"Sure." I chuckled and gave his hand a light squeeze. "I don't mind switching up if it means I don't actually have to walk into the restaurant to get our food."
"Thanks for understanding." He blew out a relieved sigh and grinned at me. "Most people think it's weird. It was a constant fight when I was with Celeste, actually."
"Really?" I cocked an eyebrow at him and pursed my lips. "I don't get why she made such a big deal about it. It's not like it's a huge inconvenience, and it feels nice to make something a little easier for you just because I can."
He leaned across the console, brushing a quick kiss across my lips. I gripped the front of his shirt and tugged him closer, deepening the kiss until my cell phone's ringtone pulled us out of the moment.
Grumbling under my breath about crappy timing, I checked the readout. My heart clenched with hope when I saw Manny's face displayed above his work number. We climbed out of the SUV and switched sides as I answered the phone.
"Hey, Manny! What's up?" I buckled up and drummed my fingers on the steering wheel.
"When Kat disappeared, I told you that my guys and I would keep an eye out for anyone that looks like her. One of my boys was picking up an FTA over in that swanky rich-people neighborhood down past your house today, and he saw a girl matching Kat's description lurking in one of the mansions that's under construction over there."
My heart skipped a beat.
With an apologetic grimace at Ray, I threw the SUV in reverse and swung out into the flow of traffic. "Text me the address and we'll meet you there."
"What happened?" Ray asked, his stomach rumbling like a freight train.
"Manny had a possible lead on Kat,” I said, navigating the dinner time traffic rush. “I'm sorry about just wheeling out of the taco place like that. I'll order some from the app on my phone and have them deliver it to us at the construction site. That way, we can eat and work at the same time."
"Fine by me." Ray nodded. He adjusted his seatbelt as a car pulled out in front of me and I rode the brakes hard to keep from hitting them.
"Sorry," I mumbled through gritted teeth and gripped the steering wheel a little tighter. "I'm not used to a vehicle this big and heavy."
I let out a low whistle as the GPS on my phone directed us to turn into the driveway of a mid-sized Mediterranean-style stucco castle on a breathtaking waterfront property.
"What the hell would Kat even be doing at a construction site like this?" I scowled up at the building and shook my head as Ray and I climbed out to meet Manny, who was perched on the tailgate of his truck. He hopped down and extended a hand to greet Ray. I paused just long enough to order tacos like I promised. I typed in the delivery address details, shoved my phone in my back pocket, and joined the men on the expanse of sidewalk in front of the mansion.
I crossed my arms as I studied the unfinished state of the place, but forced a smile when Manny greeted me with a gentle side-hug. "Hola, chica. How're you holding up?"
“I’m fine...ish.” I chewed on my bottom lip and gravitated to Ray’s side, squinting at the house. Something about it nagged at my stress-addled brain. “This place looks crazy familiar, but I don’t know why.”
Ray scratched his head. “Wasn’t there a picture of this place in some of her social media posts when we were going through them?”
“Maybe. Everything since she disappeared has kind of turned into a blur, if I’m being honest.” I turned my attention to Manny. “So, what’s the deal with this place? Who thought they saw Kat here?”
“One of my cousins is the foreman on this job. He got here extra early this morning and freaked when he saw a girl who matches Kat’s description floating in the elevator shaft. Things have been wild since she outed witches as real, but that’s even more nuts than I was expecting.” Manny crossed himself and shivered.
My breath hitched in my chest and I frowned. “Two questions,” I whispered. “First of all, why does somebody’s personal home have a whole-ass elevator in it? Second, what happened after he saw her?”
Manny shrugged off my question about the elevator luxury and motioned for us to follow him. “Thomas said the girl shrieked at him like a banshee and disappeared. He’s refusing to come back until a supernatural expert checks the place out.”
"Supernatural expert?" I cocked an eyebrow and him and smirked.
"Yeah." Manny nodded. "If your little sister was a witch, I'm betting it runs in the family, right? That makes you a supernatural expert, and since the girl fit Kat's description, I figured two birds with one stone."
I couldn't help laughing at Manny's practical and efficient outlook. "So, did Thomas say if it's okay for us to go inside and have a look around the area where he spotted this girl that might or might not be Kat?"
"Sure." Manny's adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed. "Follow me."
I hung back a few steps, keeping pace with Ray as I chewed on my bottom lip. His hand slid to the small of my back and I sighed.
"What's wrong?" He kept his voice low so Manny couldn't hear it.
"I don't know," I whispered, shaking my head. "I'm not even sure I can really explain it. I just have a feeling something is up, but I don't know what it is or why things feel off."
"Interesting." Ray ran a hand through his hair as we followed Manny through the massive opening that was meant to hold an obscenely large front door. "Your instinct about Graves never laying eyes on Kat was right, so I definitely wouldn't dismiss whatever your gut tells you."
The inside space was completely unfinished, and the exposed metal i-beams to our left framed the elevator's shaft. We strode over to it, and Manny fidgeted with his polo shirt’s collar, tugging at it like it was suddenly too tight. He also made sure to keep a few feet between him and the edge of the pit. His gaze darted around the space at high speed, and he jumped when the toe of my tennis shoe scuffed against the concrete subfloor.
"Hey, Manny, you can wait for us outside if you want," I said. "I actually have a delivery driver on the way with our dinner, and it would be super helpful if someone could be outside to get the food when they get here."
"Hallelujah and thank you, chica." Manny shot me a grateful smile and jogged back out the entryway.
"Sometimes witches can pick up on each other’s residual energy, and it doesn't feel like Kat was ever here to me." I grumbled as Ray and I strode up to the edge of the pit. Pulling my cell phone out of my back pocket, I turned on the flashlight function and used it to search the pit for any sign of a clue, or any kind of indication that my sister was actually there at any point.
"How does it feel to you?" Ray murmured, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Is this instinct, magic, or intuition, or something else entirely?"
"Honestly? I'm not sure. All I know is this place isn't speaking to me." I was about to give up and turn my phone's flashlight off when a subtle glimmer by the base of one of the guide rails caught my eye. "Stay here. I think I see something, and I'm going to need help getting back out of that hole in a second." Without waiting for a response, I sat down on the edge, and then jumped into the pit.
The instant I dropped into the dark concrete hole, my heart rate skyrocketed. I struggled to breathe normally. Out of the corner of my eye, it seemed like the walls were moving, closing in on me.
"You okay?" Ray called down at me.
"Maybe a little claustrophobic, but fine other than that." I scanned the area I thought the glimmer came from with my light. Another glint caught my eye, and I crept across the small space, crouching down to inspect the metallic object. My chest constricted as recognition set in.
“Kat’s locket,” I gasped and scooped it up. “I found something, Ray!”
Trembling from head to foot, I rushed back across the pit, to the side where Ray was waiting for me.
“What is it?” Ray asked.
He crouched at the edge and reached down, ready to hoist me out of the hole. I slipped the necklace in my pocket and reached up and grasped his warm, steady hands. He pulled me back
up to floor level with ease and I dusted myself off. Taking the necklace out of my pocket, I held it up for him to inspect, showing the monogram of Kat’s initials engraved on the silver locket.
"This is Kat's. She's had it since she was two years old." I opened it and showed him the pictures of Mom and Dad on the inside. "They died when she was just a year old. I wanted her to know their faces and have a way to see them every day even though they were gone."
My eyes stung, my vision blurred, and I closed the locket, holding it tight as hot, raw tears leaked down my cheeks. Ray pulled me against his chest and stroked my hair as I took a deep, shaking breath.
"This still doesn't feel right," I whispered. "My gut tells me Kat was never here. It's like someone wanted us to think she was here, you know? But I don't know how else her necklace could have ended up here if she wasn't here. She's never been careless with her locket."
"Trust your instincts, Rox." Ray's quiet assurance enveloped me. I sighed and rested my forehead against his chest.
"But—" I paused and cold fear slithered over me from head to toe. I shivered despite the heat of the night air around us. "What if my instincts are wrong, Ray? What if I'm wrong, and it gets somebody else killed? Two of the coven's elders are already dead, Kat is missing, Nell's mind has been wiped, and there's no way to know who took her or what happened while she was missing. If what my gut is telling me is wrong, who dies next? Another elder? My little sister?"
I shuddered and sobbed into his shirt. His arms tightened around me, and he kissed the top of my head. "Your gut wasn't wrong with Graves, and it's not wrong now. And before you argue that you were wrong because Misty turned up dead, your instinct wasn't really about that. It was solely about Graves not knowing what Kat looks like. You hoped that meant that he was wrong about Misty, too, but your gut feeling didn't pertain directly to that. Stop doubting yourself, Rox."
I pocketed the necklace again and stepped back, wiping my eyes with the back of my hand. "I just wish there was a way to know for sure that I'm right about Kat never actually being here, even though her locket is."
“All we can do is keep following the leads.” He took my hand and led me back through the entryway, out to where Manny was waiting for us by the road, holding a takeout bag.
"So, what's the deal with this place?" Manny passed the bag of tacos to Ray, never taking his eyes off the building, as if it might come to life and tear him to pieces.
I shook my head. "I don't think Kat was really here. Whatever Thomas saw was an illusion."
"An illusion? Why?" Manny frowned, scratching his head as he studied the mansion.
"I'm not sure." I did a palms-up gesture. "Maybe it was intended to scare people away, or send a message. It might even have been a well-constructed distraction, for all we know."
"I'm sorry, Roxy." Manny scrubbed a hand over his face and sighed. "I was really hoping this would be a good lead to help you find Kat."
"Hey, don't feel bad." I patted his arm and made eye contact with him, offering up my best semblance of a reassuring smile. "I really appreciate what you're doing to help. It means a lot to me that you care about finding Kat, too."
His eyes brightened and he ruffled my hair like an annoying older brother-type, but I didn't have the heart to gripe about it. "I'll keep my people on the lookout, then, and I'll tell Thomas that it's fine to come back to work."
I nodded. "If he and his crew have any more supernatural issues, let me know and I'll see what I can do to help out."
The scent of the tacos wafted over to me and my stomach growled.
“I’ll leave you two to it,” Manny said. With a small wave, he strolled to his pickup.
Ray chuckled and opened the bag, passing me one of the still-warm tacos. "What do you say we head home and regroup while we wait on the autopsy results from Celeste?"
"Sounds fantastic to me." I wolfed down the taco in just a few bites as we walked back up the long drive to where Ray's SUV was parked. As soon as we were inside, Ray cranked the SUV and divvied up the tacos. We ate them while we studied the mansion's dark silhouette.
"Why this place? What's so important about it?" I grumbled between spicy, savory bites of taco.
Before Ray could answer, the text tone on his phone dinged, capturing our attention.
"Who is it?"
"It's a message from Celeste." Ray cleared his throat as he scrolled, reading the wall of text. "She's not done with the autopsy yet but wanted to let us know she should be finishing up first thing in the morning. She wanted me to warn you that the pictures are going to be nothing short of disturbing, so you should brace yourself. And she also told me to tell you to be extra vigilant. From what she's seen, whoever the murderer is, they seem to specialize in and enjoy cruel brutality."
I didn’t sleep a wink, pacing the dark, quiet house while Ray slept on the couch. Logan was curled up on Ray's chest, purring in his sleep as if to answer Ray's soft snores. The sun was just starting to lighten the eastern sky when I shuffled to the bathroom to wash my face.
Shadow stared out at me from the mirror, silent but inescapable.
"You've been awfully quiet lately," I grumbled.
Shadow snorted and rolled her eyes. "You had your mentor create a charm that you could actively suppress me with, so it's not like I've had much of a choice in the matter."
"You're volatile and unpredictable at best," I snapped. "I can't trust you not to go off the deep end at the worst time possible."
Shadow barked out a bitter, brittle laugh. All that means is you don't trust yourself, Roxanne. We're two parts of the same person, always have been and always will be.
I shuddered and shook my head, wanting desperately to argue. The words wouldn't come, though.
You can lock me away, shove me down, and ignore me all you want, but you can't ever fully be rid of me without destroying a part of yourself forever.
With a weary sigh, I turned on the cold water and washed my face with her words echoing in the back of my mind.
“Oh, what I wouldn't give to wash my hands of you and magic forever,” I said.
Shadow flipped me off from the mirror and I opened the bathroom door to find a shirtless, sleepy Ray waiting to use the facilities.
“Morning, short cake.” He yawned. “’Scuse me.” He moved to sidle past me in the narrow hallway and my breath hitched in my chest as we brushed against each other. His languid gaze drifted to my lips.
We moved in unison, our lips crashing together in a hot, needy, increasingly familiar kiss. He gathered me in his arms, consuming and exploring at once. His lips trailed down my neck, searing and greedy, but he suddenly stilled.
When he spoke, his voice was faint and a little shaky. "Do you usually have two reflections?"
I backed out of his embrace and nodded, my face flaming with shame. "For the past seven years, yes, but I'm usually the only one who can see Shadow."
Ray raised his hands to cup my face but hesitated. "May I?"
"Normally, I'd say no, but something about letting you use your power to see what you need to know feels easier than trying to explain." I took a shaky breath, wringing my hands as his fingers enveloped my face and his eyes started to glow.
The glow enveloped me until it was all I saw. My heart felt as if a fist was trying to squeeze the life out of it until I stopped resisting the thought of Ray knowing every bit of me, even the darkest, most raw and broken parts. The moment I let go of the need to hide from him, the warmth that always seemed to radiate off him flowed through me, filling me up.
A tingling sensation like champagne bubbles rushed from the top of my head down to my toes, and goosebumps followed. Strangely, I could feel his mind inside mine, probing gently, exploring things I hadn't thought about in years. I saw them, sharing his vision just like before. Even reliving the painful memories didn't hurt as badly with him there, and I leaned into the comfort he exuded.
My mind drifted back to the dream I had a few nights before, and his words came back
to me. I belong wherever you are.
Ray?
The feeling morphed somewhat, as if he was pulling away from me for a moment, and then paused.
I'm here, short cake. This is...strange, but I think I like it.
My heart raced. Why do you think you can see Shadow now?
His presence shifted a little, and I could sense the careful contemplation rolling off him in waves. I've always had a knack for seeing the truth, but that ability seems to be evolving since we started spending a lot of time together. Maybe we're awakening things in each other somehow?
He let go of my face and reality flooded back in around us. I looked back at the mirror that hung on the inside of the bathroom door and saw Shadow standing there, blushing and bemused.
I started to move away, but Ray caught my wrist and anchored me in place. "You never have to hide things from me, no matter what."
I swallowed hard. "I know that now. Thank you, Ray."
He disappeared into the bathroom, and I headed to the kitchen. I started making breakfast, more for something to keep me busy while we waited on the call from Celeste than because I was hungry.
Ray's text tone trilled just as he was coming out of the bathroom. He sniffed.
"That bacon smells amazing." In a few long strides, he crossed from the bathroom to the sideboard where my laptop and his phone were plugged in. "Celeste just faxed everything to the office."
I swore quietly as I turned the bacon. "I can have breakfast finished within ten minutes."
Ray dug through his backpack beside the couch and pulled out a clean shirt, tugging it on. "I can get the documents from the office and be back by the time you get done cooking. Besides, judging by what Celeste said yesterday, I think it might be better if you're at home when you see it anyway." He rushed out, and I focused on my cooking.
Logan wandered into the kitchen, his whiskers and tail twitching with interest at the scent of the bacon. So, the dynamic between you and Ray seems to be...shifting. I think you're going to be good for each other, if you let yourselves.
Coven of Lies (The Bayshore Witch Legacy Book 2) Page 16
