Ivy was utterly flabbergasted. “How come nobody ever told me about it?”
Michael’s answer was simple. “I thought you knew.”
The situation was so surreal, Jack had to press his lips together to keep from laughing. “Maybe you should go into greater detail for Ivy,” he suggested. “I think we would all benefit from hearing what you have to say, in fact.”
“Okay, but it’s not earth-shattering or anything. In fact, the things Ivy can do seem a little more intense than the things I’ve heard about in the past. I’m betting it’s because she got a double dose. It’s kind of exciting, huh?”
Ivy was morose. “Not from my perspective.”
“Oh, suck it up.” Michael wasn’t about to lose his happy-go-lucky attitude. “You’re special. We always knew it. There’s nothing to worry about. You simply need to chill out.”
Jack rubbed the back of his neck as Ivy made a series of small growling noises in the back of her throat. The afternoon was definitely taking a turn.
“CAN YOU BELIEVE HIM?”
Ivy was still spitting and sputtering an hour later when Jack drove them to the diner for dinner. He’d listened to her curse under her breath for so long, he was surprised when she actually let loose real words.
“What do you want me to say?” He climbed out of his truck and waited for her at the front of the vehicle. “He says you should’ve known.”
“Hearing stories about how my grandmother, a woman I don’t really remember all that well, used to predict the weather thanks to a ‘feeling’ in her big toe is not the same thing as what’s happening to me.”
“I think he was trying to make you feel better.”
“Well, it didn’t work.”
Jack could readily see that. “Honey, I think you’re making this into a bigger deal in your head than it really is. I’ll admit that I’ve never met anyone like you but that’s not a bad thing. I happen to like that you’re unique.”
“You like that I can see things in my head?” Ivy hissed, her eyes darting around the parking lot to make sure no one was listening. “I very much doubt that’s what you thought you would be getting into when we started dating.”
“I didn’t expect any of this when we started dating,” Jack admitted, folding his arms across his chest as he studied her intense expression. “I didn’t expect visions ... or shared dreams ... or loving you to distraction. I wouldn’t change a single thing about the life we’re building together.
“Now, before you start making those incredibly delightful growling noises you’ve been throwing about for the past hour, I would like to remind you that nothing about this relationship has been ‘normal,’” he continued, using the appropriate air quotes for emphasis. “You’re still the best thing that has ever happened to me and that’s not going to change. I think you’ve convinced yourself it somehow changes something, but that’s simply not the case.”
“I don’t understand how you’re okay with this.” Ivy turned rueful. “I think you must be the perfect man.”
Jack grinned. “I think I am, too. You should remember that when I ask you to stay safe and not drive around town when there’s a killer on the loose.”
Ivy wrinkled her nose. “We already talked about that. You accepted the ice cream. You’re not allowed to be mad ... or bring it up.”
“I didn’t agree to that.”
“But ... I’m having an existential crisis.”
Jack chuckled as he slipped his arm around her back. “Is it any wonder that I love you? No, seriously. You are the perfect woman. Since I’m the perfect man, that means we go together like ... perfect peas in a pod.”
“That was a really lame comparison.”
“I’m hungry. I promise to do better once I have some food in me.”
“I’m going to hold you to that.”
THEY PICKED A BOOTH IN the corner so they could have some privacy. Jack knew the conversation was nowhere near done. For her part, Ivy seemed overwhelmed by multiple things so he decided to focus on something else besides the magic. She needed a break from talking about the magic. In fact, she needed a break from everything hanging over her. Perhaps a vacation was in order, if he could figure a way to arrange it.
“While you were talking to your father, Max mentioned that Nikki stopped by to see you. He said she was in your greenhouse. What was that about?”
“Oh, yeah, I completely forgot about that.” Ivy swirled the straw in her drink as she leaned back and pressed her feet against Jack’s under the table. She needed the tactile contact for some reason. “She seemed ... agitated. I don’t know how to explain it. She made it sound as if she was looking for Phoebe because Brad was worried about her, but there was something off about the whole situation.”
“I would say there’s something off with her entire family. I met her father today. He’s a real piece of work.”
“Hank? Yeah, he’s basically the stereotypical old guy in every neighborhood. He’s the one you expect to grab a hose and spray the neighbor kids while yelling at them to get off his lawn.”
“Actually, he was sitting in the driveway basically daring them to step near his lawn. He denied a relationship with Phoebe, if you’re wondering about that.”
“I’ve been thinking about that,” Ivy admitted. “As angry as Phoebe was — and, don’t get me wrong, she had every right to be angry — I can’t see her stooping low enough to seduce Hank. I mean ... he’s gross.”
“He’s obnoxious,” Jack agreed, his mind going back to the less than flattering things Hank said about Ivy. “He turned belligerent when we asked him about it, though. Jumped up, stomped his feet, and then disappeared inside the house. Not before telling us to get a warrant if we planned to come back, though.”
“Do you think that was posturing?”
“I don’t know him well enough to read him. I do find it interesting that Nikki showed up at the greenhouse less than an hour after we finished questioning him.”
Ivy hadn’t put that together. “Huh.”
“Yeah.”
“Do you think he called Nikki?”
Jack held his hands out and shrugged. “I honestly don’t know. What did Nikki say to you?”
“She was all over the place. I know it’s weird to say, but she almost acted afraid of Brad. Before, if you would’ve asked me, I would’ve thought she was the one in charge of the relationship. As it stands, I’m not so sure any longer.”
“It could be any number of things,” Jack offered, resting his hand on top of Ivy’s to stop her from playing with her straw wrapper. She was nervous, jittery even. He wanted to calm her and he only had so many ideas. “Maybe Brad is feeling regret because he never made up with Phoebe. He could think he’s never going to have the chance, because the longer Phoebe stays gone, the less likely we are to find her alive.”
Ivy was uncomfortable with the thought. “I want to believe she’s alive. I mean ... who else would be writing messages on our front window? Who else would be in the greenhouse? I can’t think of any other feasible explanation.”
“I can think of a few,” Jack countered. “The first is a transient. Perhaps someone is living in the woods and broke into the greenhouse for shelter. It rained two nights ago. You weren’t at work yesterday. We have no idea when someone broke into the building.”
“I guess.” She chewed on her bottom lip, uncertain. “I can’t figure out how Phoebe ended up at the shack, especially if she started out at her mother’s house. I mean ... that doesn’t make sense, right? I’m not simply a slow thinker, am I?”
“You’re the smartest woman I know.”
“You’re just saying that because you want to kiss and make up later.”
“I thought we’d already made up.”
“Only partially.”
“Good to know.” He rubbed his fingers over her knuckles. “Honey, I don’t think this story is going to make sense until we track down more information ... or at least figure out what happened to Phoebe. There
are too many variables. She could’ve killed her mother. You seem to be openly dismissing that possibility.”
“Why would she kill her mother? What’s in it for her?”
“Janice had a life insurance policy. It was for a hundred grand and Phoebe was the sole recipient. Money has made people do crazier things.”
“Except a hundred grand isn’t what it used to be,” Ivy persisted. “Is that really worth killing a parent over? Especially when Phoebe seemed to be loyal to her mother and blamed her father for the failure of their family. It seems far more likely that Phoebe would kill Brad if she wanted money.”
“Maybe he isn’t leaving her anything.”
“My understanding is that they don’t talk much. She wouldn’t know whether he put money away for her or not.”
“Which leads us right back to Janice,” Jack pointed out. “Janice would’ve told Phoebe what she was leaving her. By all accounts, they were close. Phoebe was working two jobs. Maybe she got tired and snapped.”
The notion was too much for Ivy to swallow. “No. It has to be something else. Nikki said Brad was acting weird about Phoebe, melting down. Maybe we’re looking at this the wrong way. Maybe it was someone else entirely.”
“It could be,” Jack supplied. “The problem is, nine times out of ten, the obvious answer is almost always the right answer.”
“And what’s the obvious answer?”
“That Brad got fed up with Janice and decided to off her.”
“Then what does that mean for Phoebe?”
“I don’t know. I wish I had answers for you. I simply don’t know where all of this is leading.”
“We have to find out.” Ivy was firm. “Actually, I tried to see if I could force a vision earlier. I touched the potting soil bags and concentrated and everything. It didn’t work ... and then Nikki came in a few minutes later. I was hoping I would at least get a glimpse of whoever snuck into the greenhouse.”
Something occurred to Jack. “You know what? I think there’s another way for us to find out who was in the greenhouse.”
“And what way is that?”
“Go back after dark and watch.”
Ivy brightened considerably. “You mean an old-school stakeout.”
“That’s exactly what I mean.”
“I’m in.”
“I thought you would be.” Jack’s grin was light and easy. “You have to eat your dinner first, though. Also, you have to agree to do what I say if we’re going to be spying partners.”
“I agree to your demands.”
“Words every man wants to hear from the woman he’s going to marry.”
“Don’t push it.”
Fourteen
Ivy and Jack stopped at the cottage long enough to change their clothes. Jack went with comfortable track pants and Ivy opted for a pair of well-worn yoga pants and an oversized black T-shirt from Jack’s closet. When she came out of the bedroom wearing a black knit cap over her hair, Jack almost fell over.
“Maybe we should’ve picked up some camouflage makeup in town, huh?”
Ivy wasn’t about to let him ridicule her. “My hair will stand out in the dark. We can’t spy if there’s a pink beacon pointing directly toward us.”
“Very good point.” Jack slowly got to his feet, his gaze lingering over Ivy’s legs. “Don’t you have different pants you can wear?”
“What’s wrong with these pants?”
“They give me ideas. They’re tight … and thin … and you look really good in them.”
Ivy’s gaze was withering. “There will be no hanky-panky on this assignment. This is a serious undertaking. There will be no groping … or kissing … or hand-holding.”
“Oh, you can’t take hand-holding from me.”
“Zip it.” Ivy held her fingers in front of Jack’s face for emphasis. “I agreed to your terms for this little outing. You have to agree to mine. It’s only fair.”
“Fine.” He held up his hands in mock surrender. “I agree to your terms. Absolutely, under no circumstances, will there be hanky.”
“No panky either.”
“We’ll argue about that later.”
JACK WAS RAISED IN THE CITY. He was at home on the mean streets of Detroit, or at least he used to be. He loved the country, the quiet and tranquility he found there. He couldn’t imagine anything other than a rural life now that he understood the joys of it.
That didn’t mean he was comfortable wandering through the woods in the middle of the night.
“Don’t you dare get too far ahead of me,” Jack hissed, swiping at Ivy’s waist as he looked for a belt loop to snag, remembering after the fact that her pants didn’t require a belt. “Don’t even think of leaving me in these woods.”
Ivy slowed her pace. Since her hair was completely obscured by her hat, her creamy skin was a stark contrast to the darkness that surrounded them. “Are you afraid of the woods?”
Jack loathed the question. “Of course not. Why would you think that?”
“Because you’ve turned a little panicky since we left the cottage. You’ve been in these woods a hundred times.”
“Not at night.”
“You’ve ventured into these woods several times to save me since we met, and at least half those instances have been at night.”
“Yes, but I didn’t think about it then,” Jack admitted. “All I could think about was getting to you. That trumped the notion that there might be a bear hanging out within a fifty-foot radius.” As if to prove his point, he glanced over his shoulder to make sure nothing was lumbering up the path behind him.
“Oh, you’re so cute.” Ivy impulsively rolled to the balls of her feet and pressed a kiss to the corner of Jack’s mouth. “I promise to protect you if we’re attacked by a bear.”
Jack made a face. “Fine. If I get eaten, though, I’m never going to forgive you.”
“Fair enough.”
It only took them five minutes to make it to the nearest side of the nursery. Ivy remained under cover as she led them through the trees, picking a spot on the east side of the greenhouse to hunker down. Jack settled next to her, resting his back against a tree and sliding his arm around her waist, and then focused on the front of the building. They were hidden well enough that someone would have to be looking directly at them to notice. They, on the other hand, had a clear view of the nursery.
“No hanky-panky,” Ivy reminded him, her lips close enough to his ear to cause a shudder to run down his spine. “You have to be on your best behavior.”
“If you keep doing that, we’re going to be the animals making noises in the bushes.”
“I’m not opposed to that … later.”
“Good to know.”
IVY DIDN’T MEAN TO FALL ASLEEP. The feeling of Jack’s body against her, solid and strong, was somehow relaxing. Between his even breathing, the sound of crickets, and the light breeze tickling her skin, she drifted off quickly.
When she landed in the dream, she assumed she’d somehow made it back to her bed and Jack would be joining her in the dreamscape. They began sharing dreams not long after they met, Ivy slipping into Jack’s nightmares because he inadvertently called for her. Since then, they enjoyed regular dates in the dreamscape. They put a limit on how many times a week they met, though, because they didn’t want to become infatuated with a world that wasn’t real.
Ivy recognized her surroundings, she’d been to the shack twice in the past few days, so the landmarks were fresh in her mind. It seemed like a weird destination for Jack to pick, and the fact that he wasn’t with her set her teeth on edge.
“Jack?” Her voice echoed throughout the eerie stillness. “Jack?”
“Not Jack.”
The woman who appeared to her the day she visited the shack with Max stood behind Ivy, her long black dress fluttering thanks to a slight wind.
Inherently, Ivy understood she should be afraid and yet she didn’t feel any fear. Instead, she merely felt curious … and a bit irritated.
The woman smirked. “I’ve been trying to speak to you. It’s not my fault you only listen when you feel like it.”
“Hey, I always listen.”
“Is that why you left the nursery an hour after Jack asked you to stay?”
“Have you been spying on me?”
“That wasn’t an answer.”
Ivy heaved out a sigh. “Fine. I’m not the best listener. I honestly was trying to communicate with you.”
“You’re more closed off than you believe. It hardly matters, though. You’ll be opening up whether you like it or not.”
Ivy narrowed her eyes. “Was that a threat?”
“Did it sound like a threat?”
“I have no idea.”
“Then it wasn’t a threat.”
They lapsed into uncomfortable silence, Ivy finally breaking it when she couldn’t hold out for another moment. “You’re Susan Bishop, right?”
She nodded. “I see my reputation precedes me.”
“Until a few days ago, I’d never heard of you. Okay, that’s not entirely true. My brother used to tell me stories about you – I just didn’t know it was you, if that makes sense – and I was terrified at the thought.”
“And why were you afraid?”
“Because he said you were a witch. When you’re eight, that’s a scary thought.”
“And now?” Susan feigned infinite patience as she moved her hands in front of her, tracing an invisible pattern Ivy couldn’t quite discern and disturbing the dreamscape. The air around them swirled, and when she was finished, the shack looked like a small house set in the woods. It was surrounded by pretty gardens and even boasted yellow trim that brightened the entire façade. “What are you afraid of now, Ivy Morgan?”
Wicked Haunts (An Ivy Morgan Mystery Book 12) Page 13