by Deanna Chase
“Hello.” After several rings, a sleepy voice finally answered.
“It’s Kate…Kate Edwards, we met yesterday?” she prompted.
Her head began to pound the more she gained consciousness. In hindsight, those saki shots were a huge mistake and she desperately hoped the rolling nausea from the vision wouldn’t lead to a full scale vomit fest. She sat on the side of her bed and held her head in her hands while waiting for Declan to reply.
“Yes, Psychic Kate, I do remember and why…” he paused and she heard some shuffling and possibly the sound of an aggravated female groan, “exactly are you calling me at four in the morning?”
“I need your help finding a little boy. He’s in trouble and I can’t figure out where he is,” she explained in a rush.
No need to beat around the bush. If he wasn’t able to help her Kate would have to move on and figure out on her own how to get Max home. The woman was deranged and could end up killing him. Her twisted features appeared in Kate’s mind. She planned to do another sketch and send it to the police department working on Max’s case. Nonetheless, the woman could be anywhere with Max and there were probably thousands of women who looked similar to the abductor.
Declan’s dry tone interrupted her thoughts. “Guess what you found out online was pretty enlightening. I’m trying to rank as the number one searched psychic on the web.”
“Yes and going on the web is a much more normal way to research someone than following them around. Anyway, are you able to meet or what?” Her fuse was short. A hangover and unsettling vision didn’t make for a happy Kate.
“Now? Well, I’m sort of indisposed at the moment,” he sniggered and female laughter rang clearer through the line. Great, the one psychic she meets is a conceited cretin. Before she could give a retort, Declan continued, “How about you meet me later at Jersey Mike’s? I’ll treat you to lunch and we can talk?”
“Whatever, that’s fine. There’s one in town on Bath Avenue. I’ll see you there at noon.” She fell back onto her bed and closed her eyes. By rubbing her temples, she hoped it would ease her headache.
“Sounds like a plan,” Declan agreed. After she didn’t reply, he continued, “Oh and Kate?”
“Yes?”
“Don’t forget to bring my free sub card.”
Declan gave her an arrogant grin as she walked over to the entrance Jersey Mike’s later that afternoon. Leaning against the building, he perfected the look of casual cool. His hair was spiked in several different directions and he wore a t-shirt of some band she was not hip enough to have ever heard of. A couple of teenage girls laughed nervously as they walked by. They looked ready to swoon when he winked at them. He held out his hand as she approached.
Kate questioned sardonically, “What do you want? Me to give you five?”
“Ha-ha, hand over the sub card, sweetheart and I’ll let you live,” he joked.
She slapped the card into the palm of his hand. “I’ll take an Italian hoagie with no onions and roasted red peppers.”
When they entered the sub shop, it was quickly filling up with the lunch crowd. Kate explained to Declan that she would snag a table while he did the ordering. Agreeing, he headed towards the counter while she sat near the back of the restaurant. It was hard to not fidget as she waited for him to return with their sandwiches. A million questions were running through her head. It had never occurred to her that she would ever actually meet a legitimate psychic. His appearance in her life made her feel foolish for never considering the possibility of looking for others like her. The only major research she had done was read a few books from well-known psychics. Their stories were so dissimilar from hers that she figured maybe her case was unique.
A few minutes later Declan took the seat across from her. As he arranged the sandwiches, she did a quick study of him. He was good looking, but not classically handsome. Between the scars and the multiple tattoos, Kate speculated that many people would find him intimidating. Declan was not what she would picture as a psychic—more like someone who would end up crushing skulls in a MMA match. However, when he met her eyes, his smile was disarming—a direct contradiction of his bad ass exterior.
Kate spoke first, “Thanks for meeting me. Sorry about the late night call, I had a vision and it freaked me out.”
Before taking a bite of his sandwich he started, “So, you’re working on a new case?”
She nodded and launched into a detailed explanation. “I’m not sure what you know about me or even if your gift works the same as mine. My visions usually only happen at night when I’m dreaming. I never really know who I’ll end up seeing, but sometimes if I concentrate on a person before bed, the vision will be about them. Occasionally it will be a recent memory while other times it will be a vision from the person’s past.
“Anyway, a mother in Washington sent me a letter about her missing son last week. He was taken from a mall while out shopping with his grandmother. His name is Max and I already had two visions about him. This psycho lady is keeping him in her house and feeding him all of this B.S. about how his parents were killed and she was asked to look after him. She’s growing more and more abusive…” she trailed off.
Her throat constricted and Kate took a shaky breath before carrying on with her story. “I gave the police department in Blaine the woman’s description, but Max has no idea where he’s being kept.” She paused and dug a photograph out of her purse. Sliding it across the table she stated, “Here’s a recent picture. If there’s anything you can do to help…”
Declan didn’t let her finish. “I could tell you your first mistake right off the bat.”
She sat back in her chair, startled at his tone. “Come again?”
He pointed to the picture of Max that sat between them. “You’re trying to get in the wrong person’s head. Now that you saw his abductor, you should be working on her. It’s not likely she’s going to just blurt out her address to him.”
Her head bobbed up and down in agreement. “You do have a point, but it’s not like I can automatically read her thoughts even if I have a vision of her. I was inside Max’s head, but that’s not always the case. Sometimes I’m just observing the scene, kind of like watching a movie.”
“That’s how it is for me too,” Declan assured her before asking, “But have you noticed any consistencies with your visions?”
“I never see a memory from someone who has died. Otherwise everything else seems kind of random,” she said with a shrug.
Kate’s sandwich remained untouched on her plate. It was surreal to be sitting here with another psychic and having a seemingly normal conversation about the weirdness that had surrounded her life for the past two years. It was comical to imagine what other diners would think about the two of them if they eavesdropped on their conversation.
Although she was pretty open with Jared, it was different talking to someone who had the same experiences as she did. Their personalities may not exactly mesh, but the potential of a friendship with another psychic was growing more appealing by the second.
Declan spoke, “I’m not sure what you read about me, but I’m guessing you found out my visions started four years ago after my accident?” He posed it as a question and waited for a sign of agreement. After she nodded, Declan stated, “So, I’ve had more time to notice things about the visions. I’ve come to realize the type of vision I have depends on the person.”
“What do you mean?”
“Adults have these mental defenses in place that children don’t. So, I usually will see into the head of a child where I may just witness a memory that an adult has.”
Doing a quick inventory in her head, she determined for the most part it was true for her too. When she had visions of Jared, her parents and Julie, they played more like a movie. She was able to see what happened to them at the moment in her vision, but never experienced their thoughts and feelings at the time. However, during a couple of cases in the past she had been in the head of the adult involved.
“Besides kids, it’s easier to see the thoughts of someone who’s not mentally all there. That’s why I’m telling you to try to get into the abductor’s head. She sounds like a nutter which means you may be able to find out where she lives.”
Looking at her watch, she swore under her breath. “I have a shift today at the doctor’s office,” she explained and then continued, “Well, you probably already knew that, stalker.”
He laughed. “It’s fine. Take your sandwich with you and text me when you’re free again. We have a lot more to talk about.”
“Don’t you have a job or go to school? Why do you have the time to come and hang out in Franklin every day?” Her suspicions took over again as she fired question after question at him.
“Being psychic is my job,” he deadpanned. As she opened her mouth to speak, he put up his hand to stop her. “Get to work—I’ll explain more when I see you again.”
“Fine,” she said not able to keep the huffiness out of her voice. “Before then, please let me know if you see anything that could help Max.”
“Cross my heart,” Declan replied and she snorted. “If you have a tough time connecting with the woman, give me a call. I know a few tips on how to block out everyone else and get into a target’s head.”
Kate leaned forward and knew her hazel eyes were eager as she questioned, “Do you mean you can control your visions?” Before he had a chance to reply, she implored, “Please tell me that’s a possibility.”
“It’s not a perfect science, but yes, I’ve found ways to usually see what I want to. That’s why I told you I could help you when we first met.” She waited in anticipation as he took a long sip from his soda, “I read in an interview you gave after Cori’s disappearance that you have no control over your visions and that’s the reason you weren’t able to give her exact location.”
It was hard to digest how much Declan knew about her. It made it difficult to trust him and she recognized that was the reason she was coming off as standoffish. There had to be other psychics around, probably even more experienced ones, so what was the reason he had such an intense interest in her? A natural curiosity was one thing, but going to the trouble to follow her and read past news stories about other cases she has been involved in was another. Despite her reservations, she was eager to learn as much as possible about what it meant to be psychic.
“Can you show me how you control the visions?”
“Sure, why don’t we meet the day after tomorrow? Do you want to come by my place?” It was awkward to say, but she wasn’t sure how keen she was going alone to his house. She was positive Jared probably wouldn’t care, but Kate was always wary of permitting anyone new into her life. He sensed her hesitation and continued, “Would you feel more comfortable at your house?”
“If you don’t mind,” she said uncertainly. Her mother was usually home and Kate could give a heads up to her mom to act as chaperone. He hadn’t sent out any major signals that he was romantically interested in her, but a nagging feeling led her to believe Declan had an underlying motive for seeking her out. After she thanked him for the sandwich, she left the sub shop to head to her part-time medical receptionist job. As Declan’s words tumbled around in her head, she wished her instincts were wrong and Declan’s helpfulness was completely altruistic.
Chapter Seven
“Honey, I’m home!” Kate called as she entered Jared’s apartment. He had texted her ten minutes earlier to explain that he would be taking a shower and he’d leave the door unlocked for her. After first reading the text, she went into a panic thinking it was a possible invitation to join him. However, considering she hadn’t shaved her legs that day, she wasn’t prepared to head down that road with him just yet.
As she went to throw her purse on the white leather couch, she felt alarmed when she noticed it wasn’t there. Confused, she spun around in a half circle and saw that the majority of the furniture was gone. This included his couch, love seat, end tables and kitchen table. All that remained was the large screen TV and a few folding chairs that she had never seen before scattered around the living room. Hearing Jared in his bedroom, she yelled out to him. “Jar, I think you better come out here! I think you’ve been robbed!”
Jared strolled out of his bedroom wearing only a pair of jeans and a tight smile. She felt slightly annoyed at the pang of lust that surfaced. He should be dressed in a snowsuit twenty-four hours a day if he was planning to make her wait to be intimate. Water glistening off his skin highlighting his perfect body was not helping with libido control.
“I meant to warn you, but Nikki kind of blindsided me today. She called this morning to say she found an apartment and was picking up her furniture. I was working non-stop and I didn’t get a chance to let you know,” Jared explained and stretched lazily.
Kate rested her hands on her hips. “So, she was here?”
“Yeah, she just left about half an hour ago.”
She took a deep breath for dramatic effect before speaking. “Please tell me, Jared, that there’s an innocent reason you were taking a shower right after your ex left her former apartment.”
Jared laughed as if her suspicions were the craziest thing he ever heard. Coming up to her, he pressed a gentle kiss against her lips. “You have nothing to worry about. I didn’t want to be a sweaty mess for you after helping move all of the furniture.”
She rolled her eyes. “Your niceness is completely ridiculous sometimes. I would’ve totally let her move her own damn furniture.”
“Yes I know—there’s no love loss between the two of you. But I can’t be a dick to her simply because things didn’t work out.”
His words made total sense, but she continued to seethe. Jared and Nikki had been together for three years while they’d only dated a little more than a month. She couldn’t help but feel threatened over their history. Nikki’s true colors seemed to come out towards the end of their relationship, but Kate fretted over the possibility that Jared may still think often about the gorgeous blonde.
“Did she mention me?” Kate asked evenly.
“Mention you?” he parroted her question back with a quizzical expression.
“Yes, you know…ask if we were together, curse our firstborn, that sort of thing?”
“No. To be honest, we didn’t talk that much. I asked about her family and she said everyone is doing well…”
She cut him off. “Did she say if Cori liked the fruit basket I sent?”
“No, she didn’t say.”
Another reason Kate disliked Nikki. Sending fruits and chocolates to Cori was the least Kate felt she could do after everything that happened. She hadn’t received a thank you card or any acknowledgement of the gift from the Prestons. When she complained to Jared, he guessed that maybe they were trying to put the whole ordeal behind them and she was too much of a reminder of the horrors Cori had gone through. It had hurt Kate to hear that. Because despite her horned sister, she would’ve liked to keep in contact with Cori.
“Well, what are we going to do about this?” Kate asked and gestured to the empty spaces around his apartment.
He exhaled noisily. “Luckily, the bedroom set was mine, so I still have something to sleep on…”
“Well, thank goodness for that.” She knew she answered too heartily by the amused expression on his face. How did he keep his cool when she felt her emotions were all over the place every time she was in his presence?
Jared smiled and continued, “But I’m not sure when I’m going to find time to furniture shop. My caseload has seemed to triple this week.”
“I’ll help you! I’m Darlene Edwards’ daughter, so you know I would find furniture shopping to be fun!” she enthused.
“Do you know anything about furniture?” he asked skeptically.
“What’s there to know? You sit on it,” she retorted.
“Well, th
at’s enough expertise for me. Why don’t we plan to go the next Saturday or Sunday when we’re both off?” Jared suggested.
Kate agreed, but couldn’t help and think of what a guy move it was for him to put it off. If it was her apartment, she’d be at the phone that night and ordering furnishings for next day delivery. Since sitting in front of the TV on a pair of folding chairs didn’t appeal to either of them, they decided to go for a walk to the nearby coffee shop. Excusing himself, he went back into his bedroom to finish getting dressed. Jared reappeared after putting on a t-shirt and a pair of sneakers.
As they made their way down the street outside of his apartment, Jared held tightly onto her hand. At least with all of the craziness going on around her, Jared felt like something solid to keep her grounded. Kate leaned into him as they walked and marveled in the happiness of the moment. Knowing it couldn’t last forever, Kate decided to tell him about Declan and their meeting together. Jared was silent as she summarized everything the psychic had revealed to her.
He seemed intrigued over the idea that the type of visions depended on the person. “I know it’s awkward for you to talk about, so I never brought it up. But I’ve had a lot of questions about your visions.”
Kate felt her body tense as she wondered where Jared’s line of questioning was heading. Although most of her visions about him were fantastic, there were a few that would be uncomfortable to share. Afterwards, she’d wake up and feel guilty when she saw a deeply personal moment from his past. It felt as though she was unintentionally violating his privacy. “Go ahead, shoot.”
“You’re brave saying that to a cop,” he joked trying to lighten the mood. Jared had the uncanny ability to always pick up on how she was feeling. Her posture relaxed as he asked, “Do you see inside my head? Or are you just witnessing my memories?”
“I’ve never known your thoughts during a vision. I’ve always been an outside observer,” she confessed.