Page 41 of Wicked Deceptions
“Thank you, Sara.” Daniels was a regular at this particular Starbucks, and most of the baristas knew him and that he worked for the police department. He was in there at least once a day, sometimes twice, depending on how hard a day he was having or if he was working late.
Once Sara handed him their coffees, he turned back toward the woman. “Would you like to sit over there?” He gestured toward a small table in the far corner of the coffee shop.
She nodded and walked to the table he suggested. He was pretty pleased with himself at how smooth he was in getting her to have coffee with him. This was a piece of cake.
When they sat, he handed her the mocha chi latte and said, “Marc Daniels.”
She shook her head. “Lieutenant Marc Daniels,” she said to correct him.
He shrugged.
She smiled shyly. “I heard the barista call you Lieutenant, so you can’t hide it from me. Are you military or a detective or something?”
“I’m a lieutenant and chief investigator for the Clifton Police Department.” He took a sip of his coffee. “Nothing glamorous, that’s for sure.”
“Well, I don’t know about that.”
He smirked, “Why do you say that?”
“Because, Lieutenant, there is something alluring about law enforcement.” She smiled. “And it seems, Lieutenant Daniels, we have something in common.”
“We do? How so?”
“Because I am a profiler for the FBI. I live here in Clifton but work at the FBI Academy in Quantico.”
“Well, uh…”
“Anna. Anna Jordan.”
“Well, Anna Jordan, it looks like you just may be the answer to my prayers.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, really. A couple of days ago, I began an investigation on a case that I may need your expertise with. Would you be interested?”
“Well, normally I would say that my work would keep me from helping you, but I’m on vacation this week and actually do have some free time.”
“Splendid. Why don’t you give me your number and when I get some things finalized back at the station, I’ll give you a call?”
She reached into her purse and pulled out a pen. After grabbing a napkin from the table, she jotted down her name and number and handed it to Daniels. “Sounds good.”
This would have been the perfect time for Daniels to leave, but instead, he decided to stay. It was as if the two of them had known each other all their lives. As they enjoyed their coffee together, Daniels gave her a brief overview of the case and the Bunny Man legends, of which she was already aware. It didn’t surprise him, especially since she said she had lived in this area all her life. He was yet to find someone who lived in this area who didn’t know about the alleged Bunny Man.
When he got back to the station, he made a call to the FBI Academy in Quantico. Before he gave her more specific and gruesome details on the case, he had to make sure she was legit. He questioned the chances of meeting her so casually. There were a lot of crazy people around, and one couldn’t be too sure. His phone call confirmed that yes, indeed an Anna Jordan was a profiler with the FBI and an added bonus was that, although she was recently just out of school, she had quickly become one of their top profilers. When he asked to speak with her, he was told that she was on vacation through the week and wouldn’t be returning until the twelfth. He disconnected the line and breathed a sigh of relief. Perhaps he was about to get a break.
***
The next day, Daniels made his usual morning Starbucks run. Although he went just about every morning, he had an ulterior motive for going today. He wanted to see Anna again, and not because he wanted to talk to her about the case but for more personal reasons. He liked her, and for the last twenty-four hours, he could not stop thinking about her.
When he walked in, he spotted her immediately. She was sitting at the same table they had shared yesterday, reading theWashington Post. He walked up to the counter, ordered his usual, and proceeded toward Anna.
“Hello, Ms. Jordan.”
She put her paper down and looked up. “Hello, Lieutenant, and please, call me Anna.” She folded her paper and pointed at the chair next to her. “Join me?”
“I’d love to.” He sat and took a sip of his coffee.
“I was hoping that I’d see you this morning,” she cooed.
