by Mary Behre
Jules didn’t know who the friend was, but she bet he deserved where he was going.
Justice might be blind, but Karma’s a bitch with a big stick. But Jules kept that thought to herself. At least, she thought she had until the ghost spun on her and pointed an accusatory finger.
Rage blazed in the spirit’s eyes and her mouth worked, but instead of words or shrieks, the only sound Jules heard was the hum of the refrigeration unit.
She took a step toward the ghost, wanting to help her. Jules winged her thoughts. “Aimee-Lynn, you need to calm down. I can’t hear you.”
“What are you doing here?” Diana said, striding in from the workroom.
Jules jumped in surprise. Aimee-Lynn vanished.
Her street clothes bundled under her arm, Diana had already dressed in her usual Goth gear and donned her April’s Flowers apron.
“I didn’t see you come in. When did you get here?” Jules said, surprised her voice didn’t squeak.
“About five minutes ago.” Diana shoved her clothing bundle beneath the counter, then added, “I rode my bike, so I came in around back.” When Jules didn’t do anything more than stare, Diana added in a tone that said she thought Jules was mentally deficient, “So I could lock it up in the back room. You feeling all right?”
Honestly, no. Jules started to put her hands behind her back, to hide their trembling before Diana noticed. Pain lanced up her arm because the motion pulled at her stitches. She let go and lightly patted the sore spot.
“What happened to you?” Diana asked, coming around the desk to where Jules stood with her back to the refrigeration case. “I got the message we were opening an hour late but I didn’t hear why.”
“I was—”
“WTF!” Diana cut her off. Eyes wide, she raced past Jules and yanked open the door of the refrigeration case. “These were perfect when I closed out last night, I swear! How did this happen? The chiller’s still working but all the flowers are dead.”
Jules gaped at the withered and brown roses, carnations, and calla lilies inside the case. The flowers had been vibrant when she’d arrived.
A cold, invisible finger stroked down the back of her neck. Jules didn’t need to turn to know it was Aimee-Lynn, but she did and swallowed hard at the sight.
In the past few days she’d seen the spirit angry, sad, frustrated, even afraid, but never had she seen the ghost as furious as she was now. Aimee-Lynn’s aura shifted from maroon to black and back again. An icy wind whipped through the room.
While Diana continued to fuss and search through the case for a viable flower, Jules braced herself. If Aimee-Lynn had the power to suck the life out of plants, who knew what else she was capable of in this state.
Determined to shield Diana from any harm, Jules took two silent steps toward the angry specter, who hovered in the middle of the showroom floor looking as if she might explode. She sent out a mental push. “What can I do?”
Aimee-Lynn’s aura rolled around her in thick black waves and she shrieked, “Give it to him. Now!”
Overhead, the string of muted colored lights crisscrossing the room burst in rapid succession like firecrackers on the Fourth of July. Diana screamed and covered her head. Jules dove to cover Diana to protect her from the flying shards of glass.
CHAPTER 14
“JULES!” SETH CALLED out as the back door slammed. “Juliana! Answer me, damn it!”
She glanced up, her heart racing, and more than a little relieved to hear his voice.
Seth rushed into the room, his gun drawn. A warrior expression on his face, he peered around the demolished front room. As usual, he seemed to take in everything at once. The showcase room in near ruin, the sunlight streaming in through the front windows, the dead flowers in the refrigeration case, and Jules covering Diana’s body with her own.
“We’re fine,” Jules said, pushing to her feet as Seth holstered his weapon.
“Speak for yourself,” Diana intoned, accepting Seth’s proffered hand. Once on her feet the girl gave him a tremulous smile. “I thought someone was shooting up the place for a second.”
“No one shot at us.” Jules wrapped a reassuring arm around Diana’s shoulders and hugged her.
Diana accepted the comfort momentarily then shrugged off the touch with a hearty sigh. Glancing at the dead flowers and broken glass scattered across the floor, she said, “I guess I’ll get a broom.”
“Bring me one too, please,” Jules called out as Diana headed to the storeroom in April’s office.
Seth shoved up Jules’s sleeve, making her jump. “Hey!”
“Hold still, precious,” he said, his voice gruffer than usual. “I’m just checking your stitches.”
Funny, until he reminded her, her arm hadn’t hurt. Now the pain radiated and she wanted some ibuprofen. Fear still had her chest constricting, but she needed relief. She needed . . . Seth.
“You can kiss it and make it better,” she said, half-joking.
He frowned briefly, clearly not in the mood to play. Then he surprised her by pressing his lips lightly to her bandage. “Better?”
“Much.” She lowered her sleeve and stared at the green aura pulsing around him. “Seth, is something wrong?”
He gestured to the showroom. “Besides this?”
“Yes. You seem . . . different.” No, the green aura around him implied protection. Although, why was she seeing it again? “Wanna tell me why you came running in here with your gun drawn? Surely you didn’t think we were being shot at?”
“I heard you two screaming.” He gave her a wry grin. “Thanks for the vote of confidence but I do know the difference between light bulbs popping and gunshots.”
“You sure?” she teased. That she was able to joke at this moment amazed her. Inside she was shaking, but with Seth beside her, she felt . . . safe.
“I’m sure.” He winked, glanced toward the front door with a frown and then down at his watch.
Right. So why was the green light surrounding him expanding?
“Uh, huh.” She let the doubt ooze into her voice. “Why do you seem edgy all of a sudden?”
Seth cocked his head but didn’t say anything. The front door chimed. Jules faced the door, unsure how to explain the chaos in her shop to a customer, but was saved the trouble when two patrolmen strode in.
Jules recognized the first officer as Chaz Gareth. She’d met him at the Dumpster on Saturday. The second man was a stranger.
“Thank you for coming so quickly, Officers,” Seth said. He moved carefully across the blue tiled floor, glass crunching beneath his feet. With each step he took, his aura faded.
By the time he reached the newcomers, Jules could no longer see any color surrounding Seth.
The three men spoke in low voices. Jules strained to hear but couldn’t.
Diana returned from the storeroom, clomping over the broken glass. She spared little more than a glance at the two new arrivals before turning to Jules and handing her the broom. “I could only find one. Do you know where the other broom went?”
Good question. “I think it’s in the warehouse out back,” Jules said. “Why don’t you check there and I’ll start sweeping.”
“Harmon, go with her,” Seth said, gesturing to the younger patrolman.
Diana blushed but Officer Harmon didn’t seem to notice. Instead, he extended his arm and said, “Lead the way.”
After the two of them disappeared out the back, Jules turned to Seth in time to see Officer Gareth take up station just to the right of the front door. With his arms folded across his chest, there was no question that Chaz Gareth was here to stay.
“What’s happening?” Jules asked, leaning against the broom.
“Jules, are you sure you’ve told me everything you remember about Friday night?”
“I’m sure,” she replied, ignoring the pinch of guilt she felt about hiding her crift from him.
“What about your mugger?” Seth’s gaze bore into her, as if searching for a lie. “Is there any c
hance he was at the reunion too?”
“I don’t think so. Except for this morning, I’d only ever seen him here. And that was Saturday.” Tension coiled around Jules’s spine. It wasn’t so much what he’d asked as it was his intense, coplike tone that bothered her. “Seth, what’s going on?”
“A lot,” Seth said with a strained smile. “Wait for me to pick you up after work. I’ll explain everything over a gourmet meal tonight. In the meantime, Officers Gareth and Harmon will stay with you until I return. Okay?”
“No. I think you’d better explain to me now, Detective English, why you’re putting me under proverbial house arrest. And it is house arrest, right? My gourmet dinner won’t be at the station?” Her hands shook worse. A sick, familiar feeling curdled in her belly.
“No, you’ll be at home. You’re not under house arrest. This is for your protection.” Seth exhaled hard and crossed back to her. He ran his hands through his hair, then scrubbed one down his face. “I don’t want you to worry, but about fifteen minutes ago someone found the body of a jogger on the beach. He’d been beaten, strangled, and drowned. Jones is pretty certain it’s your mugger.”
“Really?” Jules felt the color drain from her face. “Who would do that?”
“I don’t know, Juliana.” Seth stepped closer to her until their bodies nearly touched. She wished he would hold her, but he didn’t. Instead, he lowered his voice. “Precious, it’s why I want you protected. Something’s not right. Two days ago, your cell phone was found in a Dumpster with a dead woman. Today, you were mugged. Within hours of the stabbing, your mugger is murdered. My gut tells me that’s not a coincidence. Someone killed both of those people. There’s a very real possibility that you could still be in danger.”
Jules went cold at Seth’s words. She shook so badly, she dropped the broom. Seth caught it and handed it back to her. But when she took it, he closed his warm hands over hers as if to infuse her with his strength.
“Jules, I need you to listen to the officers while I’m gone. Gareth and Harmon are under strict orders not to leave you alone.”
“Wh-what about Diana?” Jules couldn’t live with herself if anything happened to the teen.
“We’re keeping an eye on her too.”
Jules thought of Aimee-Lynn and the ghost being dragged off by the Death-Bearers. A sick feeling slid into her stomach. What if her mugger had been that tortured spirit?
Her terror must have shown on her face because Seth laid aside the broom and pulled her into his arms. Holding her close he whispered, “It’s going to be all right, precious.”
Seth’s warm scent wound around her, calmed her until she could think again. Even though she wanted to sink into his embrace and hold him all day, she sensed his discomfort. He needed to work.
Releasing him, she picked up the broom and arranged her face in the bravest smile in her arsenal. She gestured with her good arm to indicate the floor and room. “Go on, then. I’ve got plenty to do here.”
“Don’t worry. You’ll be safe here, with my men.”
“Who says I’m worried?”
“I do. I know you’re worried.” He gave her a penetrating stare that made her feel as if he could see inside her. He glanced over at Gareth, who appeared to be preoccupied fidgeting with the badge on his uniform. Lowering his voice, Seth said, “Trust me, precious. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“I trust you.” And as stupid as it sounded, she did.
The question remained: Would he trust her if he ever learned she could see ghosts?
Probably not. He’d probably try to have her committed. Pushing the thoughts away, she asked, “Seth, should I go with you to identify the body?”
“No.” Seth shook his head. “You don’t need to. Turns out Sam got a good look at him. While you were getting stitched up he went to the station and gave a description to the sketch artist. So you wouldn’t have had to do that after all. Plus, how many men out there are wearing coffee-stained sweats and sporting fresh burns on the left sides of their faces? Jones already saw the body. It’s why he called me.
“You don’t need to do anything this afternoon but take care of yourself and the store. Do me a favor, try to stick to being out here in the main part of the shop. Keep Diana with you. If the killer is around, let’s make it harder for him to get near you.”
At that moment, the back door buzzed, then Diana returned with a broom in her hand and the patrolman right behind her carrying a dustpan.
“Officers,” Seth called out. He waved them over to where Jules stood. Not surprisingly, Diana came too.
“What’s up?’ Diana asked, her heavily mascaraed eyes wide.
“Tell you in a bit.” Jules put up a finger to silence any further questions and nodded toward Seth.
“Officers Harmon and Gareth, meet Jules and Diana.” Seth pointed to each person as he named them. “Gareth, you might remember meeting Ms. Scott on Saturday, when she jumped into the Dumpster.”
Gareth huffed. A muscle ticked in his jaw, then he said sarcastically, “How could I forget? I was written up for her adventure.”
“Do we have a problem, Patrolman?” Seth asked, matching Gareth’s tone.
“No, sir.” Gareth shook his head, then gave Jules something that probably could have passed for a smile. If she were blind. “Ms. Scott, nice to see you again.”
Right. “You too, Officer Gareth.”
“I’m Zig Harmon,” the other patrolman said, offering his hand. “You probably don’t remember, but I was there too. I’m glad to see you’re feeling better.”
“Thanks,” Jules replied, shaking his hand. Unlike Chaz Gareth, Zig Harmon appeared genuinely pleased to talk with her.
Both officers greeted Diana in turn.
Seth said, “Good, now that y’all are acquainted, I need to head out. I’ll be back here to escort Jules home at six.” Without another word, he left.
Through the showroom window, Jules watched Seth climb into his Honda and drive away.
An oily, slippery sensation went down her neck, alerting her.
Someone was watching her too.
• • •
NO MATTER HOW hard he’d tried, Seth couldn’t catch a break. He’d missed Jones at the scene and his partner wasn’t answering his cell. He’d called the station, but Jones wasn’t there either and the officer on duty stated that Sam had already left too.
Seth headed to Sam’s alley to talk to him, but the homeless man hadn’t returned.
After searching the surrounding area for close to two hours, Seth gave up and drove to the station.
He’d just arrived at headquarters when Jones hurried in behind him. For his part, Jones looked about as happy as Seth felt.
“I couldn’t locate Mason Hart,” Jones explained, dropping into his seat. Frustration oozed from his normally calm expression. “He wasn’t at the country club, his house, or his job today. It’s like the guy just vanished.”
“Or went into hiding.” Seth rubbed at the ache in his neck. “After you called, I questioned Jules again. She swears she never saw her attacker before Saturday.”
“You believe her?”
“Yeah, I do.”
Jules had been shocked and frightened when he told her there might be a killer after her. No one could fake that kind of fear. But a thread of warning tickled at the base of his neck like a loose tag on a shirt. She was holding something back from him; still he didn’t think it was anything nefarious.
Captain Peterson stuck his head out of his office. “Jones, English. In here, now.”
Sharing a glance with his partner, Seth obeyed. Once inside, they found O’Dell and Reynolds already seated.
The homicide detectives itched to take over the investigation. Their barrage of reasons why they should handle the case from this point forward started before Seth and Jones had barely closed the door.
“There’s no conclusive evidence that this murder has anything to do with their robbery,” O’Dell said. “It’s a homi
cide, plain and simple.”
“Except that the homicide victim mugged my witness,” Seth retorted.
Peterson turned a sharp glare his way. “I thought you said she didn’t see anything. Didn’t know anything. Is she a witness or not?”
“No, she’s not a witness,” Seth explained. “But she was at the scene where we found the first victim and she was mugged by the second.”
“Seems to me,” Reynolds said, “the only thing tying the two cases together is your witness. You sure she’s not a killer?”
“Of course, she’s not!” Seth ground his teeth, biting back the scathing retort he wanted to make. “She was at the hospital when her mugger was killed. We’ve got a doctor and three nurses who can verify that.”
Seth turned his attention back to Peterson. “Look, Captain, my gut tells me that Jules is in danger.”
“Your gut?” O’Dell scoffed. “I think your gut is telling you that you’re about to lose your case to two detectives who can actually solve it. You’ll say anything to keep it.”
Seth’s jaw ached from grinding his teeth. “Captain,” he said, ignoring O’Dell, “you said we had a week to solve the case. I’m just asking that you let us have that.”
Peterson sneezed, then said, “You have five more days.”
Seth sighed in relief, but his relief was short-lived when his captain added, “But this latest murder appears unrelated. The only tie is your nonwitness, Juliana Scott. I’m handing the dead jogger case to O’Dell and Reynolds. Give them her information so they can go interview her now.”
To his surprise, Jones argued. “With all due respect, she doesn’t know anything. She fought like a cat on crack to protect herself. There’s no reason to continue to question her. I documented everything that happened in my report.”
“Be that as it may,” Peterson replied, “this case belongs to O’Dell and Reynolds. They have the right to question anyone they see fit.”
The two homicide detectives grinned.
Seth inwardly cursed them. Jules hadn’t wanted to talk with the police. He’d respected her wishes and handled the case for her. Now it appeared she’d have no choice but to deal with the two most arrogant assholes on the force.
