The Howling Read online

  Diana's brows rose. “There hasn't been anybody on the site in weeks. I'm surprised there's any food left around here to attract them."

  "Uhn,” Sly grunted. “How did it go today?"

  "No problems so far. I didn't see anything of Blackhawk today, but I took a tour of the town and had a little chat with a kid at a corner market. From what he says, they're building this place on ancient Indian burial grounds."

  "So I heard."

  Diana frowned. “Unless you talked to the same kid, it seems to be fairly common knowledge around here. You think Colson knew?"

  Sly shrugged. “I doubt if he'd think much about it even if he did. It wouldn't be the first cemetery, Native American or not, that had been paved over. You think we've got another haunting?"

  "I'm not going to rule it out, if that's what you mean. But I always like to check with the living before I explore that possibility."

  "Yeah. I know. So, what're you thinking? Somebody's pissed off enough about the burial grounds to kill people over it? Sounds like a stretch to me."

  "It seems like a stretch to me, too, if you're talking about normal people. But we can't rule out the possibility that somebody's just screwy enough to think he's carrying out a curse, or something like that,” Diana said. “Main thing is, it opens up the possibility of more suspects, more motive ... or a different motive."

  "That still doesn't rule out Chief Nose-In-Pussy. He's an Indian. Maybe he figured that was just the last straw. I know you've got the hots for him, Skelley, but I still think he's our man."

  Diana glared at him. “I do not!” she lied. “Get your mind out of the gutter, Muellin. He hasn't had his nose any where near it."

  "'Cept when he was trailing you into the office. I was speaking metaphorically, anyway."

  "Right."

  "You giving up on the plot to let him pump you while you pump him for info?"

  Diana gave him a look. “It never occurred to me to try it,” she lied. “And even if it had, the answer's still no. Blackhawk doesn't strike me as the kind of guy that can be led around by his dick, whatever you think."

  "Any guy can be led around by his dick. But you may be right about Blackhawk. Maybe he's gay?” he said hopefully.

  "Right. And I'm a lesbian."

  Muellin grinned. “It's always been a fantasy of mine to see two lesbians making it with each other. You going to invite me over the next time you have a party?"

  "You and every other man. Damned if I can figure that one out. You do know that if they're in to women, they're not going to give you any? ... Do you think you could get your mind off of sex for five minutes so we can discuss the case?"

  "It'd be easier if I wasn't so damned horny,” Muellin said irritably.

  Diana gave him a look of surprise. “I thought you and my sister ... ?"

  "We didn't click ... I'd be willing to consider a mercy fuck if you're offering."

  Diana patted him on the knee. “You're way too cute for that. Anyway, you know I never mix pleasure with business. It complicates things."

  Muellin released a deep sigh. “I didn't think so, but I figured it was worth a try. What's your plans for tomorrow?"

  "I'm headed for the courthouse to look up records ... see if I can find out who all might be connected with the property. If I can find a library, I'm going to see if I can turn up anything about the legends around here."

  "You might try the newspaper office. They usually have their back issues stored, don't they?"

  Diana frowned. “Maybe. I guess I could use the same cover story for that as I'm using for the office of records."

  "And that is?"

  "Geneology research for my grandmother. How about you?"

  "I was going to do a little nosing around, like we talked about before we left, but I talked to Skinard earlier tonight. Colson's trying to round up another crew to bring them in. I figured I'd concentrate on staking this place out once we've got some ‘bait’ to draw our man out. Colson expects to have a crew in here by Wednesday or Thursday. His foreman is meeting me here tomorrow to walk me through the ‘accidents'."

  Diana frowned. “I thought the foreman was coming Friday."

  "Colson's getting desperate. He's bringing a crew in from his west coast operations."

  Chapter Three

  Diana parted company with Muellin before they reached the city limits and headed for the lodge at a slow jog. Just in case she had any witnesses, she performed an elaborate stretching / cooling down workout.

  The desk clerk glanced at her curiously as she passed the front desk but said nothing.

  She met Blackhawk in the hallway outside her door. She jumped when he stepped from the doorway of the room across the hall from her own.

  He surveyed her wordlessly, his expression unreadable. “Been for a walk?"

  Diana forced a grin she was far from feeling. “Jogging."

  His gaze moved over again and settled on the pistol butt poking out of her shoulder holster. “You always take a gun?"

  She didn't even blink. “Yep. Discourages muggers."

  He leaned against the wall, folding his arms across his chest. “We don't have many of those around here."

  She shrugged. “Force of habit. It never hurts to be prepared."

  "Are you?"

  "Prepared?"

  "I like to think so,” Diana said, digging in her pants pocket for her keys. She extracted them with some relief and turned to unlock her door.

  "You know how to use it?"

  Diana was glad she was facing the door. She flushed, but since he couldn't see her expression it could just as easily be interpreted as embarrassment that what it actually was—irritation at the sexist remark. “Point it and pull the trigger, right?” she muttered.

  "Basically—there's a little more to it than that. Ever fired it?"

  Diana opened her door and leaned against the frame, turning to look at him when she realized he'd moved across the hallway and was standing directly behind her. A bone in her neck popped as she looked up. He seemed taller, but then she wasn't wearing her heels and he was a lot closer than he had been before, looming over her, in fact. She forced a smile. “Once or twice."

  "I could give you lessons, if you're interested."

  Lessons in what? She wondered. “Hey! That'd be great."

  He nodded. “It you're going to be running at night, you should be fully prepared. We don't have muggers, but there's been a couple of animal attacks lately."

  Diana lifted her brows. “Animals? What kind of animals?"

  He shook his head. “Don't know. Something big with lots of teeth and claws. I'd feel a lot better, though, if you'd just do your jogging during the day."

  She shrugged. “I'm a night person ... and it helps me think. Besides I don't like dodging cars or being stared at."

  "That's what I figured."

  "What?"

  "Stubborn. Never met a redhead that wasn't."

  Irritation surfaced again. “So I fit the stereotype, huh?"

  A slow smile lifted the corners of his lips. Diana's belly clenched in response ... so did her kegels. “Lady, I think you're one of a kind."

  * * * *

  "Dillard said they found the body here,” Muellin said, waving his hand in the air to draw a general alignment of the body.

  Diana frowned, studying the hill they'd just climbed down. “They said the fall killed him?"

  Sly shrugged. “Said it finished him."

  "They sent the body to forensics?"

  "The coroner determined the cause of death."

  Diana's lips tightened. “I was wondering why we hadn't seen a report. I suppose the coroner was the only one that looked at any of them?"

  "You got it."

  "And the coroner is?"

  "An elected official. Doesn't know dick about forensics. Supposedly he ruled on the cops investigation and the physican's examination."

  "So ... his neck might have been broken even before he fell.” It was a statement,
not a question. The fact was, they couldn't tell anything for certain since there'd been no in depth examination of the body that might have revealed tell tale clues about the incident.

  "Or it might not have been broken at all."

  Diana crossed her arms. The movement almost popped her breasts right out of the low slung bra she was wearing. Muellin held his breath, stared at her bulging breasts, certain this time they would bound free. “Well, I'm not buying it."

  "Huh?"

  "What about you?"

  "Oh, I would. I definitely would,” Sly said, feeling his mouth water.

  Diana frowned. “What?"

  Sly dragged his gaze from her breasts with an effort. “I'm sorry. What did you say?"

  Diana gave him a look. “The ‘accident'?"

  "Oh.” Sly surveyed the hill and the scree covering the slope. “I've got a lot of doubt. It's possible. But it isn't that much of a fall. You never know, though. Sometimes a person falls just the right way and it's lights out."

  "What're the chances, you think, of getting the bodies exhumed?"

  "Just about zero. They were cremated."

  "Shit! All of them?"

  "The unfortunate foreman's remains were shipped home and cremated. Of the other two, one was unclaimed—a drifter apparently—and the county footed the bill for a cremation. The last man that was killed had family, but they couldn't afford to have him shipped home, so the county stepped in and disposed of him, as well, cremation like the other two."

  "What is this? A new fad?” Diana exclaimed rhetorically.

  Sly shrugged. “The poor man's only option. Funerals are expensive and not many construction workers have insurance—unless they're union men. The workers here apparently weren't."

  "So you don't think it's a conspiracy?"

  "I think they were probably glad they got the chance to dispose of them so neatly, and maybe somebody helped to push it in the right direction ... but I don't see how they could've made it happen. They just seized the opportunity when it was handed to them. I checked. The county doesn't usually cremate."

  "What'd they have to say about it?"

  "Said it was a new policy to cut down on taxpayers’ expenses."

  Diana snorted. “That's a rich one!"

  Sly nodded. “How'd it go for you?"

  "I got a few names connected with the property. Haven't had the chance to check any of them out yet, except one. The guy that sold the property to the developers. And, guess what?"

  Sly lifted his brows questioningly.

  "This isn't the first time somebody tried to build here."

  * * * *

  Sometimes there were unexpected benefits to being short, Diana thought with carefully hidden amusement—make that—being a really short woman with a really tall man.

  When Blackhawk had offered to give her a few lessons in shooting, she'd figured it was worth pretending she hadn't a clue how to hold a pistol if it gave her the opportunity to meet Blackhawk on a more personal level, in a relaxed atmosphere that would give her the chance to ask him a few questions.

  Obviously, Blackhawk had had something a little different in mind.

  He'd driven her to a fairly remote location, which had made her more than a little uneasy, then set up a small shooting range—a row of cans and bottles—and then carefully instructed her on safety.

  She'd begun to get the picture when he started instructing her on gun safety—no feelly, but a whole lot of touchy and very close proximity.

  He hadn't brought her to a remote location to dispose of her because she'd somehow blown her cover. He'd brought her out for a seduction.

  The amusing part came when he moved up behind her to help her aim at her target. He discovered, at about the same time she did, that he could either stand close enough to brush against her back, or he could hold her arms and show her how to aim. He couldn't do both, because he had to bend over to put his chin on her shoulder and hold her arms straight out.

  The not so funny part was—it was working.

  Diana was so busy weighing the plus and minus factors of giving in versus holding him off, that she didn't even have to pretend she couldn't hit the side of a barn. She missed every target.

  The problem was, the effect Blackhawk was having on her was making it pretty damned impossible to figure out whether her logic was tainted with desire or not.

  Finally, she decided ‘what the hell?'. The best way to get rid of temptation was to give in to it.

  She'd always had a burning curiosity about why ‘doing it in the woods’ was so appealing anyway.

  It was for research.

  And the ultimate good of her investigation.

  Reloading her pistol, she switched the safety on, shoved it in the holster, and snapped the restraining strap, then turned to Blackhawk and placed her hands on his chest. “I'm much better at some things than others,” she murmured as she slid both hands up his chest, grasped the neck of his shirt and gave him an encouraging tug to come on down.

  Something flickered in Blackhawk's eyes—surprise? uncertainty?

  He wasn't the type to take long coming to a decision. He grasped her, snatching her up against him in a rough collision of bodies, pulled her up on her tiptoes and covered her mouth in a consuming kiss. Diana discovered that she was already well past warmed up. The moment his mouth connected with hers and his tongue snaked out to explore her mouth, fire coursed through her veins. She slipped her arms around his neck to hold herself closer to him and steady her balance, but her breasts were on fire for his touch, her sex was slick and wet, dampening her panties, and her hands itched to touch him.

  Without breaking the kiss, she pulled slightly away and began tugging at the tail of his shirt. He sucked in his belly and she slipped her hand down the front of his jeans as she pulled his shirt out, worked her way past the waist band of his shorts, and finally hit pay dirt. It was rock hard and big enough to be considered a playground for needy women.

  "Mmm,” she murmured as she broke contact with his lips and began nibbling his chest. “Your other name must be Chief Tripping Rabbit, huh?"

  A chuckle rumbled from his chest, surprising her, but it pleased her that he was so quick on the uptake even while she was fondling his cock.

  He pulled away slightly, fumbled with his shirt buttons a moment, and finally grasped both edges and ripped the shirt open from top to bottom. Three or four buttons pinged against her before falling to the ground. Tossing his shirt onto the ground behind him, he grasped her pullover and tugged it off over her head, adding it to the growing pile behind him.

  He was right, Diana decided dimly. There was way too much fabric in the way. Releasing him reluctantly, she kicked her canvas shoes off. Before she could pull her elastic waisted jogging pants down, he grabbed her and took her to the ground in a dizzying rush that had her gasping in surprise and bracing for an impact that never came. She wasn't certain how he performed the maneuver, but the moment she discovered the ‘eagle and the dove’ had landed, she returned her attention to shimmying out of her pants.

  "Too fast?” Blackhawk asked at her gasp.

  Diana had already forgotten about the surprised intake of breath. She grabbed one of his braids and gave it a tug, pulling him down for a kiss. “Too slow,” she murmured.

  He groaned, rolled half atop her and covered her mouth. Catching her hands, he pressed them to the ground on either side of her head, lacing his fingers with hers. Diana wasn't exactly ‘in’ to the submissive posture, particularly when she was itching to get her hands on him, but, strangely enough, the ferocity and possessiveness of his assault, drove her over the edge into a state of mindless wantonness. She locked her legs around his waist, rubbing her swollen clit against his jeans.

  He released his grip on one hand long enough to unfasten his jeans, work the zipper down and release his swollen cock. Diana felt the heat of it through her panties. She groaned, bucked against him, reached down to guide his cock inside her.

  Even as she re
ached for him, however, he broke the kiss, and moved down her body. Scooping one breast from the cup of her bra, he lowered his mouth to one hard peak, sucking and teasing it in a way that sent a renewed flood of pleasure through her. Her kegel muscles contracted and released spasmatically, as if reaching for him. Her panties were soaked with her juices.

  The movement put his cock beyond her reach however.

  She was torn. His mouth and tongue felt so good on her breasts she didn't want him to stop, but she was more than ready to feel his cock inside of her.

  The last need won out. If he didn't get his cock inside of her soon, she was going to cum without it and that would be a waste of what promised to be one of the best climaxes she'd had in ages.

  "Your cock,” she gasped. “I want it inside of me ... now!"

  He released her breast, reached down and, pushing her panties aside, aligned the head of his cock with her pussy. Thrusting, he slipped through the juices sluicing her labia, nudged her clit a couple of times and finally sank the head of his cock into her. Diana tightened her legs around him and lifted as he worked his hips and filled her, only dimly aware of the fact that he still had his jeans on as the cold teeth of the zipper slid along her inner thighs.

  Reaching down, she helped him peel his jeans and shorts down, then gripped one buttock, pulling him to her as she pushed up against him. It was all the encouragement he needed. Grasping her hands once more, he began pumping into her, long deep strokes. Diana arched her back and met him stroke for stroke, gasping each time he buried himself to the hilt in her.

  She felt herself building toward climax, felt the shudders running through him that told her he, too, was near the peak. The realization was enough to send her spiraling over the edge. Ecstasy jolted through her in a dizzying rush that was like a free fall. She let out several gasping cries that echoed his own groan of pleasure as he came inside of her.

  With an effort, he rolled off of her. A cool breeze wafted across her heated skin as he did so, sending a shiver through her. Slowly, she became aware of her surroundings once more, of the sun beating down on her face. She rolled over, facing Blackhawk.

  As she did, she caught a glimpse of a man standing at the edge of the clearing.