“It kind of seems like a big oversight,” she said.
He sat up, bringing their chests together, massaging her back as he drew her closer. It wasn’t enough to steer her from the current topic.
“Being able to control animals would be awesome,” she said.
Control…
“I don’t get how it would relate to psychometry, though. Unless you can somehow extend your energy field. Maybe push your energy into others.”
He stopped rubbing her back.
“What?” she asked.
“There’s one aspect of my powers I never told you about because I never use it. Dad taught me it’s like the ultimate taboo.”
“I thought the worst thing you could do is read someone’s mind with the intent of using what you learn to hurt them.”
He wasn’t surprised she remembered that. It still made him smile. She had been amazing when he told her about his powers. She’d been studying the whole field of metaphysics—not just psychometry—for years. Finn had never really ventured much outside of his abilities.
She had taught him about metaphysical principles, especially what boiled down to basic karma. Don’t use your abilities to hurt people. It tied in with what Dad had said about not using his abilities for profit, along with the other warnings he’d been given.
If he was helping people, he was still okay. If he ever gained from using his powers at other people’s expense… Finn wasn’t sure what would happen, but his dad had implied there would be a swift and terrible reckoning. That was what he meant when he talked about walking the gray line.
Then there was plain stepping over it.
“You know I can read people’s thoughts if I touch them long enough with my hands.”
“Present company excluded.”
“Yeah.” He smiled and laughed, then said another little silent prayer of thanks that she, of all the people in the world, was the one person he could touch in peace. “There’s something else I can do once that level of connection is achieved.”
When he hesitated, she said, “Which is?”
“I can sort of…get them to do what I want. I’ve never actually tried it out before, because my dad seriously scared the shit out of me when he told me about that. But I can feel it when I’m listening to people’s thoughts. One small step and I’d be in their head running the show.”
She went completely still. She seemed to be holding her breath even.
“I would never do it. I mean, risks aside, it’s just wrong. I’d have to be morally bankrupt to do anything like that.”
“What kind of risks did he talk about?”
“Aside from it majorly pissing off the universe and invoking instant karma? You can get lost, I guess. Some of their memories can get embedded in your mind and you can forget which ones are yours.”
“Kind of how your powers are acting up now.”
He hadn’t thought of it before because he never thought about this aspect of his abilities. He had locked it away in a corner of his mind under a glass dome labeled, Don’t. What he was experiencing did sound like the consequences Dad had laid out.
“Yeah. But I didn’t make anybody do anything. I’ve never used my powers that way. I never would.”
There had to be another explanation—a reason his powers were acting up in this particular way. He wasn’t controlling anyone. Hell, if anything, he wished he could use those powers to gain better control over himself. That moment when the darkness had spread across his body… He felt more like his powers were being used against him somehow. But that wasn’t possible.
Jazz sat back on his thighs, her arms draped over his shoulders. Powers or no powers, he could practically feel her thoughts filling the space as her mind raced trying to put the pieces together.
“Do you think…” She didn’t finish her question.
He prompted her to go on. “Do I think what?”
“What if Siobhan has the same powers? Could she be using them to try to push you into getting her justice, and somehow putting Michael’s memories in your mind?”
It was a chilling thought.
“Dad said the ability is passed from father to son.”
“Even with twins?”
“Honestly, that never came up.” When they went back to Summer Park, Finn was going to have a long list of questions for his dad. If he was up for it, anyway.
Even if Siobhan did have the same powers and had retained them on the other side, using the forbidden aspect of those powers wouldn’t make Finn take on another person’s memories. She would be the one who had to pay the price.
Right?
“I don’t think that’s it,” Finn said. “Michael had a really strong personality. I can feel it in everything I read that was close to him. His energy was dark and twisted, but powerful.”
“So it might be enough to leave a kind of retina-burn in your brain.”
He laughed again. “That is an excellent way of putting it.” He really, really hoped she was right. Her other theory, though… It kept running through his mind.
If Siobhan had the same powers and retained some version of them in death… Who knew how that would affect Finn? With his dad, there was always a kind of feedback loop, like static in the channel. Finn hadn’t felt anything like that yet. If anything, his powers were stronger, everything he read clearer.
Maybe instead of feedback, she was amplifying him? That would explain the sort of retina-burn Jazz had mentioned. Michael’s memories might not be implanting themselves in Finn’s mind, but just be strong enough that it was taking him a while to shake them off.
Finn hadn’t felt any kind of weird disorientation or disconnection since they had reached the SUV. More accurately, since he and Jazz had started having sex. Being with her chased away all memories and thoughts beyond each moment, each touch.
Yeah, his life had turned into a shitstorm, but Jazz was back with him. And this time, she was all-in. Whatever the universe dished out next, they would face it together.
“I can’t see your face at all,” she said. “What are you thinking?”
“That I am a lucky bastard. And very glad you’re here. No matter how lost I get, when you touch me it pulls me back from the edge. Reminds me that I’m me.”
“If that’s a line, it’s working.”
She kissed him, pushing him back to the floor. He gratefully let all thoughts fade away in the presence of her touch.
Chapter Twenty-One
Jazz never dreamed she would think of a restroom at a gas station as a luxury, but after a night in the swamp something as simple as running water made her ridiculously happy. Finn hadn’t been keen on the idea of driving to anywhere near civilization so they could freshen up and get food, but had relented when he saw she wasn’t going to let it go.
She was not an outdoorsy person. She usually wore leather pants, for crying out loud. She wanted air conditioning, filtered water, and chlorinated pools.
The compromise they had reached was that she would wait for him to get her the key to the bathroom and not go into the store. She was okay with that. Her outfit—or lack thereof—would attract too much attention.
After the run-in with the guys from the bar and what happened at the hotel…she was scared. Dammit, she hated being scared. As soon as they could, she would call the police and tell them everything she knew about the group. She was sure they were behind the fire. The police needed to know how dangerous those guys were.
Finn had assured her that his powers were back on track, or she would have gone in with him anyway. He said he was feeling better after a night of good sleep. Not that they’d slept through all of it. They were definitely making up for lost time.
Finn had gone back into the gas station to return the key. She chewed on another power bar while she waited for him to come back. He’d been in there for a long time.
Too long.
She was starting to open the driver’s door when he walked out. He paused, hands in his pockets. He had pushed the door open with his foot, so he was still avoiding touching things. Probably wise. She didn’t understand why he wasn’t making a beeline for the SUV. In fact, he was kind of meandering around. She started the engine, then drove up next to him, rolling down the passenger’s side window.
“Finn?”
He didn’t respond. That wasn’t good.
“Finn!”
He seemed disoriented when he glanced over at her. Shit, had his powers gone off again? He wasn’t touching anything, so how could he be lost in someone’s memories?
She hoped she wouldn’t have to make out with him in the gas station parking lot. But then he opened the door and climbed in, saving her from bringing unwanted attention to them. It was a start.
“You okay?” she asked.
“Yeah.”
“You don’t sound too sure about that.”
“There were a lot of memories on that key.”
Probably some pretty gross ones now that she thought about it.
Do not think about that.
“I thought your powers were behaving.”
“They’re better. Not perfect.”
He sounded tense. After last night, she was kind of surprised. She had felt more relaxed than she had in months when they woke up. As soon as they were alone, she’d try to help him back to that state.
“What do we do now?” she asked.
“Head back to Travis’s house. I want another look at it. Maybe this time we won’t be interrupted.”
“That’s not a good idea.”
“Why, because you didn’t come up with it?”
She was stunned for a moment. She felt her mouth drop open. “Where the hell did that come from?”
He looked confused again, then he shook his head and turned to look out the window. “I don’t know. I’m sorry. Could we just get out of here? I need to be away from people.”
That part made sense at least. She wondered again if his powers might somehow be working long-distance. They could figure things out once they were back in the wilderness.
She drove onto the highway, heading toward their little grove near Travis’s house.
“I don’t know if we can do this on our own,” she said. “No matter what you said earlier, your powers are still acting up.”
“I’ve got it under control.”
She snorted. “That didn’t seem the case a minute ago.”
“There were too many people back there. Too many memories to sort through.”
“And you think it’s going to be better at Travis’s house? Last time we were there, you looked like you were suffocating.”
“I’ll be ready this time. Besides, that was before last night.”
He put his hand on her leg. Heat immediately flared deep in her belly. He leaned over and kissed the side of her neck, trailing his hand further up her thigh.
“You’re trying to distract me.”
“Is it working?”
Yes. She wouldn’t tell him that, though.
“We should call the police. Someone besides us should know about what we’re doing.”
He sighed, then sat back in his seat. “I already told Daphne what we’ve learned. I called while you were in the bathroom.”
“Do you think that’s a good idea? Tommy shouldn’t get too worked up.”
“I know. She won’t tell him more than he needs to know. Right now, all she’s telling him is that we’re following some promising leads that took us out of town. I don’t want him to worry about us, but they need to know where to look in case…”
She glanced over at him, caught the grim expression on his face, and knew what would come next. He was worrying about her again, wondering if he should be doing this alone.
“Don’t even think about it,” she said. “I’m not going back to Summer Park.”
“I know.” His voice was barely over a whisper.
“Seriously? I thought you’d fight me on it.”
“We’re not just investigating the case anymore. We have some seriously pissed-off locals who are willing to commit major crimes to settle the score. After what they pulled at the hotel, you can bet those thugs are watching the highway. There’s a long stretch from here to Summer Park. Before we head back, we need to talk to the police.”
Thank God.
“But that will take up time,” he said. “Alert more people to our inquiries. Nell and Travis are tight. I think she’s a little sweet on him. If she hasn’t already told him about us, you can bet it’ll happen soon. He’ll destroy any evidence that might be left before we can get to him.”
Crap. Jazz hadn’t thought of that.
“And if he gets really spooked, he can disappear into the swamp.”
Camping anywhere had never appealed to her. She was more of a five-star-lodge vacationer. Not that she actually took vacations. She loved the pools, the sky, the palms, and even the heat of the city—as long as she had air conditioning close by to retreat to.
“Ugh, how can anyone stand that? The swamp must be full of bugs and alligators and all kinds of dangerous animals.” She shivered.
Finn laughed. “Tasty, you mean.”
“What?” She glanced over at him. He was staring out the window.
“Travis loves living off of what he can forage for himself. Squirrels and vermin. He used to disappear for weeks into the swamp when he was in a mood.”
“Finn?”
He looked over at her, a blank expression on his face. But his eyes were turning bright blue. He wasn’t touching anything, and his eyes were changing.
Jazz gunned the engine. The road that led to their hiding spot came up and she slammed on the brakes, taking the turn faster than was probably safe.
Finn reached for the grab handle above his door. “What are you doing?”
She didn’t have time to head back to their safe spot. As soon as they were out of sight of the highway, she hit the brakes and put the SUV in park.
“What are you doing?” He bit out each word.
She ignored him—rather, the memories that were trying to assert themselves again, if that was what this was. Whatever was happening, she needed to stop it. She unfastened her seat belt and crawled into his lap.
He raised his hands and tried to back away, but had nowhere to go. She grabbed his face and kissed him. At first, he was tense, but the more she leaned into him, the more he relaxed. His hands drifted to her waist, then around to cup her ass. His tongue slid between her lips and she let out a sigh.
This was Finn.
The new immediate problem was that she didn’t want to stop and they weren’t exactly out of the way if someone decided to use that road. Like Travis, maybe. She forced herself to pull back.
Finn smiled at her. “What brought that on?”
She felt half-sick. He wasn’t even aware of how he had changed. She kept her hands on his cheeks, then leaned in and touched her forehead to his. She wouldn’t let him slip away.
“Jazz?”
“Your eyes changed again.” Her voice came out hoarse. Her throat was tight with emotion.
“What? No they didn’t.”
She sat back on his thighs and glared at him. “They did.”
“You were driving. You can’t be sure—”
“I can and I am. I know what I saw. What I heard. It wasn’t you, Finn. It wasn’t you.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Finn’s stomach was in knots. He couldn’t have been lost in a memory. He wasn’t touching anything. And yes, sometimes Michael’s memories had seemed to try to resurface in his mind, but he had felt them. He had always known when it was happening. Like when that darkness crept along his nerves.
Wha
t does she know?
Finn shook off the thought. She knew him. Always had. If she said he was losing it, he was losing it.
Christ, the thought was scary, though.
“Keep your hand on my leg,” she said.
“What?”
“I need to get us out of sight. Touching keeps you grounded in your body, so I need you to hold on to me till we get parked. Then we can sort this out.”
Could they, though?
The memories he had read so far were powerful—especially the ones back at the gallery. They had manifested physically on multiple occasions. The link was already strong enough that reading Michael’s kitchen chair made Finn share in Travis’s bloody nose after Michael hit him in the memory.
What if it was permanent?
Finn couldn’t believe that Siobhan would do this to him. He knew she was a good person. He could feel it through his dreams. She would be trying to help him, not throw him to the wolves.
Jazz slid back into the driver’s seat and put the SUV in gear. He left his hand on her thigh, trying to keep himself from gripping it too tight. For the first time, the softness of her skin, her warmth, wasn’t a turn on. It was a lifeline.
“Tell me about ghosts,” he said.
She glanced over at him quickly, then back to the bumpy side road. “What do you want to know?”
“Everything. How do they stick around? What can they do?”
She turned down another road as he pointed out the way, nearing their destination. “From what I’ve learned, it’s usually the standard story—they feel like they have unfinished business or suffered some sort of trauma that keeps them from letting go.”
“Like Siobhan.”
“It’s hard to say what made her stay. It could have been how she died. Maybe she wants justice or closure or something.”
“How do we find out? Can we talk to them like with a séance or something?”
She let out a scoff. “Those aren’t as effective as you might think.”
Lingering Touch: The Summer Park Psychics, Book 3 Page 17