Dead Man's Hand (The Journals of Octavia Hollows #2)

by Stacey Rourke

  “You have yet to reach the point of helpful.”

  Oblivious to my snark, Nate drummed at his chin with his fingertips. “There was something about the number that made me laugh.” Yet again, the spark of an idea brightened his eyes. “Give me your phone, quick! Before I forget!”

  Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I thumbed the lock screen open and handed it over. “We’re talking about a magical entity here. Usually, they’re summoned through incantations, spells, or enchanted relics. I’m finding it hard to believe this thing actually has a data plan.”

  Phone cradled in his palm, Nate’s lips moved as he typed in the number. “Five-one-six-twenty-three-forty-two.” Before hitting send, he showed me the screen. “Minus the four, eight, and the one that would turn the five into a fifteen, it’s the numbers from Lost. Remember that show? This person was offering good luck at the tables, and the numbers were lottery winners on the show. At the time I thought that was a good sign.”

  Face vacant of emotion, I blinked in his direction. “You ignorant potato. Did you pay attention at all when you watched that show? The numbers were a bad omen. Add that to the fact that this is supposed to be the phone number for a mystical creature, and this is all starting to sound like bullshit. There is absolutely no way this is going to work. The whole phantom phone call thing could be a red herring.”

  Eager to prove himself right, Nate read aloud as he comprised a text message to his possible murderer. “Hey, Professor X—”

  “Seriously? And an X-Men moniker on top of everything? I’m beginning to think you deserved to die. This could have been a natural selection situation.”

  He glanced up to stab me with a little stink-eye before continuing on. “This is Nate. We need to talk. You have thirty minutes to contact me, or what I know goes public.”

  “Wait… what do you know?” Feeling a bead of sweat from the hot Nevada sun trickling down my cleavage, I pulled out the bottom hem of my t-shirt and waved it back and forth just enough to get my boobies a little air.

  One of Nate’s meaty shoulders rose and fell in a lazy shrug. “Nothing, but developing a sense of urgency seemed like a good idea.”

  My hands stilled as I cocked my head to consider him. “Threatening the thing that killed you seemed wise? Yep, absolutely natural selection. How about if we edit that message to a slightly more passive tone?”

  “Yeah, you’re probably ri--- Oh, hell.” Complexion draining milky white, his wide-eyed stare snapped in my direction.

  “Accidentally hit send?”

  I could practically hear the rocks in his head rattle as he nodded in confirmation. “Accidentally hit send.”

  “It’s going to be a real bitch if you get burned alive a second time.” Lips screwing to the side, I hitched one brow. “On the other hand, this could crucify or clear Madge as the culprit.”

  Both of us swiveled in the direction of the oddly dressed counselor. Across the street, she paused, her spine straightening. Slapping at Nate’s arm to make sure he was seeing this, I curled my hand into a fist around the thin fabric of his t-shirt sleeve.

  Pulling up short, Madge scowled.

  Nate and I sucked in a sharp intake of air.

  Slowly, she lifted one foot… and scraped the bottom of her shoe against the pavement to remove a hunk of chewing gum lodged there.

  Cheeks puffed, I released an exaggerated exhale. “Okay, so it’s not her. I’ve gotta say, I’m surprised. Her whole look isn’t entirely convincing as human.”

  “Wait, wait!” This time Nate got to do the smacking. “Look!”

  Across the street, Madge reached into her crocheted shoulder bag and dug out her phone. One glance at it and her head whipped up, features sharpening with a dangerous edge. Her nostrils flared as she pivoted on the ball of her foot and marched off in the direction from which she came.

  “Damn, dude. You better pray she doesn’t find you. She looked pissed.”

  This time it was Nate’s turn to offer me a blank-faced stare. “That’s reassuring, thank you.”

  A quick check to make sure Bacon was safe and somewhat hidden from view, and I elbowed Nate in the ribs. “If that put you on edge, you’re really going to hate this. We don’t know how much time we have until she comes back. We need to move fast. Karen’s life may depend on it.”

  Resolve puffed Nate’s barrel chest. Curling his hands into fists at his sides, he stalked across the street with the purposeful gait of raw determination. I broke into a jog to keep up. We made it as far as the gate when a meek voice averted our attention.

  “H-hey guys, everything okay?” Marv, the waif-thin paper-eater, teetered on the edge of the curb. Gaze shifting from me to Nate and back again, he anxiously wrung his hands. “Madge left group so quick, I got worried. So, I followed her here. I’m guessing you did, too?”

  Jaw clenched tight, the tendons in Nate’s neck bulged. It was with great reluctance that he forced his stare from Karen’s building long enough to deal with Marv. Digging into his pocket, he snatched a loose twenty he must have pocketed at his apartment. “You can’t be here right now, man. It isn’t safe. Take this. Hit a dollar store and pick up your favorite paper products. Gorge yourself on me, just promise you’ll stay at your place tonight.”

  Eyes widening to goose eggs, Marv smacked his lips at the delicious opportunity. “Wow, man. Thanks. But… uh… what about when this comes up at group?”

  Seizing him by the shoulders, Nate physically turned him in the opposite direction and gave him an encouraging shove. “Your secret will die with me. Now go.”

  With the twenty clutched to his chest, Marv scampered off, all the while muttering to himself about finally being able to get the brands with the “fancy” absorbance.

  Slapping a hand on Nate’s back, I watched the happy little weirdo fade into the distance. “That was equal parts odd and noble. Now, let’s go.”

  Chapter Six

  “Karen, you need to put the fork down.” Hand in the air, I approached Karen with extreme caution. There was no judgment in the statement, but extreme concern.

  Dry-heaving as yet another forkful of pumpkin pie neared her lips, tears welled in Karen’s beautiful chestnut eyes. “I want to stop… but, I-I can’t.”

  Half a dozen empty pie pans littered the table, crumbs and pie-filling staining the front of her silk blouse. Deep fissures cracked her skin, revealing red hot embers burning her from the inside out. By the way her hand shook, struggling to pull the fork away, she loathed every bite forced past her lips. Still, whatever gasoline the wish-granting entity threw on her addiction fueled it into a raging inferno that burned far beyond her control.

  Nate and I knew something was wrong the instant we stepped off the elevator onto Karen’s floor. The smell of something burning wafted down the hall, growing stronger as we neared. Wrought with concern, Nate kicked in the door to get us inside.

  At the sight of her, he crumbled. Details of his own death stabbed into him, folding him to his knees. “Oh, God. I remember. I was at the Blackjack table. I could count cards just by looking at them. I couldn’t lose. I went from casino to casino, unable to stop. Each win just fed that burning need within me for more, just… one… more… hit.”

  The haunting memories of his demise having crippled him, it fell to me to try and reason with the struggling stranger. “Maybe you can’t do this by yourself, Karen, but you don’t have to.” With a careful sidestep, I ventured further into her tastefully decorated abode. “We’re here to help. Together, we can beat this. I just need you to loosen your grip and drop the fork.”

  At that one daring step, her hand jerked up as if acting on its own twisted agenda. Her lips clamped shut, the bite sizzling against her steamy skin. “Stay where you are!” she pleaded through tightly clenched teeth.

  Rising to his feet, Nate wiped away the tears streaking his cheeks. “I know what you’re feeling, Karen. You feel small compared to this monstrous addiction that’s crushing you. But it’s an emotion. A f
eeling. Not unlike what I feel for you.” Nate paused and peered down at his hands, as if the words he was hunting would magically be scrolled there. “You’re the most beautiful, kind, compassionate person I’ve ever met. The way you volunteer to sit with anyone at group who may be having a rough moment, needs a ride, or a shoulder to cry on showed me a glimpse into your soul. But it was your smile, the one that lights up any room, that caused me to fall head over heels in love with you.”

  Pulling up short, my head whipped in his direction. “Oh, wow. We’re doing this right now? I’m all for true love prevailing and all that crap, but she’s moments from going full Vesuvius.”

  Karen’s shoulders shook with a fresh peal of sobs. “You never said a word. Literally. I tried to get you to, but couldn’t even get a hello out of you.”

  “That’s the part where I’m a chicken-shit coward. I thought it would be worse to be rejected by you than never having taken the chance at all. I was wrong. And for that, I am so very sorry. But it’s not too late. I will gladly spend the rest of my days making up my shortcomings to you, if you put down the fork and take my hand.” Taking three bold strides forward, Nate extended his hand to her like a chivalrous knight ready to swoop in and save her from herself.

  Glancing at his outstretched hand, Karen considered it.

  Bless her heart, she truly did.

  Chewing on her lower lip, divots of confusion creased her brow.

  Tears slipping past her forest of lashes, she peered up at Nate. The look on her face pleaded for him to understand what even she couldn’t.

  “I would have taken your hand,” she hiccupped, “and it would have been for forever.”

  The demons of her addiction refused to be suppressed or ignored a second longer. Karen’s arm jerked up, shoveling that last, fateful forkful into her mouth.

  A gurgle.

  A rumble.

  Then, the embers smoldering beneath Karen’s skin ignited into a sweltering blaze. The flames of addiction consumed her, blowing away the ashes on what might have been a passing breeze. Both Nate and I were blown back by the blast. Our shoulder blades smacked against the dining room wall before we thumped to the floor on our knees.

  Scrambling across the hardwood floor on his hands and knees, Nate scooped up ash in both hands. “Bring her back! You have to bring her back!”

  Closing the distance between us, I squatted down and gathered the sobbing man in my arms. “I would, Nate. For you, I would if I could. But… there’s nothing left. When you died, you left a vessel I could heal. Your soul had a place to go. But, Karen? She’s…” I glanced around at the cloud of dust and ash settling over every surface in the room, “… gone.”

  Nate slumped against me, his hands gripping the fabric of my shirt in tight fists as he poured out the pain of his heart in anguished wails. “I gave him her name! This is my fault! I was so weak and greedy for that next fucking rush that I gave him her name!”

  Pulling back, I cradled his tear-streaked face between my palms. “Hey, look at me.” Eyebrows raised, I waited for him to meet my gaze. “This is not on you. You didn’t know what this thing was. Still don’t, in fact. But when you knew she was in trouble, you busted ass to try and save her.” He tried to pull away, making me dip my head to hold his eyeline. “You did. You can try and lie to yourself about it, but I was right here and I know the truth. This was a horrible tragedy, but it doesn’t end here. Do you hear me? You can’t break right now. More people will die if we don’t find this thing and kill it. Painful as it is, you have to ask yourself what Karen would want you to do.”

  Nate pulled away the few inches needed to wipe his face on the back of his hand. “She would want me to find this thing and kick its ass.”

  Relaxing my hold, I clapped a hand on his shoulder to offer a friendly jostle of solidarity. “Then that is exactly what we’re going to do.”

  Pushing off the floor, he rose to his full height and blinked down at me through slowing tears. “How?”

  “I’m guessing it will involve the two badass swords strapped to my bike.”

  Nate sniffled and wiped his nose on the back of his hand. “Is that what those weird, black tube things are? I thought someone did a hack job on your exhaust system.”

  I ground my teeth to the point of pain at that insult to my precious chariot. “You thought I would let someone get away with a hack job like that on my baby? I’m going to need you to give me a little credit, here.”

  Ignoring my ill-timed comment, Nate turned his chin to his shoulder to survey the scene where he watched his beating heart shatter. “What do we do? How can we possibly make this right?”

  Slapping a hand to my knee, I rose to my feet. “We’ve got the phone number of this entity, which is a weird sentence when you’re talking about the supernatural. Regardless, I can track their location. We’ll find this piece of shit monster and make it answer for what it’s done.”

  Nate placed a hand on Karen’s wall as if making a solemn vow to her alone. “We won’t let it hurt anyone, ever again.”

  Meeting his stare, I held it with iron-clad conviction. “On that, you have my word.”

  Grabbing my phone, I found the number he had texted. With the help of my GPS Phone Tracker app, I pinpointed the device with a few easy clicks. “Whoever has that particular phone is at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center, not far from here. I say we move now, before we lose them.”

  “That’s Madge’s car!” Nate shouted, jabbing his finger toward a boat of a Pontiac that was docked at a curbside parking spot. Unease clouded his features as Nate’s arm dropped. “Something about this doesn’t feel right.”

  Shoving the kickstand down with the heel of my boot, I eased the bike onto it and kicked my leg over the seat. “Is it the fact that we’re chasing your killer and the group chairperson just happened to show up? Because, that’s the thing I’m currently hung up on.”

  Shoulders sagging, Nate glanced around, his expression a question mark. “No, it’s not that. It’s more like… déjà vu of a memory I can’t quite place.”

  “This is where Google pinged the phone, which makes me think my hunch was right. I knew Madge wasn’t believable as a human.” My rant was interrupted by my phone buzzing in my pocket. Pulling it out, I answered without hesitation… and instantly regretted it. “Hello?”

  “Octavia,” I recognized Dina’s cutting tone the instant she uttered my name.

  Squeezing my eyes shut, I cursed quietly under my breath. “Sister Dina, did you draw the short straw in the coven to become my constant chaperone? Because, if my opinion on the topic matters, I’d like to throw Sister Tralynn’s name in the hat for that job. I liked her. She used to share her weed.”

  “Don’t be coy. You know very well that as the Elder in this coven, it falls to me to investigate troublesome matters… such as the surge of your dark magic I felt.” From the other end of the line I could hear her bangle bracelets jangling against her phone. “Did you bring someone or something back from the dead, again?”

  “Who is it?” Nate whispered.

  I swatted at the air between us as a none-too-subtle hint for him to shut up. “Bring someone back? What? That’s crazy talk. I don’t know where you got that idea—”

  “Fine. If that’s how you want to play this, I’ll be there in five minutes.”

  “Oh, wait! A magical surge? You know what, I think I have an idea of what that could be from. But, really, it’s not a big deal at all.”

  Dina clucked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. “What a marvel that you suddenly remembered.”

  Pacing back and forth beside my bike, I popped off the child-sized aviators I got for Bacon and rubbed the bridge of his snout where they had been resting. “This guy hit a kid’s puppy with his car. Horrible situation; poor little Cocker Spaniel didn’t stand a chance.”

  Face folding into a frown, Nate pulled his chin to his chest. “Is that true? Poor puppy!”

  Hushing him with one raised finger, I rolled
my eyes. “The kid was inconsolable, Dina. It was a mess. Blood and fur everywhere. And, in that moment, I remembered what you said about my abilities bordering on the dark arts, and I took it to heart. I really did. But, I think we can both agree that for the sake of that sweet kid, I had to bring that...” my gaze fell on Nate, as the nonstop gush of bullshit continued to spill from my lips, “scorched and pitiful puppy back to life.”

  “Wait,” Nate winced, slowly catching on, “am I supposed to be the puppy in this story? I resent that label. Why couldn’t I be, like, a beautiful stallion, or an imposing Rottweiler?”

  Planting my feet, I silenced him with a glare. “I remember now, it was a teeny little pup. One of those teacup chihuahuas that shake all the time.”

  “Well, now you’re just being cruel,” Nate scoffed, folding his arms over his chest.

  Filling her lungs to capacity, Dina exhaled her audible frustration. “This dog somehow got scorched after being hit by a car?”

  “The car flipped, exploded into flames. Driver got out alive, thankfully. You should google it. It will be all over the news for sure.” One hand stabbed on my hip, I shook my head toward the heavens and prayed I would miraculously learn how to shut the hell up. “Long story short, I did use my ability. But only to bring a puppy back for a heartbroken child. Had it woken up and gone full Cujo, I would have reversed my magic right away. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case. But, I mean, after what happened in Seattle, can you blame me for wanting to see a kid smile? Remember? That wraith tried to kill an entire family and siphon the life out of their kiddos.”

  Kicking his leg off the motorcycle, Nate froze with his foot still a few inches from the ground. “Wait, is this a thing you do? Going town to town, bringing people back from the dead? If so, I can see why whoever that is would be concerned.”

  “It was a week ago, Octavia. Of course I remember.” Sister Dina’s tone remained dangerously devoid of emotion. “I wonder if you remember the warning I left with you? The coven is watching and we will intercede if we must. Research has been done for possible binding rituals—”