“Because of the baby? If they are kidnapping girls to add to their numbers, then a baby would be a blessing right? A built in addition to the flock,” Lucas says.
“She didn’t stab herself,” I say desperately.
“Maybe this Nolan was angry about the baby, angry Addlynn wanted to leave. Maybe he tried to stop her and it got out of hand.”
It makes a sick sense. “It’s usually the spouse,” I say. “Is that what all detectives think?”
“It’s normally true.”
“My mother was the spouse, and she didn’t kill Dad.”
The quick change of topic catches Lucas off guard. “We’re not talking about your mom and dad,” he says gently.
“I mean, sometimes it’s not the spouse. Or baby-daddy in this case,” I push.
“If everything you’re seeing is true, then he’s the most logical suspect. Now he has a name.”
“But you’ll still look into the missing girls, the kidnappings, the cult?” I sound like a child, even to my own ears. The adrenaline rush from earlier has faded and I’m suddenly tired. Visions wear me out and all these visions in a row have sucked me dry.
“We will look into everything you’ve told me.”
“He called her Addlynn Jeanette.” I whisper. “I love you Addlynn Jeanette.”
“Another name from the first list. A last name? I already looked into that, but nothing came back.”
I can barely keep my eyes open I’m so drained. I want to try for more information, but I’m woozy and faded.
I put my glove back on. “I can’t do anymore today.” I pat Addlynn’s shoulder with my gloved right hand. “Thank you for showing me, Addlynn. We’ll do what we can to stop this.”
“Let’s get you out of here.” Lucas helps me to my feet. My legs buckle, but I catch myself.
“Out of here, good idea,” I mumble.
Brinkstone guards the door. His eyes bore into me and he chuckles under his breath as I pass.
As tired as I am, I’m more angry that he’s laughing at me. Raising my hand quickly, I move like I’m going to touch Brinkstone.
He jumps back, crashing into the door behind him. The rattle echoes down the hall, drawing the nurse’s attention.
I laugh at his response. “Don’t let me touch you or I’ll know all your dark secrets,” I hiss.
Brinkstone recovers quickly and glares venom at me. “You shouldn’t have done that,” he threatens.
“Stand down, Brinkstone,” Lucas commands.
The young officer looks from me to Lucas, deciding who to hate the most.
Lucas takes my arm and leads me away.
“What was that about?” he asks.
“I don’t like the guy. Thought I’d have a little fun with him.”
“You sure know how to make friends,” Lucas chuckles.
I look over my shoulder at Brinkstone. The venom is still in his eyes.
I have a bad feeling about him about the way he’s looking at me. “Yeah, maybe it wasn’t a good idea.” A nervous laugh escapes my lips. “Sure was fun to make him jump.”
Chapter 11
Lucas
Gabby’s stunt with Brinkstone shouldn’t please me as much as it does. I should be more supportive of my fellow man in blue, but Brinkstone lost any loyalty from me the last time he had a run in with Gabby. It was nice to see her put him in his place the way only Gabby can. Superstitious jerk.
Gabby leans against the elevator wall and closes her eyes. The smudges under her lashes are darker than they were this morning. She looks spent.
My fault she’s so tired. She didn’t give me much choice but to let her come, but I could have forbidden it. I could have placed an order banning her from the hospital.
The guilty truth is I wanted her to see what she could. I wanted her to find information, a place to start this investigation. Addlynn is a complete mystery without Gabby’s help. She went through unimaginable hell to get herself to safety. I have to use every tool available to get justice for her.
The elevator doors part, but Gabby doesn’t open her eyes. I touch her arm and her eyes pop wide, startled.
She sees the doors have opened and hurries out before me.
I keep my strides slow and small so she can keep up. She still lags behind in the parking lot.
“I don’t think you should drive,” I point out when we reach her car.
“Don’t be silly, I’m fine.” She makes an impatient motion with her hand. “Now, where’s my purse?”
“It’s on your shoulder.”
“Oh, yeah.” The purse slides off her shoulder, but she catches it before it hits the ground.
“Ok, that settles it. You can’t drive. My car is parked a few places away. Come on, sleepy-head.”
“I’m fine,” she protests, but lets me lead her to my passenger door.
“Don’t make me arrest you for driving under the influence.” I open the door for her.
“Influence of what? Psychic powers?” she makes a small, strained laugh, but climbs into the seat.
I shut the door gently. “God, what did I do to her?” I ask the wind.
“Man, I’m so tired,” she says once I’m in the car with her. She yawns long and loudly. “Sorry, that wasn’t very ladylike.”
“No worries.” A loud yawn is the most ladylike thing I’ve seen in this car. “Want me to take you to Grandma Dot’s? You’re pretty out of it.”
She nods and leans her head against the window. “Wake me when we get there.”
Gabby twitches as her body relaxes. Tiny, adorable ticks into dreamland. She rests peacefully as I drive through town. It’s still early on a Sunday and the traffic is light. The downtown square with its small courthouse flanked by cafes and shops prepare for the onslaught of the after-church lunch crowd. One café has tables out on the sidewalk, hoping to take advantage of the late October sunshine one last time before the grip of cold moves in for real.
River Bend looks peaceful, normal. A typical Midwestern small town, with typical people doing typical things. The scene is a far cry from the horrors Addlynn has gone through, and other girls may be going through right now. That horrible place has to be somewhat close by if Addlynn walked here. How can it be so close and we’ve never heard a peep about it?
The secrecy surrounding it is nearly as upsetting as the fact of the cult itself. Secrets have a way of escaping. This one should have before now.
As the town fades to country roads, Gabby stirs. “Nolan, save me. Nolan, make it stop,” she mumbles in a dream.
“Stop it,” she yells, her voice echoing through the car. I reach to shake her awake, but she sits upright suddenly, terrified.
“You’re okay,” I soothe. “You’re dreaming.”
It takes a moment for her eyes to focus and recognize me. “Right,” she says, then fades back to sleep.
Grandma Dot is raking the leaves out of her bushes as I pull into her drive. Jet lays nearby soaking up the sun. A concerned look crosses her face when she sees the cop cruiser, but then fades as she recognizes me. She raises a hand in greeting and walks over still holding the rake.
“We’re here,” I shake Gabby. “At Grandma Dot’s.”
She stirs and her long lashes flutter open. “Grandma Dot’s?” She seems tiny and frail, half-asleep like this.
“Lucas,” Grandma Dot says when I climb out. “So glad to see you, if unexpected.”
“I hope it’s okay, but I brought Gabby to you.” Jet bounds over, begging for attention. I pat him on the head.
Her face flashes to concern and she looks into the car for her granddaughter. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong. She’s just very tired and I didn’t want her home alone.”
Grandma Dot waits to ask questions and helps Gabby out of the car. The cold air revives her and she’s finally awake and able to walk on her own up the steps to the front porch.
“Good Lord, Gabriella. You over did it this time.” Grandma Dot doesn’t see
m too surprised at Gabby’s state as she follows into the kitchen.
“I’m fine, just tired.” Gabby brushes the concern off. “Took a nap on the drive over here.”
“She’s been to see that girl, I assume? I expected a call yesterday, but by the looks of things, you’ve been busy.” I don’t miss the accusing note in her voice, it nearly screams you should take better care of her.
“She has been to see her,” Gabby responds for me. “And she is hungry. Do you have anything to eat?” Gabby searches the fridge. “This will work.” She takes out a dish of some kind of pasta and eats it cold sitting at the kitchen bar. Jet dances for a bite, but she ignores him.
I look from Gabby to Dot and shrug.
“Her name’s Addlynn Jeanette,” Gabby says around a mouthful of pasta. “She lived in a cult, got pregnant by a young man named Nolan. Someone tried to kill her and she ran away to where I found her.” Gabby stares at the counter as she talks in disjointed phrases.
“You saw this?” Grandma asks.
“I’ve seen lots of things,” Gabby shoves an overlarge forkful of cold pasta into her mouth making further conversation impossible. Jet gives up trying to get her attention and goes to his bed.
“She’s done several sessions with the girl. So far we haven’t gotten much, but it’s a start. We’ve been unable to verify any of it. No matches to her name or her prints. We don’t even know anything about this cult Gabby saw.”
“I’ve never heard of a place like that around here,” Grandma Dot says.
“It gets worse. Gabby saw lots of girls. She thinks they’re being kidnapped and taken to live there.”
“Oh, no. How horrible.” Grandma Dot rubs a hand across Gabby’s shoulders. “That must have been awful to see. What about the attempted murder?”
“Nothing. I’ve seen none of it. So far everything I’ve seen has been useless.” Gabby tosses the empty pasta dish and fork into the sink with an angry clash.
“Nothing you see is ever useless,” Grandma Dot points out.
“Well, this time it is,” Gabby shoots back.
“Not entirely. You found out about Nolan,” I say. “You even dreamed about him on the way here.”
“I did? I don’t remember.”
“You asked him to save you, then said stop it.”
Gabby shakes her head, confused.
“You don’t want it to be him, but this Nolan isn’t looking too good right now.”
“It was just a dream,” she says.
“A dream you had,” I point out.
“I don’t work that way.” Her eyes dare me to contradict her.
A heavy moment of silence sits between us.
Grandma Dot saves me. “Where are my manners? Lucas would you like some ice tea?”
I pull my eyes away from Gabby and smile at the older woman. “Love some.”
“Sounds like you’re making progress, at least.” Grandma Dot pours tea into tall glasses. “You know her name, the baby’s father, and she lived in some horrible cult. That’s something.” Grandma hands me the tea and one to Gabby who gulps hers down. I savor the sweetness, a bright spot in this convoluted day.
“Lot of good it does us.” Gabby sits her empty glass down hard on the counter.
“Gabriella, stop acting like a child,” Grandma Dot snaps. “You’ve done a good thing and you know it. Lucas is being nice to you and you’re being ungrateful.”
Gabby’s cheeks turn pink. “Sorry,” she mutters automatically. “I’m just out of sorts today.”
“You’ve been through a lot in just two days. We’ll forgive you.” Grandma winks at me. “As long as you go lie down.”
“I don’t want to lie down,” Gabby whines. “I want to figure this out.”
I join in her ruse and use the voice I use with my daughter Olivia, “Be a good girl, and take a nap. We’ll figure it out when you’re rested.”
“You two suck,” Gabby gripes with a twinge of a smile on her lips. “I’ll go take my nap, but I’m taking Jet with me.”
Jet jumps up at the sound of his name and Gabby snuggles him under her chin. “They think they’re so smart treating me like I’m five,” she says to the dog. Gabby stops in the doorway. “Thank you, Lucas,” she says. “Hope Dustin doesn’t get too mad you let me help.”
I’d forgotten all about Dustin. The reminder jolts me a little. “Let me worry about Dustin. You just feel better.”
“You’ll call me when you find something out?”
I notice she said when, not if. “You’ll be my first call. Thanks for everything you’ve done.”
Her smile lights up her whole face, makes the dark smudges fade and her eyes glow. A different kind of jolt stabs me.
Gabby leaves and I find Grandma Dot watching me closely. “Uh-huh,” she says.
“What?” I feign innocence.
Grandma lets me off the hook and changes the subject. “So Dustin doesn’t know what she’s been up to?”
“He was there yesterday. It was pretty intense watching her do what she does. Afterwards, he said she wasn’t allowed to see Addlynn again.”
“But you took her anyway?”
“She didn’t give me much choice.” I drain the last of my sweet tea, sad to see the empty glass.
“Uh-huh,” she says again. Grandma takes the empty glass from me. “You be careful with my girl.”
“I’m always careful with her.” I feel defensive and I’m not sure why.
“Then we don’t have anything to worry about.” Looking at the tiny older woman, I get the feeling we are having different conversations.
“I’ll always take care of her, whether she wants me to or not,” I venture.
Her wrinkled face searches mine and finds what she was looking for. “Good.”
She turns to the sink abruptly to rinse my glass. “What are you going to tell Dustin about today’s adventures?”
“The truth.”
“Very good,” she says.
Chapter 12
Gabby
My leg vibrates and a familiar song flitters at the edge of my consciousness. The vibrating irritates and I roll over to escape it. The song plays on.
I struggle to place the familiar tune, struggle to wake up.
The itch of the vibration tingles my leg and I reach to stop it.
I find the hard rectangle of my phone in my pocket. An unfamiliar number shows on the screen. “Leave me alone,” I tell the phone and put it on the side table.
The ringing stops and blessed quiet fills my old room. Jet stirs and licks my face. I brush him away and hide under a pillow.
The phone rings again, the same unknown number.
I punch the answer button and bark, “What?”
“Wow, you’re in a bad mood, Gabby,” the woman’s voice says. I don’t recognize her right off.
“Sorry,” I reply, searching my mind for who this is.
“I understand. You’ve been very busy the last few days.” I finally place the voice, surprised to hear it coming from my phone, not from the TV.
“What do you want, Lacey?” I sit on the edge of the bed, rubbing my face. Lacey Aniston hates me and the feeling is mutual. I’m in no mood to talk to her today, or any day. “How did you get my number?”
“Oh, Gabby, you know I can get what I want when I need to. The question you should be asking is what can I do for you?”
“The only thing you can do for me is go away.”
“What fun is that?” She’s enjoying toying with me.
“Get to the point or I’m hanging up.”
“What do you know about a farm full of kidnapped girls?” She asks the question so smoothly, like asking the price of eggs.
My gut twists and I feel violated somehow.
“How do you know about that?” I stare at the carpet, frozen.
“I have my sources, Gabby.” She makes my name sound like a bad word, the way only she can. “I’m giving you a chance to go on record with what you know.”
“I’d never tell you anything,” I snap.
“I’d really like to hear it straight from you.” She tries to sound earnest, but I don’t fall for it.
“Since when are you interested in actual facts?”
“Not fair. I’m a journalist. I’m always interested in facts.” More of the sweet, honest voice.
“Ha!” Jet jumps at my angry retort.
Lacey piles on more sugar. “You’re a hot interest right now, after that mess from last time. Maybe I didn’t give you a fair representation before, but this time will be different.”
“I don’t believe you for a minute.”
Her earnest façade begins to crack. “You could really help me out here. Attempted murder, kidnapping, a secret cult and a psychic. This is media gold. This story could launch me out of this crap town.”
“I don’t know where you’re getting this information.”
“You haven’t denied anything I’ve said about Addlynn.” She sneaks the name in, testing me.
“I’m not helping you. You’ll only make me look bad.”
“You do that all by yourself,” Lacey hisses, the sweet act completely gone. “It’s okay. My source told me all I need to know. I’ll just run what I have.”
My gut sinks.
“Lacey, don’t,” I plead.
“You had your chance, Gabby.” She hangs up before I can respond.
Jet nudges me. “This could be bad, Jet.” He nudges me again. “Where did she get all her information?” Jet doesn’t have an answer.
Grandma Dot takes me to pick up my car at the hospital. Thankfully, she doesn’t ask questions, just lets us ride in peaceful quiet. As I open the door, she can’t hold her tongue anymore.
“What are you going to do about Lacey?” she asks.
“Nothing I can do. Lacey will do exactly as she pleases. She always does.”
“Maybe you’ll get lucky and she’ll keep your name out of it.”
“Doubtful.” I look at the hospital building, wonder how Addlynn is doing, how her baby is doing. I wish I could just sit with her, not touch her. Let her know someone cares and is watching over her.
Message in the Fire Page 7