One of the men reached out and put his hand on her shoulder. “Hey, take a breath. It’s okay. Nobody’s blaming you. We haven’t found him yet, but we will. Eamon can take care of himself. I’m sure he’s all right.”
Autumn managed a shaky smile. “I really, really, really hope so.”
“I’m Ronan,” the man told her. “I’m going to be here, and we’d appreciate it if you could leave your house for us as a base, but we understand that you need to see to your daughter. That’s your priority.”
She nodded. “Of course. Whatever you need. My neighbor, Tamara, will be staying here with my oldest. She can help you with whatever you need.”
“Thank you,” Ronan said. “You know Siobhan and Moira, right? Moira is going to stay here as base coordinator, and Siobhan and I are going to go into the woods to search. Moira has your number. As soon as we hear something, we’ll let you know.”
“But you already searched once,” Autumn said, swallowing hard. “He wasn’t there. You didn’t see him anywhere. What if he’s been taken? Shouldn’t we call the police? The national guard?”
“We’re going to search again first,” Ronan told her. “We’re still staying calm. Try to just—”
“Ronan!” Siobhan, the gorgeous, tall blonde girl, who Autumn had envied the moment she saw her, cut Ronan off. “Look! Oh my God!” She took off at a run, and Moira was close behind her.
Confused, Autumn tried to see what they were running toward, and then she gasped as she saw Eamon walk out of the trees, standing there at the side of the road in one piece and uninjured. Her heart leapt into her throat, and she started to move toward him too, then flushed and stopped as she realized that she barely knew Eamon and his colleagues wanted to greet him first. His female colleagues.
Beside her, Ronan was smiling. “I knew he’d be fine,” he told her. “Eamon knows what he’s doing.”
As Autumn watched from her yard, Siobhan jumped into Eamon’s arms, and he hugged her hard before setting her down and hugging Moira. They were talking amongst themselves, all manner of hand gestures in use, but Autumn had no idea what they were saying. All she knew was that she was so relieved to see that Eamon was safe that, for a minute, her other worries faded away. The spark of jealousy she felt as Siobhan leaped at Eamon and he caught her, however, did not fade, and it left Autumn feeling distinctly unsettled.
Of all the things to be concerned about right now, that shouldn’t even be on the radar.
As Eamon and the two girls grew closer, Ronan headed out to meet them, taking Eamon’s hand as he pulled him into a backslapping bro hug. Autumn inched forward, growing closer, and heard Ronan greet his friend.
“You good?”
“Yeah.”
“Is it…?” Ronan trailed off, as though Eamon would know how to finish the sentence in his own mind.
Eamon looked at him gravely. “Yeah.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah.”
Autumn cleared her throat again, stepping up to Eamon as he arrived at the edge of her lawn. “I’m really glad you’re okay. I’m so sorry that I sent you in there like that. Are you hurt? You don’t look hurt. Are you hurt? I’m a nurse—I can help. Honestly, anything you need at all—I’m just so glad that you’re here and all right. It’s been the worst five hours. I mean, it’s probably been worse for you than for me, but—well, was it?”
He didn’t answer her but instead closed the distance between them and slipped his arms around her, pulling her into a hug. As his mouth touched her ear, he whispered, “You’re going to have to trust me, Autumn. Promise that you’ll trust me.”
Her heart sank, and she knew that whatever he had seen in there, it was bad. “I promise,” she whispered. “I promise.”
Chapter Eleven
Eamon
Eamon waited until Autumn had taken Rachel to the hospital before he said anything at all about what he’d experienced in the forest behind her house. It was going to be hard on her to hear what he had to say, and there was no need to put that burden on her when her daughter was so ill. He could hardly believe how sick Rachel was. When he had gone into the woods, Rachel had been fine, and although far more time had passed than he’d realized, he hardly thought that it was long enough for Rachel to grow as sick as she clearly had. It was surprising how concerned he felt for the young girl whom he barely knew. She had been so full of life and precocious at the mall earlier that day, and he was fond of her already, even if he barely knew her.
That fact meant that it was important for him to make sure that he could figure out a way to protect her against the people who had the power to completely rob him of his own power.
Sitting down with his friends in Autumn’s empty living room, Eamon glanced down the hallway to make sure that Tamara was in Anna’s room with her and the door was closed. He would have liked even more privacy than they had, but he didn’t want to remove Anna from her home again, so as Ronan, Moira, and Siobhan sat down around him, looking expectant, Eamon kept his voice low and his words as few as possible.
“It’s serious,” he told them. “I think witchcraft of some kind. Incredible power.”
“Back up,” Siobhan said, resting her elbows on her knees as she leaned toward him. “Start from the beginning.”
In hushed tones, Eamon described how Autumn had come to him earlier that day, and the story she’d told. “I knew it could be supernatural, but it didn’t have to be.”
“It could just as easily have been some group of middle-aged weirdos trying to scare her,” Moira agreed. “But I guess we’ve ruled that out now.”
Eamon nodded. “Yes. The clearing was empty—at least, I thought so. But there was a ripple. And then I got pulled past the shield, and I was in a blue-tinted clearing with all manner of animals walking around.”
“What kind of animals?” Ronan asked. “Don’t tell me we have more shifters. Grady and Moira’s cockroaches are all the shifters I can handle for a while.”
“Not like that,” Eamon assured him. “But the animals were both prey and predator. Wolves and rabbits and deer, mingling. I couldn’t pick up on any vibes—none. Then I realized why when I tried to shift.” He looked around at each of them, his face grim. “I couldn’t.”
Ronan swore under his breath. “Damn it. That’s about the worst news to get. The shield around the clearing must have blocking powers.”
Eamon nodded. “Yeah. It keeps you from seeing what’s really inside, and once you cross the barrier, it blocks your power as well. Depending on how that shield is generated, it’s potentially destructive.”
“And we think it’s witchcraft,” Siobhan said. “A coven, of sorts.”
“A woman’s voice spoke to me,” Eamon told her. “She said that we had seen too much and that a sequence had been initiated that couldn’t be stopped. She said this was a demonstration, and then…she let me go.”
“Why didn’t she kill you?” Moira asked. “Obviously that’s what these threats mean. If she had you there, in her power, then why wouldn’t she just kill you then and there?”
Eamon arched an eyebrow at her. “Wishing me dead?”
“You know what I mean,” Moira said. “It’s important to understanding what they’re doing. If she had you so completely in her power, then why not just end the threat there? An even bigger question—why bring you through the barrier in the first place? You said something tugged you inside, and that she said it was a demonstration. Why not just let you wander around the forest, not find anything, and then go your merry way, convincing Autumn that there was nothing there?” She shook her head. “It’s an overreaction. There’s a piece we’re not seeing.”
“I agree,” Siobhan said. “There’s something more that we don’t know yet. Your client assumed it was a sex group, Eamon. If they’d left well enough alone and not left her threatening notes, she probably would have convinced herself she was crazy, or she would have had a story to tell at parties—about the time she stumbled upon an orgy in the woods.”
Eamon steepled his fingers, pursing his lips as he thought for a long moment. Then he nodded. “Agreed. There’s something more. I don’t think it has anything to do with Autumn though. I think she just walked in on something she should never have seen. Now she and her daughters are caught in the middle of it.”
“And you,” Siobhan pointed out. “And us, if they have the power to block all of our powers.”
“Only if we’re within their forcefield,” Eamon reminded her. “I think Autumn needs to leave here. This house.”
Ronan nodded. “I can arrange a safehouse for her for a while. I know she doesn’t have the money for a hotel.”
“Thank you,” Eamon said, nodding back. “She doesn’t.”
“Maybe Eamon wants them to stay with him,” Moira suggested, eying Eamon. “You did give her a big hug when you came out of the forest, and you don’t usually do that.”
Eamon pinned her with a look. “It’s not like that.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes,” he said pointedly. “It can’t be. And it isn’t. She thinks I’m engaged, and she has two kids. Don’t get matchmake-ish just because of you and Kean.” He looked around, just realizing. “Kean’s the only one not here.”
Ronan stood as he texted back and forth on his phone. “He was wrapping up the missing-child case—time sensitive. I’ve been sending him updates throughout, and he said to tell you he was glad you’re in one piece.” He texted some more, then looked up. “I’ve got a house for her. But with her daughter being sick, she’s probably best off at the hospital tonight. What about the other girl?”
“I…guess I’ll take Anna and Tamara to the house, after I talk to Autumn,” Eamon said, not relishing having to explain things to the woman who would have absolutely no idea what he was talking about. His friends at least had a base of knowledge, even though his news was still shocking. Autumn would have a difficult time processing any of it, particularly with the strain of her daughter being ill.
Eamon got to his feet. “I’m going down to the hospital. Can one of you stay here with Tamara and Anna to make sure nothing goes wrong?”
“I’ll do it,” Siobhan promised. “Should I tell them to get packed?”
“Not until I’ve talked to Autumn.” Eamon checked his phone, seeing that it was edging in on nine o’clock. The whole day was gone, it seemed, and it was hard to believe that just that morning, he had been finishing up a standard missing-child case. Now he was about to battle unknown supernatural forces—again. “I’ll be in touch,” he told Siobhan, then nodded at the other two as he headed for the door.
“Eamon!”
Turning, he met Moira’s eyes, noting her worried face.
“Look, be careful what you tell her, okay? Unless you know how you feel about her, just be careful.”
Eamon was confused, but he nodded, not interested in delaying his departure with any further explanation. “I will,” he said.
But even as he walked out the door and made his way to his car, he didn’t know how he was going to be careful or what he was going to say to Autumn. He was about to introduce the concept of the supernatural to her, and while that didn’t necessitate divulging that he was also supernatural, it put him in danger of having to do so. In previous cases where there had been supernatural forces at work, he had always been able to avoid unnecessary revelations by keeping himself at a distance from the clients.
He didn’t feel distant from Autumn though, and she had two kids whose lives were at stake. It didn’t feel right to shut her out of the situation and just tell her when she was safe again.
Eamon wasn’t so oblivious that he didn’t see the pattern emerging amongst his friends. A client who ended up discovering who they really were and then falling in love with them, changing their world forever. It couldn’t be a coincidence that the same thing had happened twice, and now the pattern was emerging again.
Maybe Autumn was being sent to him, to stand in as his human mate.
Or maybe he just liked her so much that he wanted to believe that was her purpose. Maybe, in reality, she was just a scared woman, being victimized by forces far more powerful than she was.
Either way, it was going to be difficult to keep her from learning more about Eamon’s life than she needed to.
Chapter Twelve
Autumn
There were perks to working in the ER as a nurse, and one of them was that, when you brought in your sick little girl, instead of getting bumped to the back of the line because it was “just a stomach flu,” you got a room right away and an IV put in within just a few minutes. In almost no time, Autumn was watching over Rachel as she lay in bed, liquid dripping into her bloodstream through one arm while the other remained firmly wrapped around her new doll.
Rachel’s coloring, while always light, was ghostlike, and there were dark shadows under her eyes that made Autumn’s heart sick. As a nurse, she knew that everything was being done for Rachel that could be done. Sometimes stomach flus were particularly bad, and they took a few days of intense attention to start the journey to recovery. She had seen more than enough worried parents in her lifetime to understand what she was in for, but that didn’t make it all that much easier to sit there and watch her daughter suffer.
“Mommy,” Rachel whispered, shifting uncomfortably in her bed. “Mommy…”
“I’m here,” Autumn said quickly, standing up from her chair to sit on the edge of the bed, taking her daughter’s hand. “I’m right here, sweetie. It’s okay.”
“I’m gonna—”
Rachel didn’t get to finish the sentence before she was heaving again. There shouldn’t have been anything left in her stomach, but Autumn was forced to reach for the bin the nurse had left and hold it still for Rachel as she voided her stomach once more. Rubbing her daughter’s back, she tried hard to keep the tears from her eyes.
“It’s okay, baby,” she whispered, stroking Rachel’s hair. “I’m right here. You’re okay.”
“Mommy…” Rachel’s voice was just a whisper as she lay back, her eyelids fluttering. “It’s burning me.”
“What’s burning you, baby?”
Rachel’s head fell to the side, and she groaned. “It’s burning me!”
Alarmed, Autumn began patting her down, trying to figure out what was wrong. “Rachel, what’s burning you? Tell Mommy—what is it?”
Rachel didn’t answer, and Autumn ripped the covers back from her daughter’s body, knocking the doll to the floor as she felt her daughter through the hospital gown, trying to figure out what was hurting her. But just as soon as she did, Rachel seemed to still, no longer shifting from side to side to get away from what was hurting her.
“Rachel,” Autumn said, her voice shaky. “Honey, what’s burning you?”
The little girl’s eyelids fluttered open, and she offered a faint smile. “Thanks, Mommy.”
To Autumn’s surprise, Rachel slipped into a more comfortable-looking sleep, and a hint of color touched at her cheeks again. Not understanding, Autumn carefully covered her back up and set the doll over by her purse, hardly taking her eyes off of Rachel the whole time. She settled back in her chair, watching the monitors that were tracking Rachel’s vitals, and though she was pleased to see them reporting better numbers, she didn’t understand what was happening to her daughter—or what had been burning her.
A faint knock at the door made her turn, and she stood up as she saw Eamon there, motioning him into the room with a finger to her lips. “Shh, she just fell asleep. Come in. Come in.”
He slipped inside, looking at Rachel with concern. “She’s very ill?”
“Yes,” Autumn agreed, bringing the other chair over for him to sit beside her. “She just…threw up again. I’m sorry.” Picking up the basin, she walked it out into the hallway, handing it over to a nurse she knew, then she walked back to Eamon, taking her seat beside him. “How are you doing? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” he assured her, and he did at least loo
k it. “Nothing bad happened to me, Autumn.”
“But you were gone for so long.”
He nodded. “I know. I have things to tell you. But I’m not sure this is the time.”
Autumn gestured toward her daughter, noting her even breathing again. “She’s asleep and under several watchful eyes. It’s all right. We can talk. I want to know everything—everything, Eamon. Promise me that, please. You said I needed to trust you, and I do, but you have to understand that my daughters are at stake in this too.”
His face grew even more serious than it usually was, and he nodded again. “I do know that, Autumn. But the things I have to say, you won’t understand.”
“I’m pretty smart. Try me.”
“It’s not about intelligence,” he told her, leaning forward in his chair, his elbows resting against his knees and his hands laced together at the back of his neck as he stared down at the floor. “Do you believe in ghosts?”
“There are ghosts in the woods?” Autumn asked, aghast. “Eamon!”
“No,” he said, glancing up at her before looking at the floor again. “I’m just asking you—do you believe in ghosts?”
She had to think about it for a minute. She didn’t not believe in ghosts, but then she had never seen one either. The possibility that there were ghosts was not beyond her imagination, but that wasn’t really what he was asking. He was asking if she, personally, believed actively in ghosts.
“I don’t know,” was the best she could come up with. “I’m open to it. But I don’t understand why you’re asking.”
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