Oracle Saving (The Phoenix Files Book 3)

by Morgan Kelley

  Yeah, it sucked to be him.

  Nate let it go. “Let’s check on Joann.”

  They headed in, guns drawn as they listened to the silence of the house. It was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.

  “She’s going to be in her bed,” Nate said. “He strikes in their sleep.”

  They all made the walk down the hallway with their guns still out. Yes, this killer was in the victims’ minds, but why risk it? Who knew what, or who, could be waiting for them?

  Upstairs, in her bedroom, they found her.

  It was pretty much what they were expecting.

  She was staring up at the ceiling, her eyes and mouth were wide open in a horrible ‘O’ shape, and she was tangled in her sheets as if she’d been fighting a horrible battle.

  Yeah, he’d been in her mind all right.

  Shit.

  “Call the sheriff, Luke. We’ll do a search, and hopefully, we can find something…anything. I want it done before Gilespie gets here and asks us all the uncomfortable questions he has to be thinking about by now.”

  He began dialing.

  Bishop and Nate began pulling on latex gloves to dig around in the woman’s personal things. If she’d crossed paths with the killer, it had to be for some reason. Maybe they could find something that pointed them in his direction.

  They searched for a few minutes.

  It was a dead end.

  Nate turned up nothing. He was getting frustrated over the entire situation. How did you track someone you couldn’t see?

  Luke came back with his phone in his hand. The look on his face said it all.

  “Let me guess,” Nate offered. “He’s not happy that we’ve found another victim.”

  That would be one hell of an understatement.

  “Uh, the man is pissed off. He’s not happy at all, guys. You know who this is going to land all over, right?”

  Yeah, them.

  “I’m not shocked,” Nate stated. He had a feeling their biggest problem was going to be the sheriff. If he had an ounce of cop in his blood, he’d be smelling something was way off and foul.

  “He’s ready to lose it. I’d like to say he was on a tear, but he wasn’t. Something felt off about his reaction. I get him being pissed we found her, but…”

  Bishop was scrolling through the woman’s phone. “Well, I think I know why you had that feeling,” she said.

  “Why?” they both said.

  “Look,” she offered, handing over what she’d found beside the woman’s bed.

  Nate caught the phone, and he and Luke began reading the one text message that had arrived sometime in the night.

  ‘Drinks tomorrow?’

  “I don’t get it,” Nate said. “She had a date? How does that tell you why the sheriff was off?”

  Luke got it, simply because he’d just dialed that exact number a few minutes ago. “That’s Joe Gilespie’s number, Nate. He contacted the dead girl.”

  “The sheriff?”

  “Better yet, where’s the one place you can get drinks in Happy?” Bishop asked.

  “That would be ‘Lucky’s’.”

  “We just tied our friendly neighborhood sheriff to a dead girl, the bar we were just at, and one more link to where the killer is hunting for his victims.”

  Nate knew what this meant.

  The man had some explaining to do.

  * * * O R A C L E * * *

  Morgue

  Roxy was just cutting into the decaying corpse for the start of the autopsy on the deceased coroner. It was going to be a particularly disgusting hour, and she wasn’t looking forward to it. She really hated this one part of her job. The rest didn’t bother her, but digging around in a stinky corpse wasn’t for the faint at heart.

  Especially if the person doing the digging was pregnant.

  Roxy’s hormones were all over the place, and she actually wanted to puke and cry at the same time.

  She was a mess.

  On top of pregnancy, she had another issue.

  The man hadn’t been embalmed. The widow had opted to put him in the ground au natural.

  The outcome wasn’t pretty.

  He was a bloated, rotting mess. If it couldn’t possibly get any worse, it did. His casket had leaked. At the bottom, there was a puddle of goo where his internal organs had rotted through his flesh and pooled beneath him in the casket.

  Tell her again why she did this for a living?

  Yeah, because she hated herself—clearly.

  “Are you okay?” Jagger asked, watching her from a corner of the room. He had taken sentry by the door in case someone came looking for her. He’d see them first.

  He was on amped up protection duty for his baby and girlfriend. Was that what she was?

  “I’m good. Thank you.”

  “Do you need my help, ma’am,” asked one of the techs as he circled the room to get to her.

  Jagger noticed two things. The man was a little too eager to play in a dead body, and he was trying to stare down Roxy’s scrubs and into Jagger’s personal babe territory.

  Someone had a death wish.

  Then again, this tech might just be an idiot.

  “No, Dillon. You can finish what you were doing. I need you to get ready for the second autopsy. We have another coming in soon.”

  “Okay, ma’am. If your back starts to hurt, I can rub your shoulders for you.”

  There was a snap of gum coming from Jagger. It broke the silence after the man’s comment.

  Roxy looked up.

  Jagger, who was normally unreadable, had one hell of a look on his face. She would have laughed, but she opted to revel in it. Apparently, someone was jealous. It made her feel safe, peaceful, and stupid in love with him.

  Still…

  She couldn’t help herself.

  “Well, my lower back is killing me.”

  The young man moved toward her. Jagger pointed at him. “Freeze. What’s your name?”

  “Dillon Pike.”

  “Good. Dillon Pike, if your hands come in contact with her body, unless it’s to do CPR in an emergency situation, I will cut them off and use them as decoration for the rearview mirror of my truck. Each time I see them, I’ll laugh over how you’re wandering around Happy, unable to jerk off.”

  The man stared.

  Roxy started laughing.

  “Picture it.”

  “You should go, Dillon. I’ll be safe,” she offered. “His bark is worse than his bite.”

  “Don’t bet on it, Roxy,” stated Jagger. “I have one hell of a wicked bite.”

  The man stared at Jagger as if measuring his options.

  The boy was definitely stupid. Jagger knew how to emphasize his point. When he pulled out a large switchblade, the tech knew he wasn’t kidding.

  He ran.

  “Seriously, Roxy? Do you want a third autopsy to do this morning? Don’t take workaholic to a new level.”

  “It’s like you’re jealous.”

  He stared at her.

  Oh, he was three days past jealous. Roxy was carrying his baby, and if she thought that didn’t matter, well, she had a huge surprise coming.

  Instead of answering, he opted to take a different route.

  “I’ll head over to the coffee shop while you work. I’ll find someone to keep me busy.”

  She got worried. “I didn’t mean…”

  “There’s this big breasted blonde there who wanted my number.”

  She stared at him.

  “Ouch.”

  “See?”

  “I’m sorry, okay?”

  “Why, Roxy?”

  “I’m trying to forget that I’m on a list to die as I dig through the rotting body of the last coroner. I shouldn’t have, but I needed a distraction.”

  He softened.

  She had a point. Maybe she wasn’t trying to hurt him or play a game. Maybe she was just trying not to break apart under the pressure. He got that. Many times, he said and did things to forget about what he w
as facing down.

  “I’m sorry that I hurt you just now,” she offered. “If you really want that blonde, I don’t blame you. She’s likely going to be more fun than I am. Get her number. My days are limited. You’ll need a distraction.”

  It really hurt saying it, but she knew the likelihood was she was going to be on this table at some point.

  She was a dead woman walking.

  He heard the hurt and he didn’t like the idea that she was giving up hope.

  She wouldn’t be dying.

  He wouldn’t be chasing anymore tail.

  Neither of those things were ever happening.

  “I don’t want the blonde, Roxy. I want you. You have to trust me. I chased you down. You’re carrying our child. You’re my only focus from here on out. As for you dying, you have to believe in my skill. I’m damn good at my job. No one will hurt you. I promise.”

  She wanted to believe.

  “I’m also sorry for retaliating like that. It was my first instinct to protect my heart by hurting someone else’s. I’m still learning,” Jagger offered. “I’ll make mistakes, but I’ll own them.”

  She wiped at her eyes with her bare arm.

  Great.

  He’d made the woman cry…again.

  Jagger knew that he shouldn’t have done it, but he was curious if the old Roxy was back. Honestly, he liked the new one. She was less hostile, sweet, and she needed him. Jagger didn’t mind a strong woman, but when he was with her, he craved protecting what was his.

  It was caveman and dangerous—when it came to getting his ass handed to him—but he felt how he felt, and he couldn’t do anything but be honest about it.

  “Why did you really do it?” she asked, as she cut out what was left of the deceased coroner’s liver. Roxy wanted to know why he threw the blonde at her.

  Was there really one?

  She’d kick her ass.

  “I was jealous. You’re beautiful, and I’m just a soldier. He’s probably smarter than I am. You probably deserve better than me. I got angry that you’d flirt with someone else in front of me.”

  Putting it out there was painful, but Jagger didn’t want to lie to her. She’d been honest, and he was returning the favor.

  “I doubt it. He was trying to stare down my shirt with you in the room. That’s not smart.”

  He snorted. Ah, he really liked this new Roxy. She was genuine, and he loved that.

  “No, no it’s not. They boy has a lot to learn.”

  Then he got quiet.

  “Are you mad?” she asked, glancing up at him when he stopped talking.

  He wasn’t, but he needed to clarify one thing to her. “Can we promise no more games, Roxy? Can we say what we mean, so we don’t ever have to pull the jealousy card?”

  She’d like that.

  Roxy held out her gooey, gross, double gloved hand.

  “Want to shake?”

  “Not in a million years. In fact, I don’t know if I can have sex with you without hosing you down in bleach first. That’s gross,” he stated. “At least the bodies I see are fresh.”

  She snorted. “If I wanted a kiss, you’d give me one.”

  He stared at her. “I would not.”

  “Want to have sex in the cooler?”

  He opened his mouth. “You win. I’m controlled by my dick. I have no limits and I’m simply controlled by my lower brain. I apparently have no boundaries.”

  She laughed.

  Roxy knew what he was doing. He was trying to help her forget.

  It was working.

  “I like your lower brain.”

  “Yeah? How much?”

  “I like it even more when it’s in me.”

  His body reacted.

  “We have to be meant to be,” he offered. “Who talks dirty to each other during an autopsy?”

  She started laughing.

  “I’m being serious, Roxy.”

  “Serious about what? About us being pervs?” she asked, her heart thumping in her chest.

  “No, the other part about us being meant to be.”

  The words made her heart flip in her chest.

  She wanted to be his. Roxy knew she was meant to be with him. He’d found her after she left. It meant something. No other man she’d ever met had made her feel safe. With Jagger, she didn’t need to worry. She trusted him.

  “Well?” he asked.

  Before she could say a word, the door swung open, and there stood Silas Reed, and he didn’t look happy.

  The shit was about to hit the fan.

  Jagger went for his gun, and then recognized the man. Apparently, he had a death wish.

  “Granddad!” she said, staring in shock.

  “Roxanne Marie Faust! Get your ass out of that dead body, pack up your shit, and we’re going home.”

  “Uh, Pops,” she began. “I can’t leave.”

  “I’m not having my pregnant granddaughter playing in a biohazard. That’s not safe for a baby. What the hell are you thinking, child?”

  “Granddad.”

  “No! No, arguments! You’re done here. I’ve chased you all the way to this pittance of a hole, and you’re coming home with me where you’ll be safe. I’ve had enough of your pigheadedness, Roxanne. I mean it.”

  She stared at him. “You realize I’m an adult, and you can’t take me hostage, right?”

  “I don’t know who knocked you up and ran, but when I find him, I’m going to beat his ass down for this. He’s going to wish I never found him. That pathetic excuse for a man has no right to this baby, and I’ll make sure your child is raised right! Men today have no clue what they are supposed to do!”

  Jagger cleared his throat.

  Silas turned on his cane.

  He recognized him.

  “Oh, you’re that FBI guy. Are you working with them again, Roxy?” he asked.

  “Well…”

  How did she break this one to the old man? She didn’t think he was going to take this well at all. When she glanced at the Marine, she wasn’t sure what to say.

  He saw the look.

  Jagger took over. In fact, he’d heard quite enough. First, there was no way anyone was raising his child but him. Secondly, she ran from him. How was he supposed to know she’d been pregnant? Third…he’d love to see him try and beat him down. That wouldn’t be a fair fight. Jagger played dirty when it mattered, and nothing mattered more than Roxy and his baby.

  Jagger’s patience were getting more and more frayed by the minute. He tried to remember this was Roxy’s family, and the older man deserved some respect.

  He went with politeness.

  “I actually have this under control, Mr. Reed. You can relax and stop worrying about Roxy and the baby.”

  “What?”

  “I said…” He tried to repeat himself but was cut off by a very angry man.

  “She’s my granddaughter, and I will take care of our family’s issues, son. Back off if you know what’s good for you.”

  Roxy heard the tone.

  She knew what was coming.

  Silas was going to blow.

  No one said no to the man. In Ravenswood, he’d been the mayor for so long for two reasons. He got shit done and because he had connections that kept the first reason at the forefront of the citizenry’s minds.

  “Actually, I can one up you on this, Mr. Reed. That deadbeat man, who isn’t taking care of his child, is right here. I’m the father. I tracked her down, and I’ll be here for her and our baby. So, you can slow your roll, head back to Ravenswood, and stop worrying about her. It’s my last time saying it.”

  Silas stared at him.

  It was clearly a challenge to him.

  Then he glanced over at Roxy for clarification.

  “Is he really the father?”

  “Yes, Granddad. I had unprotected sex with him on the last case, and we created our daughter. He’s right. I’ll be fine. You should go home where you’re safe.”

  The bottom line for Roxy was that
she didn’t want the man who healed and finished raising her to be in danger. Having both him and Jagger in the same room together was a very bad thing.

  The old man glared at Jagger.

  “Oh, okay, son. I’ll be more than happy to leave when you can answer one question.”

  “What?” Jagger asked.

  “When are you getting married? In my world, if you knock a girl up, you do the right thing.”

  Roxy dropped the decaying liver she’d been holding. It plopped to the table with a sick sound. It was about the same sound as her stomach had just made when it dropped from his statement.

  “What the hell? Silas! Are you out of your damn mind? No one goes around saying shit like that!”

  “Watch your mouth, young lady. I will put you over my knee!”

  She sputtered a boatload of profanities.

  He ignored her outrage and pointed out the facts.

  “I asked when he’s going to do the right thing. If he’s the father, there’s a courthouse, and I’ll be the witness.”

  “GRANDDAD!”

  Oh, Jagger could play this game.

  If the man thought for one second that forcing a marriage would scare him away, he had another thing coming. He’d throw down with Roxy’s grandfather any day. He didn’t respect the man simply because he reminded him of his own father.

  He really disliked mob men. Silas Reed screamed one from his shiny shoes to his silver tipped cane.

  Two could play at this game.

  “Okay,” said Jagger. “Let’s go get married.”

  Silas looked just about as shocked as Roxy did by his comment.

  “WHAT?” they both blurted.

  Jagger was taking over this derailment. He was sick and tired of games. He wanted life to be straightforward, simple, and most importantly, happy.

  “Get cleaned up, Roxy. We’ll go get married, and you can come back and finish the autopsies later. They’ll wait. Trust me when I say they aren’t going anywhere.”

  She couldn’t believe her ears. He was acting like this was running out for a damn coffee.

  It pissed her off.

  “I am not going to marry you, Jagger Armstrong!”

  “Why not?” he asked.

  Would it really be that bad?