“That’s fair,” she said and reached out before dropping her hand, realizing that she couldn’t touch Hanlen. “I . . .” she started, and I looked at her. “I think she saw me before she passed out.” She looked up at me then. “Is that possible?”
That surprised me. “I’m not sure. I do know she’s sensitive, at the very least. Why do you say that?” I asked.
“She just looked right at where I was standing, and I saw her eyes widen before she sucked in a deep breath. And then she was out. Actually, I think she might have sensed me even earlier than that. I checked in on her at The Ravisan when she first got here and found a malevolent spirit taunting her. She probably thought she was dreaming when she woke to that nightmare, but she definitely knew we were there. That’s actually when I infused a bit of my soul into the necklace.”
“Interesting. Well, we can delve into that more when she wakes again. You did good.” I looked up and spoke a little louder. “You all did good. So good. Thank you all for being here. For helping. For being amazing.”
Everybody nodded or said something in return, but before we could talk more, the place was flooded with police and EMTs and those of us not injured—or at least not severely—were ushered out to the lawn to answer a bunch of questions. When they finally wheeled Hanlen out on a gurney, I told Stephanie I’d finish my statement later and jogged to catch up to the paramedics. I didn’t give them a chance to tell me that I couldn’t ride with her since she wasn’t family. I simply jumped into the back of the ambulance and dared them with a death glare to say anything.
The guy just shrugged and hopped in after me, and the woman got behind the wheel and headed off, lights and sirens blaring. While Hanlen was still unconscious, I held her hand gently and whispered encouraging words, surrounding her with healing energy and hoping for the best.
A few hours later, my arm bandaged and local anesthetic wearing off, I walked back into Hanlen’s room, cup of terrible hospital coffee in hand. They’d stitched her up in the emergency room and gave her a transfusion, but because of her concussion and the amount of blood she’d lost, they wanted her to stay for a couple of days for observation. Hanlen’s gorgeous, dark, silky hair was spread around her on the pillow, her face relaxed in rest. She looked like an angel, and I felt my heart skip a beat. I didn’t want to disturb her, but I wanted to be closer. I moved to the far side of the bed and took a seat on the hard, blue vinyl chair, content to just watch her sleep for now.
As I sat back and the chair squeaked, Hanlen cracked her eyes open and turned her head in the direction of the sound. “Hey,” she said, her voice scratchy and weak.
“Hey, yourself, gorgeous. How do you feel?”
“Like I was kidnapped by a sadistic serial killer who had totally lost touch with reality and then almost killed. Oh, wait, I was.” She coughed, and I set down my coffee and moved to pour her a glass of water, bringing the straw to her lips.
“Just a few sips.”
She did as I instructed and then lay back again against the pillow with a sigh. “What happened while I was out?” she asked.
“We got him, Hanlen. He’s in police custody. I know the cops still need to talk to you, but we all gave our statements and there’s no way he’s getting off. I can’t even imagine he’ll get leniency for mental illness. He knew exactly what he was doing.”
She stared off into space for a moment. “It’s all just so surreal. I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to process it.”
“It’s going to take time for all of us. I worked with Remy for five years. While he was always a little different, I never in a million years would have guessed that he was so soulless, capable of taking another’s life without regret. With fucking pride.”
“He was really good at being who people expected him to be. And it didn’t help that he really and truly believed in his so-called mission. I honestly thought I was going to die, and he tried to make me believe that it was an honor.” I saw a tremble travel through her body.
I scooted the chair closer, grasped her hand again, and looked deep into her amber eyes, my heart swelling with gratitude that she was here with me. “I almost lost you,” I said and brushed a piece of hair back from her forehead with my free hand.
“I thought I’d lost everything,” she replied and looked at me. I felt as if she were looking into my soul, not just my eyes. “I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.”
“You’re here. I’m here. Nobody’s going anywhere. There is something I need to tell you, though.”
“God, Dev. What is it with you and these we-need-to-talk conversations?” She smiled, and it lifted some of the weight from my shoulders.
I chuckled, but then sobered. “When the ghosts came to me and told me I needed to get to the cemetery, I had no idea why, but my instincts told me it was important. When I got there and found out that you were in that mausoleum and in danger, I wanted to rip apart the world, but I was stuck. I’ve never felt that way before, Hanlen. So frantic and terrified. And defeated. I love my family and my friends, even care about my clients. But I’ve never wanted to burn the earth to ensure that someone else was okay and safe. I’d realized it before, but in that moment, I knew, without a doubt, that I loved you.”
She sucked in a breath but remained silent.
“I love you, Hanlen Arbor. I know this is really fast, but when you know, you know. The minute I ran into you on that sidewalk and looked into those amazing eyes, I knew that my soul was a match for yours. I know that some of yours is already spoken for. I understand that you will always love my cousin and she will always hold a huge piece of your heart, but I really hope that you can find some room for me, too. At least, eventually.”
She still just stared at me, unblinking, not speaking, and I felt a tremble of apprehension trickle through me.
“I . . .” I started again and cleared my throat. “I don’t expect you to say it. Hell, I’m not even sure how you really feel about me, and I probably just scared the shit out of you, but . . . if you’ll have me, I want to be yours. Let me love you.”
“Oh, Dev, I . . .” she started, and my heart dropped. Had I misread things so spectacularly? Was I only a source of fun while she was in town? No, I didn’t think so.
“You don’t have to say anything more,” I said and sat back in my chair. “I know this is probably a lot.” She immediately shifted in the bed and reached for me, wincing and grunting with the pain.
“Fucking hell,” she said. “Holy shit, that hurts.” I couldn’t stand to see her in pain and stood, moving to her side again, her hand once more in mine.
“Let’s try that again,” she said and let out a little laugh. “What I was going to say is that I love you, too. It’s insane and crazy and makes absolutely no sense, but it is what it is. I knew days ago, I just didn’t know how you would take it, and I knew—I know—we have some hurdles to overcome, but you are the first person who has made me feel alive in a decade. You soothe my hurts. You make me laugh. You opened a whole new world to me, one I thought was utter nonsense until you showed me the beauty of it. You gave me life, and you gave me Ray. Through our combined memories, she will always live on.”
I leaned in and kissed her. I was gentle; I didn’t want to hurt her, but I needed to show her with actions as well as words how much she meant to me. When I pulled back, despite the somewhat chasteness of the kiss, we were both breathless. I had a feeling that chemistry, that utter rightness, would never change between us.
“Speaking of Ray,” she said and looked into my eyes. “I think I saw her, Dev. I don’t know, maybe I was hallucinating from the blood loss and shock, but right before I passed out in the crypt, I swore I saw her. She looked just like she did the night I lost her.” Tears swam in her eyes for a moment.
I smiled. “She was there,” I said. “And she mentioned that she thought that you may have seen her. How are you feeling about that?”
“How did I see her?” she asked.
“My guess?” I started. �
��It probably has something to do with getting hit on the head and the fact that you were in the middle of my and Lark’s combined magic at the time. The day I met you, I knew you were sensitive. You reacted to things that most people don’t and didn’t even realize it. I knew then that it wouldn’t take much to open your senses.”
“Wow, okay,” she said. “That’s a bit to process. Not even two weeks ago, I didn’t believe in any of this stuff and thought what you did was a bunch of bullshit.”
I laughed. I couldn’t help it. “Oh, I know,” I said wryly.
“Now, I’ve been in the middle of it all and I can’t dispute what I saw. But seeing ghosts . . . that’s going to take some getting used to.”
“I’ll help you th—” Before I could even finish the sentence, a knock sounded on the door. Both Hanlen and I looked over and saw Detective Stephanie Miller standing in the doorway.
“Hey, guys,” she said and walked in. “Sorry to bother you. How are you feeling, Hanlen?”
“I’ve been better,” Hanlen answered. “But at least I’m alive.”
“I just wanted to stop in and give you guys some updates.” She leaned against the wall and looked at us. “Remy Dee Reaume will never be able to hurt anybody again. I would actually be surprised if he doesn’t get the death penalty. Surprisingly, he confessed to fifteen murders. I think he’s still proud of them and feels justified. Plus, he has your kidnapping and attempted murder. We had the forensic psychologist question him almost immediately and he said that Remy is one-hundred-percent sane and knew exactly what he was doing, so any bullshit insanity defense his lawyers may want to try will hopefully fail spectacularly.”
“How does someone even end up that way?” Hanlen asked. “I mean, I know it happens, I’ve seen it, dealt with it in varying degrees in even my career, but he was scary.”
“In Remy’s case, I’m not sure there was any environmental reason. Some people are just born that way. From what we can dig up, he wasn’t abused, he never had any injuries that could have contributed to his devolving morality. And what we uncovered at his house during our search leads us to believe that he’s been this way from a very young age.”
“Jesus Christ,” Hanlen breathed.
“Yeah, it was messed up. I probably shouldn’t be telling you this, but I know with everything you’ve been through and given your occupation, Hanlen, I feel like I can tell you. You know Remy lived way out in the bayou, right, Dev? Well, his home was a horror show. We found trophies from all of his victims in a loose floorboard in his home. He also had a stockpile of those creepy, hexagonal copper memento mori skull coins that he was using as his kill signature. But that’s not even the worst part.”
“Oh, I can’t wait to hear this,” I said, sarcasm dripping from my tone.
“He had an industrial-sized freezer in his garage,” Stephanie continued. “Inside, we found the dismembered remains of his parents. We think they’ve been in there for at least ten years, if not longer. Nobody even knew that they were missing. Somehow, he found a way to make it look like they were loners. Perpetuated the charade that they were still alive and fine while utilizing their resources. This guy’s sick. He’s smart, manipulative, and I’m so sorry that it took you guys getting hurt for us to stop him, but I am beyond grateful that we did.”
“Unbelievable,” I breathed. “I still can’t believe I didn’t know. I can’t believe nothing tipped me off. What good is having the power I have if I can’t use it to uncover things like this and keep those I care about safe?”
“Dev,” Stephanie said and moved forward to grip my hand. “Please don’t beat yourself up over this. While this is a first in my career, I’ve spoken to enough federal profilers and talked to many cops and agents who work violent crimes. Most times, people don’t know. I mean, look at history. For the most part, the most prolific serial killers were all brought low by happenstance. Nobody knew. They’re really good at hiding who they are. Concealing the evil inside. Remy was liked by just about everybody who met him. This isn’t on you.”
I ran a hand over my hair and looked at Hanlen, brushing my fingers across her soft cheek as I took my seat in the chair once more.
“Well,” Stephanie said and twisted her ponytail before letting it rest over her shoulder. “That’s all I had. I just wanted to check in on you both and fill you in. Hanlen, we will need to get your official statement when you’re ready, but it hasn’t stopped us from moving forward.”
“Of course,” Hanlen said.
“I’ll leave you two to it,” the detective said and backed towards the door. “Call me if you need anything, but get better. Both of you.” She waved and headed out the door, leaving Hanlen and me alone once again.
“So, what now?” Hanlen asked. I wasn’t sure the breadth of her question, so I waited a beat to see if she’d elaborate. “I mean, for us. We don’t even live in the same state.”
“Well, in the short term, and despite everything, we need to finish this show.” I quirked a smile. “We’re still a day away from concluding the investigation. The good news is that it’s not live and the delay shouldn’t hurt anything with the network since we’re shooting in advance for this episode, but we do need to finish. I’d really like for this to air in two weeks. Which means, I still need access to your property. Which further means, you’re going to have to stick around for a little bit longer.”
She flashed me that cheeky grin of hers that always made me feel lighter. “I think something can be arranged.”
“After that . . .” I let the statement trail off and waited to see if she’d say more. When she didn’t, I figured now was as good a time as any.
I blew out a breath. “So, I’ve been thinking. How settled are you in Texas?”
“My business is there,” she answered, “but I do a lot of traveling already, can work virtually anywhere, and my one-bedroom apartment is nothing special. My lease is even up soon, and I haven’t once thought about renewing. Why do you ask?”
My trepidation eased a bit. She seemed open to at least exploring options. I really hoped she’d like to think about what I was going to suggest at a minimum. “This might be impulsive, but I don’t feel that way, and I hope you won’t either. What do you think about moving back to New Orleans? You have a gorgeous house just sitting here, you have me, new friends, and if you’re open to it, I can even give you some work while you settle in with Arbor Investigations here in Louisiana. I can always use additional investigators. And now that we lost Burke,”—I felt sadness well at the thought of the man whose life was cut way too short—“I could use some extra help.”
She seemed to think about it for a minute, but she didn’t immediately rebuff the idea, nor did she seem particularly opposed to it. “I love this city. I always have. I only moved because being here hurt too much. Now that you’ve opened my eyes to things that were previously well beyond my comprehension, and I know that, while no longer with me, Ray is fine, there’s really no reason for me not to live here. You’re right. Arborwood should be lived in. Enjoyed. It should be taken care of by those with a connection to the place and not trashed by vacationers. We’ve made enough money on the rental site that I could use it to take care of the property while enjoying it. It’s mine by birthright, and Mom won’t ever be coming back. There’s really no reason not to use it now.”
Hoped surged, but I could see that she was working through a few more things.
“Plus, I think it’d be good for Bea to have someone close who loves her.”
“You are absolutely right,” I said, feeling even more hopeful.
“And as for work, as I said, I can set up shop anywhere. I’ve already gotten offers on my office space since it’s in such a coveted part of the city there. I could easily use the money I make off that to buy something here. Or I could convert the carriage house into my office and work from Arborwood. It’s not so far out of the city that clients couldn’t find me.”
She looked at me then, raising her eyes from our cl
asped hands, and I felt a massive surge of happiness pass through me. I knew what she would say, but I had to ask anyway. “So?”
She smiled, and the look she gave me made me feel complete. “Let’s do it.”
I kissed her then, being careful of her wounds but breathing in all that was Hanlen Arbor. “I love you.”
“I love you, too, ghost man.”
We both laughed.
Epilogue
Hanlen
I stood in the center of the open French doors, looking out into the courtyard at those gathered. Schuyler and Padre stood near the long table laden with snacks and food, talking with Bea and picking over a tray of appetizers we’d had catered. I wasn’t sure what Padre and Sky’s story was. They seemed close, but they also bickered constantly, and Schuyler was forever giving Paxton crap about his religion. He seemed to take it in stride but did occasionally tell her to mind her own damn business, though he was always nice about it.
We’d brought in some super comfortable outdoor furniture, and Van, Halen, and Dakota sat on one of the couches in front of the huge projection screen we’d set up for tonight, Dakota and Van play-fighting over Lennie’s lap as she shoved at them both, laughing but telling them to get off her. I’d found out after our action-packed night here during night two of the shoot, the night I’d almost seen my life flash before my eyes, that Dakota and Van had been friends forever. It seemed the three were like siblings, and it made me smile.
Lark sat on one side of a small table, while Harper sat on the other side. Lark passed Harper her drink, and the psychologist took a sip, smiling over at the enigmatic witch. Witch. It was so weird that words like that, Vodou, spells, psychic mediums, magic, and ghosts were a normal part of my vocabulary now. My transformation from skeptic to believer had been a bit of a trial by fire, but I didn’t regret it. Especially not with everything it had given me, even amidst August’s and Burke’s memorials as a reminder of what we’d also lost.
Memento Mori: Haunted New Orleans Series Page 16
