CORE Shadow [1] Shadow of Danger
Page 28
His stomach fluttered again. He reached for his antacids, but tossed them into the center console. This wasn’t acid reflux or the onslaught of heartburn. Nope, this was plain old nerves kicking in and giving him a wakeup call.
He couldn’t let her go, at least not without laying all the cards on the table. Tonight, after dinner, he wouldn’t just suggest she come to Chicago for a visit. Nope, he’d man up and tell her how he felt about her, then ask her to move in with him.
Releasing a deep sigh, the nervousness dissipated now that he’d made his decision. Yet as he turned down her street, it kicked back up a few notches. What if she said no? What if she didn’t feel the same? What if this was just an affair to her?
The questions rolled through his head, but as he pulled into her driveway, they came to a screeching halt. The headlights from his sedan beamed against the tail end of the Viking’s truck. Fucking Lloyd. He hoped like hell the jackass was here to see Will and not Celeste. After what he’d attempted last night, John still wanted to kick his ass.
Before he climbed out of the car, he grabbed the bouquet of flowers he’d bought for Celeste, then slammed the door shut. As he moved along the walkway, he ignored the gnomes and considered every worst case scenario, should he have to confront Lloyd, until he reached the front stoop.
Panic, fear and adrenaline moved through him. Celeste’s front door stood wide open, the foyer rug, bunched and skewed. In an instant, he had his gun drawn from his shoulder holster and held low to his thigh. With cautious steps he moved into the foyer, then paused and frowned as he stared at the mirror above her fireplace.
A wave of anger and jealousy suddenly replaced his fear. He glared at the mirror, at the reflection of Lloyd’s naked back as he leaned over Celeste who lay half against the wall. The fucking Viking’s overlong hair hid their faces. But with the way her body jerked, her blond head sliding slightly up and down the wall, along with her low groans and his heavy breathing, it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what they were doing. Had she wanted him to walk in on them during the act? She knew what time he’d planned to pick her up for their date.
He crushed the stems of the bouquet in his hand. How could he have been so stupid? How could he have allowed himself to be duped again? He’d believed in her, in the idea of them, and he’d obviously been a simple fuck to her, nothing more. And now she was rubbing it in his face.
Damn, what a fool he’d been. He’d confessed things to her he’d never told anyone else. He’d planned to tell her how he felt about her tonight and ask her to move in with him. Thank God that never happened. Witnessing this, the betrayal, especially after he’d told her about Renee, was bad enough. To have opened himself to further humiliation would have left his ego, hell, his heart, in shambles.
Damn it, he loved her.
Defeated, depressed and downright pissed as hell, he holstered his weapon, then tossed the bouquet on the floor. As he was about to walk out the door, and out of her life, he caught a quick glimpse of Will in the mirror’s reflection.
Racing from the kitchen, wearing nothing but a pair of jeans and holding a cordless phone, Will shouted, “I’m calling him now.”
Celeste released a harsh scream the same moment John’s cell phone rang. In that split second, his entire body tensed, and his scalp tingled as dread slipped down his spine.
Lloyd and Celeste weren’t having sex on the living room floor. She was deep in another trance.
Before he could berate himself for his lack of trust in Celeste, he ran into the living room. His thoughts focused on her. On making sure she made it through another trance unscathed.
When he reached her, he held back a gasp. He’d witnessed two of her trances, but what he saw now scared the hell out of him. With her bare legs splayed open, her hands pinned to her sides, and her head and body jerking hard against the wall, it appeared as if an invisible force was...raping her.
He loved Celeste so much he wanted to shake her awake from whatever horrors this victim was putting her through. But the investigator overruled the lover. If there was another victim, they needed whatever help they could to find her. And he knew this was what Celeste would want him to do.
“Move,” he ordered Lloyd as he turned on his cell phone’s recording device.
“Thank God you’re here,” Will said, his voice filled with anxiety, his eyes bloodshot and brimming with tears. “We tried to wake her up, but—”
“How long has she been like this?”
“I...I’m not sure,” Lloyd said, his tone matching Will’s. “We heard her scream about five minutes ago, but she’d dropped a wooden pole into the back sliding glass door, so we couldn’t get in the house that way. We had to run around the front and when we finally got the door open, we found her like this.”
John focused on Celeste, her pale cheeks, the sheen of sweat coating her face and mingling with her tears. “Honey,” he said. “Can you hear me?”
Her body seized up, then arched. She opened her eyes, and stared at him. He hated when they changed from blue to murky gray, hated the helplessness he felt every time he endured these trances.
“You’re here,” she whispered on a sob.
“Celeste?”
Frowning, she shook her head.
“Can you tell me your name?”
“Lisa.”
“Okay, Lisa, where you are? What’s happening to you?”
“I’m so tired,” she said, thickly, as if she’d been drugged. “I just want to sleep forever. I just want them to get it over with and kill me.”
“Don’t talk like that,” he said, wanting to touch her, but worried any physical contact would draw her from the trance. “Can you find a way to escape?”
She let her head loll back and forth against the wall. “They tied me to a tree after the man with the ski mask beat me and...I can’t talk about it.” She released a quiet sob. “What he did was so vile and degrading.”
A good start, she’d given him her name, and confirmed there were two men. “You said they. Who’s with the man in the ski mask? Do you know him?”
Her face screwed into a grimace. “Yes,” she hissed. “I know him. Gary’s been a regular at the coffee shop for months. When he’d asked me out, I couldn’t believe my luck. I’d had a crush on him, thought he was good looking with those silver eyes, dark hair, beard, and sexy southern drawl. I guess my luck ran out, huh?” She shrugged and closed her eyes.
This victim was so unlike the others who had used Celeste to tell their story. Rather than ranting and raving, flying off into hysterics, she remained eerily calm. Unsure if that was a good or bad thing, he said, “Let me help you. Tell me where you are so I can find you.”
“I have no idea. Gary and I went for a drink, but I think he slipped something in it.” Her chin trembled. “I passed out and when I woke up, the guy with the mask was...raping me.”
He wanted to kill both Winston and his partner with his bare hands for what they’d put their victims through. Shoving his anger aside in order to keep his tone calm, he said, “Look around you. Can you describe where you are?”
“I can’t,” she said in defeat. “They beat me so bad, my eyes are swollen shut. I actually choked on my front tooth when Gary punched me for screaming too much. He didn’t care, though. He just kept grunting over me while he...How could I have ever thought he’d like a girl like me? How could I have been so stupid? How could I have—”
“Shh, please,” he begged as the image she’d described nauseated him. “Help me so I can help you. What do you hear?”
“Them,” she snarled, and for the first time showed spirit. “Arguing.”
“What about?”
“I don’t know, and I don’t care,” she said, her voice rising. “I just want them to end this. I can’t bear to have them touch me again. I can’t take another blow, I can’t—”
“I know, but you have to be strong. Please, Lisa, tell me what else you can hear. I just want to be able to find you.”
“You’re in the woods?”
She nodded, then froze, her eyes widening in horror.
“What is it?”
“They’re coming toward me. I can’t see them, but I can hear them. The leaves crunching, twigs snapping. Oh God, one of them has something on my stomach.” She twisted the lower half of her body and kicked her legs. “It’s metal, cold, flat, long and…sharp.”
He moved to stay clear of her legs, and noticed Lloyd and Will had done the same. “Stay calm,” he ordered, and somehow managed to keep his voice from rising.
“I can’t,” she screamed. “It’s a knife, he has a knife and he’s swiping it along my stomach like he’s buttering a piece of bread. Stop. Please stop. Please don’t...no, no, no.”
The terrifying image caused goose bumps to race along his skin. He wanted to drag her in his arms, and put an end to this fucking nightmare. “What is it?” he asked instead, driven by the need to know the details behind this woman’s death, even as he watched the woman he loved suffer through it.
“The other one is behind me. Has to be Gary, his beard is tickling my neck.” She cocked her head to her shoulder and cringed. “His hot breath is surrounding me. He’s—wait, they’re talking.”
John looked between Lloyd and Will, the pain and horror in their eyes reflecting his own. Then he stared back at Celeste. “What are they saying?”
“The one with the knife just said, ‘Here’s to a new beginning.’ I don’t know what that means,” she wailed as tears streamed down her face. “I don’t understand, I don’t—”
Her neck arched the same time her spine bowed. She released a hoarse scream as her face grew red.
“Make it stop,” Will shouted, then moved for Celeste.
John shoved him out of the way. He knelt on the floor, pulled her into his arms, stroking her hair, her back, and murmuring into her ear. “Wake up, baby. Wake up. I’ve got you now. Wake up.”
Cradled in his embrace, her body relaxed, then grew tense again as she drew in a deep gasping breath. Before he could explain, or hold her tighter like he wanted, she shoved her hands against his chest and pushed her body against the wall. She stared at him, surprise in her bright blue eyes.
“John?” she asked, then as if realizing where she was and who was in the room, she glanced between Will and Lloyd. “Oh my God.” She snared his gaze. “Did I just have...?”
He nodded and wiped the tears from her cheeks. “Yeah, honey, you had another trance.”
“I’m so sorry. I never wanted you to see this,” she said, as she scrambled up the wall and reached for Will.
John moved and allowed her brother access to Celeste. He didn’t want to. He needed time to decompress, to hold her and assure himself she hadn’t been affected by the trance. But Will was her brother. Her very emotionally overwrought brother, who also needed time to accept what had just happened. As for Lloyd, while he could give a shit about him, he had been there for Celeste, and he supposed that counted for something.
“Celeste,” Will said with relief as he hugged her. “Are you okay?”
She nodded against her brother’s shoulder. “Yeah, just a little tired.” She rubbed the back of her head and grimaced. “And sore. Did I bang my head?”
“Yeah, a bunch of times.” Will sifted his fingers through her hair, and winced. “You’ve already got a lump. Let’s get you some ice.”
As Will headed toward the kitchen, his bare back tense, his hands trembling, she said, “Better grab a few ibuprofen, too. There’s a bottle next to the gnome glasses above the sink.”
“On it,” he called over his shoulder without looking back.
“Come on, let’s warm you up, and get you somewhere more comfortable,” John murmured as scooped her in his arms, then carried her to the sofa.
“I can walk, you know.”
“I know. Just let me pamper you.” He gently set her on the couch. “That was the worst of the three,” he said as he covered her with an afghan.
She grimaced and looked to Lloyd. “Thanks for being here for me. I’m so sorry you and Will had to see that.”
He moved toward her, then took her hand. “You know I’d do anything for you.”
“I know.”
“And I’m sorry for last night. I shouldn’t have interfered. It’s just—”
Will approached with an ice pack, ibuprofen and bottled water. “Here you go.”
While she chased the ibuprofen down with water, John turned off the recording device on his cell phone, then shoved it in his pocket. He wished they were alone, as he sat next to her on the sofa and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. After watching her relive the brutal last moments of another victim, all he wanted to do was hold her.
“So,” she began, then pursed her lips. “Anybody interested in telling me what happened?”
He squeezed her to his chest and kissed her temple. “I recorded everything. Keep the ice on your head, and let the ibuprofen kick in, okay? You can listen later. Right now isn’t the time.”
“Much later.” She sent her brother and Lloyd a worried look. “Are you guys okay? I mean, this is the third time John’s seen me this way, and I know it still bothers him.”
“No, I’m not okay,” Will said. “I just watched my sister...” He shook his head, drew in a deep breath and looked to the ceiling. Will was fighting back the tears, and John understood. Watching someone you love go through something that traumatic didn’t settle well on the soul. At all.
“Hey.” She dropped the ice pack, stood and kept the afghan wrapped around her as she moved to him. “I’m okay. Seriously,” she added when he refused to look at her. “I still have all my pinkies and toes, and—”
“It doesn’t matter, Celeste,” Lloyd interrupted. “When we finally unlocked the front door and saw you…” He shook his head. “Well, it’s an image I won’t ever forget.”
“I’m sorry,” she repeated again. “I honestly don’t even know how it happened. After I talked with you through my bedroom window right when you got here, I laid down for a quick nap. The last thing I remember was staring at my ceiling fan...” She frowned, then shook her head. “Whatever. It doesn’t matter how it happened, as you can see I’m okay. So why don’t you two steal some bakery from the basement, and head back to the apartment.”
“I take it you don’t need me to stay in the guest room?” Will asked.
She looked over her shoulder at him. “I plan on staying the night,” John said. When he’d left his motel room earlier, he’d planned on the evening going in a completely different direction, too. Either way, it would end the same...with Celeste in his arms.
“See.” She moved back to the sofa. “John will be here if I need anything. So grab what you want from the basement. You can even take a few bottles of wine if you want to.”
“None for me, thanks.” Lloyd pushed off the fireplace and unfolded his arms. “Kain, I just need to grab my things from Will’s place, then I’ll need you to move your car.”
Will stared at the Viking as if he’d lost his mind. “You’re leaving? Why?”
Lloyd darted his gaze between him and Will. “I think it’s best, don’t you?”
“No.” Will ran a hand through his hair. “I think it sucks,” he muttered. “And typical.”
“Sorry, Will, I’m not taking the bait,” Lloyd said, as he moved toward the foyer.
“Fine. If what I’m dangling doesn’t interest you, don’t bother coming back.”
“Will,” Celeste gasped. “You don’t mean that.”
“The hell I don’t. I’m so sick of his bullshit attitude.”
“Mine?” Lloyd shouted as he swiveled on Will.
“Yeah, yours. For years I’ve kept quiet. For years I’ve suffered to protect you. I’m so fucking tired of living a lie because you’re
worried about your reputation. I’m so tired of you being ashamed of me.” Will turned to him. “John, go ahead and move your car. Lloyd’s leaving.”
“I never said I was ashamed of you,” Lloyd said through clenched teeth.
“Actions speak louder than words. Now just go.”
Lloyd turned his back on them, but when he reached the door, instead of walking out, he slammed it shut. “Fuck it,” he said, then stomped back into the living room. Every muscle in his arms and chest flexed as he moved toward Will.
Cheeks flushed, eyes wild and heated with anger, John thought for sure Lloyd was going to knock Will flat on his ass. Ready to defend Celeste’s brother, he stood.
“Actions speak louder than words, huh?” Lloyd snarled. “How’s this for action?”
Instead of clocking Will in the jaw as John had expected, Lloyd cupped the other man’s head and...
Oh. My. God.
…kissed him.
Chapter 21
Celeste locked the deadbolt on the front door, then rested her forehead against the wood. Even though Will and Lloyd had left, the tension within the house remained.
“That was interesting,” she said, trying to lighten the mood as she turned to face John.
He leaned against the banister, arms folded across his chest. With his face impassive, he nodded. “That’s putting it mildly.”
Was he mad? At her? She hadn’t exactly planned on going under tonight. As for Lloyd and Will, she thought John had handled that shock quite well.
Other than turning beet red when Lloyd lip locked her brother, he’d showed no reaction. Even when Lloyd threatened to kick John’s ass if he breathed a word about them being gay, he hadn’t flinched. Instead, he’d told Lloyd he didn’t care about his and Will’s relationship, and that the only one John did care about was the one he had with her.