“The softball game. My nieces were playing.”
“Oh. Did they win?”
“No, but softball isn’t about winning or losing. It’s about playing.”
Every twitch, every flicker of expression seemed genuine. What the hell? “What else do you remember?”
“Going home. Why? What is this about?”
“Where did you wake up, sir?”
“In my bed. Why are you asking these questions?”
“When did you wake up in your bed?”
“This morning. Would someone tell me what’s going on here? This is ridiculous.”
His timeline wasn’t jiving. Did he even realize that? “Do you remember being kidnapped, tortured?”
He started to shake his head, then stopped, his gaze dimming for a moment. The X’s that had been carved over his eyes flashed a burning orange for a fleeting moment.
“Where did you wake up, Eddie?” Dexx asked, stepping closer to the man.
“In the morgue. I woke up in the morgue.”
“How did you get here?” Paige asked.
“I—” He closed his eyes, then reopened them. “I hit the doctor in the head. Then I searched for some clothes. These aren’t—these aren’t my clothes.”
They appeared to be a bit frumpy, but that didn’t matter. Not these days. Paige couldn’t judge a person by the clothes they wore. At least, she hadn’t figured out how yet. “Why are you here?”
“For my car.”
“What are you going to do with your car?”
“Go home.”
“Why?”
“I—I don’t know.”
This wasn’t getting her where she needed to go. She needed a different tactic. “Was anyone else with you in the morgue?”
“Yes.” He spoke as if he were in a daze or a trance. “Sven. Sven was there. He told me—” His eyes lit up. “He told me to find you. To give you a message.”
“And what’s the message?”
He paused, staring at the ceiling in thought. “The time’s not right for us, m’dear. But one day soon, you’ll come to me. A love like ours cannot be shared. For all who dare, beware.”
Paige’s face contorted in painful confusion. “What the hell does that mean?”
“I don’t—” He stopped speaking. His abdomen split open and a rush of swallowtail butterflies filled the room. Each butterfly seemed to grow out of him until nothing was left. Not his clothes. Not his skin. Nothing.
Paige stared in stupefied wonder. What the . . . hell?
DEXX COULDN’T HELP at the station. His damn demon trap didn’t even work. Paige didn’t know where the demons were hiding. She couldn’t get close to them. He couldn’t keep her safe with his wards.
He had one thing left he could do.
The hot, evening air hit him as he stepped out of the police station. He found the number he wanted and hit send. It rang and rang with no answer. Finally, the voice mail picked up. “Hello, and welcome to the Mental Health Hotline. If you are obsessive compulsive, press 1 repeatedly.”
Dexx hung up and tried it again.
Nick picked up right before it went to voicemail. “Mre-wo.”
“Dude, I didn’t wake you, did I?”
“Crashed when I got home. I’m so done. So done.” Nick paused for a huge yawn.
Dexx fought the urge to join him. “Big case?”
“Yeah. Pulled an all-nighter. Damned paperwork.”
“That’s probably not what I’d be complaining about. You’re soft, Nick, like a baby’s butt.”
Nick groaned. “Tell me you didn’t call rag on me.”
Dexx rubbed his face and propped his foot against the brick wall behind him. “I need a favor.”
“Sure, man. Anything. And, hey, how’s Paige? Is it demons? Did they hurt her?”
“Yes, it is demons and she’s fine. Kind of. Sort of. Well, for now.”
“Shit,” Nick said. “I’m coming down.”
“And do what? Emote at people? That’s what you empaths do, right?”
“You said demons.”
“Which you’re worthless against, you delicate little feeling flower.”
“You seriously gotta back off on that. You know what I can do.”
“You’ve shown me.” And he had. Nick had beaten Dexx to a sobbing pool of tears in one moment, a murderous rage the next. That’s not counting the time Dexx couldn’t gather the energy to care due to the power of Nick’s delicate flower power. Yeah. The man could kick some serious ass. “Look, Paige is handling herself well. She has her emotions under control. She’s not breaking. Well—” When demons weren’t inside her, trying to take over.
“Were you going to finish that thought?”
“She’s doing well.”
“Fine. Then why’d you call? Your ink’s on its way. I should have tracking later today. Or, shoot. No. What time is it? Six? Tomorrow. Is Paige really all right? You’re not trying to snowball me, are you? You’ve gotten kind of close to her. I’d call it romantically entangled if I didn’t know you better.”
“But you do, so you should know better than to think it.” Except Nick was right. He was thinking those thoughts. What was getting into him?
“So answer my question. Is Paige okay?”
“If you’re really asking about your mother’s safety, she’s fine. I mean, I don’t think Paige is going to call down another demon to off her or anything. Just keep Rachel from doing something stupid. Especially right now. She’s fine, but things are a bit . . . fragile.”
“Like what? What do you mean?”
“Like inviting Paige to New York so Rachel could surprise her with a restraining order, that’s what.”
“What?” Nick paused. “But Mom said—”
“You know what?” Dexx held up his hand, rage running like fire through him, He smiled tightly at the man walking into the building. Sometimes, talking on the phone around others was awkward. He dropped eye contact and continued, his voice lowered. “I really don’t care what that conniving, manipulative bitch said. I saw what happened.”
“No, you didn’t. Mom did and Paige did.”
“I saw it in a vision. We—” He pressed his thumb into his eye ridge. “Look, man, I don’t know how to explain it, but we linked. That’s all I know and I saw what Rachel did. She invited Paige over. When she knew Paige was on the road, she had her served with the restraining order. But Paige didn’t get it because she was already on the road.”
“But that doesn’t make sense,” Nick said. “Why would Mom do something like that?”
“Because she’s a bitch? Nick, I need you to do something. I need you to take Leah out sometime today or tomorrow. Today would be better.” He and Paige might end up dead tomorrow. “Then call me on my cell. Paige needs to hear her daughter’s voice.”
“Or I could tell Mom and—”
“You can’t let Rachel know.”
“You know her, Dexx. She’s protective, sure, but she’s not what Leslie and Paige think about her.”
How could the man be so stupid? “She abandoned her own daughters. You’re only close because she kept you on a tight leash.”
“You sang a different tune before you started spending so much time with Paige.”
“I couldn’t see it when I was so close to her. Dude. Take a step back.”
“I’m not lying to my mother, Dexx. Paige lost Leah fair and square. She deserved having her memories wiped.”
“Holy fuck balls.” Dexx fought to keep his anger restrained. “Did you just fucking say that?”
Nick snorted.
“Have you talked to her lately?”
“No. Why would I? Grandma and Les made her forget she had a reason to call me.”
Was that a hint of bitter in his tone? “And you couldn’t call her? Remind you’re not the biggest asshole on the planet?”
Nick released a low breath. “You wanted a favor and thought you’d get it by calling me an asshole.”
Dexx let out a long breat
h, struggling to calm down. “Nick. Dude.”
“I’m listening.”
He didn’t know how to say what he wanted to. Seeing her side made him so pissed. But Nick was his best friend. “You’re not an asshole.”
“Thank you.”
“But you’re a bit blind when it comes to your mother. Whatever you think, Paige isn’t a bad person either. Smart when in the fiery rage of a serial mad-woman? No. But she’s not a bad person. And she loves her daughter.”
Nick sighed.
“I need her head in the game. Things could go pretty bad, and letting her hear her daughter’s voice just once could make the biggest difference.”
“I can’t lie to my mother, D.”
“Paige feels like she just lost Leah yesterday, and with her gift working again—”
“What?”
“Stop the freak-out. This gift you were so scared of isn’t so bad. She uses it for good.”
“I’m not freaking out.”
“Yes. You are. Your whole damn family is. You’re all afraid of her because of something she was born with, and she’s probably afraid her own daughter will be, too. After all, she’s being raised by irrational people who won’t give her a real fucking chance.”
“Well, we don’t—we don’t talk about Paige.” Nick’s voice lowered. “Leah still loves her. A lot. I’ve passed on secret messages when I could.”
Surprise knocked Dexx up the side of his head. For him to do that spoke volumes. “Great. So can you do it? Can you get Leah on the phone?”
“Yeah,” Nick sighed. “Okay. I’m on it. Just tell Paige to be careful if she ever talks to Rachel.”
“You’re afraid she’ll blow your cover? You do realize that if you’re this scared of your mother, that’s not healthy. Right? You do see that.”
“Dexx. She’s my mother.”
“Yeah. Oddly, I have one, too, and she doesn’t try to control me. She realizes I’m a big boy now, capable of thinking for myself.”
“Shut up.”
“You’re my best friend, Nick. My best friend.”
“Yeah.” Nick paused. “I know.”
“Tell me one thing, and be honest. Is Leah in danger?”
Nick didn’t answer immediately. “No.”
“No, not while you’re there to keep your mother calm? Or no, not physically? Or no, not so’s it’d show?”
The other side of the line was dead quiet.
Dexx sighed. “This has got to stop, Nick. There is one seriously hurt woman over here. Her heart is in pieces and . . .” He flared his nostrils in thought as he ground his teeth. “You’re a grown man. You’re working in one of the biggest law firms in the city. You can help her if you wanted to.”
“When did you start caring about anyone other than Jackie?”
About two years ago when he’d worked with Paige for over a month on a case. “When did you start being such a pussy?”
“Dude.” Nick’s tone held a hint of warning. “Back off.”
“You know I’m gonna win.”
“Yeah, whatever.”
“Good. So you’ll do it?”
“I already said I would. But the last time I did this, Leah and I almost got caught.”
Dexx frowned. “Caught how?”
“Mom came looking for us. She forgot to tell us to pick something up at the grocery store and thought she’d come get it herself.”
“Shit. Do you hear the words coming out of your mouth? That’s borderline insane.”
“It’s borderline something. Hey, Dexx.”
“Yeah.”
“Thanks.”
“For what?”
“For looking out for my sister.”
“Yeah, whatever.” Dexx pushed himself off the building, his stomach rumbling. He needed food. Stat. “Just make sure you get a time so Paige can talk to her little girl.” Before they all ended up dead.
“I’ll start reviewing what I can do to get Leah back to Paige.”
“Yeah, smart-boy, why don’t you get on that, like last week?”
“Shut up, douche bag.”
“Ass-wipe.”
“Coc—”
“See ya!” Dexx hung up. They could call each other names until the sun went down.
He just hoped this wasn’t a little too little, a little too late.
DEXX PLOPPED DOWN in the chair beside the desk Brian had let Paige borrow.
Paige finished reading the email from the doctor. Eddie Lopez’s body was indeed missing from the morgue. The doctor had sent a few of the butterflies to the lab for analysis. She was willing to bet the butterflies would have trace DNA from Eddie. She didn’t know how.
Love notes? Via dead bodies?
Dexx tapped the desk with his fist.
She looked up, her eyebrow raised. “Yes?”
“Can you do anything else here?” he asked, his expression dead pan.
Special Agents Scott and Forde were holed up in the conference room, their laptops open. It looked like New Roads had done everything but take over the station. Pretty ballsy move on Brian’s part, but one Paige couldn’t disagree with. All the evidence had been gathered. Statements had been written. She’d reviewed everything a half dozen times already.
“Nope.”
“Great. I need food. Now. Fries. And a burger with extra pickles and bacon. Lots of bacon. Maybe a shake. Chocolate and really big.” He used his hands to show how big a shake he needed.
She snorted. “They don’t come in that size. Where do you put it all anyway?”
He leapt to his feet, digging his keys out of his pocket. “High metabolism.”
“Why are we driving? The diner’s right down the street.”
“There’s another one down the highway I want to try. Brian said it’ll change my life.”
Her chortle died with a hmm. “Oh dear.”
“No judging.”
The air dropped a degree, but the humidity had risen. Not that she could really tell. She looked forward to returning to Denver where the air was drier and cooler.
They arrived at the diner, a little chrome and turquoise building off the highway. Old time Rock ‘n Roll blasted through the speakers. Their waitress took their order and be-bopped to the kitchen in her pink poodle skirt.
“Heavy day,” Dexx said, shoving his straw in his soda.
“Heavy week.” Paige removed the lemon slice from her iced tea and set it aside. “I’ll be glad when this case is over.”
He nodded, his lips pursed. “Want to talk?”
“About?”
“About your mother, your daughter, your memories. Anything. I’m being your friend here, Pea. You’ve had a lot of shit thrown at you with no time to deal with it.”
“Oh, good grief. I’m not going to sit here and cry on your shoulder.”
“Maybe if you’d grieved before, you wouldn’t have called the demon to kill Rachel, and we wouldn’t be in this mess.”
She massaged her temple. He was right. Nothing else had to be said about it, though. His words were true. End of story.
He snapped his fingers in front of her face. “Yeah. Like that. Whatever is going on right there, you need to share. Get it out. Purge it.”
“Because talking about it will make everything all better.”
He shrugged. “No and yes all at the same time.”
“The thing is . . .” She let her voice trail off as thoughts and emotions battled with each other inside of her mind. She didn’t want to talk, didn’t want to share, but her mouth had other ideas. “I hate her. I really, really hate her.”
Dexx lifted his eyebrows in acknowledgment. “I’m not her biggest fan ever.”
“I want to kill her.” Paige met his gaze. “I want to maim her, to hurt her.” She ground her teeth. “I don’t know how to handle this, control it. This anger—it changed me.” Her throat clogged with emotion.
Dexx laid his hand next to hers on the table. “You’re stronger than you were then. You’re handling th
is a lot better.”
“I called that demon, Dexx. I told him to kill my mother and I really, really wanted him to. I didn’t think of Leah or how that would affect her. My only thoughts were for myself.”
“We’re all allowed selfish moments.”
“Not homicidal ones. The thing is, I’d do it again. The thought’s crossed my mind. Who would I summon? Who would do as I commanded?”
“You could hire a hit man.”
“Demons are cheaper.”
“Wow.” He released short breath, his eyebrows raised. “Just wow. I hadn’t thought of that. So, no soul signing?”
“I’m a summoner. So, no.”
“You could hire me. I’d do it practically free. Just pay for my gas, I’m your man.”
“You’d go to jail for me, too?”
“Look, Pea.” Dexx grabbed a sugar packet and dumped it on the table. “If she’d done to me what she did to her, I’d be in jail. She’d be dead. By my hand.”
Paige’s eyebrows rose in slow increments.
“I’m not a nice person, either.” He ran his fingertip through the spilled sugar. “That doesn’t make me bad. I just don’t take shit from anybody. I know my limits. Well, sometimes I do. Most times I stay within them.”
She watched his finger move the grains of sugar around, drawing a picture of Mickey Mouse. At least she thought it was Mickey. It could have been a camel.
“But what you’ve gotta do now is figure out what you’re going to do with it. The hate, the anger. How are you going to use it?”
“I feel like I’m evil or tainted or something horrible.”
“You’re not. At least, not yet. Are you going to go around killing people?”
The obvious answer was no. Yes, the anger beckoned, but it wasn’t enough to drive her into homicidal action. Thoughts? Sure. Thoughts were easy. Actions were different. “What happened to the smart ass? Where’d this come from?”
“Being a smart-ass is my cover so that when I have my one minute of smart, I’m brilliant.”
She rubbed her eye. “I don’t want to get back to the lying. That’s the one thing I loved about the last three years and didn’t even realize it. I didn’t have to lie. I didn’t have to cover anything up. Having the chief and Agent Scott know is such a relief. I won’t have that in Denver, though.”
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