“I’m managing. And I’m not doing it by myself. I have you.”
“While I admit I’m fabulous, what you need is an assistant.”
“We can’t afford to hire anyone right now.”
“I’m not sure you can afford not to.” She grumbled under her breath, pulled out a notepad, and handed it to me. “I might have a solution for you, at least for right now. Dan Cooper stopped by this week. He’s just finished his mortuary training and needs hands-on hours before he can take his licensing exam. He wanted to know if you’d be willing to take on an intern. A low-paid intern.” I started to object, but Charlie went on. “It would help, and when he gets his license you could hire him on as an assistant. Don’t just say no; think about it, Olivia.”
“I’ll think about it,” I said, tucking the note with Dan’s information into my desk drawer, and turned back to the messages. Charlie didn’t move, and I knew she wasn’t going to let me off that easy. “What is it?”
“It’s not just about the business, you know. I’ve been worried about you for a while now. I haven’t been able to place my finger on it yet, but there’s this darkness surrounding you.”
I looked up from the messages and frowned. “Darkness?”
“I don’t know exactly how to put this.” She bit on her lower lip, and her eyes went glassy as if she’d checked out.
A sour taste formed in my mouth. I knew that look. Charlie was a precog, and occasionally, out of nowhere, she’d whip out some grand proclamation about the future. Sometimes it was minor: don’t take Route 4, there’s going to be an accident. Sometimes it was major: Gran wouldn’t make it to the new year. But it was almost always true.
“It’s been there for years, but it’s just now starting to come into focus. I’m not sure how much I can tell you.”
I moaned in exasperation. “I hate it when you do that. ‘Be careful, but I can’t tell you why. It might alter your choices.’ Barf.” I sounded like a bratty teen, but we’d been having this same conversation for years. “It would be nice if you’d say, ‘Don’t drive into town tonight, you’ll get into an accident.’ or ‘Make sure you turn the oven off because I see the house burning down.’”
She sighed and slouched her shoulders, equally exasperated. “This is something big. Like I said, I’ve been worrying about this for a while now, but something changed recently and it’s starting to take shape. There’s just not enough information, and telling you will alter things. When that happens, the outcome isn’t always better. It’s too dangerous.” She chewed on her bottom lip again, and I could almost see the little wheels in her mind spin. “I’ll let you know as much as possible. When I think it will help. I just want you to take care of yourself, and for now, I can tell you hiring an assistant will make things easier for you.”
We stared at each other for a long time, years of debate passing between us. We had beaten this subject to death, and I knew she wouldn’t budge.
“Fine,” I relented. “Have Dan come in next week. If I get along with him, I’ll take him on as an intern. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to hire him when he’s passed his exams.”
“He has an appointment to meet with you on Wednesday.” Charlie smiled triumphantly. “I’m going up to Sally’s. Can I get you a cup of coffee?”
I rolled my eyes. I don’t know why I even try to give her instructions; she always knew what I was going to do. Most of the time before I did. “Make it a large,” I said and picked up the phone.
THREE
January fourteenth
I had never been so happy to arrive at an accident scene.
Dan had officially been my assistant for a month now, but this was the first time he’d joined me in the field. And it would probably be the last. He sat in the passenger seat, talking nonstop the entire drive, and by the time I spotted the flashing emergency lights I almost wept.
"You can observe while I do my reading, but stay back," I said, turning off the engine.
“Won’t that take a long time? Don’t you need to set a circle, cast a spell, or whatever it is you do?”
“You need to stop watching those sixty-minute specials,” I said. “I’m trained to determine the cause of death. This is all I need.” I pulled up my sleeve, and exposed the caduceus tattooed on my wrist.Even though I still didn’t like the fact spell-inking identified me as a witch, the tattoo was invaluable.
“Cool. Did it hurt more than a regular tattoo? Will the spell lose power? And if so, can you recharge it? Do you have any others?” he asked, in rapid succession.
I rolled my eyes and said, “A few,” and got out of the car. The brisk January air felt fresh after the long car ride. I took a deep breath, letting the tension leave me. After a few seconds, I opened the back door to grab my kit. "After I certify the cause of death, you can help the guys from the transport company recover the bodies.”
Dan still had that “new car” smell. He radiated the energy of a kid arriving at Disney World for the first time. I knew I wouldn’t be able to handle the long ride back. No one should be that chipper at three in the morning.
“You're going to need to ride back with them,” I said and closed the door.
The overcast sky made the road almost impossible to see, so I pulled the flashlight from my gear and made my way toward the patrol car. The dark didn’t faze me. I’d been out to so many middle-of-the-night deaths since starting this job, three a.m. and I had become quite intimate.
Ahead, the scene came into view. Red flares reflected off the rear window of the black Toyota sitting several yards off the road. A long trail of upturned earth marked where the car had careened down the embankment before hitting a stump at the edge of the woods. There was little damage to the car other than the gaping hole in the windshield. Passers-by might have thought the occupants had pulled off to go for a stroll. However, like a macabre spotlight, the lone headlight lit a solitary white sheet that told a darker story.
"Olivia, I haven't seen you in a while." Brad was leaning against his squad car, his cell phone illuminating his face.
"Brad." I waved absently in his direction and snapped a few photos of where the wrecked car had left the road.
Slipping his phone into his front pocket, he headed my way. It had been a while, but that wasn’t unusual. I was still working constantly. The only time we seemed to run into each other was over a dead body.
He stopped directly in my path and shot me a coy grin. "You know, I'm off tomorrow. Why don't I take you out so we can catch up?"
I knew it was meaningless flirting—he did it with every woman—but it still felt weird. I was just beginning to get comfortable with our current working relationship, so I decided to ignore him. I started to walk past him, but he reached out and touched my arm, closing the gap between us. "What'cha say? I've missed you."
I smoothed the long curl that had come loose from my braid, trying to hide my blush. I knew he wasn't talking about missing my stimulating conversation, and I couldn’t help the butterflies fluttering in my chest.
"Dammit Brad, I’m here to do a job. It’s three in the morning, and I haven’t had coffee. Don’t fuck with me." I sounded more angry than I intended.
He leaned in, lowering his voice to a whisper. “Don’t fuck with you? Do you talk to Ian with that dirty mouth, or do you save it for me?” He took a step back, giving me space, and winked.
We’d come to an understanding. He flirted; I rejected. It was a twisted tango we danced, and he was well-rehearsed.Taking a deep breath, I steeled my resolve.
“It’s all you, babe,” I said, laughing despite myself. I nodded toward the wreck. "It’s cold, and the weather is lousy. Just tell me what happened."
With an exaggerated sigh and eye roll, he slipped into police mode, and Officer Richardson was back. He thumbed through his notebook briefly. “The vehicle swerved, perhaps to avoid a deer or some other wildlife, and dropped off the embankment, coming to rest there." Officer Richardson indicated the car's current position. "The pas
senger was ejected, and the male driver appears to have died on impact. We’ve identified him." He paused and flipped through several more pages of his notebook. "Scott Malone of Indianapolis. The female passenger wasn’t carrying identification. I'll notify Mr. Malone's next of kin, and hopefully they can help me ID the woman.”
"Thanks. I'll do my reading, and then we can all go home."
"I’ll wait by my car for you to finish.” Brad still wasn’t comfortable with the fact I used magic on the job, even after months of working together.
"It shouldn’t take long,” I shrugged, trying to put him at ease. “That is, if the weather holds out."
It was overcast, and the starless sky added to the grim mood on the ground. The heavy clouds crouching over the scene threatened snow at any moment. The moisture screwed with the energy flow, making it harder to gather power, so I needed to wrap this up quick.
"I should be able to make a ruling in a few minutes," I said, and with a renewed sense of urgency headed toward the Toyota. As I followed the path the car had taken, nothing seemed unusual. I opened the door, and the metallic tang of blood assaulted me. The driver was hunched over the steering wheel. The head wound looked serious, but blood wasn't always a clear indication of damage. The only way I'd know for sure was an examination.
I snapped a few photographs and slipped off my rings, dropping them into my pocket. With my new ink, I didn’t have to draw spell glyphs on my hands anymore. I pulled on my gloves, ready to do the reading. I gathered power and drew it through the caduceus on my wrist. Images flashed behind my closed eyes.
Liver damage from habitual drinking. A healed knife wound. Two fractured ribs. A compound fracture of the wrist. Two burst fractures of the lumbar spine. A fractured skull and brain trauma.
The injuries were jumbled together in such a short span of time, it was hard to tell which one came first, but the brain trauma was clearly the cause of death. Everything seemed to be in line with an auto accident. I took a few more photographs and moved on to the body on the ground, removing the white sheet.
The unidentified girl was pretty. Strawberry blonde hair splayed around her head and a sprinkling of freckles dotted her baby face. She looked far too young to end up with me.
"I’m so sorry," I said, smoothing the hair from her face. “I’ll take care of you. I promise.” I placed a hand over each of her eyes, and a hot flash of power surged up my arms. I jerked my hand back.
What the hell?
My fingers burned from the contact. Shaking them, I gave it a second try, but this time I avoided touching her directly. My hands hovered just over her eyes, and I sent out my power. There was resistance, and the images never came. Something wasn’t right.
Since the quick diagnosis wasn't working, I decided to do a full aura reading. I slipped off the gloves and touched her icy skin. Instead of relying on a spell, I used my empathic skills. Gathering more energy, I poured it across her body, along with a bit of my own aura, and slid past the barrier. After a death, I usually had to search to locate the remnants of a person's life force; hers was still intact. It took every bit of willpower I had not to yank my hands back in horror. Her soul was entombed within her body.
A torrent of panic washed over me, and I was unable to control the surge of emotion. She was afraid and trapped, and her presence latched onto me as if I were a life preserver. Her intense panic clawed inside of me. I tensed as unheard screams roared through my mind.
Unable to handle the contact any longer, I snatched my hand back and opened my eyes, looking for something that might have caused this. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary about this girl, so I placed my hand bare inches above her skin and began scanning, trying to pick up a magical signature.
A familiar prickle raced up my arm, causing me to pause over the delicate silver chain around her neck. Dangling from the necklace was a black stone flecked with red and amber. An opalescent glow hinted at the magic it held. I closed my eyes and touched it. The small stone spewed a dark, slippery force that seemed to encase her body. It felt wrong, but also sickeningly familiar. I broke contact, not wanting to absorb any of the foul energy.
My heart was beating wildly and claustrophobia overwhelmed me, despite being out in the open. I took a few calming breaths, my hands clasped into tight balls, and tried to get my own emotions under control. The girl's terror was overwhelming my senses, and I wouldn't be able continue unshielded much longer. Regardless, now that I knew what was trapping her soul I couldn’t leave her like that.
Eyes closed, I examined the barrier with my inner sight. The only option I had was to dispel the charm. I pulled out a Sharpie and drew a thick circle around the stone, marking the perimeter with containment glyphs. I silently cursed myself for every lesson I’d blown off as a kid, and hoped this would work. I touched the edge of the circle and gathered more power. Pushing the energy into the spell, I tried to deconstruct the magic, but the charm resisted.
I frowned. Charms usually weakened and eventually lost power after the owner died. This wasn’t like any other charm I’d seen before. The energy clung to her aura, entwined within it, making it resist the disenchantment. I was going to have to come at this a different way.
I took a deep breath and touched the circle again, putting everything I had into the spell. I encased the charm with my own power and yanked as hard as I could.
"Let go, damn it!" My voice reverberated, low and guttural as I played a magical tug-of-war with the charm. Each time I gained a little leverage, it only pulled back. Scorching heat radiated from the stone, but I held my ground until the wave of energy exploded from the charm. The chain slipped from the girl's neck; the dark barrier fell away. A dazzling blue light emanated from her body, growing brighter and more intense, until an eruption of particles signaled her soul’s release.
I opened my eyes and looked around. Brad, still waiting by his car, hadn't even looked up from his phone. There was no visible sign of the intense battle I had just waged, but I could still sense the lingering echo of magic in the air.
Dazed from the struggle, I opened my kit, found the silver collection bag designed for magical items, and sealed the necklace away. Until I did my reading I wouldn’t know if the charm had contributed to her death, but that would have to wait. The steady freezing rain now falling would interfere with my magic, so I'd have to do the examination back at the funeral home. I snapped a few more photos and picked up my bag.
To be honest, I was relieved the rain had started. I had to get some distance. The weight of her terror still clung to me like wet clothing dragging down a drowning man. I couldn't seem to break free. I headed toward the others, hoping physical distance would help. Brad had moved to a stand of trees for shelter against the rain, still engrossed in something on his phone.
"I'm going to have to finish at the mortuary,” I said when I was closer. “This weather isn't cooperating. Right now I'll issue a preliminary death report citing trauma due to motor vehicle accident as the cause of death for the driver. I suspect the same is true for the passenger, but I’m not prepared to make a ruling yet.” My voice was all too shrill. The fear bubbled up inside of me, making it hard to think. “Please arrange for the car to be towed. I need to go."
"Sure thing," he said, looking up from his phone. He raised an eyebrow. “Are you all right?”
Panic still licked inside my head, and the distance from the accident scene wasn’t enough to help. I stepped closer to Brad, trying to pick up some of his emotions, hoping to replace the murky disquiet inside of me. But all I could feel was his boredom. I'd need feelings a lot stronger than boredom to break through the darkness clinging to me. “I can’t talk right now.” My heart pounded in my chest, and I tried to appear calm. I looked around, desperately needing to do something now.
Brad took a step closer and laid his hand on my arm. “Olivia, what’s going on? You look like a caged animal.”
Despite a nagging voice in the back of my mind warning me not to, I stepped closer stil
l and slid my hand up his arm, desperate to elicit a reaction from him.
"Brad, about what you said earlier, you know, I've missed you too." I spoke softly, trying to keep the tremor out of my voice. "I wouldn't mind going out tomorrow."
He met my gaze and I could feel the shift in him, his boredom turning into curiosity. I slipped my arm around his waist, breathing in the heady aroma of soap, gun oil, and leather that was all Brad. He wasn't much taller than me, and I used this to my advantage. Leaning into him, I pressed my lips against his ear. "Why don't you come pick me up at work? We can spend the evening together." Then I felt it. Feelings of desire swept over me. I took another deep breath and closed my eyes, holding on a moment longer. Warm and silky, his lust replaced the coldness inside me.
A baffled expression crossed his face, and he looked around to see if anyone else could see us. “Really?”
With a shrug, I gave him a lopsided smile and went with the flow of emotions. That silken warmth radiated through my chest, driving back the bitter taste of fear. I let out the breath I’d been holding, finally able to trust my voice again. "You could come by at six and take me to dinner.”
Understanding registered, and he grinned slyly. "I could just pick up a pizza, and we could stay in?"
I took a step back, knowing if I didn’t stop now I might not make it home tonight. It would be too easy to fall back into that relationship, and I wasn't sure I could survive another go. I was using him. I knew it. This wasn’t anything more, I told myself.
"Let's start with dinner. I'm not promising anything else.” I stepped completely out of his reach and gave him a pointed look. “And you’re taking me someplace nice, not Sally's Diner." I might have been desperate, but I had to hold on to some of my dignity.
"If that's what you want." I could practically hear the victory dance in his voice.
Dark Secrets: A Paranormal Romance Anthology Page 178