officer I had seen earlier in the day joined in the conversation. Benny nodded, referring to Zoe. “Detective Daniels, right?”
“Yeah, but Blake will do.”
“Jackson.” He pointed to himself. “Last Christmas party,” he jumped right in, “Sarge asked me to play Santa for the kids. What? Was I gonna say no?” His eyes bugged out as he shrugged. “All the little kids came and did their thing, told me all the stuff they wanted and whatever. Well, I was just about done when Zoe came out of nowhere and sat on my lap.” His shoulders tensed as he went on. “She made all kinds of sexual comments, and normally I’d play along, but shit, there were kids there. Anyhoo, I got her to move on, but when I went to grab my coat at the end of the night, she full-out attacked me in the bedroom. Said she wanted me to stick my candy cane in her mouth.” He shook his head repeatedly. “I don’t mix business with pleasure, and I certainly don’t mix crazy and family.”
“Only one guy ever played the game with her,” Benny chimed in.
“And which one is he?” I glanced around, curious as to who wouldn’t see how bad of an idea that was.
“Not here,” they both answered at the same time.
Jackson sipped his beer, a crazy expression in his eyes. “She told Sarge some version of the story, and, well, I’m pretty sure he’s now a clerk for the LAPD.”
“She-devil.” Benny half laughed.
“Listen to them.” Fitz, the old mail guy, popped out of nowhere, and I nearly dropped my beer. He leaned in to be heard over the laughter. “She has no boundaries, trust me. Age and job position mean nothing to her.” He made a face before we all broke into quiet laughter again. Jackson tapped his bottle to Fitz’s before he moved back to his friends.
“Good to know,” I muttered before the sergeant joined us.
“Glad you could make it, Blake.” He greeted me with a firm handshake then checked the time. “Anyone see Spencer yet?”
“No,” Benny looked around, “not yet.”
“Well, let me know if you do. It’s not like her to be late. Blake, I want you to meet some more people.”
I was reeling with information overload and now had to meet a bunch of new people. I thought I should have brought some Jack Daniel’s because the beer wasn’t cutting it. I’d never been a people person but knew I had to tough it out.
“Sure.” I nodded for him to lead the way.
I met fifteen people, all with very different personalities, and one made me wonder if he even cared to work with the Syracuse Police Department anymore. He seemed burned out and was more interested in my background in shooting than anything else. As soon as I could manage it, I slipped away for a refill.
“So, you worked SWAT?” Zoe caught me on my way out from the bathroom.
Christ! She was a like one of those snakes that dropped on you out of a tree.
“Pardon?” I kept my pace toward the kitchen, but she followed hard on my heels.
“You were telling Jackson about your time on SWAT.”
Holy hell, where the heck was she standing to hear that?
“Emergency Service Unit is what we call it in New York, but yes, it’s our version of SWAT.”
She twisted a piece of her light blonde hair around her finger. “Were you like Colin Farrell in that movie with Samuel Jackson?”
“No.” I took the top off the beer and tossed the cap in the trash. “It’s nothing at all like the Hollywood movies.”
Her face twisted. “But, like, you wear all that gear, right?” You could practically feel the lust that poured off her. That was my problem with women like this. They didn’t really get it, and they couldn’t see past the uniform to the person underneath. A woman like that would never understand the heaviness we held inside because of the work we did. We tried to keep that side away from the people we cared about, let alone the general public.
“Sure.” I should have stopped there, but I couldn’t resist. “Although the last time I wore my gear, I came home covered in blood from a nine-year-old who was so brainwashed she let her uncle strap a bomb to her chest then sent her to school.”
She blinked and shook her head before she started to laugh like she thought I was making a joke. “Wasn’t that like from a movie?”
My jaw dropped as I stepped back and let the realization sink. This chick was so dumb, I had nothing to worry about. The next time she cornered me, I would just feed her some bullshit line about SWAT and let her chew on it while I slipped away.
The door was flung open, and a woman awkwardly carrying a box stumbled inside. “Sorry! I know, I’m late.”
“Oh, shit.” Benny nearly flew from the couch, grabbed the box from her, and set it on the table. “You’re forgiven. You have the meat.”
She flipped the hair out of her face and scowled playfully. Her tight pants hugged her slim frame, and her slender neck strained as she licked her lips. “Yeah, and why was I in charge of that? Carrying a cow through Costco wasn’t my finest hour.”
“I’m sure you looked hot.” Jackson kissed her cheek but snagged the box and announced the food had arrived.
“And, Spencer,” she added with a huff. “Men.”
“Who’s that?” I asked as the gorgeous woman in front of me let her frustration go and smiled while she dug through her purse and sauntered away.
“You mean Spencer?” Zoe shifted to study my face. “Sergeant’s wife. Well, second wife, but still wife.”