Visions In Death

CHAPTER 9

They spent a couple of hours talking to men with big pecs and tree-trunk legs in workout facilities that carved out the frills and concentrated on the testosterone.

Peabody's main complaint was that a large percentage of the members seemed to be more interested in ogling themselves or each other rather than a certain police detective.

It was a fishing expedition, Eve thought as she swung toward home. And she didn't feel any appreciable tugs on her line. Yet.

She'd start ru

See if she got any pops on sex crimes. He hadn't started down his current path yesterday.

He'd be single, so that would eliminate more. He wasn't gay, or hadn't recognized himself as such. He didn't work nights; that's when he killed.

No human hair recovered on the victim or from the murder or dump sites. Had he sealed up that thoroughly, or did he like some of the obsessive body guys she'd seen today regularly remove his head and body hair? She could almost, almost, get a picture of him in her head.

Trying to define it, she turned toward the gates of home.

Then was forced to stomp on the brakes when they remained shut.

"Summerset, you prick." She lowered the window, barked into the intercom. "Open the damn gates, you rat-faced, pointy-assed-" "One moment, please. Your voice print is being identified." "I'll give you my voice print. I'll give you my voice print all over your-" She broke off again, hissing as the gates slid open. "Thinks he's got a new trick up his sleeve to bust my chops.

Thinks he's going to keep me stewing outside the gates now while he runs his little game. If he had balls, I'd kick them into his throat." She slammed out of the car, jogged up the steps and burst into the house ready to rumble.

"If you wish automated entry, Lieutenant," Summerset said before she could spew, "you'll need to inform us when you intend to arrive in a strange vehicle. One not yet sca

"It's not a strange vehicle. It's my vehicle." He gave her his sour smile. "Come up in the world, have we?" "Just blow me." A

"You have guests. Roarke is entertaining Mavis and Leonardo on the west terrace, first level. I'm about to serve canapes." "Goodie." But since the half candy bar was now a far, fond memory, she could admit, privately, that anything involving food sounded fine to her.

She wound her way through the house, and found everyone sipping drinks. Not exactly, she corrected. Mavis was gesturing with her glass as she bubbled, more frothy than the lemon fizz in her hand.

She stood on the patio in a pair of shimmering green boots that ran up to her knees like a thin coat of paint where they met equally tight pants in red, no blue, no red.

Eve narrowed her eyes as the pants changed hues every time Mavis wiggled, which was always. The shimmering green top floated down to her hips where a lot of beads dangled.

Her hair was red today, and to Eve's relief stayed that way even when she danced in place. She'd left it down so it trailed along her butt with the ends picking up that same shimmering green, as if they'd been dipped in paint.

The two men watched her, Roarke with a bemused and affectionate smile, and Leonardo with open adoration.

Roarke shifted his gaze, winked at Eve.

Rather than interrupt, Eve crossed over to where a wine bottle and glasses were set up. She poured herself a drink, then crossed the patio to sit on the arm of Roarke's chair.

"Dallas!" Mavis threw out her arms, and somehow didn't spill a single fizzing drop. "Did you just get here?" "Just." "I didn't know if we'd get to see you. But we wanted to come by so I could give Summerset a smoochie." "Please, you're going to make me sick." Mavis only laughed. "Then Roarke came in right behind us, so we're having a little hang. We're getting snacks." Her eyes, green to go with the shimmer, danced.

"So I hear." Eve leaned around Roarke. "How's it going?" she asked Leonardo.

"Couldn't be better." He beamed at Mavis. He was a giant of a man, with skin of coppery gold. A wide face with dark eyes that were currently accented with a sweeping line of silver studs at each corner.

He wore boots as well, pale blue that rode up his calves.

There his loose sapphire pants sort of poofed into them, reminding Eve of pictures she'd seen of she thought Arabia "Oh, boy, here's food!" Mavis made the dash over as Summerset rolled out a two-tiered trolley, laden with trays of fancy appetizers and sweets. "Summerset, if it wasn't for Leonardo, I'd scoop you right up and make you my love slave." He smiled, a wide, toothy smile. Fearing nightmares, Eve turned away and stared into her wine.

"I believe I have several of your favorites here. You're eating for two." "Tell me! I'm like an oinker every five minutes. Oooh, that's the salmon mingy with the stuff! This is just mag." She popped it into her mouth. "I just love eating." "You sit down now, honeypot." Leonardo walked over, rubbed her shoulder. "I'm going to fix you a plate." "Cuddle bear," she cooed. "He totally spoils me. This pregs business is the top deal of the day. You gotta look." Even as Mavis reached for the hem of her shirt, Eve was curling into herself and wincing. "Oh, Mavis, I don't… oh well." There was the belly, in all its glory and accented by an interlinking trio of belly-button rings.

"Now check this." Still holding the shirt up, Mavis turned to the side. "See? It's poking. I know I said it was poking before. You know like five seconds after I found out I was knocked up, but now it completely is." Eve tilted her head, pursed her lips. There was a little bit of a slope in that area. "Are you pushing it out?" "No. Feel." Eve wasn't quite quick enough to whip her hand behind her back. "I don't wa

"You can't hurt it." She pressed Eve's hand to her belly.

"Solid baby." "That's good, Mavis." Her palm was going to go damp any second. "Really good. You're feeling okay?" "At the summit. Everything is totally uptown." "You look beautiful," Roarke told her. "And cliche or not, you glow." "I feel like I'm sending off waves." She laughed and bounced to a chair. "I still get the weepies sometimes, but they're happy weepies mostly. Like Leonardo and I were talking a couple days ago about how Peabody and McNab are moving into the building soon, and we're going to be neighbors, at least until we get a bigger place, and I just flooded." She took the plate Leonardo brought her and cuddled up with him on the padded love seat. "So what do you think they want for, like, a housewarming?" "Don't they have regulation temp control?" "Jeez, Dallas." With a giggle, Mavis popped something else in her mouth. "Housewarming. You know, where people move into a new place and you get them a gift." "Hold on. You have to give them a gift for moving?" "Uh-huh. Plus they're shacking, so it should be a couple thing." She ate another canape, fed one to Leonardo.

"Why does there have to be a gift for every damn thing?" Eve complained.

"Retail conspiracy." Roarke patted her knee.

"I bet it is," Eve said darkly. "I just bet it is." "Anyway." Mavis waved it all away. "We really came by and we're all pumped that you're both here because we wanted to talk to you about the baby." "Mavis, since you got pregnant, when haven't you wanted to talk about the baby?" Eve leaned over, took a canape from her plate. "Not that there's anything wrong with that."

"Yeah, but this is a specific thing, that involves you." The?" Eve licked her thumb and decided to steal another loaded cracker from Mavis's plate.