“But you never mention women or comment on them or anything,” Connor protested.
“Because I have a little more insight into them than you do. I know how they feel when they’re commented on by a man. I can see if a woman is interested, and I can see when she’s not anymore.” The last words were low and I could tell all the guys were starting to see why Wade didn’t mention women. “But for your clarification, I am not gay. But I appreciate your offer of being my wingman.”
“Yeah, okay. Sorry, man.”
“No harm, no foul,” Wade said with a grin as he lifted his beer bottle to his lips. “Although, you’d totally be my type if I was into that kind of thing.”
Instant laughter broke out and I decided it was time to make my entrance.
“What’s so funny?” I asked, wrinkling my nose as I slipped outside. I went straight to the swing Jake was gently rocking on as they glanced at one another. “I don’t want to know, do I?”
“Nope,” Connor jumped in immediately to the other guys’ amusement.
“Come on, I think you should tell her what we were discussing,” Jake ribbed him as I plopped on the swing next to him. Connor shook his head, widening his eyes in effort to shut Jake up, but he just continued to smirk. I took pity on him and changed the subject.
“Jules wanted me to let you know you can sleep with her tonight,” I blurted out, effectively redirecting everyone’s attention. Connor straightened up and Wade gave a sigh of relief.
“Dude, he snores like a freight train,” he told Danny. “This is the best news I’ve heard all day.”
“That was fast,” Jake said in a low tone so Connor wouldn’t hear.
“I think she was taking pity on the rest of us,” I answered and with a quick glance at Connor’s relieved expression added, “And him.”
“My sister has a temper,” Jake agreed, using his foot to keep us in motion as Connor stood up abruptly.
“I think I’ll turn in,” he told us, exaggerating a yawn.
“Yeah, Jules mentioned how exhausted she was,” I commented, hiding my smile at the sudden disappointment on his face.
“All I have to say is keep it down. That’s my sister and we’re in the next room,” Jake told him with an unimpressed frown.
“I could say the same,” Connor grumbled, pointing between us. “Oh, Jake,” he said in a breathy falsetto voice. “Yes, ask me again, oh, Jake.”
I cracked up at his impression, absolutely positive I’d never sounded that way in my life. The other guys were trying to contain themselves unsuccessfully.
“Dude,” Danny muttered, his shoulders shaking. “You like to live dangerously.”
“Jesus,” Wade wiped his eyes. “Do you know when to quit?”
“He doesn’t. No filter,” I said, pointing at Connor as Jake glared at him.
“On that note, I’m leaving.” Connor strode across the deck as I patted Jake’s arm.
“He would be my best friend,” Jake finally eased back on the swing after he was gone.
“We’re bunking together?” Danny pointed his beer at Wade, who nodded.
“Y’all have to share a bath with Carly,” I mentioned only to watch Danny choke on the swallow he’d just taken. “Don’t die, you haven’t even seen her naked!”
“Damn near,” Danny growled, obviously not forgetting the tiny bikini. “Good thing no one else was around to take a peek.”
“Besides the binoculars up the road?” Wade mentioned.
“Yeah.”
“I saw your emotions, Addie. Guy was a perv.” Wade continued, staring toward the lake. “Fucking hate guys like that. You know he’s done it before.”
“It felt creepily familiar,” I said, rubbing my hands over my shoulders, feeling an unexpected chill on the warm night. Jake dropped his arm around me and I huddled closer to him.
“Maybe it had something to do with your dream,” Jake offered, smoothing his hand along my arm. “Same guy, or the same type of situation. Guy watching a girl.”
“The guy today had a similar sinister feel.” My comment was offhanded, but their reactions were anything but.
“If this guy even attempts to hurt you,” Jake started.
“I’m fine with going up there now and kicking some ass,” Danny said, leaning forward as he cracked his knuckles.
“I second that. I’d like to get close enough to this guy to see where he falls on the psychopath spectrum,” Wade added, tensing up.
“Guys, whoa.” I held out my hands as if they were about to storm out. “We can’t jump to conclusions here. The person could be Joyce’s husband or son or something.”
“She’s another weird one,” Jake muttered. “Something about her doesn’t sit well with me. Nobody takes care of another person’s property for twenty years without a damn good reason.”
“She seemed sincere, but it could be we didn’t mention the right thing,” Wade reminded us. “Everybody has a trigger.”
Danny glanced down at his hands at Wade’s words and I knew he was thinking of his own triggers. Like any mention of his younger brother, Samuel.
“I think we have more suspects than information right now. The police report was light on any other possibilities except my uncle. It would help if we knew someone who was here then. A first-hand account.”
Wade looked uneasy and I felt Jake tighten his arm.
“We can search out potential witnesses tomorrow. Find someone still around who can tell us more. A good place to start would be Joyce.” Jake said, meaning layered between his words. I glanced up at him curiously, but Danny distracted me with his next words.
“Your uncle was here. He was the primary suspect. If anyone knows anything and would have the most reason to talk it would be him.”
“Unless he did it,” Wade said heavily, and it dawned on me what Jake and Wade had silently been communicating.
Danny looked abashed and gave me a sympathetic wince. I shrugged carelessly.
“I don’t know him, if he’s a murderer it doesn’t bother me. I mean it does, but not because he’s a relative. However, I don’t think he did it. I think Danny’s right on this. If there was a way to find my uncle, he’d have the best motive for spilling what happened that summer.” I glanced between them before I concluded, “Something happened that summer, more than just her death. She was terrified long before she was killed and I want to know why.”
Chapter Seven
“Why me?” Carly stumbled over a reed on the bank, her foot making a squishy sound when she pulled it up. “I’m your best friend which means you shouldn’t make me tromp around a lake trying to find some spot you dreamed about. Save that shit for Connor.”
I chuckled at her irritation and told her, “You’re the bait.”
“Wait, what?” Carly picked up her pace as she glanced over her shoulder. “Bait? Bait for what? Why did we not bring the guys?”
Her questions badgered me with her sudden worry, but it was easy enough to ignore since she wasn’t really freaked out.
“In case the same guy is still lurking around trying to kidnap girls twenty years later, you can distract him and I’ll run for help.” I scanned the shoreline, but nothing looked familiar. However, twenty five years left plenty of time for change.
“You’re joking.” I heard the relief in her voice as she came to the conclusion and I glanced at her with a raised eyebrow. “You better be joking,” she added more firmly, holding my stare.
I relented and grinned as she blew out a relieved sigh.
“I figured you wanted a break from Danny so I invited you, my best friend, to accompany me on this exploratory mission.”
“You mean exploratory waste of time, “she muttered under her breath, swatting at a low hanging branch.
“To-may-to, to-mah-to.” I waved my hand airily and avoided mentioning the snake we’d just walked past since I knew it would send Carly running home.
A short while later I could see a clearing up ahead where the bank had been main
tained.
“Finally! Civilization,” Carly cried as we came upon another cabin. I wasn’t in quite a rush to declare any type of victory as I spotted a man standing on the pier. I stopped short as something about him tugged at my memory. Carly bumped into me and as she saw what I was looking at she became wary.
I had no doubt she’d immediately jumped to the conclusion that he was one of the bad guys hence my hesitation.
“Good morning, ladies,” the man called out, his voice lacking an accent to mark him as a local.
“We should leave,” Carly hissed, plucking at my sleeve. “I knew we should have brought one of the guys. We’re practically victims waiting to happen.”
I rolled my eyes at her melodramatics. “We’ve had self-defense training,” I reminded her. “We practice with the guys regularly. I don’t think he’s gonna get the jump on both of us. Besides, he’s probably some guy down for the week fishing.”
“By himself.” Carly’s tone left no doubt to what she thought of my explanation.
“He could have friends sleeping in or a wife.”
“Uh huh,” she murmured doubtfully as the man came closer. “You can stay right over there,” she called out, raising her voice so he could hear her clearly. I shook my head as a blush crawled up my cheeks.
The man stopped, taken by surprise at Carly’s request, but he raised his hands in the universal gesture for peace. My eyes roamed over him, trying to puzzle out why he seemed familiar. Was he the man on the porch that long ago day who Summer was frightened of?
But he should be older, I reasoned. The man on the porch had been older, like a father. I inhaled as I realized that was exactly who he had been.
Then maybe this guy was the man from the woods? The one who’d chased Summer. He eased a step closer to us, his eyes focused on me as intently as mine were on him.
“Stop!” Carly commanded and the man froze. She might be tiny but there was no fooling with her when she used that tone. “Who are you?”
Her aggressive question caused my breath to shudder from me as I knew who he was. The man’s eyes never left mine, almost waiting to see what I’d say before he responded, and I suddenly grasped another truth.
Chapter Eight
“He’s my uncle. Duke Michaels.”
Carly’s mouth dropped open as she glanced between us and Duke nodded, satisfied I’d answered his own question.
“I…but…are you sure?” Carly stumbled through the question and I nodded, more curious than ever at the presence of my uncle at the exact time we’d come to investigate the death of his girlfriend twenty five years earlier.
Duke Michaels gestured to the pier, welcoming us, and I accepted the invitation by stepping forward. Carly grabbed my arm to stop me, but I just dragged her along. Her tiny stature was no match for my current determination.
He was here for the same reason we were.
To find the truth.
He motioned to a bench built onto the dock and I sat down with Carly squishing herself right next to me. Duke stood a little ways back, recognizing Carly’s discomfort.
“We should call Jake,” Carly said in an undertone, poking my side. I wiggled away from her sharp jabs and hissed, “In a minute.”
“Comments like that are what get us in trouble,” she huffed, but eased up on my side.
“You have his eyes,” Duke commented, taking in my face. “Our grandmother’s eyes. And their gift.”
Carly gasped, but instead of shock, I felt relief. He was a connection to the past, to a family I knew nothing about, and to the truth of what I could do and where it had come from.
“What happened that summer?” I asked the question that bothered me the most, because that summer had been the turning point in so many lives.
“I’ve been trying to figure that out for over twenty years.” Duke gazed out over the water after he spoke, traces of bitterness and regret on his face. “But I will tell you this, I let her down that summer, and my brother let me down.”
“Seems like my dad was good at letting people down,” I replied and he looked abashed. “It doesn’t bother me, but it does bother you. Why?”
“He was like you. He knew the answers to questions. It was difficult to lie to him, but he hated using his gift. Called it a curse and even when I begged him to help me find out who’d killed Summer, he refused.”
“Ouch,” Carly whispered, relaxing a little as Duke paced away from us. “Talk about family feuds.”
“It drove a wedge between us and eventually my entire family. Our parents had no idea what David could do. They chalked up our grandmother’s gift as foolishness and David would never admit he had it too. When I was accused of Summer’s murder, they turned their backs on me, even David who knew the truth of it.” Duke’s bitterness was difficult to witness because it didn’t seem like time had healed any wounds, instead leaving them to fester over the years.
“And how do we know you’re telling the truth? David isn’t here to defend himself,” Carly spoke up suddenly, and I jerked my head because she’d basically just told me he was speaking the truth. My father had betrayed his own brother out of fear.
“She knows.” Duke gazed at me, a bitter hope in his eyes as he asked the question. “Will you help me find who killed Summer?”
A swirl of emotions threatened to overtake me at his question. Hope was at its center, but with it came rage, fear, betrayal, and an unrelenting regret.
“Addie,” Carly cried, grabbing my shoulders as I slumped. “You’re an idiot! I can see why your brother didn’t want to help you. You have no idea what a question can do to someone like Addie.” I winced as Carly turned the full force of her fury onto my uncle, who had paled at my sudden collapse.
“It’s alright,” I murmured, trying to calm her down. “It’s no worse than what happened the other morning with you.”
My mention of her own barrage of questions quieted her, but I could see the confusion in Duke’s eyes. From the sound of it, he might have been the only person who knew of my father’s gift, and I was starting to suspect our gifts were a little different.
“I’m sorry,” he apologized, holding out a hand toward me. He stayed back as Carly glared at him, her protectiveness admirable.
“It’s okay. You have a lot of emotions where Summer is concerned. But yes, I will help you find who killed her,” I answered him as Carly inhaled sharply. I glanced at her as I reminded her, “It’s why we’re here.”
“That doesn’t mean you need to help every Tom, Dick, and Harry,” she grumbled, removing her arm from my shoulder as she reassured herself I could sit up unassisted.
“In this instance, it kind of does.” I gazed at the man who was my uncle and felt the inexplicable weight of my father’s guilt. Solving the murder of Summer Keyes might be the only way I could set things right and fix the broken pieces of my father’s past.
Noise from the right drew our attention as Wade and Jake crashed through the bushes. Even without Wade’s gift I could see their concern and I turned on Carly with an accusing glare.
“What? I didn’t text them,” she declared, correctly interpreting my stare.
“Then how?” My forehead creased as I considered this new mystery. We hadn’t been gone that long so I don’t know why they seemed panicked. I headed over to them, curious at their presence.
“You’re okay,” Jake muttered, breathing heavily as he examined me from head to toe.
“Yeah?” I agreed doubtfully, still unsure why they were here. Jake nodded, relief sketched across his face as he jerked his head toward Wade.
“I might have overreacted,” Wade admitted ruefully, studying me just as intensely as Jake had, but his focus was more on my aura.
“Overreacted to what?” I demanded, still in the dark.
“Your emotions,” he answered to my shock.
“My what? How?” I trailed off, as all the implications of his statement started coming at me. “Wait a minute.” I propped my hand on my hip as Carly�
�s gaze darted between us. “I know you said you didn’t need to be looking at my aura to sense my emotions, but we were like a mile away. Explain.”
“I can’t,” he replied with a shrug. “I really can’t. I felt a spike of emotion that didn’t belong to me. There was a lot of turmoil. It might have caused me some concern.”
“So he grabbed me, wanting to know where you’d went. All I knew was you were trying to find the place Summer had been, combined with his feelings….” Jake jerked his thumb toward Wade. “We decided to follow the path you’d taken.”
I nodded, absorbing the new freakishness in my life, while Carly cleared her throat.
“Um, he’s gone,” she mentioned, poking me.
“Who’s gone?” Jake asked, and I spun around to find my uncle had disappeared.
“There’s something off about him,” Carly harped, happy to have her point made.
“Maybe,” I muttered, narrowing my eyes. “But I’m going to get to the bottom of this, one way or another.”
“Hello? Still in the dark over here,” Wade prodded, his concern for me now hidden by his normal sarcastic tendencies.
“My uncle. We were talking to Duke Michaels when you showed up,” I replied, staring at the cabin in the distance and missing their shocked expressions. I had to wonder if he was staying there or if his sudden appearance was something else entirely.
“I think we have some catching up to do,” Jake said and I nodded.
“Back at the cabin. It’s hot out here,” Carly agreed, heading for the wider path Jake and Wade had created. “I could use some tea and an air conditioner.”
“I’ll second that,” Wade said, his gaze lingering on me before following her.
I sighed and turned back toward Jake, bumping him as we walked side by side.
“Your uncle is here.”
“Yep.”
“And he disappeared when we showed up.”
There was no mistaking Jake’s suspicion and I couldn’t blame him. It didn’t make sense for Duke to take off the second my back was turned. If he wanted answers then he should have stuck around to meet the guys.
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