Epiphany, page 17
“I’ll think about it.”
A sigh drifted through the receiver. “We’ll save a spot for you.”
“Save two,” I said suddenly.
“Oh? Is this a male friend?”
“Mom,” I groaned, rolling my eyes. “I’ve really gotta go. I’ll talk to you soon.” I hung up before she could object and joined Aidan in the living room. He stood in front of the windows looking at the overcast sky, arms folded.
“She wants me to go home for Thanksgiving.”
“What about Joe’s call?”
“She said his father was arrested yesterday.” I wandered to his side. “Another girl came forward.”
He reached for my hand. “But you never did, did you?”
I shook my head. “He’s a popular professor at the university. I figured if my own boyfriend didn’t believe me, who would?”
“I believe you.”
“I know, and that means everything to me.”
“Are you gonna go?” he asked.
I studied him from the corner of my eye, getting the feeling he wasn’t referring to Thanksgiving. “You think I should come forward too, don’t you?”
“Yes, I think you should. Maybe this isn’t what you want to hear, but you have a chance to help put this guy away so he can’t hurt anyone else.” He tugged me against him. “He should pay for what he did to you.”
“Will you go with me?”
“Of course I will. Where else would I go?”
31. Eavesdropper
I could have throttled Mike. In an effort to bring in more customers, he’d hired a KJ. Karaoke was supposed to be fun, he’d said, though he hadn’t been able to keep a straight face as he uttered those words. I winced as Christie hit a particularly high note. She demanded attention by screeching her wrath with the appropriately named song “I Hate Everything About You.” Judd was absent, but I’d wager he was the recipient of her public rant.
“I wouldn’t want to get on her bad side,” a guy at the bar said. Ignoring his comment, I set a rum and Coke in front of him. Kevin was his name. I recalled his argument with Six the morning after masquerade night.
He tore his eyes from Christie. “So you’re the chic Brad can’t stop talking about,” he said with a smirk. “He’s never been able to stay away from the ones he can’t have.”
“Tell him if he comes back, my…” My what, exactly? Was Aidan my boyfriend? A friend…with benefits? I didn’t like that idea, even if the benefits were damn good. “My coworker will toss him out on his ass,” I finally finished.
Kevin chuckled. “Chill out. Brad’s harmless. Besides, I’m pretty sure he got the clue last time.”
I wasn’t so sure Brad was harmless, but hopefully his friend was right about the last part. Christie stepped down from the stage as someone else took her place. She hopped onto the stool next to Kevin and aimed a flirty smile his way. “Haven’t seen you in a while. How’ve you been, Kevin?”
I tuned out their chatter. Mike had three women captivated by his juggling talent at the other end of the counter. His smile disappeared when the sheriff strolled in. McFayden towered over most in the bar; in fact, his height rivaled Aidan’s. He moved in an easy gait toward Mike, whose expression was less than welcoming. They exchanged a few words before the two of them disappeared into the back.
My gut tingled with an ominous sensation, and as ten minutes bled into thirty, the feeling intensified. Something was up.
“Something bugging you?” Christie’s voice intruded upon my inner turmoil. I considered thanking her for the distraction until I noticed her poisonous gaze. Kevin had disappeared. “Did you finally bore that sexy coworker of yours into quitting?” she asked.
“No, he’s here.” I gave her the sweetest smile I could muster. “He’s in the back doing the beer order. Now that I think about it, he disappeared when you walked in.”
She scowled. “Ooh, clever. I bet you practiced that one.” She got up and stumbled in typical Christie fashion. “Tell him I said ‘hi.’”
I clenched my teeth. The woman had a way of getting under my skin, and the thought of shoving a certain viper up her ass gave me more pleasure than it should. Without another word, she stomped over and joined two men playing pool.
The backdoors flung open and McFayden strode toward the exit, his face a blank mask. I was still trying to figure out what that was all about when Mike entered a few minutes later.
“Tony’s on his way.” He set a tray of clean glasses on the counter. “I’m taking off. Go ahead and take your break. I’ll cover the front until he gets here.” He popped a piece of gum into his mouth, but the mint didn’t mask the scent of tobacco. Six had once told me that he’d quit smoking a few years ago.
“What’s going on, Mike?”
He slammed a glass onto the counter. “I don’t want to talk about it.” The edge in his tone warned me to tread carefully.
“Is Aidan finished with the beer order yet?” I asked.
“I don’t know.”
Mike’s tight expression was still bothering me when I found Aidan in the cooler. I crossed my arms to ward off the chill from the controlled temperature.
“I take it the sheriff left?” he asked.
“Yeah, and Mike is not happy. I think he’s about to lose it. He called Tony in to cover.”
Aidan set aside the clipboard. “Come here,” he said, opening his arms. “You’ll freeze in here without a jacket.”
“We don’t have to stay in the cooler, you know,” I teased as his arms came around me. “We can take a five-minute break elsewhere.”
“I want to talk to you, and I’d rather not be overheard.”
“Sounds serious.”
“Did I ever tell you that breaking and entering isn’t my only talent?”
I tilted my head and grinned at him. “You’re preaching to the choir. You’re a man of many talents. Especially with your hands.”
He tickled the nape of my neck. “My hands just happen to like you.”
“As much as I love snuggling with you instead of working, it is kinda cold in here. What did you wanna talk about?”
“I overheard the sheriff’s conversation with Mike.”
My eyes widened. “You are handy to have around.”
His mouth twitched at the corners, but he didn’t smile. “I found out what Brad and Six were arguing about that night. Or rather who.”
“Mike?”
He nodded. “Turns out they were involved. He interrupted Brad and Six, and apparently, there was a huge blow-up. They pulled Mike in for questioning a couple of days ago.” He paused long enough to give me a careful look. “He submitted to a DNA test.”
“You’re not saying…”
“The semen they collected matched Mike’s.”
I shook my head, unable to grasp it. “But that doesn’t mean he killed her.”
“No, but it does mean that Brad might not have been the last one to see her alive.”
I thought about my manager and tried to picture him doing unthinkable things to Six, pictured him hanging her. My head told me it was possible, but my gut insisted otherwise. “He couldn’t have done this.”
“I agree, especially since the Hangman doesn’t leave a trail of DNA. You gotta admit though, things aren’t looking good for Mike.”
“Six never told me.” I shivered and nuzzled even closer to him.
“Makes sense they’d keep it secret. Sleeping with the boss is taboo.”
“What about coworkers? Is that acceptable?”
“Better be,” he said before settling his mouth over mine, which did a lot to warm me up all on its own. I could have stood there for another hour kissing him.
“I’m almost finished here,” he said. “You should go before you lose your toes.”
“Don’t take too long.” I nibbled on his lower lip before backing toward the door. From out of nowhere, spots flickered in my vision. A dozen miniature camera flashes exploded, and I was no longer in the cooler—instead I stood high above the ocean on a rocky ledge. Watcher’s Island darkened the horizon, and the dancing spots coalesced into a blinding beam; every few seconds it cut through the blackness.
My knees buckled, and I slumped to the floor.
I came to in Aidan’s arms, his fingers tapping a Morse code rhythm against my cheek. “Shit, you scared me. Are you okay?”
I blinked a few times and looked up at him once my vision cleared. “That’s never happened before.”
“You mean you don’t faint every day?” Underneath the sarcasm, I sensed how shaken he was. It was evident in the firm set of his jaw, in the way he tightened his hold on me.
“No, I meant I was awake this time.”
“You had a vision?” His eyes widened. “What did you see?”
“I’m not sure. It was freezing…there was a light—” I gasped. “The lighthouse!”
Aidan pulled me to my feet. “Come on, you’re gonna turn into a popsicle in here.” He ushered me into Mike’s office, where he rubbed some warmth into my arms. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
I nodded, but then I gave up the facade as another wave of dizziness set the room spinning. I collapsed into a chair just as the bright beam hit me in the face again. “Wherever he’s going to hang her, the lighthouse is close by.”
“I’m taking you home.” Aidan crouched in front of me, looking worried enough to drag me to the hospital, and equally determined to do it by force if he thought it was necessary.
“No, I’m okay. I probably got too cold.”
“Don’t bullshit me.” He brushed his knuckles against my cheek. “I’m tempted to say something dirty just to put some color back in your cheeks.”
That got a smile out of me. “I’m tempted to let you.” I pulled him close and planted a kiss on his lips. “I’m okay. The dizziness is gone.”
His brows narrowed over eyes sharp enough to slice through the BS of the best of liars—which I was most definitely not. “You’re way past dizzy. You fainted. Sit tight. I’m gonna see if Tony’s here yet. Maybe he can close without us.”
“That’s not necces—”
“Yes, it is.” He moved toward the door. “I’m serious, stay put for a second.”
Resigned, I leaned my head against the chair and waited. I wouldn’t admit it to Aidan, but having a vision like that had shaken me. I rubbed my sweaty palms on my jeans and counted to ten, but my heart still stuttered. A heavy, sick feeling turned in my stomach. By classifying the visions as dreams, I’d been able to sidestep the word “psychic” to some extent, if only to myself. Now I wondered what had changed. Why was this happening to me?
Aidan re-entered the room. “Mike’s gone, but Tony said he can close on his own since the karaoke is winding down.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me to my feet. “Let’s get you out of here.”
Despite my moaning and groaning, he drove me home and immediately tucked me into bed, and the only thing that pacified me was the fact that he tucked himself in beside me, sans-clothing.
32. If Stubborn Were a Pastime
Aidan and I had a colossal disagreement the following morning. The fact that we did so in bed, wearing nothing but each other, would have been amusing if he weren’t so damn stubborn.
“You can’t go back to your apartment,” he said. “Besides, staying here makes more sense. Bigger bed.” He flashed a grin as he teased me with his morning hard-on, just enough to make me insane with wanting him. He was an expert at fighting dirty, as if lying on top of him, his erection nestled between my thighs, wasn’t disarming enough.
“You’re missing the point,” I said, trapping his hands on either side of his face because their tendency to wander all over me wasn’t helping my distracted state. “We can’t spend twenty-four-seven with each other.”
“Until he’s caught, we sure as hell can.” Before I had time to blink, he rolled over and pinned me to the bed, and his fingers tightened around mine. A week ago I would have panicked, but now all I could think about was how I loved the feel of his body pressed against me.
“We have a real chance of catching him tonight,” he said. “I can’t focus on that and keep you safe if you’re not with me.” My face must have given away my fear, because he halted, eyes narrowing in suspicion. “Why are you in such a hurry to go home?”
“I’m not.” A layer of black powder still covered my apartment from when the police had dusted for prints, and the sight of my bed was enough to make me sick. I’d only dangled the idea of going home as a means of distracting him. Apparently, he wasn’t in the market to buy bullshit.
“What’s this really about?” he asked.
“What do you mean?”
He let go of my hands. “Spill it. I’ve told you ninety-nine percent of my secrets.”
I almost smiled. “Only ninety-nine percent?”
He groaned. “Quit avoiding the question. Why are you trying to get rid of me?” He nibbled the spot along my neck—the one that never failed to drive me to distraction. He really was playing dirty.
“I don’t want to get rid of you…” My eyes drifted shut as the heat of his tongue seared my skin. “That’s the problem.”
“I fail to see a problem here.”
I pushed him back so I could think straight. “I had another dream last night. I…” Swallowing my fear, I forged ahead, “I saw you die again. If you go after him tonight—”
“I’ll be fine.”
“You can’t pick and choose what to believe, Aidan. If you believe my dreams about the full moon, then you have to believe—”
“I can’t sit on the sidelines on this one.”
I pushed him away and scooted to the edge of the mattress. “I won’t watch you die,” I choked out. “And don’t tell me you’ll be okay because you can’t guarantee that.”
The mattress shifted, and I registered his nearness before he touched me. His fingers slid along my jaw, a gentle caress that coaxed me to look at him. “You’re right. I can’t give you guarantees.”
Not what I wanted to hear. His words had a double-edged effect, as I hadn’t realized until then how being with him made my insecurities rise to the surface. I was terrified of him being killed, but I was also scared of him walking away in the end. I averted my eyes and asked the question I was afraid to hear the answer to. “Aidan, what are we?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean…what is this? You and me. Us.”
He didn’t answer right away, which only heightened my anxiety. “What do you want us to be?”
“Uh-uh, I asked you first.”
“I care about you…”
I shrugged away from him, and what he didn’t say settled between us like an impenetrable wall.
He got to the floor and kneeled in front of me, leaving me no choice but to face him. “This isn’t just about your dreams, is it?”
He had a knack for asking the tough questions—the ones I didn’t want to answer. “No,” I said, avoiding his gaze.
“What’s it about then?”
Where should I start? Maybe with how I ached for him, in every sense of the word, yet the best he could do was offer a generic “I care about you” speech? Or the part where he’d go back to Boise eventually, assuming he didn’t get himself killed in his pursuit of vengeance? I drew my knees to my chest and hugged them. “I can’t believe I was stupid enough to fall in love with you.”
His silence invaded the room, leaving me suspended like an acrobat without a safety net.
“Say something,” I pleaded.
“Loving me could get you killed.”
My heart thumped painfully in my chest. “Loving you could break my heart.”
“I’m not looking to break your heart, Mackenzie.”
“Then don’t.”
“I can’t sit by and do nothing while he goes free.” He hesitated, his expression pensive. “And I can’t make you promises. Not until I know how this ends. When I first came here…” He trailed off, shaking his head. “I expected to either end up dead or in jail, and it didn’t really matter to me either way.”
I curled my fingers around his shoulders. “Don’t go after him. Aidan, he’s gonna kill you! I saw it again, just like the night the power went out. I don’t know how it’s gonna happen—”
“It won’t—”
“You don’t know that!” Scrambling away, I put some much needed distance between us. “Don’t be glib about this. You hold everything that’s important to me in your hands.”
He opened his mouth but said nothing.
“I can’t do this.” I crawled to the other side of the bed and got to my feet. “We’re just…getting too close, and…and maybe we do need some space.” I gathered my clothes and clutched them to my chest. “Maybe going home is for the best.” Every part of me railed against the idea.
“I can give you space without leaving you vulnerable to a madman.” He pulled on a pair of jeans, followed by a T-shirt. “If you go back to your apartment, I’ll just live on your doorstep. You wouldn’t make me do that, would you? It’s cold out there.”
I shook my head. “You’re so stubborn.”
“Only when it comes to one thing, and no one’s gonna make me budge on this.” His jaw formed an indomitable line that backed up his words. “He’ll have to kill me before he gets anywhere near you.”
The memory of his lifeless face flashed in my mind. “How can you say that to me? After I just spilled my heart out to you?” Blinking back tears, I focused on the squiggly pattern on the rumpled comforter.
“Because it’s true. If that doesn’t tell you how much I care about you, then I don’t know what will.” A quiet tension infiltrated the room. “Don’t leave.” The low plea in his voice was unmistakable, and it pulled at me in a way I couldn’t ignore. “You need some space? You’ve got it. Just…don’t go.”
I couldn’t walk away from him if I tried. When I lifted my head to tell him so, he was gone.
33. High Tide
The moon had never seemed so full or bright. Every time I spotted it, my stomach tightened. I knew in my gut this was the night—the night the Hangman would strike again. The night Aidan would die.
