Dark Memento

by Katie Reus

  She frowned at the board. “Even Bianca? She was hurt when Adeline was taken.”

  “She could have done it herself. I’ve seen it before. So she stays on the board until I can prove she’s not involved. Now tell me what you know about each of these people. I want impressions, any weird personal arguments. Or non-personal issues, something to do with business—anything at all. Something that we haven’t found through our digging. We’re going to catch whoever this is, and my money is on it being a woman, but… At this point I’m not ruling out these guys.” She pointed to three men who had gone to college with Serenity, each of them owners of or working at various businesses in Verona Bay.

  “Well, I’m pretty sure Bianca had a thing for Lucas, which seems like a crazy reason to come after me. But if you want details, I’ll give you everything. She hit on him more than once but he’s always rejected her. Same with Paisley. Not that she’s a suspect, but…I also heard that Norah has been displeased about my presence in town.” She quickly relayed what Maris had told her, and Amy nodded as if this wasn’t news. “You knew?”

  “It’s my job to know.”

  Serenity wondered what that even meant. Oh…they were probably wiretapping or something along those lines. That’s what Feds did, right? Something she had no idea about, but she was pretty sure the FBI had a pretty big purview right now. And she knew better than to push for more details because she certainly would not get them.

  For the next hour she gave them as many details as possible about every person on the board while one of Amy’s people recorded everything.

  When she was finished, Amy raised her eyebrows. “This is a hell of a lot more information than we got eight years ago.”

  “Yeah. Because you got the guy last time.” And the truth was Serenity had tried to block out everything once Michael Black had been imprisoned. “Do you think it would help if I talked to him?” she blurted.

  “Him who? Wait—Black?” Amy’s dark eyes widened and Serenity noticed that a few others in the room went completely still at their laptops, staring at her.

  Serenity looked around at them, then focused back on Amy. “What?”

  “I think it could be beneficial, but…I would never put you in that position. I know what he took from you, what he did. You’re a civilian—I don’t expect you to talk to that monster. You faced him down in court. That’s enough.”

  She was silent for a long moment but mulled it over in her mind. Serenity was terrified to face him again but she would do anything to make this stop. To make sure her daughter was safe again. Sitting across from Black, talking to him… A cold flush punched through her and she had to focus on anything but him or she wasn’t sure her knees would hold her up. “Do you need anything else from me?”

  Amy shook her head. “I think we’re good for now. I’m really glad you’re staying at the Jordan estate. That place is locked down pretty tight. Are you going to be at the grid search tomorrow?”

  “I am. Why…do you think I shouldn’t?”

  “No, I’m glad you’re coming. It’s almost a hundred percent chance that whoever’s doing this will be there. They’re going to want to revel in the havoc they’ve caused. I’m going to have an agent on you and I know Lucas won’t be far from you either. If anyone acts suspicious, we’ll take them down.”

  “Good to know. I’m ready to go if we’re done here.”

  “I’m going to have an agent drive you back if that’s okay?”

  She nodded, not caring who took her back. She simply wanted to see her daughter and Lucas. She’d hurt him when she’d told him not to come with her.

  He was already going above and beyond what a friend—or whatever they were—should ever do. He had to be getting tired of all her shit and she wanted to spare him if she could.

  By the time she made it back to the Jordan house, the gate was closed for the night. Luckily Louise answered the intercom and opened it. Lucas was nowhere in sight when she met his mother in the foyer, and Serenity was too chicken to ask where he was. Instead she headed for Harper’s room and found her in bed, reading to Daisy.

  “What’s all this?” she asked, her heart warming as Daisy yipped to see her.

  “Mommy!” Harper set her book down and sat up, jumping into Serenity’s arms.

  She hugged her daughter tight as she got into the bed, pulling her close. Daisy licked Serenity’s face before cuddling right up next to Harper, her sweet little shadow.

  “Are you reading to Daisy?”

  “Yes. She has a lot to learn.”

  Serenity laughed when she saw that the book was one of her many “Biscuit” books, featuring a cute puppy who got into mischief.

  “Is everything okay with your friend?” Harper left the book open in her lap as Daisy nudged her with her nose, not so subtly begging to be petted.

  Harper rubbed her head as Serenity answered. “Of course. I just needed to help Ms. Amy with a couple things.” She’d decided to go with Ms. Amy instead of Agent Lin. It sounded less intimidating.

  “Okay.” Harper turned back to her book, seemingly unworried. In fact, she seemed to think all of this was an adventure.

  Which was just fine with Serenity.

  As Harper started reading, she flipped on the little dome light on the table, that she’d brought from home. Little blue and green stars danced on the ceiling.

  Considering how much her daughter was slowing down, it was clear she would be going to sleep soon. Half an hour before bedtime, even, but Serenity had a feeling she was just as exhausted as everyone else. Minutes later, and before she’d finished the book, Harper had drifted off, Daisy’s head still on her lap.

  Serenity eased the book out of the way, tucked her in and turned the lamp off, but left the twinkle lights on.

  Their rooms were connected by a bathroom so she headed into the other guest room, but left Harper’s door open so she could hear her if needed. Then she simply sat for a long moment, gathering all her thoughts. Going over all that information with the Feds had mentally taxed her. So she was going to allow herself a few minutes of quiet, even if she was finding it almost impossible to turn her brain off.

  After checking her cell phone to make sure Amy hadn’t called with news—not that she’d really expected it—she went in search of Lucas.

  She found him and Easton in the kitchen, Lucas with his muscular arms crossed over his chest as he and his brother talked about something quietly.

  They both stopped talking and turned to look at her. His expression was unreadable, making her stop in her tracks. “Should I come back later?”

  “No, it’s all good,” Easton said. “I’ve got to head back to the station house anyway. I’m on call starting in two hours.”

  She nodded, half-smiling when he basically patted the top of her head as he passed. Easton was like this giant, affable puppy you couldn’t help but love.

  Lucas was his polar opposite, much more serious. “Hey, is everything okay?” she asked, stepping farther into the room. It was the first time they’d been alone in… Since last night, she realized, her cheeks warming up.

  “Yeah, just talking about family stuff.”

  Despite the tension in the air, she moved closer to him, leaning against the granite countertop. She wanted to erase the awkwardness between them. “I know you’re coming to the grid search tomorrow, but what’s going on with your work?” He’d been fairly quiet about that and she didn’t like the thought of his work suffering because of her.

  “Tobias is taking over for the next week. Unless there’s an emergency, he’s got things handled.” His expression wasn’t cold, but he seemed distant, his hands shoved into his pockets as he stood in front of her.

  She didn’t like the wall between them, but knew it was her fault. “Okay.” Good, she’d been worried about that. “I think Daisy is going to sleep with Harper, if that’s okay?”

  He finally smiled, though it was only a half-smile. “That’s more than okay. Daisy has been following her aroun
d like a little shadow.”

  She wanted to say more, then Lincoln walked in to the kitchen. He looked just as tense as Lucas. What was going on with these two?

  “Got a second?” Lincoln asked his brother. From his body language it was pretty clear this was a private conversation.

  “I’ll let you guys get to it. I’ll see you in the morning,” she said.

  Lucas simply nodded, not correcting her or attempting to stop her. All right, then.

  She headed back to the guest room and collapsed into bed after changing into her pajamas. She’d stay awake a little longer and talk to Lucas before she crashed. At least that was what she told herself as sleep completely pulled her under.

  Chapter 23

  Serenity’s feet were cold, wet as she walked through the dewy grass. Where was she? And why was she outside in her pajamas?

  “Help me,” whispered a voice through the fog and mist.

  She recognized that voice. She hurried forward, her feet sluggish as fear clawed at her spine. What was going on?

  The moon was high in the sky and it looked wrong. It was completely red, casting a macabre glow over everything. Shadows loomed from the forest.

  She jolted to a halt when she saw Paisley Long stretched out in the grass in pajamas.

  Her skin was far too pale. Even as she approached to check her pulse, she knew Paisley was dead. Serenity had seen death before.

  Suddenly Paisley’s eyes snapped open, her irises ringed in red. “She’s coming for you,” she whispered.

  Serenity’s skin flushed hot, then ice cold. She tried to take a step back when she saw the gleaming points of Paisley’s teeth. She looked inhuman.

  “She’s going to take everything that matters to you. You are going to die slowly, painfully.” Her words were still a whisper.

  “Who?” she rasped out.

  Paisley shook her head from side to side, the jerky action unnatural. “No, no, no. Tick-tock, tick-tock.” Her voice was singsong now, sending more chills down Serenity’s spine. She took a small step back, the effort taking unimaginable effort.

  Paisley shifted slightly, crawling forward, her fingernails pointed just like her teeth as they dug into the grass. She reached forward, pulled herself toward Serenity.

  “Tick-tock, tick-tock,” she taunted.

  Serenity opened her mouth to scream, to do something, but she was frozen as roots sprouted from beneath her and wrapped around her ankles. Oh, God! They started pulling her down.

  Her eyes snapped open and she jolted up in bed, her heart a staccato beat in her ears.

  It was just a nightmare. An awful, terrifying nightmare. Shoving the covers off her, she swung her legs over the bed and leaned forward. She put her head between her knees and dragged in lungfuls of air, taking deep breaths to steady herself.

  As soon as she could stand, she stumbled through the attached bathroom and checked on Harper.

  Familiar little twinkle lights glittered across the ceiling. Harper was sleeping peacefully, as she should be.

  Daisy raised her head once to glance at Serenity, but went back to dozing within seconds, Harper’s protector.

  She sagged against the doorframe, watching her daughter for a long moment.

  It was only a nightmare, she reminded herself. One that would not come true. That nightmare had been ghoulish, scary.

  She was tempted to write down the nightmare and try some writing therapy, but even the thought of doing so scared her. She did not want to relive that. Not now. It was too soon. In a few hours she knew the images would fade, but for now they were etched into her mind.

  She thought about going to Lucas but things had been weird between them earlier. She knew he’d be okay with her coming to him but she didn’t want awkwardness. No, that wasn’t true. She couldn’t run to him with this, couldn’t depend on him for everything. Because she could easily get used to him and everything he offered.

  Stepping back, she eased the door shut and stripped off her sweat-soaked clothing. A shower would help.

  Or at least banish some of the nightmare.

  Until the next one.

  Chapter 24

  Serenity shoved her hands in the pockets of her windbreaker as she listened to Lincoln bark out instructions to everyone from Verona Bay who’d come to help with this grid search for Paisley. Behind him, quiet and at attention, his deputies were all wearing uniform shirts, cargo pants and windbreakers with the sheriff department emblem on them. Despite the overcast morning and the fog lingering on the ground, a few hundred people had gathered here for the search.

  Almost all shop owners downtown had closed up and posted signs letting others know where they were if they wanted to help.

  Serenity felt vulnerable out here, knowing that the killer was likely here, that they could strike out at her at any time. She also felt as if everyone was watching her, silently judging. Even with Lucas by her side, being so exposed right now was beyond unnerving. Like one of her nightmares come to life. His presence was the only thing helping her keep it together.

  Amy’s FBI profiler didn’t think the killer would attack her out in the open. No, this person didn’t want to get caught. The poison suggested a hands-off type of killing, and the way Adeline and Paisley had disappeared with no witnesses further added to the profile that whoever this was didn’t want to get caught.

  Still, it was hard to shake that icy ball of fear congealed in her gut.

  Lucas took her hand in his and squeezed once, offering silent support. He’d been quiet, almost distant all morning, but he also hadn’t left her side.

  She wondered if he was regretting getting involved in all this, and getting closer to her. She certainly wouldn’t blame him if he did. She was a magnet for danger, apparently. And she was pretty sure she was too broken to ever have a real relationship. She’d run away with the first man who’d offered an escape and she hadn’t had a relationship since him. And she woke up on the regular sweating buckets because of a nightmare. Ugh.

  Lincoln motioned to her and Lucas when he was done speaking. Then his deputies started breaking people into groups and going over various grids on the maps set up.

  She was surprised when Lincoln moved Norah and Bianca into her group, but there was a subtle look that passed between him and the agent shadowing her.

  Okay, so maybe this was intentional. Yeah, it had to be. She knew from Amy that the Feds were keeping a close eye on all their top suspects. It creeped Serenity out that they were in the same group as her but she forced herself not to show her fear.

  “I’m surprised to see you out,” Norah said once Lincoln had finished going over everything.

  “Why?” she asked bluntly, facing the other woman, looking her directly in her blue eyes. After what Maris had told her, and after everything she’d been through, Serenity was over caring what people thought of her.

  “I just mean… You know…”

  “No, I don’t know. Enlighten me.” Serenity watched Norah intently for a long moment, a perverse pleasure sliding through her when Norah’s cheeks got pink. Sure she could talk trash behind Serenity’s back, but it was a whole new ballgame when she was right in front of her. Norah was older than her by about two years, and she’d once been interested in a boy who Serenity had dated in college, but that seemed like a strange reason to hold a grudge. Or the kind of grudge someone was willing to kill over. Even though fear still simmered under the surface, she gained back some of her power as she faced Norah down.

  Ignoring the other woman, she turned toward Lucas, who almost looked as if he was fighting a grin.

  “I’m ready if you are,” she said.

  He nodded, even as his brother drew a square around the map on one of the boards the deputies had set up. “Don’t forget, this is your perimeter. Stay in this area. We don’t want any crossover and we need this group to stay staggered like this.” He motioned to various points already drawn on the map.

  She nodded even as Lucas said, “We’ve got it.”
>
  The reason for the search was twofold. The Feds weren’t technically sure Paisley had been taken by the same person who’d taken Adeline and killed Mrs. Rose. It was very likely considering the circumstances, but at this point they were covering all of their bases.

  Paisley had a standing weekly breakfast date with her mom and had missed it. Her cell phone and all of her other belongings were at her house, but her vehicle wasn’t. And her car had been found abandoned near a local park, which backed up into a national forest. They were searching a good portion of it right now.

  The fog swirled around their feet, a few birds chirping as they headed off into the woods. She’d worn knee-high rain boots because it was still damp out, and even if it was cold out, snakes could be hiding anywhere.

  “Can we talk about last night?” she murmured as she and Lucas broke off onto their directed path. In the distance she heard people calling Paisley’s name sporadically.

  Instead of responding outright, he made a sort of grunting sound. Then he glanced over his shoulder and she did the same. Amy’s agent was about twenty feet behind them, wearing a plain jacket and outdoorsy hiking clothing. The dark-haired man nodded once and continued walking behind them.

  “Come on, Lucas,” she said, then called out Paisley’s name, her voice echoing against other calls. “Please talk to me.” She couldn’t stand this coolness from him. Not on top of everything else.

  “Last night you could have brought me with you. Instead you brushed me off as if…” He shoved a hand through his hair. “It doesn’t matter.”

  “Obviously it does matter. I didn’t want you to come because I didn’t want to be a burden. Your whole family has been incredible. I figured you didn’t want to be dragged off—”