The town was awakening. A mother hurried by, almost dragging two children behind her. Cars whizzed by as parents zoomed off to drop the children at daycare or school. At the opposite side of the street, an old lady shuffled out her house. Dressed in a gray robe and matching slippers, she walked to get her newspaper. Her surreptitious glances in his direction told him that not only was he out of place in this street, but his impatient movements probably looked suspicious.
Cole couldn’t care less.
His phone rang again. It was Damon. “My contact talked to a few people in his local station. The nature of my revelation was such that – well, you’ve to admit that Aerilyn’s talent is unusual – he didn’t know whether to believe me or not. He talked to a few of his superiors, and his colleagues…”
“What the hell!” All thoughts of keeping calm fled out of his mind. Cole let out an expletive. He cursed, yelled, and mouthed invectives he hadn’t used in a long time.
Finally, he calmed down enough to talk again. “I’m sorry, Damon. That was uncalled for. It wasn’t your fault…but the police…” With his free hand, he pressed the bridge of his nose to control his breathing.
“It’s alright. You’re right to get angry.” Damon’s response was cautious. “I believe they may have talked freely and openly about Aerilyn and her…discoveries.”
“They didn’t take her seriously enough. It’s all a big joke to them.”
Damon sighed. “It’s not an easy tale to swallow, Cole. I’ve worked with you for the past ten years. If I didn’t have absolute faith in you, this is a story that even I could not have believed.”
“I know, Damon. But even the police are responsible for protecting their sources. What about your contact? Is he reliable?”
“He is a solid guy. Twenty years in the police, and his reputation is beyond reproach.”
“Someone ratted to Robin or James about Aerilyn. There is no denying that.”
“If the intruder in her house is from New York City, and if he is suspected as a gun for hire, then yes, someone did rat about Aerilyn,” Damon agreed.
“Dig into this,” Cole told him. “Talk to your contact. Tell him what has happened. Tell him that we blame him for this lapse in security. Ask if he suspects anyone who has connection with the Zing owners. Squeeze him until he gives us something.”
“Right. I will get on it.”
Cole put the phone in his pocket. He’d done all he could do for now. Aerilyn’s protection was his primary responsibility. Clearly, Thomas’s killers were spooked by the flood of information Aerilyn had managed to unearth. It remained to be seen whether they believed that she really was a witch and could talk to the dead, but they were scared enough by her revelations to send someone after her.
Perhaps he should have seen it coming. Robin and James had no way of knowing how she was getting the real-life data about Thomas’s murder. Maybe they believed she had access to something Thomas left behind? But whatever it was that they thought, it was enough to send them over the edge.
And now, he had to protect her at all costs.
With a determined stance of his shoulders, he strode back inside. Cole stopped in the foyer when he saw Sarah standing next to the window. She’d been peering at him while he was outside. “An impressive display of temper,” she said, leaning causally against the wall.
“I am sorry you had to witness that,” he said stiffly, not sure what she wanted. Clearly his role in putting Aerilyn in harm’s way had put her back up against him. Loyalty was an admirable trait in a friend. He didn’t begrudge Aerilyn the presence of such a friend in her life. But he would be damned if he would allow Sarah to push him away.
She smiled. “Don’t worry. It raised you high up in my estimation. I would’ve been pissed if you hadn’t taken Aerilyn’s safety seriously.”
“Right,” he said.
“So, breakfast is ready. Eggs, bacon, and bread. Everything that can clog your arteries and send you to an early grave. My twins are up.” She started to climb the stairs. “I will see you.”
He watched her go up. “Right,” he repeated, surprised by her sudden change in demeanor.
Upon re-entering the kitchen, he found Aerilyn hovering at the stove as she stirred something in a saucepan. Peter was seated at the table, eating eggs and bacon with undisguised enthusiasm. Walking up to her, he put his arms around her waist and planted a kiss on the back of her neck. “I’m sorry for dragging you into this mess.”
“It’s not your fault. Quite the opposite, in fact. I dragged you into it.”
Letting her go, he took a seat opposite Peter. “I should’ve taken more care with your security. I’m afraid I underestimated the Zing brothers.”
Ignoring them, Peter snagged another piece of toast. “Hey, leave some for us.” Aerilyn waved the spoon at him.
“You don’t know what it’s like, Aerilyn. This is manna from heaven.” Peter wiped a large chunk of his eggs with the toast and put the bite in his mouth. “Thank you for coming here and bringing this wholesome food with you.”
“Oh, right. As if you don’t sneak into Leila’s diner every Tuesday for breakfast.”
“Shh! Do you want me kicked out of this house, woman?” He shoveled food in his mouth with great speed and cleaned the plate.
Aerilyn giggled. “Don’t worry. Your secret is safe with me.”
A baby wailed. “Uh Oh! Duty calls.” After picking up his plate, Peter dumped it in the sink and bounded out of the kitchen.
“Sarah has a thing for healthy food,” Aerilyn explained. She brought the pan over and put a large portion of the eggs in his plate. “Here you go. What did you find out?”
“It seems someone in the New York City police station babbled to the wrong people. Damon is getting on it. He’ll dig out the details, but if Sarah’s information is correct, and the Zing brothers know about your connection with this case, then your life is in danger.”
Aerilyn took Peter’s vacated seat. Using a fork, she ate her eggs. “I’ll be careful.”
He didn’t think she realized the severity of the situation. Until the Zing brothers were put behind bars, she would always be vulnerable to another attack. “Merely being careful is not going to cut it. How did…how did you escape the killer?”
She continued eating. “It…Remember, how I told you that I could use the power of a spirit to physically harm someone?”
“Yes.”
“Something like that happened. I…When I was in danger, I called upon the one spirit who is always sensitive to my call. My brother, Shane. He…he was the first spirit I saw. In fact, as I told you, it was his death that brought my latent gift to life. We were very close, Shane and I.”
He could tell talking about this made her relive the horrid memories. He wanted her to stop, but he needed to understand. “So you began seeing him after he died?”
“Yes. I still remember that first day when I saw him. It was six months after his death. I was sitting on the porch swing at my grandmother’s house where we both grew up. I had been crying because I missed him.” She gazed at the table as she spoke. “It was a sunny morning. Sheets of sunlight fell over the newly-cut grass in the huge garden where we used to play. I looked up, and there he was…standing in the garden. I was frozen. It was shocking to see him. And then he came and stood at the porch stairs and talked to me.”
“What did he tell you?”
“He told me not to cry, to be brave for mother and for Nan. He said he was happy.” Tears pooled in her eyes. She stopped talking.
Cole was suddenly ashamed for making her relive this. “It’s ok. You don’t need to…”
“No. I am fine.” She wiped the tears away with a tissue. “I haven’t told this to anyone, except my mother and grandmother. Anyway, that’s how it all started. I could talk to spirits, and soon I learnt more about my gift. It was scary and wonderful. Despite his death, Shane has been a part of my life, ever frozen as an eight year old boy. I don’t call him now. I don’t need
to. Just knowing that he can come is enough. But that day…”
“What happened that day? Tell me everything.”
Aerilyn recounted her day. “Once I called Shane, he dove into the intruder. That guy wasn’t expecting an attack from someone he couldn’t see. He fell down and hit his head on the floor and luckily, he passed out. And I ran.”
Cole stood. Walking over to her, he dropped to the floor on his knees. He held her hands, his face inches away from hers. “Thank you for telling me this. I am just glad you are ok.” He hugged her, breathing in her scent. Knowing that she was unharmed, that she had survived an attack on her life, made him all the more aware of how much she had come to mean to him.
There was no way in hell he was leaving her alone, even for a moment.
“I think it might be a good idea to tell Joan to not come back for a while,” suggested Aerilyn. “She might be safer at home.”
“I’ll do that,” he told her as he kissed her hand.
Sarah came back, a cherubic baby boy in her arms. “Oops!” she said. “Am I disturbing?”
“Not at all.” Cole let go. He went back to his seat and resumed eating. Perhaps he felt a little foolish experiencing these strong emotions for someone he barely knew – but Aerilyn was important to him. It would be crazy not to admit that in the depths of his own heart.
Sarah’s child was adorable. He rubbed his eyes with a plump fist. Seeing Cole, he hid his face in the curve of his mother’s shoulder. Sarah strapped him into one of the baby dining chairs that were placed against one wall. She rolled the chair over to the table. “There you go, Dave darling. I am going to whip you up a great breakfast.”
Aerilyn made a face at the baby who giggled. She sneaked in a piece of toast to the child. Dave shoved it in his mouth much the same way his father had done. As if on cue, Peter walked in with another identical baby boy. “Sam is here,” he declared and strapped the baby to the other chair, rolling it over to the table. Aerilyn sneaked another piece of toast to the new arrival.
Sarah turned. She saw her boys eating toast. Her eyes narrowed, and she turned to Cole. He put his hands up. “Not me.”
“Guilty!” Aerilyn muttered.
“They are going to have fruit tofu yogurt.”
“Yum, boys!” Peter rubbed his belly enthusiastically. He grinned at his boys and snagged another piece of toast off Aerilyn’s plate.
Sarah turned to him, a wooden spoon in one hand, and a pan in another. “Don’t think I don’t know what you ate this morning, daddy. The eggs and bacon were brought for Aerilyn’s breakfast, not yours.”
“I only tasted some,” he pleaded.
“Yeah right! Don’t you feed that to the boys now.” She waved her spoon at Aerilyn. “They are going to grow up eating healthy and wholesome food.”
Aerilyn grimaced. “Busted, boys.” Sam banged his hand on his chair, chortling at her funny expression.
“So what have you two decided about Aerilyn’s safety?” Sarah turned back to the stove. She poured some water in the pan. Taking an apple, she began to peel and cut it while the water boiled.
“I have decided that I’m going to stay with her until all this dies down.”
“What?” Aerilyn gasped. Her expression was priceless. Horrified, amused, shocked, and even a tiny bit excited. Or at least, he hoped so. “You…can’t just leave your work and move in with me.
“You could both stay here,” said Sarah. She put the pieces of apple in the water. “We have a guest bedroom downstairs.”
“I will need some working space, and such,” Cole cut in quickly. “It would be a bother for you to have two house guests, especially with such young kids in the house.”
Sarah turned to observe him. Her eyes narrowed. “Hmm! Perhaps you’re right. You would be far more comfortable in Aerilyn’s house.”
Aerilyn cleared her throat. “Actually, I am quite capable of taking care of myself. There is no need for Cole to inconvenience himself. What is he going to do when I go to work?”
“I will go with you,” he said.
“And you will stay there in my shop? What will you do there?”
“I could use your backroom as an office. If you have a client, I will move to a nearby cafe for a while.”
She ran a hand through her hair, looking flustered. “Why would you go to all this trouble just to make sure…”
He wasn’t prepared to give her an option no matter how uncomfortable this made her feel. “I’m afraid I have to insist on it,” he countered with steely determination.
Her lips pursed in a thin line. “Well, I insist on not…having you go through so much trouble for me.”
Sarah banged the spoon on the pot to get their attention. “Don’t be snide, Aerilyn. The man is worried about you. As we all are. You don’t want us to be up at night, replete with anxiety over your safety and well-being, do you?”
“Well, of course not,” she sputtered. “There is nothing to worry about.”
“I would count a murder attempt as something to be worried about.” Sarah sniffed. She added tofu to the mixture in the pan. “Certainly, I wouldn’t be able to breathe easy if I knew that you were there in that cabin alone, vulnerable.”
Aerilyn looked incensed. “I am a witch, Sarah. I believe I can take care of an intruder now that I am prepared to do so.”
“Imagine how your mother and grandmother would react if they knew that I had allowed you to stay in the cabin alone without any protection. I mean, what would it do to them if something were to happen to you?” Sarah prattled on. She put the cooked mixture in two plastic bowls and carried them over to the table.
Cole knew the exact moment Aerilyn gave way. Sarah was good; he hoped to never cross her. He eyed Peter who was studiously ignoring the conversation in order to avoid any attempt to be dragged into it. Taking his cue from the experienced man, Cole sipped his coffee.
“There is no need to involve my mother and Nan into it.” Aerilyn bit down on her bottom lip. “That’s uncalled for.”
“I am so relieved everything is sorted out.” Sarah spooned the tofu breakfast into both her twins’ mouth. Sam made a face and gulped it down. His brother wasn’t so amiable. He spat out the mouthful straight into his mother’s face. “Oh, dear. That’s not a nice thing to do, Dave.” Sarah wiped her face with a tissue and tried again.
“So, I guess you’re staying with me…for a little while.” Aerilyn glowered in his direction.
“You’ll hardly notice me.” He offered her an innocent smile. “I’ll be like the invisible man.”
Cole made a mental note to thank Sarah later. Without her push, he wouldn’t have found it so easy to shift into Aerilyn’s house.
“Right.” Aerilyn snorted.
Knight strolled into the kitchen, took a look at the two boys strapped into the chairs, and made a fast exit. “He has learnt from experience to stay from the twins. Dave managed to sit on him once,” Aerilyn told Cole.
“And it was a highly unpleasant experience for both parties,” said Peter. “I’m thinking, honey, maybe we should get a dog for the boys.”
Sarah turned to glower at him. “You mean you want to get a dog?”
“A family dog, honey. It will belong to all us.”
“Not happening, Peter,” said Sarah.
Peter shook his head at his sons. “Bad luck, boys! At least, I tried.”
“Peter, didn’t you say Steve was going to drop by later to inspect the damage to my cabin?” said Aerilyn.
“Yes. The police have given permission to clean and repair the damage.”
“I would like to take pictures for my own record,” stated Cole. Picking up the plate, he put it in the sink. “Should I load them in the dishwasher?”
“Sure. It’s there.” Sarah pointed.
Cole loaded the dishwater, mentally reviewing everything he would need to do to make sure he was free to stay in Alby for an indefinite period. A few appointments could be cancelled. He had a meeting in Chicago in a few
days. He would have to take Aerilyn with him, or make sure she was with someone he trusted on that day.
His staff was used to his prolonged absences, and they would cope without him. Cole liked to get his hands dirty with the actual investigating work. Often he was personally involved in setting up new security systems, or research and detective work. He loved doing what he did.
But for now his focus was Aerilyn.
“I will get dressed, and we will go to my cabin. Steve can meet us there.” Aerilyn stood. Unstrapping Sam, she took him out of the high chair, walked over to the sink, and washed his face. “Who’s the most adorable baby in the world? You are…yes, you are.” She kissed his plump cheek and tickled him under the chin.
“One of the most adorable,” said Sarah as she dragged Dave out.
“Here, let me do it.” Cole took the child out of her arms. Before the baby realized, Cole had washed and wiped his face. The baby stared at him with wide, open eyes. Cole made funny faces, and Dave burst into laughter. Cole handed him back to his mother.
“You’re good with kids.” It was almost an accusation. Aerilyn smoothed Sam’s hair. “Most men are not comfortable with young kids.”
“I have a niece and a nephew,” he said. “I’ve been forced, kicking and screaming, into babysitting.”
“A man who can babysit is quite a catch.” Sarah put the toddler down. Dave walked, his arms thrust out sideways as he tried to maintain his balance. He plopped down on his well-padded butt and picked up a stray piece of string. Sarah snatched it out of his hand before he could put it in his mouth. “It’s time to vacuum the floor again.”
“These monsters will put anything and everything in their mouth.” Peter picked up his son. He took the other one from Aerilyn. “Come on, you two, time to change your clothes.”
“I’ll get ready, and we can leave for my cabin.” Aerilyn followed Peter.
“Why don’t you stay for lunch?” Sarah switched on the dishwasher.
Cole was about to answer but Aerilyn turned around sharply. The horrified look on her face stopped him short. She shook her head and backed out of the room slowly.
The Spiritist: A Aerilyn Mathew Novel (Aerilyn Mathew Novels Book 1) Page 16
