The Killing Ground: A Foxx Files Thriller Read Online Free

you are so handsome and give up my hand in this case?” Rebecca leveled her gaze at Jordan. “Let me let you in on a little secret. I didn’t get where I am today by getting weak in the knees every time some badge with a power trip batted their eyes at me. You can put your dick back in your pants.”
    Matt snickered, and Jordan rewarded him with a glare. He suddenly realized that maybe he did have a shot with the lovely Detective Foxx. “Sorry.” He muttered under his breath, all the while trying to mask the smirk on his face.
    Jordan felt the heat rise in her face. It had been a long time since someone put her in her place like that. Properly chastised, Jordan dropped her eyes playing the penitent role to appease Detective Foxx. She regretted her decision to throw sex into the mix and hoped for the sake of the case, she didn’t fuck up the Detective’s offer to share information. “Perhaps we got off on the wrong foot, Detective.”
    “I don’t play games, Agent. I know this whole adorable bad-guy routine is something you’re used to getting your way with, but I can assure you, I am no more interested in you than you are in Agent Riley.”
    Game, set and match to Detective Foxx, Jordan thought. Very quickly, the rules of the game had been established. Jordan was benched before she even had the chance to swing. “Very well, Detective. No games.”
    Again, Rebecca’s emerald eyes studied Jordan, this time looking beyond the façade and into her soul. This time she was almost convinced she had the upper hand… almost. “Agents, the information that I’m going to share with you is highly confidential. It stays here. Don’t make me regret this.”
    They both nodded. They did not need to be told that protocol dictated that the information they received here would definitely be shared in their own circles, but it would stop there.
    Rebecca pulled a file out of her drawer and opened it up. She handed Jordan a thin file. “We don’t have much. So far, he’s been clean. No DNA left at the scene."
    “No sperm?” Matt asked incredulously. “Not even trace amounts? Nothing?”
    “That’s what I said, Agent Riley. This guy’s good…or was.” Rebecca smiled mysteriously. “Until last night’s case.”
    “How so?” Jordan asked quickly.
    “Last night he got spooked and pulled out…so to speak. The condom came off inside the victim…” Rebecca saw Jordan wince. “I’m sorry, I mean Ms. Keppler. It’s the first break in the case we’ve gotten.”
    “It usually happens that way, Detective.” Jordan opined. “The UNSUB thinks he’s the first smart criminal and bam, he does something stupid.”
    “Did you get a hit in the Combined DNA Index System?” Matt interrupted. Jordan was emotionally involved already. He didn’t think that her relationship with their boss was any closer than his. Sure, they were both lesbians, but that hardly qualified them as best friends. However, he knew his partner, and she was already invested in this case more than she should have been. That’s when agents got sloppy, overlooked things, made mistakes when their brain stopped controlling the shots, and their heart took over.
    “No, if our suspect has committed crimes before this, he’s never been arrested.” Rebecca thumbed through several more pages. “The only thing that kept Ms. Keppler alive was a homeless guy. It turns out they were in his alley. Spooked the perp before he could kill her.”
    Jordan swallowed the lump in her throat. Here they were talking about Julie as if she were just another victim, a number in the CDD’s or FBI’s database, like she was just one more faceless person in a long line of faceless people. She was frustrated beyond belief. She had never had to put a face to the victim, never had to personalize the case. She felt a mixture of helplessness and fury swirling around inside her gut. Her next words were spoken through gritted teeth. “How many?”
    Rebecca looked confused. “How