Daniel Annechino - Hypocrisy

She looked at her watch. “I can do better than that. I’ll give you five.”

She asked T.J. to sit tight and said she’d be back soon. She turned to leave, but T.J. stopped her. “Are you going to tell him about the letter?”

“If I can get a word in edgewise.”

Dupree followed Jensen down the hallway to his office.

Once seated, Jensen picked up an envelope lying on top of his two-drawer file cabinet. “A FedEx driver delivered this about an hour ago. I was going to leave it on your desk until I noticed that the sender is Margaret Crawford. She’s Dr. Crawford’s mother, correct?”

Dupree nodded. Her hands began to tremble and she could barely swallow.

Jensen handed Dupree the envelope and her whole body recoiled as if he were handing her a rattlesnake.

“What’s the matter?” Jensen asked She told him about the letter she’d received from her “mother” and what the note inside said.

“There are a lot of sick fucks out there,” Jensen said. “Why didn’t you come to me sooner?”

“I had every intention to, but T.J. and I have been running our asses off.”

“Where is the envelope now?”

“I put it in a plastic bag and gave it to the techs in the lab. When they checked it over, they found several different fingerprints, which I pretty much expected.”

“Anything worth pursuing?”

“Unfortunately, not.”

Jensen set down the envelope and scratched the back of his head. “Do you really think this is from Mrs. Crawford?”

“Highly unlikely,” Dupree said. “But I’ll give her a call just to be sure.”

Dupree pulled her cell out of her purse. She had programmed Mrs. Crawford’s phone number in her contact list. It was a brief conversation.

“The letter’s not from her,” Dupree said.

“Let’s have the techies check it out. Hopefully, they’ll pick up a print we can use. And by the way. I’m your fucking boss and I need to know everything . Got it?”

“Yes, Captain.” Dupree’s stomach twisted into a knot.

“I told you this place would be quaint and charming,” Maggie Hansen said. She stood at the foot of the bed wearing only a lace bra and skimpy, pink panties.

Lentz couldn’t wait to get his hands on her. He let his eyes wander off her just long enough to look around. The cottage looked like a small log cabin, rustic and cozy. Everything from the cathedral ceilings to the walls to the floors was built with solid wood logs, planks, and beams. On the night stand next to the bed a bottle of Moët was chilling in a silver bucket of ice.

This is going to be a memorable day, Lentz thought.

He lay on the king-size bed stripped to his Jockey shorts. “How did you find a place like this—on Long Island no less?”

“I’m more resourceful than you give me credit for.”

“Well, all I can say is that you never cease to amaze me.”

“The party is just starting,” Maggie said. “Look what I brought.” She held up her hand and jingled a pair of handcuffs. “Maybe I can amaze you even more.”

“Are you feeling naughty?” Jonathan said. “Because I do know how to handle naughty little girls.”

“Is that right? I guess we’ll just have to find out.” Maggie reached around behind her, unsnapped her bra, and let it fall to the floor. Jonathan’s eyes opened wide. Her breasts were absolutely perfect. He had seen them many times, but for some reason, today they looked exquisite.

“Like what you see?” Maggie teased.

“I’d like it more if you took off your panties.”

“I’d love to, but I shaved this morning and don’t want to get a chill.”

He could feel himself getting aroused. “Oh, I think I can keep you warm.”

Maggie eased her way onto the bed and straddled Jonathan. “Is Duke ready to come out and play?”

If only she knew. She was obviously looking for trouble and he could surely deliver. “He’s more than ready.”

“Here’s a thought,” Maggie said. “Maybe, just for kicks, we should reverse roles.”

“How do you mean?”

“Well, I’m always the one getting punished for being naughty. Maybe it’s time I punish you.” She slipped her hand down his underwear.

After a few minutes of moaning, Jonathan said, “What do you want me to do?”

“I want to handcuff you to the bed and tease Duke until he begs for mercy. And when it’s time for the grand finale… let’s just say that I’ve got a special treat for him.” She licked her lips.

From his past experiences with her, she had been the perfect student. She did exactly what he wanted and learned quickly how he wanted it. Like an explorer, she could navigate his body with skill and surgical precision. She could take him to the edge and bring him back. Over and over. Until he begged for mercy; pleaded to be satisfied. He felt more excited than ever before. Lentz was ready. Oh, so ready.

Maggie, still straddling Jonathan, reached towards the nightstand, opened the drawer, pulled out a pair of handcuffs, and jingled them just above Jonathan’s face.

“Remember these?”

“How could I forget?”

She handcuffed Jonathan to the headboard so that both of his wrists were immobilized. Although excited, Jonathan felt a little apprehension, but quickly dismissed it. She hopped off the bed, snatched the bottle of champagne, and struggled trying to remove the cork. Finally, it popped and sailed across the room. She took a swig right out of the bottle.

“Want some?” she asked.

Jonathan nodded and surveyed her lovely curves. “I want more than some.”

“Patience, my dear.” She stood over him and slowly poured some champagne in his mouth.

“I never drank champagne like that before,” Jonathan said, “but I find it quite erotic.”

“Don’t go anywhere,” Maggie said. She went into the bathroom. When she returned, he could tell that she was hiding something behind her back. “Do you trust me, Jonathan?”

He did. To a point. But knew what she wanted to hear. “Unconditionally.”

“Let’s test that claim. I want you to close your eyes and open your mouth.”

“Now you’re scaring me.”

“If you trust me unconditionally, then there shouldn’t be anything to fear, right?”

Jonathan hesitated, but then squeezed his eyes shut and opened his mouth.

He could feel Maggie straddling him again.

“Are you ready?”

He nodded, still lying with his mouth open.

“No peeking,” Maggie said. Before he could even imagine what she had planned for him, he felt her stuff a rag or piece of terrycloth deep into his mouth. His eyes opened wide and he tried to fight but Maggie had been too quick. Panic crashed over him.

“You never should have betrayed Dominic Gallo.” Maggie held up the almost full bottle of champagne. “Are you ready to be punished, you naughty boy?”

With the additional information Parisi had shared with Dupree about Tesler’s murder and its connection to Cassano, she was just itching to interrogate Cassano; so much so that she hadn’t even looked at Hansen’s bank statement and cell phone records. And of course, nothing dominated her thoughts more than the second letter she’d received.

Dupree half jogged to lockup with T.J. following behind.

“What’s the rush?” T.J. asked. “Is this a fire drill?”

“Parisi charged my battery, so I can’t wait to double-team our number one suspect.”

Dupree told T.J. about the second envelope.

“Are you shitting me?”

“Wish I was.”

“I’m sorry, Amaris, I really am.”

“Hey, it comes with the territory. Wouldn’t be the first time some asshole threatened me. And it won’t be the last.”