“How do you like your coffee?” I asked. My voice sounded nervous, and I cleared my throat.
Keep it together. You’ve waited years for these answers. He isn’t leaving until you have them.
“Preferably not poisoned,” he answered as a smile lit his lips.
I poured two cups and doctored his with a splash of creamer, where half of my cup was filled with it. I set it on the kitchen table to avoid accidentally touching him again. “Okay, so explain what the heck just happened.”
“Do you believe in psychics?” he asked, making me pause with the cup to my lips. I’d forgotten this man didn’t know much, if anything, about me.
“Sure,” I answered without elaborating that I was related to one.
“A psychic told me to be at that very same spot yesterday where I found you.”
“Is that right?” I asked, sitting down at the table and motioning for him to do the same.
“Yep,” he said, pulling out a chair and sitting down. His gaze never left mine. “She told me you were the one who was going to help me save lives. Starting with my family.”
Okay, now who was playing who? Or was it whom? I shook my head.
“Whose life?” I asked
He shrugged. “I don’t know, exactly. But I should probably tell you I can read minds.”
“Prove it,” I said, trying to picture him naked and in my bed.
“Your mind just went naughty.”
Heat crept up my cheeks. “What did you see?”
“Nothing, actually. I just know where mine went, and your blush darkened.” He grinned and sat forward. “See, here’s the thing. I can’t read yours. I can read everyone, even though sometimes I wish I couldn’t. But yours is as blank as if you were an unplugged TV.”
“You have abilities,” I said, leaning back in my chair, mulling over that information. I hadn’t been expecting that. None of my other sisters had come across this yet. Harlon was the first guy to come into our lives that was just as…different as we were.
“You look surprised,” he said.
“I am,” I said, taking a sip of my coffee and watching him over the rim of my cup.
“It appears that we’re connected in more ways than your premonitions and my propensity to scare away a bear.”
“The picture?” I asked.
“That was Manny. He’s my stepdad. He trains the attack dogs and he was mauled and left for dead.”
“Did you witness it?” I asked.
“No, I was out of town when it happened. Luckily whoever, or whatever, tried to kill him, didn’t succeed. Only now he’s a jumbled mess.”
“What do you mean a mess?”
“He can’t speak, he can’t see. The doctors think he may be blind.”
I lowered my cup. “Do you believe the doctors?”
“Only partially. I can read Manny’s mind. Which is where you come in,” Harlon said, leaning forward and putting the picture on the table between us. “I can read his mind, but I can’t see what happened. His words are jumbled. The psychic told me that you’d be able to see and tell me what happened so we can figure if this was an animal attack or if a human instigated it.”
“What are you?”
“I’m part owner of a successful security firm. We train attack dogs for our clients, police canines, and service dogs.”
“And you what? Read the clients’ minds?”
“I’m more on the security side of things, but I’m more like a veterinarian. Just like I can read human minds, I can read animal minds too. Which is why none of this makes sense. I’m convinced that the animals around Manny wouldn’t have done this to him without being provoked by…someone else.
I gaped at him. He was like an animal whisperer. I’d never met one of those.
“But you can’t read me?” I asked. My coffee was forgotten and going cold.
“No. That’s why I need you. Although I’m not sure exactly how this is going to work. But I was told if we both touch the same person or picture or animal, it will be like we’re working in tandem.”
“The psychic told you that?”
“Yeah, she did,” he answered.
I raised a brow, unwilling to believe just yet.
“You’re the eyes, and I’m the voice.”
I clasped my hands and pulled them into my lap. “Let’s say for a second that I believe you.” My gaze dropped to the picture sitting on the table. “What’s the job?”
Harlon sighed. “Well, if we’re lucky, all I’ll need you to do is touch the picture while I’m touching you. And hopefully, we’ll be able to see and hear together.”
“And if that doesn’t work?” I asked.
“Then I’ll pay you to go with me to see Manny in person to check if the connection is stronger that way. I need answers only he can give me. Lives could be in danger.”
My heart thumped double time in my ribcage. The thought of being able to do this intrigued me. Knowing he could read minds scared the shit out of me. I’d have to keep him away from everyone that knew the rest of my family secrets.
“So just a touch?” I asked.
He nodded.
I slid my hand onto the table and moved it closer to the picture, hoping he couldn’t see it tremble. “Okay.”
I held my breath as I touched the picture, expecting God knows what? Nothing happened.
My brows dipped, and I laid my palm down straighter.
“Looks like you traveled a long way to be disappointed.”
I’d started to move my hand when he caught it, resting his large palm over mine. He moved our joined hands to hover over the picture.
“You can take the lead from here. Lower your palm when you’re ready.”
I swallowed hard. The heat from his palm was calming as it sluiced up my arm.
I lowered my palm and closed my eye.
The visions and the voices hit at once.
Chapter 7
The man in a three-piece suit fidgeted in his seat and tugged at his collar. In the background, lights twinkling in an array of colors on a Christmas tree. “Take the damn picture, already.”
The woman beside him smiled at him warmly. “Manny, just a few more minutes and then you can change out of that suit. I promise.”
Manny rolled his eyes. A girl and boy sat arguing at the couple’s feet.
The girl screamed, “Give it back.”
The boy held the doll out of her reach.
“Harlon give it back and tell Suzie you’re sorry,” the woman chided.
I turned my attention to Harlon. The scar hadn’t happened yet.
“Why should I have to apologize? She killed my fish.”
“It was an accident. I was just trying to help you feed it.”
Harlon crossed his arms over his chest.
“Okay, if you all will look up here and smile.”
“Smile, kids, or I’ll tell Santa to skip this damn house.”
Everyone in the picture smiled but not in that happy way, more like the I’m-afraid-I’ll-get-my-ass-beat kind of way.
My heart rate quickened, and the room started to spin. The Christmas lights brightened, blurring like a kaleidoscope in my vision.
I yanked my hand free to find myself still in my kitchen, blinking rapidly until everything came back into focus.
Harlon was staring at me. A range of emotions crossed his face before he barked out, “Why the hell did you stop?”
“Something’s wrong,” I whispered as I struggled to stand on my wet-noodle legs. My eyes rolled, and that was the last thing I remembered as I was sucked into the darkness.
****
I was floating on air. My stomach dropped and rolled as I snuggled into the blanket covering my body. I hadn’t been this relaxed in…forever.
“We’ve got bad weather up ahead so please watch the seatbelt signs as you move around the cabin.” An unfamiliar voice penetrated my thoughts.
My eyes flew open, and my heart raced. I was on a bed, but it wasn’t mine.
A TV hung in the corner, and I turned toward the oval window as clouds hovered beyond the glass.
I jerked upright and got a little dizzy as I stared out the window. My heart stopped for a split second. That was all the time it needed. I clutched the covers hard and pressed my back to the wall.
“This isn’t happening. This isn’t happening.” Fear slithered down my spine as every single muscle in my body tensed up.
The door opened, and Harlon stood on the threshold, holding on to the door frame. “You’re awake.”
I inhaled a deep breath. “You kidnapped me.”
“I didn’t want to waste time.”
I narrowed my eyes at him, almost forgetting my predicament.
“You kidnapped me and put me on a damn plane.” My voice rose an octave just as the plane dipped. I yanked the covers tighter, struggling to breathe.
Harlon’s eyes widened as he climbed onto the bed. He grabbed a motion sickness bag and opened it. “Just breathe, Nina. You’ll be fine. Just breathe.”
I took the bag and cupped it around my mouth, trying to slow my breath.
“In and out, that’s it.”
The second I felt more in control I removed the bag. “Land the plane.”
“We still have an hour before we get there.”
“Land the goddamn plane,” I growled.
“You’re scared of flying?” he asked, a concerned frown marring his face.
“Get us on the ground and I won’t even press charges for kidnapping me. Just get us down in one piece.”
“Nina…” he said, reaching for my hand, and I scooted farther out of reach. He stepped back and held up his hands. “Okay. We’ll land at the nearest airport and drive the rest of the way.”
He hurried out of the plane’s tiny bedroom.
I shook my head and lifted the bag to my lips again, continuing to breathe in and out with my eyes closed, clutching the sheet until the wheels touched down and the plane started to slow.
What seemed like a lifetime was in reality, only about thirty minutes. Lightning cracked; the sound vibrated through the plane as it hit on the other side of the runway. As soon as the plane stopped, I jumped from the bed and hurried down the aisle, where the pilot was lowering the steps.
I jogged down the steps, ignoring the pelting rain. My clothes were even wetter than when he’d dropped me in his shower.
Resting my hands on my head, I glanced around the little airfield. There were no other planes, just two small hangers in the distance. The sign on the shed read, crop-dusting.
Where the hell were we?
“Nina,” Harlon said, stepping forward.
I held up my hand. “Don’t touch me. Don’t you dare touch me.” All I needed was a freaky vision from his touch to make this day one-hundred percent craptastic.
“At least get back on the plane and out of the rain. We won’t leave. We won’t go anywhere unless you say it’s okay. I promise.”
“Like you asked to bring me here,” I asked, throwing my hands up before I dropped them back to my sides. “I don’t even know where here is.”
“We’re in Tennessee,” he said.
I dropped to a squat, holding my head. “Oh no, no, no, no, I have to think. I have to go home.”
“I’m sorry, Nina. I need you in a way I’ve never needed anyone in my life. I’m sorry I didn’t wait for you to wake up to ask. But I’m not sorry you’re with me. Lives are in danger, and there’s no one in the world that can help me the same way you can. Please.”
His voice cracked at the admission. Please. The one word guaranteed to make me crumble. The one word that would make me care, and the one word that had me needing to know more.
I clasped my fingers and rested them on my head. “Whose life are you talking about?”
Harlon ran his hand over his face. “My sister, Suzie. Her life, are you happy? Nina, I’ll pay you anything. Just get back on the plane. I need your help.”
“Okay, okay, let me think,” I said, heading back to the plane. “I need a phone. You do have a phone, don’t you?”
“It’s on the plane,” he said, almost resting his hand on my back before thinking better of it. I stepped back onto the plane, dripping wet. Harlon disappeared and returned with towels and set his phone on the table.
Shudders wracked my body as I dried off, but not all of the reaction could be attributed to the cold chill. Being on this plane again sent a fresh wave of anxiety through me. I dropped the towel, not caring about my clothes, and dialed the one person I needed.
My sister Mercy was the reason for my plane-induced panics. She’d once told me that I’d die on one of these metal birds. Granted we were thirteen, and she was pissed that I’d borrowed and ruined her favorite shirt, but I’d never forget the Death Notice she gave me. I’d die while flying through the sky. Even thinking about it now produced a shiver down my spine.
She answered on the first ring. “I’m not selling my goddamn house, so quit calling.”
“Mercy.” My voice was a whisper, but it stopped her from hanging up.
“Nina? Is that you?”
“Mercy…” I lowered my voice and turned my back on Harlon. “Is it raining the day that I die?”
“Nina, where are you?” Concern registered in Mercy’s voice. “Are you at home?”
“I’m on a plane, but we’re on the ground for the moment. Mercy, please try to remember. Is it raining the day the plane goes down?”
Chapter 8
“I don’t remember, Nina, but whatever you do, don’t get on a damn plane. Have you lost your mind?”
That was debatable. If my sisters knew that I’d been taken against my will, flying wouldn’t be what killed Harlon. It would be my sisters, and I knew for a fact they’d never find his body. “Okay,” I said, taking a breath. “Was it a big plane?”
“No.”
I rubbed my forehead. “How many people on board?”
“Five.”
I spun around to face Harlon. “How many people are on this plane?”
“Four,” he answered.
Relief was instant, and I knew my legs weren’t going to give out.
“Nina, who are you talking to? Who took you on a plane, because I know you didn’t go willingly.”
“It’s fine, Mercy. There are only four people. I’ll call you when I land in about an hour. If you don’t hear from me, then you got it wrong.”
“Nina….” My name was the last thing I heard as I hung up, knowing she wanted answers I couldn’t give her.
“We can go,” I said, tossing him back the phone. “That was a close call,” I said, picking up the towel and running it over my head. I passed him in search of more towels. “You could have died today, and then who would have saved your sister’s life?”
“You’re soaking wet,” he said, catching my hand against his hard-muscular chest. He stared in my eyes. “You should go change. I packed you a bag.”
I slowly lifted my gaze to his after being yanked out of where my thoughts were headed. I pressed my lips together like a seam. “You went through my things?”
“It was either that or let you borrow my clothes again. I just packed a few things, to get us situated. If it’s not enough, I’ll send Ruby out to get you whatever you need.”
I didn’t even want to know who Ruby was if it wasn’t his sister. I slipped my hand free and stepped into the bedroom, grabbing a bag off the floor. His bag. A pair of handcuffs lay on top, a gun beneath, and more of those god-awful flannel shirts.
I picked up the other bag. My sketchbook was open to the page with Harlon in an apartment with men pointing guns at him. I moved the book to see what other things the lumberjack had thought to pack.
Three pairs of jeans. Ones that had just been laundered and had been folded and sitting on my dining room table. A few shirts and several bras and panties that had just been carelessly tossed in. I ignored the heat creeping up my cheeks knowing he’d seen just how many granny-panties I owned.
&n
bsp; I dug further into the bag. No shoes except for the ones I’d worn into his shower, which were now dry. Perfect. Hiking boots. No toothbrush, no shampoo or conditioner, and no freakin’ makeup. I sighed in aggravation, looking for a bright side. I wasn’t dying today, so that was a plus.
As we got seated and buckled up, the plane accelerated again, and I clutched the armrests. Harlon was staring at me as if trying to figure me out. News flash, buster. There was no figuring me out. If there had been, I would have done it by now.
I held my breath as we lifted off the ground. My stomach relaxed much more when the plane leveled out and the seatbelt sign light turned off. I tilted my head from side to side to dislodge the tension that had hardened my muscles like the medicine ball sitting in my basement.
“Start at the beginning,” I said.
Harlon got up and walked to the back of the cabin and returned with two bottles of water. He passed one to me.
“Three weeks ago, I got a text from my sister telling me that my stepfather was in trouble. She claimed she couldn’t explain over the phone because it was too dangerous.” Harlon took the seat across from me.
“So the guy in the picture is your stepdad, huh?”
Harlon nodded. “Yeah, that’s Manny.”
“What does he do for a living?”
“He the CEO of the security firm that we all work for.” Harlon cleared his throat. “I was out of the country when I got the call, so I had one of my teammates, Quinton, look in on my father since he was in New York on a case and was closer. Quinton said my stepfather had been mauled and left for dead. It’s a miracle that he’s still alive.”
“And your sister?” I asked.
“Suzie and her exotic cat, Mittens, were gone without a trace.”
“An exotic cat… a tiger?”
He nodded.
“Her tiger is the same one that did that to your neck?”
“Tigers are territorial, and I was teasing her even after I read her mind and knew I was pissing her off. I was a dumb punk when I was younger.”
Hard to Hold (Bennett Dynasty Book 4) Page 3