by Kariss Lynch
Micah whistled and rolled his eyes. “So basically, the couples failed in the costume department this year, and it’s ninja turtles for the win.”
“You forgot the teenage part of that.”
Jay grinned at Kaylan over his cup. “Nah. That was intentional. No one would mistake us for teenagers. I’m all man.” He flexed his tan arm, his muscles popping.
“Hey, save the gun show for another time and not in front of my girlfriend.”
Jay’s smile turned wicked, and Kaylan wondered how many hearts he’d broken. “Scared you won’t measure up, Hawk?” He dropped his arm around Megan as she rolled her eyes, unable to hide a grin.
Micah strode in between them, showing off his muscles. “Please. She grew up with the ultimate gun show. Ain’t nothing better than this.”
Kaylan chuckled, used to testosterone-driven performances, having grown up with three brothers. Leave it to Micah to diffuse a situation with humor and the proper perspective. She leaned into Nick, his red wig tickling her face.
“Oh.” Kim bent near the cabinet with a hand on her stomach. The room quieted as Kaylan moved to her side, placing a hand on Logan’s shoulder to reassure him as she passed.
Kim’s smile came out as more of a grimace. “Just baby making noise. I’m not so sure Molly is going to get her little sister. This feels like a little boy soccer player.”
She leaned over a little more as she sagged against the counter. “That was a big one.”
Kaylan noticed the sweat beading on Kim’s brow, the way her body curled in around her baby bump, the strain creating tiny lines near her eyes.
“Kim, are you in labor?” she whispered.
“I’m sure it’s just Braxton Hicks.”
“You’re due in two weeks, right?”
Kim nodded.
Logan wheeled his chair closer, careful to avoid hitting his leg. “Honey, do we need to go to the hospital?”
Kim put a hand on his shoulder and stood to her full height, all five foot two inches. “I don’t think so. Go have fun with the guys.” She smiled and Kaylan saw the strength in her stance, the courage that lay just beneath the surface, and the care she had for Logan. She envied their relationship and their home.
Her gaze drifted to Nick, where he stood watching her by the door. His smile warmed, and despite the face paint, his eyes spoke directly to her heart as he nodded. They could have that someday. The more she thought about it, the harder the wait became.
Chapter 30
THEIR SMALL CROWD had grown to over forty in one small house. Kaylan could barely move, but that wasn’t what bothered her. A figure wandered in and out of the house, a figure in a black hooded robe, with a black half-mask, wielding a scythe. Hopefully plastic. But that still wasn’t the problem. As she drifted in and out of the groups, sipping from a plastic cup, Kaylan had the odd feeling that the figure watched her. She shook her head, sure she was paranoid from all of Nick’s gun and safety chats since he had returned. But she still couldn’t shake her anxiety. Kaylan moved to a corner, searching for the flash of black garments in the crowd.
Every few minutes she saw the figure again, a slight frame just over five foot. But the angel of death never stayed in one place and never let Kaylan catch up with her, though she stopped occasionally to talk to others. Kaylan began to weave through the crowds, her eyes peeled. As the clock ticked toward midnight, Kaylan’s dread grew.
Something felt wrong. Her nerves were on edge from all the notes and threats. That had to be it. She was in a home full of SEALs. Surely the terrorist they chased wouldn’t be so dumb as to show up here.
She jumped as a hand wrapped around her wrist.
“Whoa, easy there, Jumpy. Where’ve you been?” Nick’s fingers slipped through hers, slowing her heart rate.
She scanned the crowd again, her gaze colliding with the angel of death lurking near a window by the Ping-Pong table. She tightened her grip on his hand.
“Kaylan.” He whirled her around to face him, but she twisted in his arms trying to find the figure. Gone again. She shook her head.
“Kaylan Richards, talk to me now. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. It’s just . . . nothing. My imagination is playing tricks on me. It’s Halloween, after all. I’ve always hated the creepy, scary parts of this day.” She offered a small smile.
“Uh-huh.” Nick saw right through the charade and immediately tugged her into the kitchen where the noise dialed down and only a few people lingered, drinking punch and eating snacks. Kim and Liza stood laughing by the sink as Liza washed dishes. “All right, spill it.”
Kaylan took in his wig cocked the wrong way and his tan skin peeking through the white face paint. She bit her lip. “I’m sorry. I can’t take you seriously right now.”
“That’s it. You are never choosing our costumes again.” He grabbed the wig and top hat off his head and set it on the counter.
She laughed, the anxiety easing a bit. “We’ll talk about it next year.”
He crossed his arms over his chest, his sandy blond hair sticking out at odd angles on his head. “We’ll talk about what we are dressing as together next year, but right now you are going to tell me why your face matches the color of the walls.” He smirked. “Well, even more than usual.”
“Ha, ha. Very funny.” She glanced around again. “There’s this person here, and I keep catching her staring at me. Only it’s someone I don’t know.”
“Okay. You don’t know about half of the people here. Care to explain that a bit more?”
Something black flashed out of the corner of her eye. She swiveled, catching a glimpse of the black-robed figure with a group outside on the patio. Kaylan’s grip tightened on the cabinet as she strained to see where she had gone.
Nick’s hand cupped her chin and brought her eyes to meet his. “I need you to slow down, focus, and talk to me.”
“It’s dumb.”
“Kaylan, your instincts are not dumb. Talk to me.” She could feel the energy he controlled in his touch, the frustration and desire to fix that he held at bay.
“There’s someone creeping me out. Someone dressed as an angel of death. I keep finding her staring at me across the room but then she’s gone before I can get close.”
His grip on her chin tightened, and she pulled away. “Nick, you’re hurting me.”
“Sorry, babe.” But now he scanned the crowd, setting her nerves on edge again. Normally calm, his now attentive demeanor scared her.
“Nick, I’m probably imagining things. Please don’t worry about it. Let’s just enjoy the party.”
Nick caught Micah’s eye across the room, and her brother immediately headed their direction. “What’s up?”
“Kayles, describe this person to me.”
Micah stiffened at her side. Something was happening she wasn’t aware of, something they couldn’t or wouldn’t tell her. Was the person threatening her not a man, but a woman?
“She’s in costume, Nick. Black hooded gown or cloak. Short. Probably just over five foot, maybe a little taller. Black half-mask, Phantom of the Opera style. Long black wig. Carrying a plastic
silver scythe. And I keep feeling like she’s watching me, but I can’t get close. Last I saw she was outside on the patio.”
A groan sounded from the sink. Kaylan’s head snapped toward the sound. Kim’s expression radiated pain. She darted to her friend’s side.
“Kim?”
“I thought it was just indigestion or Braxton Hicks.”
“After three babies you didn’t recognize contractions? How far apart are they?”
Kim chuckled wearily. “I was in denial.”
Liza put her hand on her hip. “Girl, I’ve been timing it every time you wince. They are about seven minutes apart now.”
Titus entered the room in time to overhear his wife. “That’s my girl.” He kissed her on the lips before grabbing the keys from the counter. “I’ll get the car. Bulldog, round up Logan, and Liza and I’ll drive them to the hospital. You two”—he pointed to Kaylan and Nick—“are on house patrol along with Bulldog.” He glanced at his watch. “It’s midnight. Give ’em another hour, then kick ’em all out. We’ll call you from the hospital. And maybe keep an eye on Jay. I think he had too much to drink.”
Kaylan leaned past Titus to see Jay flirting with Megan in the corner, his laugh a little too wild and his motions a little too uncoordinated.
“We’ve got it. Call us, please.” Nick pounded Logan on the back, and Kaylan kissed Kim’s cheek. She remembered the night with Sarah Beth and Rhonda in the slums, watching a beautiful Haitian baby enter the world. Hope. He had signified hope and new life in the midst of destruction. And the new Carpenter baby? He or she spelled hope after loss too. She couldn’t wait to meet the new addition. She put her hand on Kim’s belly. “See you soon, baby.” She hugged Kim and walked them to the door. Nick and Micah helped Kim and Logan into the car.
Within minutes Nick and Micah were back at her side as they rejoined the party. “Now about this angel of death character, sis. What’d she look like?”
Kaylan’s head whipped around. She’d forgotten. She scanned the crowd, looking for a flash of all black. The party had thinned out some. “She’s in a black robe, Micah. I don’t know what else to tell you.”
Micah met Nick’s eyes. “With all the weird things going on lately, I’d like to check this out real quick. What do you think, Hawk?”
Nick nodded. “Let’s just make sure it’s nothing. Kaylan, you stay here.” The two of them fanned out, while Kaylan fidgeted, her concern growing. Despite their attempt at nonchalance, Nick and Micah’s attentiveness heightened her anxiety—and her frustration. Once again they were looking for a ghost. This one just happened to actually be in costume.
After twenty minutes of wandering around, they met back in the kitchen, admitting defeat. “She must have slipped out when everything happened with Kim,” Nick said, rubbing Kaylan’s shoulders.
“Now I know it was nothing. I’m sorry for making a big deal out of it.”
“Kaylan, I think your instincts are better than that. But you’re right. Let’s just clean up.” Nick grabbed a handful of trash bags from the pantry and handed one to Kaylan.
“I’ll start shoving people out the door.” Micah left the room, his voice carrying through the house. “All right, happy Halloween! Party’s over, so it’s time to go creep someone else out unless you want to stay and help pick up.”
A few groans followed his announcement. Kaylan and Nick chuckled. “I knew your brother was the perfect man for that job.”
“Never a dull moment with him.”
“Has he always been like that?”
“Pretty much. You know Micah. He can be the life of the party or the most serious guy on the planet, but he’s always there when you need him.”
“His sister’s kind of like that, too.”
“Oh, yeah? Life of the party?”
Nick chuckled. “Well, maybe more the dependable part of that.”
She smiled. “I’ll take it.”
Within minutes the house emptied, and the three of them collected plates and cups from every surface downstairs.
Kaylan stopped to catch her breath, then remembered her roommate. “Anyone see where Megan went?”
“I made sure Colt took her home before tucking Jay in bed,” Micah hollered from the kitchen. She heard the faucet switch on in the kitchen.
“Perfect.” She cast a glance into the dark hallway at the top of the landing. “I’ll check upstairs.” Kaylan dodged the jack-o-lanterns as she climbed, lugging the trash bag. Her feet ached, and she’d abandoned her wig. Bed sounded better and better as the clock neared 2:00 a.m. She opened and shut the two bedroom doors, noting everything seemed fine. She stepped into the bathroom, grabbing a couple of cups off the counter, and stopped cold. An envelope addressed to her sat on top of a bouquet of dead white lilies. Their petals and leaves lay shriveled on the counter. She reached for the envelope and slid her finger under the flap, withdrawing a piece of stationery.
Kaylan,
Tell your boyfriend and his friends he should have left well enough alone. He can no longer stop what is coming. It is your fate to end up like your friend.
Janus
Kaylan fought a scream as the image of Sarah Beth rose before her eyes. Who would taunt her using her best friend?
“Kaylan, they had the baby!” Micah shouted from downstairs. She made herself turn and follow his voice, the letter and bouquet now clutched in one hand and the trash bag dragging the floor behind her. Her mind raced. Who was Janus? Someone she was supposed to know? The person the team chased?
“It’s a girl, Kayles. Molly is going to be stoked. Nadia Elaine Carpenter. Six pounds, twelve ounces, twenty-one inches long, and all her fingers and toes. Until y’all start giving me some nieces and nephews to entertain, I’m going to spoil the Carpenter kids rotten.”
He stopped as he met her eyes, and then his gaze drifted to the flowers in her hand. “Kayles . . . ”
“Micah, who’s Janus?”
She heard a bag hit the floor in the kitchen, and Nick darted into view. “What did you just say?” He spotted the note and dead lilies in her hand. As the blood drained from his face, she knew. “Give it to me.”
She descended the last few steps and stood in front of them. Fatigue made her eyes cross. She leaned into the banister behind her. “Answer my question, Nick.”
“Give it to me. Now.” She shrank back at the sharp edge in his voice and noticed Micah shoot him a glance.
She handed him the letter and flowers, the dry stems and petals crackling as they transferred hands. Wrapping her arms around herself, she fought to stay in the present. She needed air. She needed to clear the image of rubble and Sarah Beth from her head. And she was tired of the secrecy. Tired of not knowing who or what threatened her.
“I’ll take the trash out.” She shoved past them, grabbing a couple other bags from the kitchen and barreling out the door. She could almost taste the desire to run and hide. She gritted her teeth. New life. New start. New memories. “Lord, I’m tired. When will my memories stop shaking my present?”
She dropped the bags in the trash and slowly moved back to the house, thankful for the fresh breeze winging its way thro
ugh the backyard. She sat on the patio and put her head in her hands, searching for the strength to let go.
Nick watched Kaylan head out of the house, her shoulders slumped and her hands shaking a bit. He’d messed that up, let his fear dominate his calm.
“Dude, what was that?”
“She was here. She left a note for Kaylan. And it freaked me out, Bulldog. What are we going to do?”
“Let’s read the note first and take it one step at a time.”
“Since when did you become the rational one?”
“Apparently since you lost your mind and your ability to keep your cool.”
Nick glared. “What am I supposed to do?”
Micah snatched the note from his hand and held it in front of them both. “Like I said, one step at a time.”
Together they read the short note. Nick noticed the paper was different. Same handwriting, just in English this time.
“You think the person Kaylan saw was Janus?”
“I don’t know, Bulldog.”
“Is there anyone close to her that could be Janus or a courier?”
Nick ran his hand over his face, wiping away makeup. “There are two women who moved to the neighborhood in the last few months. Both travel a lot with their jobs. Kaylan’s met both of them and says they are nice. I’ve met one. But I don’t know. It could be anyone. Someone at church. Someone who crossed paths with her during her internship.”
Nick’s hands grew sweaty. He rubbed them together as his gaze drifted toward the kitchen window. He could see Kaylan on the patio outside, her back rigid. “But a neighbor or friend at church would make sense. It would explain how she knew when we went to Alabama or when we were deployed and got back. It would explain how she knows where we live. She has the perfect stalking position since we are around Kaylan so much.” He ran a hand over his face, chipping away at the remaining face paint. “There’s only one way to find out.”