Chapter One
Kate Edwards stared listlessly out of her living room window on a rainy August afternoon. Her best friend, Julie Mitchell, was yammering into her ear about a random party she had attended the night before. Any minute her disinterest would likely be discovered and Julie would sound off a round of expletives in her ear.
Julie had asked her to go, but Kate rarely attended parties. Her anti-social streak began years ago and she seldom ventured out of her front door. While she had turned twenty-one this past autumn, she had only gone to a bar once and never to a club. Julie was pretty much the only good friend she talked to on a regular basis.
While Julie resided in her own apartment in their town of Franklin, Kate lived at home with her mother. Franklin is a small town in New Jersey, located about an hour from New York City. Although the majority of people from Franklin are members of the working middle-class, a smattering of the residents are definitely part of the upper-crust. Julie’s own father became a wildly successful New York attorney who now pays the rent on his daughter’s recently-acquired apartment.
Franklin was the type of town that seemed to live inside its own little bubble. Although a few high-crime areas bordered the city limits, Franklin locals pretended everything was sunshine and roses. While murders and rapes were taking place outside of the town, neighbors acted like a family not mowing their lawn for two weeks was cause for alarm.
Julie and Kate had become fast friends when they were assigned to be roommates at nearby Thompson College. After a brief freshman year, Kate dropped out the following spring. However, this summer she had begun taking classes online to earn a bachelor’s degree in English. Her father, Robert, had not been subtle in pointing out how completely useless he thought obtaining an English degree was. Her response explaining how she wasn’t sure what she wanted to do with her life yet hadn’t seemed to earn her any brownie points either.
“Earth to freakin’ Kate, come in Kate,” Julie was saying into her cell phone. Kate’s lack of social skills surprisingly had yet to frighten her away.
“I’m sorry,” she apologized quickly. “What were you saying?”
“I said, don’t you think I was right to be furious with Gage for getting completely plastered and unable to drive us home?” Julie repeated with a definite edge to her voice. Julie was a gorgeous brunette who had a large social circle. Why she even bothered with Kate was a mystery. A social butterfly with a ton of zingers in her back pocket was a more appropriate sidekick for Julie—not a social pariah whose idea of fun was to watch old movies in her pajamas with her mother.
Kate’s sheltered life had nothing to do with her appearance. She would categorize herself as pretty in almost a non-descript way. Average height, average weight and, with the help of some well-placed padding, average breasts. Her light brown hair hung past her shoulders when it wasn’t styled in the ponytail which she usually wore when lounging around her house. It was naturally wavy and she only broke out the straightening iron for special occasions. Kate had inherited her hazel eyes from her mother, who loved to use Kate as her test dummy and highlight them with the help of the mail order make-up products she sold.
“Definitely,” she agreed, trying to muster up some enthusiasm for the conversation with Julie. Kate jumped at the sound of the doorbell. “Hold on a sec, Julie. Somebody’s here.”
Gazing through the peephole, she spotted a man who looked to be in his mid-twenties getting drenched on her doorstep. His dark hair was plastered against his forehead and the rain pelted against him at a continuous pace, but Kate still was able to do a quick once-over. He was fair and the dark hair gave him a striking appearance. She was startled at how attractive he appeared even through the distortion of the peephole glass. He wore a dark blue button-down with a gray tie and she wondered if he was a door-to-door salesman. Well, whatever he was selling, Kate thought, she was buying.
Kate whispered into the cell phone, “This unbelievably gorgeous guy is standing on my doorstep.”
“What are you waiting for? Serial killers are rarely hot, so I’m sure he’s safe,” Julie assured.
Kate rolled her eyes—she hoped if this guy ended up dismembering her, Julie would blame herself for that awful advice. Looking down at her ratty appearance, Kate wished she had the time to change her clothing. For her rainy-day loungewear, she’d chosen to pair an oversized college t-shirt with a pair of Capri sweats. The sweats had gone through the wash too many times and had begun to fray at the edges. Her feet were bare and the pink polish from her pedicure weeks ago was beginning to chip.
Kate opened the door with her most charming smile. The man showed off his perfectly straight and gleaming teeth with a return smile. She was glad to notice he had at least one imperfection as her eyes narrowed on a chip on his front tooth. “Hello, I’m looking for Kate Edwards?”
“I’m the one and only,” she replied while Julie snickered in her ear.
A look of surprise flickered briefly over the man’s dark gray eyes. Recovering quickly, he gave her a half-smile. “Can I speak to you for a few minutes?” he questioned while fiddling with his tie.
He seemed somewhat nervous, which surprised Kate. Was he worried she wouldn’t switch cable providers and he’d lose out on his commission? Maybe he was having second thoughts about launching a home invasion and strangling her in the hallway? Almost a foot taller than she was and muscular, Kate knew she didn’t have a chance at surviving a fight against this handsome stranger. He exuded masculinity, while she was confident she exuded only laziness and dysfunction.
“Sure,” she said and spoke to Julie. “Gotta go, call you in a few.”
“You better,” Julie hissed. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
After quickly disconnecting the call, she turned back to the man. “How can I help you?”
“Sorry, I should’ve introduced myself first.” While he reached into his pocket, Kate prayed he wasn’t pulling out a knife. Instead, he presented a badge to her. “I’m Detective Corbett of the Franklin Police Department. Do you mind if I come in?”
“Oh my God, of course, so sorry. You’re absolutely soaked.” She opened the front door and gestured for him to come inside. “Can I get you something to drink?” Her mother’s good manners had been stuffed down her throat since before she could walk. Even if he had turned out to be a killer, she probably would have been prone to offer libations first.
A small puddle around his black loafers began to pool on the hallway floor. He gave her an apologetic look. “Sorry, and no thanks on the drink.”
She entered the living room to the right of the hallway and sank down on the couch cushions. Settling down in the chocolate colored armchair next to her, he gave her a brief smile. It was a little intimidating being alone with an exceedingly attractive man. The majority of the time, the best-looking guy she came across was on the occasional weekday when the cute UPS delivery man came to the house. Working part-time as a receptionist at a doctor’s office did not exactly expand her dating pool. The doctors were all over forty and the rest of the receptionists were married women or divorcees. The guys her age who did come into the office as patients were typically blowing out snot or trying hard not to vomit. Not exactly looking to score a date.
After doing a brief ring check on his left hand, she inquired innocently, “I’m not in trouble, am I?” She chided herself for suddenly sounding like a flirtatious Southern belle. All she needed was to toss back her brown hair and give him a wink to further advertise her availability.
“No, of course not. Actually, I’m here about an article published about you a couple of years ago,” he explained.
Kate’s previously friendly expression turned sour. She rose to her feet and crossed her arms over her chest. “I have no idea what article you’re referring to and if you’ll excuse me I have some cleaning to get to before my mother arrives home.”
He went into the pockets of his dress pants and pulled out a small newspaper clipping. “I brough
t the article with me, if you’d like to look at it.”
She let out an audible and exaggerated sigh. Kate knew the contents, probably had each word seared into her brain. “What do you want me to say? I told the police two years ago what I’m going to tell you now—I have no idea how I knew where Matt Spencer was, I just did.”
Leaning forward in his chair, he took a second to study her carefully. It was disconcerting. Most people stared at her as if she was a science experiment gone wrong. Rarely had she seen a look like his of genuine interest without malice.
“You make it sound simple, but it really isn’t,” he pressed. “I could remind you of what happened, if you’d like.”
After a brief pause, he continued. “You were hospitalized, dying from a raging infection and slipped into a coma two days before Matt had even been kidnapped. A week later when you woke up, you knew all of the details of the case. We found him right where you told us we would.”
“I had a hunch and it worked out. There’s really nothing more to say about it,” she said and shrugged.
“Have you had any other hunches since then?” he asked in a soft tone.
“No,” she replied a little too abruptly.
The detective leaned back in the chair and met her eyes steadily. “The reason I ask is because there’s been another kidnapping. An eight-year-old girl was taken from her home three days ago. Your name came up in conversation with some of the other detectives; they explained how you helped solve the Spencer case a couple of years ago. I found the article and your info and figured I’d come by and see if you could help me, too.”
“I’ll consult my crystal ball and get back to you,” she said sarcastically.
He jumped up to grab her arm gently as she turned to walk away. “Just listen to me for one more minute,” he pleaded. “Please.” She shot him an annoyed look, but sank back down on the couch. He eased down on the arm of the couch and continued, “The girl who's missing, Corinne Preston, is my girlfriend’s younger sister. Could you at least look at her picture and see if you have a hunch about where she might be?”
“If you want to impress your girlfriend, how about you use your detective skills to find her yourself?” She knew she sounded surly, but she wished this guy would take the hint. Cute or not, she was definitely not planning to continue this conversation for much longer.
The detective ignored her and instead handed her a 5 x 7 photograph of a young girl. A huge crooked smile jumped from the picture along with a pair of the brightest blue eyes she had ever seen. Her deep smile highlighted a set of dimples. Blond curls came to her shoulders and her bangs were pushed back with a red headband. Quickly, she handed back the picture, but knew the image was seared into her brain. She pushed down the lump in her throat that formed when she pictured this sweet and innocent girl stolen away from her family.
“I’m really sorry—I am. It was a one-time thing and I can’t help you.”
Her conscience nagged at her and yelled ‘liar, liar, pants on fire,’ but she chose to ignore it. Kate abhorred her psychic “gift” and felt like it was more like a curse. When she was in the coma, she had a vision of what had happened to Matt. Seeing everything through his eyes and feeling his terror, Kate had known this little boy was hungry and scared and wanted his mother with the desperation only a child could obtain.
Her single thought when she regained consciousness was to get this little boy home. Upon waking from the coma, she revealed that his junkie father had him stashed in a trailer in the woods about fifteen miles from Franklin. A nurse called the police department with the tip and since there were no leads, they decided to check out the location she had indicated. Within hours, a very scared but safe Matt was found in what initially appeared to be an abandoned trailer.
When she told everyone about her vision—the doctors, her family, her friends—she was treated like a sideshow freak. Her family was wary of her new ability and her friends became distant. When all she craved was their affection after her harrowing ordeal, no one wanted to get within ten feet of her.
A local Franklin newspaper reported on her and things became worse. The story spread like wildfire and soon the entire town knew of what had happened with Matt Spencer. Everywhere she went, people would stare and whisper. Exchanges with friends became awkward and soon they stopped contacting her altogether. A few more media outlets picked up the story and the mailbox became crammed with letters from desperate families looking for lost loved ones.
The problem was, her visions weren’t exactly manageable. A Psychics for Dummies book wasn’t available to provide her with instructions on how to decide what she wanted to see. It was usually a crap shoot with her visions. Sometimes the photos of the missing sent with the letters would resonate and she’d have a vision about the case. To assuage her guilt, she would call in an anonymous tip with all of the details she’d seen. However, soon after the accident she made the claim that she no longer had any visions and finding Matt was a weird but miraculous one-time occurrence. Her own parents weren’t even aware she still had the ability to access the thoughts of others. Her only confidante was her journal, where she detailed all of her psychic visions.
Media interest eventually waned and the letters trickled away and she no longer received requests for her psychic assistance. When anyone asked about the kidnapping case, she sounded off her explanation like a press release. The location of Matt came to her while in the coma, but nothing otherworldly had happened since.
Detective Corbett got to his feet, readying to leave. The front door burst open and her mother came into the room juggling several grocery bags.
“Katie, honey, can you come help me with these bags?” she called. Her mother and father were the only ones who continued to call her by her dreadful childhood nickname.
The detective ran over to assist her mom with the bags. After several trips to the car, they were able to meet in the kitchen. Her mom brushed a brunette strand away from her hazel eyes and peered over at them. Of course, her mother was impeccably dressed in black tailored Capri pants and a floral-themed blouse, with her make-up expertly applied. Kate couldn’t understand her need to go to the trouble when her only plans for the day had been to go to the grocery store and bank.
“Hello. Katie, who’s your new friend?”
“Detective Corbett, a cop, and he was just leaving,” she said dryly and began to put away the groceries in the cupboards without turning towards either of them.
“Please call me Jared,” he said sticking out his hand to her mother.
“Darlene Edwards,” her mother replied while shaking his hand briefly. “Wow, you look so young to be a detective, I’m impressed!” her mother exclaimed. “I had no idea my daughter had friends who worked at the police department.” Kate shook her head. Leave it to her mom to think he was here on a social call and not be alarmed that Kate could possibly be in trouble.
“You’ll stay for dinner, won’t you?” Her mother gave him a charming smile.
“Mom…” Kate turned quickly and protested before her mother shot her a warning look.
“Excuse the rudeness of my daughter, Jared, she lacks my social graces. Luckily, she takes after me in the looks department.” Her mom sent a wink her way. Kate prayed to dematerialize at that second. Anything would be better than her mom desperately trying to set her up.
Jared smiled at Kate’s flushed appearance and turned to her mother, “I would love to stay for dinner. Thank you.”
Kate’s cell phone rang on the kitchen counter and she dove for it. Julie’s voice greeted her. “So, who was the handsome stranger?”
“A cop and he’s still here,” she said, lacing her voice with as much annoyance as she could muster. Jared gave her a wink.
“What does he want?”
“I’ll tell you about it later,” she said and began mindlessly tapping on the granite countertop. Looking at her ragged nails, she predicted a manicure in her near future.
“You’ve lost th
e enthusiasm in your voice. Is he not that good looking?”
“He’s passable if you go for the annoying boy-next-door look,” she responded.
“You do realize I can hear you?” Jared inquired. He ran a hand through his inky black hair and arched an eyebrow in her direction.
“I wasn’t talking about you,” Kate lied as her mother sent her death stares across the room.
“Katie, can you get off the phone? We have company and I need you to grate the mozzarella to top my lasagna.” She handed Jared a glass of soda and gave him an apologetic look.
A few minutes later, after saying a hasty goodbye to Julie, Kate was taking out her aggression on a block of mozzarella. She clenched her jaw as her mother and Jared carried on cheerfully as if they were old friends.
“How do you know my daughter, Jared?”
“He doesn’t know me,” Kate interjected before he could reply.
“Katie…” her mother grumbled. Kate was sure her mother would love to smack her across the head right now. Kate understood her mother deserved a debutante, but instead ended up with a passive-aggressive semi-agoraphobic daughter. Kate wondered why Jared’s presence had made her regress back to sixth grade.
“Actually, I came here on business,” Jared explained.
“What kind of business?” her mother inquired and stopped throwing vegetables into a large salad bowl. Her eyes widened with apprehension as she waited for the detective to explain.
“Go ahead and tell her. She’ll get a real kick out of it.” Kate put down the cheese and turned to face them both. Jared was quiet, prompting her to continue. “The detective thinks I have some sort of psychic power and I’ll be able to solve his kidnapping case.”
“Oh no, is it the little girl who was taken from her home on State Street?” After Jared’s nod, her mother continued. “It breaks my heart to think about what her parents must be going through. Unfortunately, my daughter won’t be able to help you. The boy she found was nothing short of a miracle, but she has no psychic ability. It was a single amazing experience.” Good to know her mother had received her press release as well.
“I knew it was a long shot, but I’m willing to do anything to find Cori,” he stated flatly. A tinge of remorse nagged at Kate as she noted his defeated tone.
“Do you know the girl personally?” her mother asked.
“Yes, her sister is my girlfriend.”
Kate imagined his girlfriend was most likely drop-dead gorgeous. Cori was adorable, with blond hair and blue eyes, which pretty much guaranteed her sister would be a stunner. Although Kate’s round hazel eyes and delicate features were attractive enough, Jared was most definitely out of her league. Kate’s love life was dismal and the dry spell was probably the reason behind her instant attraction to the detective. Her lack of a social life and her disinterest in boys (like Julie’s boyfriend Gage) who thought getting trashed and hooking up in the bathroom of a dive bar was a rip-roaring good time were most likely to blame. Screwing around with random guys who didn’t care about her was very low on her bucket list.
Besides from her fickleness over boys she’d be willing to date, Kate knew she wasn’t quite ready for a real relationship. Although she was twenty-one, her emotional growth had seemed to stop when she was in the coma. She was well aware she had plenty of growing up to do before actually starting a mature relationship. Not to mention, her chances of letting down her guard were slim to none. This was problematic since once boys finished middle school, most were no longer attracted to the girls who were mean to them. Her combativeness and defensive nature weren’t likely to fill her dance card anytime soon.
“Katie, snap out of it. That’s my daughter for you. Always the little dreamer.” Her mother gave a soft smile.
“Sorry, what did you say?”
“I said why don’t you take Detective Corbett in the living room and watch some TV. Dinner will be ready soon.”
“Sure, whatever,” she mumbled and stormed out of the kitchen without checking if Jared was following her. Kate threw her body over the sofa and grabbed the remote. Without stealing a glance in his direction, she sensed him relax into the chair next to her.
“Your mother is really sweet. I haven’t had a home-cooked meal in forever. My diet mostly involves paper bags.” She almost snorted in derision. He was about six feet and didn’t look to have an ounce of fat on him—she sincerely doubted he maintained his shape with burgers and fries. Even his suit couldn’t hide the hard lines of his muscles beneath his clothes.
“She was just being polite. You didn’t have to accept her offer,” she stated while turning her body to face him. Groaning inwardly at her lack of maturity, she wondered if she should finish the sentence off by sticking her tongue out at him.
“What’s your deal?” he demanded, finally showing she was wearing on his patience. “When you answered the door, you had on a hundred-watt smile. Yet as soon as I mention your psychic ability, you act like I came here asking for a major organ donation.”
“My non-existent psychic ability,” she corrected and then added, “You have no clue what it was like when I came out of the coma. You would’ve thought everyone would be thrilled I helped find Matt, right? Maybe throw a huge gala in my honor? Present me with keys to the city? Nope. Everyone—my friends and family—treated me like I had the plague. I would hear the whispers and feel the stares everywhere I went after being released from the hospital. Most people assumed I was either a witch or lying and somehow involved with kidnapping Matt.” She gave him an earnest look. “I’m not some weird girl with strange unearthly powers.”
Jared leaned forward and placed his hand over hers. “I don’t think you’re weird and if you did have powers, I would find them amazing. I understand not everyone is so open-minded. I get why you don’t want people thinking you’re psychic.”
Kate snatched her hand away. “Luckily I’m not psychic.” Ignoring his hurt expression, she continued, “I know I come off as majorly defensive and I do feel horrible about not being able to help you find Cori.”
Typically, her visions came at night while she dreamed. Every once in a while, a glimpse would come during the day when she dozed or went into a daze. The images seemed at times to have no rhyme or reason. If a letter had come in the mail, she would sometimes visualize what had happened to the disappeared. On other occasions, no matter how hard she would think about the missing or how many hours she would spend staring at their photos, nothing would come to her. Sometimes the visions were downright mundane. One night she went to bed worried about a test and saw a vision of her professor grading exams.
Her earlier apprehension over Cori’s safety once again nagged at her. She turned to Jared. “Can I see the picture of Cori again?”
He nodded and handed her back the glossy photo. Kate wasn’t sure why she wanted to memorize the girl’s face, but she was hoping maybe something about the case would come to her. Jared or anyone else wouldn’t have to know about her involvement if she called in an anonymous tip to the station. As she studied the photo, Kate felt Jared’s troubled eyes on her face. Wordlessly, she handed the picture back.
“I have others if you want to keep it,” he offered. His gray eyes never wavered their intensity and she felt as if he was still attempting to figure her out.
She shook her head. “No, thank you.” Turning her attention back to the TV, she hoped he got the insinuation she was no longer in the mood to talk.
As Jared stood up, she tried not to pay attention as he wandered over the pictures hanging up around the living room. Doing a mental inventory, she tried to think if her mother had any humiliating photos of her hanging up. Turning around and wanting to call him out on his rudeness for snooping, she instead became speechless as she saw him stop in front of a small framed portrait hanging on the far wall. How many times had she told her mom to take that freaking thing down? Kate thought with irritation.
Kate had taken a few art classes in high school and her first year of co
llege. One of the assignments in the college course was to do a self-portrait using charcoals. She received a high mark on the project and her mother had acted like the final submission put her into contention to be the next Georgia O’Keefe. One day, she arrived home to find the portrait framed and hanging prominently in the living room. Jared kept shooting her sideway glances while looking at the picture. “What?”
“Just seeing how the picture compares to the real thing,” he replied innocently and shrugged. Turning to her, he asked, “It’s a good representation, who did it?”
“I did,” she said flatly and then added, “for a class assignment.” She didn’t want him to think she was a crazed narcissist who liked to draw pictures of herself in her spare time.
“You’re good, is that what you do? You’re an artist?” His tone wasn’t derisive, merely inquiring.
She wasn’t sure what this whole Q and A was all about, but decided she better make nice to avoid arousing any suspicion that she’d been lying about being a psychic. “No, I go to college and work at a doctor’s office,” she replied.
“Hope you’re taking art courses, you definitely have talent,” he remarked gesturing to the portrait.
“It’s bad enough my major is English, my father would truly have a coronary if I decided to get an art degree instead,” she said.
“Oh, you’re going to teach then?” She shook her head. Walking back to the armchair, he settled back down. “What else do you do with an English degree?”
Kate laughed. “Wow, you’re really channeling my dad right now. Not exactly sure what other types of jobs are available for graduates with degrees in English, but I couldn’t decide on a major.”
After he nodded politely, she decided to take advantage of the silence and turn up the volume of the TV to prevent further conversation. Small talk was never her thing and she probably would never see him again after dinner. It seemed rather pointless for him to try to get to know her better. Unless he was trying some detective trick where he got her to trust him and then convince her to blab all of her secrets. In that case, he was wasting his time. The aftermath of the Spencer case ensured she always had her defenses in place at all times. Her friends and family had let her down and it felt a near impossibility to let anyone else in.
Dinner was served twenty minutes later in the formal dining room and her mother’s musical voice and laughter prevented any lull in conversation. “So, is there a Mr. Edwards?” Jared asked politely while polishing off a hefty portion of her mom’s lasagna.
Kate pushed the food around on her plate. “Dad split about a year ago.”
“Katie, your bluntness is not appreciated,” her mother said and turned to Jared. “My husband and I have recently separated.”
“His loss. Between your cooking and your good looks, I’d ask you out myself if I didn’t have a girlfriend,” Jared said kindly. Kate fought the urge to shove a finger in her mouth and make a gagging sound.
Her mother gave a delighted laugh. “Jared, I must be twenty years your senior!” Kate rolled her eyes at how easily her mother could fall for his flattery.
“No way, you can’t be a day over thirty-five,” he insisted.
Her mother snorted. She was really falling for his song and dance. Maybe Kate needed to consider putting her mom on an online dating site if she was this desperate for male attention. “That’s rich, thirty-five years old with a twenty-one year old daughter!” Darlene trilled.
“Twenty-one? Kate looks so young, figured she was still in her teens,” he chided and sent her a teasing smile. Her mother laughed and Kate glared at them both.
As he was leaving an hour later, Jared handed Kate his business card. “Just in case,” he said as she opened her mouth to protest. After thanking her mother again for dinner, he gave his farewells and left.
“What a charming young man!” her mother exclaimed.
Kate began to run the water for the dinner dishes. “I guess so,” she said noncommittally. Her excitement made Kate wonder if she had to worry about her mother turning into a cougar. Even though her mom was definitely a looker, she hadn’t dated since her father had left last year. While she loved her father, her mother was her rock. Kate wouldn’t mind her finding someone new if it would make her happy. “Good looking, polite, charming, gainfully employed…” her mother was droning on. Oh Lord, Kate thought, my love life must be pathetic if my mother is trying to play matchmaker.
“He was just trying to butter us up because he wanted my help. We should be offended and write a letter of complaint to the city council. We pay his salary—his job is to solve these kinds of cases.” She finished her rant with an indignant pump of her fist.
Her mother ignored her. “Too bad he has a girlfriend. He obviously had eyes for you.”
“He did not!” she protested and could feel the heat rise to her cheeks. Her wardrobe reeked of vagrancy and her behavior was at her most juvenile. Kate doubted the detective would have even the slightest interest in her after how she had just acted.
“He was watching you when he knew you weren’t looking. He had this expression like you were the most fascinating thing in the world,” her mother sighed dreamily.
“Mom, you really need to stop watching Gone with the Wind and Casablanca, I think it’s turned your brain into mush. I’m not interested in the detective. Besides, he’s way too old for me. I’m exhausted, going to turn in early.” With a quick kiss on her mom’s cheek, she raced up the stairs.
First Visions: Second Sight Book One Page 2
