Page 3 of Insatiable

“Jesus,” Zane whispered, “and, you have no leads?”

“I was just put on the case, but until now, no one can figure out a motive or find a suspect in the case. My boss is trying to keep it from becoming a cold case, but without the information that we need, I can’t stop that from happening. Would either of your fathers be willing to speak with me?” Crew asked. “For some reason, they weren’t questioned the first time around.It was almost as though the case had been swept under the proverbial rug.” Leo and Ross looked at each other and Crew knew that they were going to give him a fight about dragging their fathers into his investigation. There wasn’t a reasonable excuse as to why their dads weren’t questioned in the first place. He wasn’t sure if it was faulty police work or if the notorious mobsters had paid someone off to keep their names out of the investigation.

“I hate to tell you this,” Ross said, “but our fathers are both dead.” He had heard something about Leo being held and questioned for his father’s death, but he hoped that Ross’s father was still alive. Without either of them, his case was dead in the water. The last thing Crew wanted to have to do was go back to the office to tell his boss that he couldn’t find out anything.

“I’m sorry,” Crew said. “I had heard rumors about your dad, Leo, but I didn’t know about your father, Ross. My condolences to you both.”

“Thanks, man,” Ross breathed.

Zane cleared his throat, garnering their attention. The guy was so quiet that Crew almost had forgotten that he was still in the room with them. “How do you and Ross know each other?” he asked. Crew wanted to ask him why he wanted to know, but Ross had already started telling the story about how they went to high school together and how they both hated each other until their senior year. That’s when they started hanging out at parties and got to know each other. Crew decided that Ross wasn’t the complete jerk that everyone said he was, and that’s when he started to really like the guy. They had stayed in touch over the years, even though they weren’t as close as they were as kids. Zane nodded as though he was good with Ross’s explanation.

“How about your dad?” Leo asked Zane. “Do you think that Bobby would know anything about the murder?”

Zane shrugged and Crew noticed that he seemed a bit nervous. “No clue,” he said. “My father and I haven’t seen eye to eye lately. Ever since both of your fathers passed, he’s been kind of distant. He’s teaching me the ropes to one day take over the family business, but we don’t exchange small talk.”

“I’m guessing that you both have taken over for your fathers,” Crew asked. Ross and Leo nodded, and Zane just shrugged leaving Crew to try to figure out what the hell that meant. The Ballerini, Capo, and Marino families were well-known mafia families. If the three guys in the room with him had taken over for their fathers, that would mean that they were playing on the other side and that Crew would need to keep his eye on each of them. Although, he was pretty sure that keeping an eye on Zane Marino wasn’t going to be much of a hardship since the guy was just his type.

“Would you give your father my business card and tell him that I’d like to schedule a meeting with him? I’ll take just a few minutes of his time,” Crew said. He handed Zane his card, letting his fingers brush over his, and loved the little hitch in Zane’s breath that he elicited. Yeah, he was just Crew’s type.

“I’ll try,” Zane promised.

“Great,” Crew said, turning to leave the room. He turned back to face the three men again, knowing that what he was about to ask them wasn’t going to go over well, but he needed more intel before going back to his boss. “Oh, and I’d like a membership to your club,” he said. “I’ll need to go undercover, and I’d appreciate your discretion about my true identity.”

“Um, sure,” Ross said. Leo shot his husband a look and Crew knew that he wanted to deny him access to their club.

“Do you think that’s a good idea?” Leo asked Ross. “I mean, we pride ourselves on keeping our members safe and if Crew is stalking them, asking questions about a murder that happened ayear ago, how safe will they feel?” Crew almost felt bad about his request, but there was no other way to find Susan’s killer.

“How long will you need to be undercover?” Zane asked. Crew wanted to ask the guy if he was a member too, but he didn’t want to seem too forward or personal.

“As long as it takes,” Crew admitted. “Honestly, there is no telling when it comes to cases like this. If you’d like, I can give you weekly reports to let you know if I have any leads,” he offered.

“That would be great,” Ross said. “You’ll be reporting to Zane. He’s looking for a project around here.” Ross and Leo chuckled, and Crew wondered what that was all about. “I’m sure he’d be willing to give you a tour too, if you have time.” Zane shot Ross a look and Crew didn’t miss the way he mouthed, “Fuck off,” to both him and Leo, making them laugh even harder.

“I’d appreciate a tour. I need to be familiar with the club. I’d also like to see room three,” he said. “I know that there won’t be any evidence left after a year, but I’d like to compare the crime scene photos with the actual room.”

“No problem,” Zane agreed, “just follow me.”

Crew started for the door, keeping up with Zane who seemed to be in a hurry. He thanked Ross and Leo as he chased Zane out of the office, staying hot on his heels. “Try to keep up,” Zane growled back over his shoulder. Crew wasn’t sure if he was being tested or what, but he was sure of one thing. He was up for any challenge that Zane threw his way.

Zane

Zane knew that showing Crew through the club wasn’t a good idea, but he had offered to help the guys out and he did know his way around the club. Zane quickly moved the detective through the main room. Most of the members called it the playroom, but he didn’t like to call it that. He either felt like a toddler or a creepy old man every time that word was used.

“Back down this hallway, you find all the private rooms in the club. Most people like to hang out in the main room, but some clients like to be discrete,” Zane said. He really wasn’t giving the poor guy much to go on, but then again, he didn’t know anything about a woman being murdered in the club.

“Which do you prefer?” Crew asked. Zane wasn’t really paying attention to the detective.

“I’m sorry, what?” he asked.

“Which do you prefer—the main room or a private room?” Crew asked. Shit, that was the last thing that he wanted to talk about with a total stranger. Then again, Zane was never shy when it came to sex or talking about it.

“Main room,” Zane said. “Why?” he asked.

Crew shrugged, “No reason, really. I was just curious. I think that I’d like the main room too. Are the many threesomes in the club?” Zane didn’t miss the way that he looked him over as he asked his question.

“Not really,” he said. “There are always couples who are looking to pick up a third for the night to play, but usually it ends there. I’m not really into one-night stands. I’ve had enough of them to last me a lifetime.”

“What are you into?” Crew asked, taking a step closer to Zane. This was beginning to feel like the detective was interrogating him and not investigating a murder that happened over a year ago.

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