by Dale Mayer
Matt stopped. “You first.”
“Genesis left. And she hasn’t come back.” He quickly relayed what the steward had told him.
Matt shook his head. “She’s probably fine.”
“Probably isn’t good enough.” Connor took a deep breath, willing his nerves to settle down. She’d just gone to her shop. Of course she had. He’d thrown her life into disarray these last few days. But inside, he couldn’t calm the feeling that something was wrong.
“The star charts are gone.”
Matt’s tone, so deep, so dark, stunned Connor that he couldn’t do anything but stare at him. Finally, he found his voice. “That’s not possible.”
“It’s not supposed to be possible,” he corrected.
Connor spun, a dark, stabbing sensation in his gut. “I’m going after Genesis. You find those damn star charts.”
“Did you see the Portmans? They were with Genesis and now I can’t find any of them.”
“I haven’t seen them since we left the table, either. Ask the steward,” Connor called back, already rushing through the front door and heading for the rental car Matt had brought back from the caves for him.
The skies had turned dusky. Damn it. Why the hell had she left? She’d been safe there. But he and Matt had left her alone with the Portmans.
Would she have left because of them? Perhaps something they’d said or done?
As he reached the outskirts of town, another thought crossed his mind. Maybe she was feeling claustrophobic with all of them around her. Maybe she just wanted her independence back.
Something she was used to having.
He pulled up in front of the store and peered out the windshield. The lights were off and the place looked deserted. Still… He got out and walked around the car to peer in the window. It took him a moment for his brain to process what he was seeing.
Her place had been trashed.
His blood froze. He reached for the front door and found it locked. If someone had broken in, then it should be unlocked. Unless she’d found it this way and had locked it again and walked away. There were several other small shops in the same block. He walked past several storefronts, noting that they appeared to be undisturbed. He headed to the rear of the building, grateful his limited senses weren’t picking up any traces of violence in the dark alleyway. He tried the back door to her shop and found it unlocked. He pushed the door open. “Genesis?” The room was dark and silent. He flicked on the lights and grimly searched the premises. It was empty. Instinct said she’d seen the damage and, despondent, had gone home.
He loped off that direction, leaving his car behind.
She couldn’t have gone far. That she might have gone to the cottage was something he didn’t want to think about.
He’d never find it if that was the case. Worse, he’d never find her.
Chapter 28
The dusky night turned to jet-black as clouds scudded across the sky to hide the moon. Now Genesis could see nothing. And that made the situation so much worse. She was hidden behind the truck, but she had no way of seeing her intruder or making sure he wasn’t coming right at her. Running footsteps grew louder. She dropped to the ground and held her breath.
The footsteps raced past her. She popped up to look through the window. She couldn’t see the intruder anymore, but now someone else was running up the stairs to her apartment. The man who’d just passed her. Was he meeting the other guy?
She waited. He knocked on the door. She bit her lip, not wanting to answer until she knew who this new person was.
After a long moment, the stranger pounded on the door again. Then he called out, “Genesis? Are you in there?”
Connor.
She breathed out a sigh of relief. Genesis stepped out in front of the truck and almost walked into another man. The darkness was so complete it was hard to see, but then the clouds parted and she saw him.
It was the intruder. Portman Junior.
She shrieked and bolted backwards out of his reach. “Connor, I’m down here.”
“What –?”
The sound of footsteps crashing down the stairs reached her as she kept backing up from Portman. “What were you doing in my apartment?” she demanded. “And did you break in and trash my store?”
“What are you talking about?” he snarled. “Stupid bitch.” He stepped toward her, his hands still at his sides, a furious look in his eyes.
Connor barreled toward her. She took one look and threw herself into his arms.
“It was him. He was in my apartment,” she babbled, pointing to Portman. “I think he broke into my store, too.”
Connor stared at the man standing arrogantly in front of them both.
“Were you in her apartment?” he asked incredulously.
“Don’t be stupid. She’s obviously mistaken me for someone else.”
“Ha, the moon was out when I watched you climb down those stairs,” she snapped, her own anger back now that she wasn’t facing him alone. “What were you looking for?” Her voice rose. “And why did you trash my shop?”
He snorted. “I did nothing to your shop. I wondered who you’d pissed off this time and why they would do something so petty. If it was me, I’d have burned the place to the ground.” He gave them a mocking salute and walked to the other side of the truck. She watched as Portman climbed into an older-model Tortja. He was a wannabe rich person; he just hadn’t quite made it there.
Then again, he was third in line for the family business.
With gravel spitting out from under his tires, he took off with the same arrogance he’d shown in their conversation.
As soon as he was out of sight, she turned to Connor. “Who are those people?” She cast a long look around and said, “And why was he in my apartment?”
“I have no idea. They are from Big Glory. They run the Paranormal Center there as Matt does here.”
“Why would he break into my apartment?” she repeated. “I don’t have anything.”
“Well, in fact, you do,” Connor said. “And it’s quite possible that even with our repeated warnings, word has gotten out already about the star charts and the other documents we imaged. If they were looking for the originals…”
“And as they aren’t at the shop or at my apartment, they will keep looking.” Glumly she studied Connor’s face, cast in shadows. “I should never have showed anyone.”
“You had to, remember? With that construction going on in the pools.”
She groaned. “Damn. You’re right.” But now what was she going to do? She wasn’t safe anywhere.
“Come on, let’s get you back to the Center.”
She shook her head. “No,” she said sadly. “It’s not safe there.”
“Why not?” He looked at her, puzzled.
She snorted. “That’s where the Portmans were.” She quickly recounted the tense conversation she’d had with them. A thought struck her. “I’ll bet they searched our room there as well.”
Connor shook his head. “Not likely. The Center has good security.” He paused and frowned in thought. “I doubt that extends to the many bedrooms though.”
He led her toward her apartment. “Let’s check to see if everything is still there.”
“It should be. I’ve never kept anything important here, remember? And besides, his hands were empty when he left the apartment.”
“And you’re sure it was him?”
“Yes. I watched him come out.”
They reached the bottom of the stairs and started up. At the top, she turned the knob. The door opened easily. She flicked the light on and gasped.
The place had been destroyed. Even more thoroughly than her store.
She stood immobile, tears in her eyes. Connor wrapped his arms around her shoulders and tugged her back against his chest. They stood staring at the ripped cushions, overturned table and chairs, now-empty bookshelves, and kitchen drawers dumped. The carnage was everywhere.
Finally, she whispered, “This is s
o much worse than before.”
She felt him stiffen. “Before?” he said in a carefully contained voice. “What do you mean by before?”
“There have been several break-ins this last year,” she admitted softly. “Both here and the shop.”
“Did you tell anyone?” he asked.
“Of course I did. The first time. But the cops didn’t seem too bothered. I could never prove that anything was stolen. It was ‘the weird herb store owned by that weird granddaughter of the crazy lady,’” she quoted. “No one ever really cared.”
“Was anything ever taken?”
She shook her head. “Not that I could ever find.” She motioned to the destroyed living room. “But it was nothing compared to this.”
“This says fear to me,” Connor said. “Someone is afraid of you. Of what you might know. Of what you might own. And if you didn’t know about your ownership of the land, as most would assume since you haven’t come forward before this, the way would be free and clear for someone else to provide their own proof.”
“Proof?” She snorted in disgust. “You mean fabrications. More lies.”
“Exactly.”
*
Connor pulled Genesis more tightly into his arms. He couldn’t shake the feeling that this had been a narrow escape. What if she’d already been in the apartment when the intruder arrived?
And was it Portman who’d trashed the place? It made no sense if it was. Although he could have done a quick search and left. But why? Plus it would have taken time to create this much havoc.
“We can’t stay here for the night.” He led her back outside. “Let’s go back to the Center.”
She stopped. “Why is that any safer than here?”
He looked down at her. “Don’t you trust Matt?”
She was quiet for a moment. Apparently that wasn’t an easy answer to give. In a slow voice, she said, “I trust Matt. But I don’t trust his specialists, and I absolutely don’t trust the Portmans.”
“After everything that’s happened, that’s understandable.” He didn’t know if he should tell her or not about the star charts. He knew Matt was working to find out what happened also, and she’d never let any more out of her sight if she knew. Hoping Matt would solve the problem fast, he kept quiet.
Connor felt a tug on Genesis’s shirt hem.
She glanced down. “It’s been a long day, hasn’t it, Remi?” She glanced toward the kitchen. “Remi wants his treats.”
“How can you tell?” Connor asked curiously.
She froze. And he knew he’d blown it. He cursed silently and said apologetically, “He’s not visible all the time.”
“He’s not invisible to me anytime,” she said, her temper starting to show on her face. “That you can’t see him any longer is very concerning.”
“I saw him once,” he rushed to say.
She searched his gaze intently, then turned away from him.
Shit.
Chapter 29
Genesis hated to walk into the Center again, but with her apartment in shambles and her store in the same condition, she didn’t want to make any move toward the cottage in case she was being observed. She trusted Connor, but the fact that he could no longer see Remi and Remi refused to show himself to Connor said volumes about the relationship between them.
She also didn’t like things that were going on at the Center. But the cold, hard truth of the matter was her choices were limited. Tired and dispirited, she followed Connor inside the building.
And found a highly agitated Matt waiting for them. The two men greeted each other while she sidled past, heading for the same room they’d stayed in last time, when she realized she didn’t want to be in the same room. She wanted some space.
“Genesis, there is a meal being served in five minutes.”
So much for sneaking past unnoticed. She paused. Damn, she really needed food. Without saying a word, she changed directions and headed for the dining room. She heard muted voices continue behind her, but she was too tired to care.
Until she heard the words missing and star charts in the same sentence. Her footsteps slowed and she closed her eyes. Shit.
She opened her mouth, ready to turn to the men and say something about what she’d done, but the hot sting of tears threatened, and she didn’t dare trust her emotions after the day she’d had, so she took her seat and stayed quiet, not wanting to explain. For now. As soon as she sat down, a hot bowl of fettle soup was placed in front of her.
She dug in without waiting for the men to be seated. This was no time for proper manners.
Her stomach growled. And then Remi’s paw landed on her thigh.
She dropped her spoon and sat back, feeling even worse somehow. “I’m sorry, Remi.”
“Don’t be,” Matt said. “I’ll have something brought for him.”
The power of money and position had Remi being served greens and treats. She watched as Darbo slid to the table and was served a small plate himself.
In spite of herself, she smiled.
“Now I think that’s the first smile I’ve seen on your face all day,” Matt said gently.
“It’s been a crappy day.”
“Tell me about it.”
She shook her head. “Connor can. I’m too busy eating.”
With only half her attention on the food, she listened to Connor fill Matt in on the vandalism and damage to both her apartment and the shop.
“I’ll have it taken care of,” Matt said, anger in his voice. “I will also speak to Portman Junior.”
“That won’t do any good,” she said with a small sneer. “He’s going to deny everything.”
“Yet you are positive that he came out of your apartment?”
She nodded. “He did, didn’t he, Remi?”
Remi chattered, his words directed at Darbo. Darbo replied by making odd, sing-song sounds. Matt frowned, his attention on Darbo. It was the way of the animals and their human partners. There was an understanding between them that circumvented language.
“Good enough,” Matt said.
She hid a smile. How amusing to think the director of the Paranormal Center was going to believe her statement because her plumer had backed up her story.
Instantly, she felt better. She slid her gaze sideways to see what Connor was thinking and watched his jaw working. He kept his gaze on the table setting in front of him. Disbelief and…sadness was written all over his face, and there was nothing she could do to help him. It was hard to watch. He said he’d seen Remi – but now he couldn’t. Was it the energy of the pools that had helped? His abilities had certainly strengthened again with the healing energy.
She didn’t know.
The thought of the pools sent pangs of homesickness invading her soul.
She needed her pools tonight, more so than she had in a long time. She was hurting something awful inside. And that was something that most healing pools did a better job in fixing than doctors.
But it was too far to travel tonight. And she couldn’t risk being watched or followed.
*
After dinner, Connor excused himself. It was time to go see Grandfather. “I need to talk to him.”
“Unfinished business?” Genesis asked.
He nodded. “This is something I have to do alone.” He glanced over at Matt.
Matt shrugged. “It needs to be done.”
“I’ll be back in an hour or so.” He looked at Genesis, wondering at her particular silence. Her absent gaze, the spacing of her chair from his. She seemed distant. He wanted her to be with him, but this wasn’t the time. This wasn’t the moment. He had to leave. There’d be time for explanations and discussions later.
He nodded goodbye to Matt and headed to the front door. Surely she’d be waiting here for him when he came back. At the door, he paused and turned around to look to her. She sat motionless at the table, her head bent. Defeated.
He strode back quickly, tugged her chair backwards, and hauled her up and into his arm
s.
And proceeded to kiss her. Hard.
After her initial shock, she responded. Not with the passion he’d hoped for, but with a gentleness that scared him more than anything he’d felt yet.
“I’ll be back as soon as I can…whatever is bothering you, we can discuss then.” He released her, turned around, and walked out.
Outside, night had settled with a vengeance. Deep-dark and black, and with the cover of darkness came a mess of high winds and a light misting of rain.
Once in the car, he turned the vehicle in the direction of Grandfather’s huge estate. As he reached the edge of the property lines, he had to wonder. Did Genesis really own this? It was massive. Little Glory wasn’t as big or as prestigious as some of the cities that had popped up around the planet. But due to Grandfather’s position, it had taken off and he was the biggest landowner in the community. With that position came power. And more wealth.
Connor had to wonder – how had he made that wealth? He ran many companies by now. Were they legitimate? Or had he pushed the envelope that way as well? Did he know that his claim to the properties was false? What if he had inherited the land from his father? From his grandfather? Maybe he had no idea that it didn’t belong to them.
Then, he thought about the man and the way he wielded power. The ruthlessness. He brooked no resistance. If he did know about Genesis…what then? Just how ruthless was he? Connor had heard a lot about Grandfather but hadn’t seen nasty behavior first hand. And nothing concrete against Granny or Genesis.
That brought his thoughts back full circle to her.
Had Grandfather had something to do with the vandalism of her store and apartment? Connor frowned. He didn’t think so. What would be the point?
But if he thought Genesis had proof of what she owned, there was no way he’d stand by and let someone else take away what he considered his – even if it wasn’t.
He pulled into the long, curving driveway and parked at the front steps. The building rose in front of him, austere and pompous but elegant – and as an afterthought he added, cold. That was the one noticeable thing about the place. It oozed money, but there was no warmth in it.