Oracle Haunting (The Phoenix Files Book 4)

by Morgan Kelley

  “Do you live near?” she asked.

  “Around the corner. There’s a bright blue house with a yellow door. That’s where I rest my head at night.”

  He wouldn’t call it living.

  It was more existing until he’d met her.

  “Where’s Miss Molly Maguire today?” she asked, handing him the cloth napkin and the biscuit.

  “She’s at home. I’ll go get her before I head to the office. I wanted to have you all to myself.”

  She smiled at him.

  Jaysus!

  Why did he feel fifteen and so very awkward? Being with women was easy for him. With her? He was struggling not to make an arsehole of himself.

  And he was failing.

  Clearly.

  “What I meant to say was…”

  She put her fingers over his lips. They were warm, soft, and she wanted to do something she couldn’t resist. Leaning in, Brianna took a chance.

  She kissed him.

  It clearly caught him off guard. It took Laird a second to figure out that a beautiful woman was kissing him. Then he began kissing her back.

  It was slow.

  Deep.

  Warm.

  It called to something in him.

  When she slowly pulled away, his lower lip was between her teeth.

  He opened his eyes and their twin aqua gazes met.

  “I will never look at breakfast the same again. I think I love biscuits and strawberry jam.”

  She began laughing, and then wiped the smudge of her lip gloss from his mouth.

  “I’m glad. Adventures can be fun.”

  Yeah, he could see that.

  She picked up her biscuit and broke off a piece. “Today makes me very happy,” she admitted.

  Laird brushed a strand of red hair from her face. “It makes me very happy too. Spending this morning with you before I have to go look at the dead makes me calm. I haven’t felt that in a long time.”

  Picking up her coffee in the paper cup, she tapped it off of his. “Sláinte, Mr. Maguire.”

  He returned the word.

  Together, they sat there, having breakfast, and getting to know each other.

  It was perfect.

  It was beautiful.

  Yeah, today was going to be interesting.

  Brianna Collins was going to be all over his mind.

  * * * O R A C L E * * *

  Graymoor

  They met for breakfast in the massive kitchen. Mostly, it was to make sure the entire family was okay. All night, they’d had the most amazing of dreams.

  It had been crazy.

  As they waited for Nate and Avalon to enter the room, they were already having coffee.

  “How did you sleep?” Jagger asked his wife.

  “You know, I slept really good, but I had the weirdest dream.”

  He looked at her. “Really? Yeah, me too. It was crazy. I went to a wedding. I hate weddings.”

  Maura looked up from her coffee. “Did it have a lot of butterflies in it?”

  Luke stared at her. “Uh, yeah, and the ground had snow, but it wasn’t cold.”

  Bishop remembered the dream clearly, and it was one hell of a wedding.

  “Did we all dream the same dream?” she asked. “How the hell is that possible?”

  Lucian laughed. “We’ve been Oracled. She took us all on a dream walk,” he offered. “That’s one of her gifts. We basically went to a wedding in our sleep.”

  “How is that possible?” Roxy asked.

  “No clue. With Oracle, she can pull some amazing things out of the air.”

  They heard them coming.

  There was laughter as Nate carried her into the room on his back. She was smiling and having a good time.

  “Morning all,” he stated.

  They looked from her hand to his, and then back again.

  “Did you get married last night?” Maura asked, unable to keep it to herself. She had to know.

  Nate lowered Avalon to her feet.

  Immediately, he dropped a kiss on the tip of her nose and smiled.

  “Yes, we did, and you were all invited.”

  “Talk about showing the rest of us up,” Jagger teased. “Here we just hit the justice of the peace.”

  Avalon went to him first and hugged him. “Thank you for being part of it.”

  “I wasn’t going to sleep, but I got your message.” He tapped his head. “I’m happy for you.”

  She gave him a kiss. “I love you.”

  The feeling was damn mutual.

  Jagger headed toward Nate. “Way to score the babe,” he teased.

  Nate kissed him on the mouth.

  “JESUS! What the hell, Nate? Guys don’t kiss guys! We awkwardly hug or shake hands!”

  He grinned.

  Then he kissed Luke, Maura, Roxy, and Bishop. He stopped in front of Lucian.

  “Don’t even think about it.”

  He hugged the man. “Thank you. I’m sorry about everything, and I want you to stay, and I need you to stay to protect my wife.”

  He laughed almost like a crazy person.

  “Wife, wife, wife-y, wife.”

  They all laughed at his infectious joy. No one doubted this was the biggest day for Nate.

  Avalon hugged Lucian. “Thank you. You were right. Next time you see me going off the path, stop me. I trust you to have my back.”

  He kissed her on the forehead. “I will, Avalon.”

  Bishop tapped her on the shoulder. “Um…”

  Avalon faced her. “You matter to him, so you will always matter to me. I have Maura as a sister and now I have you. My family is complete.”

  Maura sniffled.

  “Are you crying?” Jagger asked, trying not to break himself.

  “Screw you. I have seasonal allergies and nothing more. Don’t make me hurt you.”

  He snorted.

  Avalon crossed to Roxy. “I also have you. I have an amazing family, and I can’t wait to love your daughter too.”

  Jagger wiped his eyes.

  “Pussy,” Maura whispered.

  Luke pointed at her.

  “Cat. Pussy Cat. It’s my new term of endearment for him. Don’t judge.”

  They started laughing.

  Nate knew they needed to get moving. He’d wanted to make love to his wife, but he had to let her rest. Dream walking with the whole family had to be exhausting.

  Later, it was all hands on deck.

  “What are our plans for today?” Bishop asked, sitting on her husband’s lap.

  “You, Nate, and I have to meet the detective. We’re going to start interviewing people who knew the first two victims,” Luke stated.

  “Uh, is everyone going to ignore that we found Avalon hanging in a tree last night?” Roxy asked. “Or that those vines seem to have a mind of their own?”

  Yeah, about that…

  “I think it was a spell,” Avalon offered.

  They stared at her.

  “What?” Nate asked.

  She told him about what the dead woman, Maribel, had said.

  “She can’t communicate any other way. She’s trying to tell us something.”

  “Well, possessing Lucian and luring you out of the house says ‘bad news’ to me,” Bishop offered.

  “I can hear the dead,” Avalon said, as she shared some muffin with Nate. “I think she was psychic when she was alive, and that’s how she’s connecting with me.”

  Well, that made sense.

  Sort of…

  “She told me she was intimate with a man by the name of Sir Lawrence Keane. He’s the one who was doing the spells and trying to reach Carman. It wasn’t her.”

  “And she told you this?” Maura asked.

  “Yes.”

  “And we believe a dead woman who used to be a prostitute and who is haunting this estate?” she asked again.

  “Yes. Why would she lie?”

  Maura stared at her. “Oh, because she’s clearly evil and something bad is li
ving under this house.”

  Avalon laughed. “You might be a bit paranoid.”

  She’d heard that before.

  “I don’t know about paranoia. I’m a scientist by nature. We go with facts. We have a dead psychic, who was accused of being a witch, who just happened to get you tangled in a tree?” Roxy asked.

  “That sounds about right.”

  “Wow, you guys lead an exciting life. Here, all I do is dig in dead bodies.”

  Yeah, their lives were one hell of an adventure.

  “We need to figure out everything we can on Sir Lawrence Keane,” Maura stated, needing to cover all their bases.

  “Yeah, and I need you guys to lie low,” Nate said, pointing at Jagger and Roxy. “We still don’t know what Silas is up to, and that worries me.”

  It worried Jagger too.

  “I have our go bags ready in case I have to get Roxy out.”

  She touched his hand. “Babe, he’s my grandfather. He’s not some third world despot trying to kidnap me for ransom.”

  In his mind, he might as well be.

  “He sent goons after us, Roxy. That’s not sanity. He is hoping you’ll keep me from striking out. He’s playing the odds. I’m calm—for now—but I’m still Michael O’Banion’s son. I have his blood, and I carry his sins.”

  She kissed him. “I love your blood and sins. Don’t stress it. I’m here.”

  He tried not to, but his gut was screaming.

  “We’ll be fine. He’s just getting eccentric in his old age. He’ll back off.”

  Bishop laughed. “He’s insane. Let’s call it what it is.”

  Jagger was with Bishop on this one.

  Nate spoke up, “That’s why Jagger and Roxy stay in. They can’t be out there wandering around. We need everyone on this since we’re solving it without psychic help.”

  They got it.

  This was a team effort.

  “What about us?” Lucian asked.

  “You, Maura, and Avalon are going to do the research. There’s a library and historical society in town. I’d head there to find anything you can on Maribel or Lawrence Keane.”

  “Wait,” Avalon said. “I get to go out and help?” she asked. “Out of the house? Away from here?”

  She was astounded.

  He smiled at her. “Yes. You’re safe in Ireland, well, unless there’s trees and vines,” he said. Truth be told, he wanted her out of that haunted house when he was busy.

  This was how he could make that happen.

  “The killer can’t find you by your psychic trail. In fact, I’m thinking it would be wonderful if you can get Brianna to help. Then all of our bases are covered. We’ll watch the detective, and Maura can keep an eye on her.”

  She bounced in his lap. “I can’t believe I get to leave the house! This is like the best gift!”

  He kissed her softly on the mouth. “It’s my wedding gift to my wife.”

  She kissed him back.

  “Jesus! I saw tongue,” Jagger said, getting hit by his own wife.

  “Behave. They are newlyweds. There was lots of tongue when we were first married too.”

  Oh, he recalled.

  Little did she know, the honeymoon was NOT over. They were going to have the whole place to themselves.

  If Graymoor was a rockin’, then don’t come a knockin’.

  Avalon spoke after breaking the kiss. “Maribel is going to try and communicate more. She’s giving us bread crumbs. Clearly, I can’t dream walk with her. It nearly got me killed.”

  “Good answer,” Nate stated. “You aren’t going to do anything dangerous, right?”

  She laughed. “I like how you changed that into a question and not some bossy statement.”

  He kissed her fingers. “I’m learning. It’s the whole being a husband thing.”

  And it was.

  Now that he had his wife, he knew he was safe. Life was good, and he’d allow his sweet bird the freedom she loved. As long as they were here, they were safe.

  Maura wasn’t ignorant to what he was saying.

  Nate didn’t do anything without a reason. He’d been a Fed for too long.

  Avalon was out.

  Roxy and Jagger were in.

  The detective and schoolmarm were being tagged and followed.

  This all felt like some plan.

  “What are you thinking?” Maura asked.

  “I woke up happy, and on edge. Something is coming,” Nate said. “I just want all of our bases covered on this. That’s all.”

  What was coming was anyone’s guess, but honestly, Avalon wouldn’t be shocked if there was something sinister lurking there.

  “I don’t like that a dead woman is going to play charades with me,” Bishop said. “When I’m curled up with my husband, I don’t like anyone else squatting in his body.”

  Amen to that.

  They all felt that way.

  Avalon sympathized. “Think how frustrated she must be. I think that Maribel will try to show us more things. She possessed Lucian, and told us that Sir Lawrence Keane was a bad man. She took me for a walk to the tree where he let her die.”

  Maura was the planner. “What do we know about how she communicates?”

  “She clearly likes dreams and during sex,” Nate stated. “Since everyone here is having sex, and sleeping, it’s safe to say we might have an issue.”

  Jagger knew what that meant.

  “Maura and I are going to be on nightly patrol duty, aren’t we?” he asked.

  Nate nodded. “Yep. We don’t need a repeat performance of Avalon getting lured away.”

  Well, it was good to be back on duty. Jagger had missed it, and he didn’t mind.

  “Everyone be safe,” Maura said, kissing her husband on the cheek. “If you get any dings in your chassis, I won’t be happy,” she warned.

  Luke got the picture. She was worried about him, but he had news for her. He was worried about her too.

  “Be safe, Maura.”

  She winked.

  “Take care of my wife!” Nate said.

  They all looked at him.

  “I’m not getting bossy. I just wanted to say it again,” he practically giggled. “Wife. Wife. Wife.”

  Yeah, that wasn’t going to get old any time soon for all of them.

  Avalon laughed.

  “Oh, Nathaniel, what am I going to do with you?”

  He didn’t care.

  As long as she was his.

  Chapter Ten

  Tuesday Morning

  Nearly Nine

  T o say that he was enjoying breakfast would be an understatement. Laird was having one hell of a time with Brianna. The whole hour blew by, and he knew it was going to be time to say goodbye.

  That didn’t make him happy.

  Then he remembered thinking about dinner, and that she’d said to ask him.

  “Um, will you have dinner with me tonight? I know this little pub that makes a really amazing Colcannon. It’s almost as good as my ma used to make.”

  She was waiting to see if he’d ask.

  The whole thing sounded amazing.

  “I’d love that.”

  “I’ll pick you up around seven, if you’re free, Miss Collins.”

  She picked him a pretty posy from near their blanket and tucked it into the pocket of his suit jacket. It only seemed right since he’d picked her a flower the day before.

  “It’s a date.”

  His heart skipped. “It’s casual, so I’ll go home and change. I’ll drive us there.”

  She was good with that.

  Brianna began packing everything up.

  When she looked over, he was moving closer. Well, his really delicious lips were.

  She didn’t move, but instead closed her eyes as she prepared for it.

  Their lips met again, and Laird was pretty sure he’d never tasted anything so sweet, not even the strawberry jam. It was subpar to her mouth.

  He could get used to this.

  Lai
rd took control and dove in, upping the heat enough to give them both something to think about all day. As her fingers found their way into his thick black hair, he forgot everything going on around them.

  Gently, he tugged her across the picnic blanket, and into his lap. There she stayed.

  Laird couldn’t believe that he’d just met her. It seemed like they’d known each other forever.

  His heart wanted to explode.

  Her hands slid down his shoulders, and to his chest, and he began praying that she wandered lower.

  He wouldn’t mind her figuring out what he was thinking.

  Before she could even get to the button on his suit jacket, their twosome became a really sloppy, unwelcome threesome.

  Laird heard it, and then felt it.

  Molly leapt onto them, using her tongue to say hello. They got a bath, and she didn’t care that they were having a moment.

  She wanted in on it.

  “Jaysus! Molly! You nearly scared the hell out of us!”

  Brianna began laughing.

  His normal brogue thickened, deepened, and was sexier than sin when he was worked up.

  “Hello, Molly,” she said, petting the moppet dog. “I see you found us,” she offered, pulling out a biscuit to get the dog to stop mauling them with love.

  She sat.

  Brianna fed her.

  “You’re making my dog stupid in love with you,” he said, watching her hand feeding his beast.

  “She’s pretty awesome. I never had pets as a kid.”

  “Why?”

  She shrugged.

  Immediately, the energy between them changed. They were touching, and he could feel the difference.

  “Hey, are you okay, Miss Collins?”

  “Yeah, I am,” she offered. “Let’s just say my parents didn’t like the idea that dogs got dirty, dirt had bacteria, and kids could get sick. They were overprotective.”

  He touched her leg. “You can have her. She’s a pain in my arse,” he teased.

  Molly rolled onto her back, nearly knocking him over.

  “See?”

  She snorted.

  “Who are you kidding, Mr. Maguire? You love her so much. I can see it. You can tell a lot about a person by the company you keep. You chose her for a reason.”

  “What?” he asked, wondering if she was in his mind.