December Frost (A Southern Romance Monthly) by CJ Hockenberry
Authors: CJ Hockenberry
Tags: Romance
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I don't want this to be something fleeting."
She kissed him again. Cool lips. "Get some sleep. You need it to break that fever."
"You going to sleep too?"
"Not yet. I want to call the Captain and check in with Lex. Then I'll come join you."
He wanted to stay awake with her, but even as she watched her leave the room, he felt himself wrapped up in a warm darkness.
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
She was worried about Thomas. She'd felt his hot skin while making love, but hadn't really thought it was a fever until after he continued to sleep once she was out of the shower. Cecelia didn't worry when he fell asleep after sex—she'd been told by her brother once that if you put him to sleep—then you rode him good.
Not that she always took everything Lex said as truth.
But Thomas was wounded, he had lost blood, and now in the afterglow of a woman very well satisfied, she wanted him well.
She wanted him to herself.
But she also wanted to stop this Phantom before he actually killed Thomas.
After stoking the dying fire, she poured herself a glass of wine, grabbed his tablet and brief case and sat on the sofa facing the TV. The weather was just about all there was. Nothing on the national news was getting through the local stations.
They still had power, which was a good sign. But if the lights did go out, she'd already lit a few of the larger storm candles Lex had set about in decorative sconces and holders.
She left a message with her Captain—something vague only he would understand, just in case the Phantom had compromised the precinct. It was far out idea, but he had showed up in the lockup and managed to escape.
Then she called Lex and got his voice mail. She told him about Thomas's fever and asked him to call her back asap.
Cecelia was pretty sure the briefcase as well as the laptop and tablet had passwords. And directly asking Thomas what they were would defeat the purpose of him getting rest because she was pretty sure if he knew what she was doing, he'd want to be up to help her.
And right now, fighting the infection was what he needed to be doing.
So…
She thought about everything he'd told her, about his life, his family, and his past and scribbled it down on a legal pad she'd found in the kitchen junk drawer. Once she had a nice list, she started trying combinations of things.
Her third attempt on the brief case worked and she opened it. Inside was a notebook laptop, pens, business cards and a brick of cash.
Interesting.
She looked at the cards. Thomas Carr, Retriever. Interesting title.
Once the laptop was out she opened it, booted it and hit the password screen. This time it took a bit longer to crack the password but eventually the tenth time did it. She opened his email, and started doing searches for "professor", " La petite fille de fleur ", "thief" and "phantom."
She hit on a few emails and just like he'd said, he had a whole folder of emails from an account that said Professor. The address was just a simple Gmail account. Not much help there. But she was able to read them and so far, Thomas Carr was extremely honest.
He had six emails from a Frank Clark with a FBI email address, one she knew from her job was a real address. All of them were relaying information about this particular statue and the family that created it. Ribeaux. So the family's loss of the statues as legit.
Then there was a message from Agent Clark giving Thomas the rumor that the Phantom was going to steal a statue at the High on a particular date.
Cecelia sat back and stared at the emails. She needed her white board to see all the players. So… she pulled sheets of the legal pad off, grabbed tape from the kitchen drawer and taped a bunch of the sheets together on the coffee table. Then with a marker she started marking up the pertinent facts.
An hour later her phone rang and she checked the number. "Hey Lex."
"Hey…I take it you're in the cabin?"
She kissed him again. Cool lips. "Get some sleep. You need it to break that fever."
"You going to sleep too?"
"Not yet. I want to call the Captain and check in with Lex. Then I'll come join you."
He wanted to stay awake with her, but even as she watched her leave the room, he felt himself wrapped up in a warm darkness.
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
She was worried about Thomas. She'd felt his hot skin while making love, but hadn't really thought it was a fever until after he continued to sleep once she was out of the shower. Cecelia didn't worry when he fell asleep after sex—she'd been told by her brother once that if you put him to sleep—then you rode him good.
Not that she always took everything Lex said as truth.
But Thomas was wounded, he had lost blood, and now in the afterglow of a woman very well satisfied, she wanted him well.
She wanted him to herself.
But she also wanted to stop this Phantom before he actually killed Thomas.
After stoking the dying fire, she poured herself a glass of wine, grabbed his tablet and brief case and sat on the sofa facing the TV. The weather was just about all there was. Nothing on the national news was getting through the local stations.
They still had power, which was a good sign. But if the lights did go out, she'd already lit a few of the larger storm candles Lex had set about in decorative sconces and holders.
She left a message with her Captain—something vague only he would understand, just in case the Phantom had compromised the precinct. It was far out idea, but he had showed up in the lockup and managed to escape.
Then she called Lex and got his voice mail. She told him about Thomas's fever and asked him to call her back asap.
Cecelia was pretty sure the briefcase as well as the laptop and tablet had passwords. And directly asking Thomas what they were would defeat the purpose of him getting rest because she was pretty sure if he knew what she was doing, he'd want to be up to help her.
And right now, fighting the infection was what he needed to be doing.
So…
She thought about everything he'd told her, about his life, his family, and his past and scribbled it down on a legal pad she'd found in the kitchen junk drawer. Once she had a nice list, she started trying combinations of things.
Her third attempt on the brief case worked and she opened it. Inside was a notebook laptop, pens, business cards and a brick of cash.
Interesting.
She looked at the cards. Thomas Carr, Retriever. Interesting title.
Once the laptop was out she opened it, booted it and hit the password screen. This time it took a bit longer to crack the password but eventually the tenth time did it. She opened his email, and started doing searches for "professor", " La petite fille de fleur ", "thief" and "phantom."
She hit on a few emails and just like he'd said, he had a whole folder of emails from an account that said Professor. The address was just a simple Gmail account. Not much help there. But she was able to read them and so far, Thomas Carr was extremely honest.
He had six emails from a Frank Clark with a FBI email address, one she knew from her job was a real address. All of them were relaying information about this particular statue and the family that created it. Ribeaux. So the family's loss of the statues as legit.
Then there was a message from Agent Clark giving Thomas the rumor that the Phantom was going to steal a statue at the High on a particular date.
Cecelia sat back and stared at the emails. She needed her white board to see all the players. So… she pulled sheets of the legal pad off, grabbed tape from the kitchen drawer and taped a bunch of the sheets together on the coffee table. Then with a marker she started marking up the pertinent facts.
An hour later her phone rang and she checked the number. "Hey Lex."
"Hey…I take it you're in the cabin?"
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