“You’re going to give me whiplash,” I said. “One minute I’m your best suspect, and the next you’re fawning over me with faux concern. I thought we were past that, Grey.” I unhooked his fingertips from the neckline of my T-shirt and pulled it back into place. Then I rolled my shoulders and sucked in a deep breath as though that could wipe away the memory of his gentle touches.
He continued to stare down at me, and while I could practically see the cogs in his mind turning over, his expression was utterly unreadable. Finally he pulled away, moving back around the table to take up his position on the opposite side once more.
"Anything else you can tell me?" The tenderness in his voice was gone, his words now clipped and business-like. The moment, whatever it had been, was clearly finished.
"It had blue eyes… these weird, glowing blue eyes."
"I thought you said it was made of shadow. How could something be made of shadows and also have blue eyes?"
“Look, it was dark, and I was a little busy fighting for my life, so excuse me if I forgot to ask it the physics behind its existence." I pushed up onto my feet. “Now if you're not here to arrest me, then I'm done with you wasting my time. I'd like you to leave."
"Why did you go out into the woods, Jenna?" he asked abruptly. I stood there, caught off guard, my mouth opening and closing like a goldfish who had jumped from his bowl. The gears in my mind ground completely to a halt.
He wouldn't understand. Someone like him would never understand the things that drove someone like me. So how the hell could I tell him that the real reason I’d been out in the woods had been because of my sense of guilt over a girl I'd never even spoken to? Heck, I didn't even understand the impulses that drove me half the time. My sense of responsibility for those around me, for those I felt were more vulnerable than I was, had been kicked into overdrive after my time with Kypherous.
"Did you know Tracey Farley?” Grey probed. He was either oblivious to my turmoil over his first question or he knew exactly what he was doing and had chosen to press his advantage.
“No.”
Grey tilted his head to one side, the way a raptor might when its prey was in sight. "Do you expect me to believe that?"
"I expect you to believe what you want. But it's the truth."
Grey shook his head and smiled, but he didn’t look happy. "I find it a little convenient that you were in the woods last night, just what, jogging around the place and happening to find my crime scene?” His tone was caustic. “Especially when less than twenty-four hours previously I'd invited you in on the case."
"This is the case you were talking about?" I asked with sudden interest.
"Yup, and despite your refusal to get involved, I find you up to your neck in it, having already come face-to-face with the thing that’s killing people."
"It has to be some kind of coincidence," I said, hating the words as soon as they left my mouth. Coincidences were for humans who didn't understand the different elements at play.
Grey smiled and pushed onto his feet, facing me across the table. "I know you don't believe that, Jenna. Did you know that you’re the only one to face this thing and survive?”
His words sent an icy bolt down my spine. It had to be a lie. I couldn't be the only survivor, because if that was true… "Tracey’s dead?"
"We don't know yet, but if not, it's probably just a matter of time.” He sighed. “We've already got another crime scene.” I could tell he was trying to keep his emotions in check, but his balled fists and clenched jaw told me it was affecting him far more deeply than he was willing to admit.
“Can I see it?”
“You expect me to just let you walk in there as a civilian?”
It was a reasonable question, and a loaded one, but I knew what the answer had to be. He had a job to do, and as much as I wanted nothing to do with Division 6 and all the complications they brought with them, I could respect his desire to continue working with them. If I wanted in on this case, then I would have to agree to the one thing I’d sworn I’d never do again. Getting away from Division 6 the first time hadn’t been easy. If I went back to them now, I had a feeling I wouldn’t walk away a second time. But what other choice did I have?
"You know I can't just let this go now," I said, meeting his gaze head-on.
"I was hoping you'd say that. But this time, we’d prefer that if you went running around in the woods, it was in a more official capacity."
“Seems fair, but I don’t suppose I could convince you to make an exception for me? Let the ‘official’ part go.”
He shook his head, and I sighed.
“Fine, but I don’t want to be hindered by red tape, and I’m definitely not doing any paperwork,” I said grumpily. Riding a desk for hours at a time and filling out pointless reports was the part of the job I had truly detested.
“Paperwork isn’t always optional, but for now we’ll go with just the basics…”
I knew I wasn’t going to get a better offer from him. “Deal.”
“And you promise you’ll come to me with any leads you get and not just take off into the woods to almost get yourself killed?”
I didn’t want to make that kind of promise. Granted, I definitely didn’t want to get myself killed, but I was so used to working alone that the thought of being forced to work alongside someone else was stifling.
“I’ll try,” I said, and seeing the irritation in his dark eyes, I added, “Hey, maybe the next time I take a wander in the woods, I'll have backup." I smiled in an attempt to add a little humour to the conversation.
“Maybe,” he muttered darkly, and I knew he’d seen right through my inability to fully agree to his terms. Grey being so perceptive was definitely going to put a kink in my plans.
“You ready to go?" he asked, moving toward the front door.
I caught sight of Carolyn outside the window waving frantically at me in an attempt to get my attention and shook my head at Grey. "No, I've got a few things I need to organise here, but give me half an hour and I’ll meet you in town.”
He stared hard at me, as though trying to see the thoughts swirling inside my head. When he finally shrugged and looked away, I felt the tension in my stomach slowly unclench.
"Fine, half an hour, but don't be late. It’s going to rain again, and too much water is going to screw up my crime scene."
Without answering him, I directed him toward the front door and watched as he climbed back into his black SUV.
I waited for the red taillights to fade before I released the breath I’d been holding. What the hell had I gotten myself into? I’d thought I was done working for government agencies, especially the one that had dropped me like a hot potato the last time I’d been in trouble. If this hunt went bad, what was stopping them from doing the same thing to me again?
But what choice did I have?
Considering what the creature had done to me last night, how it had killed Tracey’s father and taken her, hunting it was the least I could do. And if my chances of catching it improved because I agreed to work with Grey Cooper, then so be it.
If I was lucky, I wouldn't just be the one to hunt it.
I'd be the one to kill it.
Chapter 12
As soon as Grey's taillights were completely gone from the road, I made my way around the side of the house. There were fewer trees back here, and despite the watery sunlight that beamed down from overhead, the openness allowed a cold, cutting wind to sweep along the open fields that sprawled behind the house like a mismatched patchwork quilt.
It was beautiful and utterly wild, which suited me just fine. In fact, it had been one of the many things that had drawn me to the house in the first place.
"Carolyn," I said, raising my voice above the wind. I hadn't really thought about where she and Merry had gone. Grey's arrival had been disconcerting, throwing me off balance and causing me to forget important things. Hell, the man had even managed to make me agree to work with people I'd sworn I would never help.
"Who was that?" Carolyn appeared around the side of the dilapidated green wooden shed in the overgrown back garden.
“Here’s a better question: why are you out here instead of being in the house?"
"I saw the car coming up the drive.” She hesitated before continuing. “I’m not sure what I was thinking. I just picked up Merry and ran." The naked honesty in her words surprised me. Every time I asked her a question she seemed to sidestep it with some sort of clever evasion, ensuring I never really got closer to the truth of why she was here and who she was running from. But this felt different.
"His name is Grey Cooper, and he works for Division 6. I don't know if you've heard of them? They're a little bit like Interpol, but for the monsters."
Carolyn paled visibly, and her hands shook as she pushed her hair back from her face.
“You’ve heard of them?” I asked, watching her carefully.
“Something like that,” she said, swallowing hard. Just as quickly as her fear had flooded to the surface it disappeared again, leaving her expression blank and unreadable. "Is that what you think of yourself? That you’re a monster?"
It was my turn to feel surprised at the sudden turn in the conversation. But she was, after all, an empath. Her very essence involved reading between the lines and understanding people's deepest, darkest feelings and desires.
"What I feel doesn't matter, but for the record, yeah, I'm a monster. Not the worst you'll ever meet, although I suppose that depends on who you ask."
In the past, I’d been accused of feeling sorry for myself, of behaving like a martyr for believing that I was monstrous, but I didn’t see it that way. I was a monster. Any good book depicting the gods of Greece would certainly have agreed with me. I simply had no illusions about what I was.
Merry chose that moment to appear from around the side of the shed, both of her small hands plastered in dark mud. Her cheeks were ruddy from the cold, and she gave me a wide grin as her eyes met mine. She ran toward me, and I instinctively scooped her up into my arms, swinging her around as she proceeded to press both muddy palms against my cheeks. Her laughter was like a balm that flowed over my cracked and broken soul, and I found myself laughing with her. The conversation I’d had with Grey, and the guilt I’d felt over Tracey’s disappearance, were like a knot in the centre of my chest, and it slowly eased as Merry grinned up at me.
"You're not a monster, Jenna," Carolyn said, a small smile playing around her lips. "If you were, Merry wouldn't be drawn to you the way she is. You'd frighten her too much, and honestly, this is the most relaxed I've seen her in a while." Carolyn’s voice held an edge that suggested she wanted to talk to me, to spill her secrets, but something was still holding her back.
"Down, down," Merry said, wriggling in my arms as she spotted something across the garden she wanted to explore. I set her down and watched her run through the long grass before turning my attention to Carolyn.
“I’m here, you know,” I said, afraid that if I pushed her too hard she would clam up once more, but I hadn’t imagined her fear when I mentioned Division 6.
She opened her mouth and knotted her fingers in the front of her jumper, but Merry chose that moment to squeal in excitement, and Carolyn’s attention instantly snapped to her daughter. Her lips thinned, and I knew she’d withdrawn once more.
“I better see what she’s digging up this time,” she said, edging past me toward her daughter.
“I’ve got to head into town. Said I’d give Division 6 some help with a case they’re working.” I deliberately kept my voice devoid of all emotion. The last thing I wanted was to allow Carolyn to see just how much her words actually affected me and how desperately I wanted her to let me in. Knowledge was power, and without it I felt as though I was fumbling in the dark, just waiting for her past to come back to haunt us all.
“I’ll be making food later for Merry and me, want me to save you some?"
With a shake of my head, I headed back toward the house. “No, it's fine, I’ll pick up something when I’m out.”
I didn't need to look back at Carolyn to know she was staring at me. The sensation of her eyes boring into my back sent prickles of anxiety racing across my skin.
She was intrigued by me, and that was dangerous, especially if she thought she could use her power to help me battle the inner demons that constantly tried to devour me from the inside out. I couldn't face them myself, so there wasn't a chance in hell anyone else could.
I grabbed my coat from the hall before pausing to glance at my reflection in the old, rust-spotted mirror next to the door. I caught sight of the two muddy palm prints on my cheeks and smiled. Merry’s innocence still fascinated me, but I couldn’t figure out what she saw in me.
Shaking my head to clear the thoughts from my mind, I darted back into the kitchen and leaned over the sink to wash my face. I paused, taking a moment to watch Carolyn in the garden with her daughter.
Carolyn's face was still pale and drawn, like when she first arrived at my door. But the black circles that had ringed her eyes had shrunk. Despite the long jumper she always wore, I’d seen the bruises around her wrists from where she’d been restrained. They were slowly beginning to fade, but I’d worn the same marks often enough to recognise them. If only all things healed as easily as bruises.
Sooner or later, she would have to tell me who she was running from. She still reeked of fear, but it had lessened a little. I hoped that the more time she had to recover and simply be herself, to not live in terror, the more she would trust me. Even if she didn't realise it, I knew that whoever was after her would eventually come looking for her. It was all just a matter of time… I just hoped she gave me enough time to prepare.
The drive into town was an easy one since I knew my way around the country roads like the back of my hand. I spotted Grey's SUV parked outside Megan’s coffee shop; it stood out next to all the other colourful, smaller compact cars. He stood next to it, his hip propped up against the bonnet, his cell phone pressed to his ear, and his usually unreadable expression animated. His dark hair was pushed back from his face, and I could see the dark stubble that was beginning to form along his jaw. A jaw I wouldn’t mind tracing with my fingers… Christ, what was I thinking? After all the time that had passed, I thought I was past those sorts of feelings, and yet every time I saw him I couldn’t help but imagine what it would be like to taste him.
Shaking my head free of the thoughts crowding it, I focused on simply observing his actions. I could tell from the gestures he was making that whoever was on the other end of the line wasn't telling him anything he wanted to hear.
Parking my car behind his, I hopped out, wrapping my jacket a little tighter around my frame in an attempt to keep out the evening chill.
Autumn was beginning to give way to winter. I could taste it coming on the air. The cold always made me a little more sluggish, and the urge to climb into bed and huddle beneath the covers was growing stronger.
That was exactly what I’d done during my first winter outside of Faerie on my own. I couldn’t get sick the same way as a human, couldn’t catch colds and flus during the winter months. Instead, I grew weaker. The cold got into my bones, causing my reactions to slow, my senses to dull, and it was harder for me to recover after a fight. And judging by the bitter chill I could smell on the wind, this winter was going to be a nasty one.
I waited until Grey finished his call before I approached him. His expression was dark and stormy, and since I didn't fancy having my head bitten off for interrupting his thoughts, I hung back a little.
The door to Megan’s coffee shop opened, and light and warmth spilled out onto the pavement, bringing with it the rich aroma of their signature blend. My mouth watered at the thought of drinking a bubbling hot cup of coffee.
"You want one?" Grey's voice made me jump even though I was standing beside him. I started to shake my head before changing my mind. He was about to take me to a crime scene, so the least he could do was buy me a cu
p of coffee.
"Yeah, that’d be great," I said, casting a sideways glance in his direction.
"Won't be a second." He jogged into the coffee shop without even asking what I wanted. He obviously hadn’t lost his presumptuous nature. For all he knew, I’d given up coffee and was now strictly a tea drinker. Without waiting for him to come back, I checked the handle on the passenger door and found it open. Slipping inside, I closed the door against the chill air that swirled in after me.
The windows began to fog instantly, and I used the sleeve of my jacket to wipe clean the worst of it, giving me a clear view into the coffee shop. Grey stood at the counter, and from the way the young female barista was twirling her blonde hair around her fingers, he'd obviously turned on the charm.
Funny how he’d never done that with me. I didn’t know whether to be insulted or flattered, but I couldn’t stop the pang of jealousy that twisted in my chest as I watched his wide smile have its desired effect on the barista.
What the hell was wrong with me? Why was I feeling jealous over something so stupid? We’d only ever worked together, and despite my feelings for him in the past, nothing had ever come of it. He hadn’t felt the same about me, which he’d made perfectly clear. Closing my eyes, I leaned back against the leather headrest, drawing slow and steady deep breaths into my lungs, my chest rising and falling with each one. I kept it up until my heartbeat was nothing more than a faint pulse that came and went like the ebbing of the tide.
At the sound of the car door clicking open, I opened my eyes a crack and watched Grey slide into the seat next to me.
"That’s a neat trick you can do," he said, passing a steaming cup of coffee my way. I took it gratefully and sipped at the liquid slowly. The rich, full flavour of the freshly ground beans, and just the barest hint of hazelnut, danced across my tongue, drawing a sigh out of me.
"What trick would that be?" I asked finally, leaning back in the seat once more.
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