Chapter 16

Sean opened his fridge, scowling at the looming emptiness. It matched his stomach. Ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise wouldn’t do much to feed him. A search in his cupboards revealed them just as empty. Not even the peanut butter jar held enough dregs for more than a taste. The last time he recalled going grocery shopping or eating at home was over a month ago. He liked to cook and usually made time to eat healthy.

Yawning so wide his jaw cracked, he rubbed his burning eyes. He’d give anything for a full night’s sleep. Even when he wasn’t being called out at all hours of the night because of the increased strange homicides, Sean tossed and turned. His mind kept searching for the missing evidence to link Michael to the Iron Maiden killings. Staying out late on his self-assigned task of following Michael didn’t help either.

Giving up on eating, Sean flopped down on his couch and flicked through the channels on TV, but nothing held his interest. Thoughts of the evil Michael could be committing while he lazed about pushed Sean to his feet to pace the room.

“I have to get out of here! I’m driving myself crazy.” He glanced at his watch. “It’s still early. Michael should be at the club. If I go there, I can keep tabs on him.”

After his last encounter, and the subsequent chewing out he’d received from Captain Green, Sean better have a good reason to be there. His stomach grumbled a complaint. He picked up his cell phone and called Charlie.

“You available to hang out tonight?” Sean asked when Charlie answered. He heard Charlie huff.

“Where? No, don’t tell me. The Red Orchid. Where else?”

“Ah, come on, man,” Sean wheedled. “This Michael guy is a nasty dude. I could watch him by myself, but then I’d get in trouble with my Captain. Again. He might go through with his threat and fire me. If you’re there with me, we’re just a couple of guys out for drinks and snacks.”

“It’s Thursday night. I can’t stay long.”

“Thanks, Charlie!”

“You owe me.”

“Of course I do. I’ll buy the drinks. Meet you in thirty?”

After hanging up, Sean changed into a nice pair of black slacks and a green button-down shirt, then slid into his leather loafers. He grabbed his black leather jacket to hide his sidearm and to complete his undercover look of a regular guy out clubbing.

When they met up, Charlie had dark circles under his eyes and a haggard appearance. They sat at a table where Sean had a clear view of Michael without it being too obvious. Charlie ordered his usual micro-brew while Sean requested a Scotch on the rocks and a burger with chili cheese fries.

“What’s going on, buddy?” Sean asked, taking a sip of his drink.

“A bodyguard gig. A nasty gang is after a sweet girl. They’re as bad as the guy you’re after.” Charlie’s eyes flicked to the booth where Michael and his frat buddies lounged. “She has something they want, but she doesn’t know it. We’re doing all we can to keep her safe. But it’s difficult.”

Sean watched a girl shimmy up to Michael’s table and slip into the seat next to him. She looked like everyone else until the overhead rotating lights hit her eyes. They glowed an eerie yellow and reminded Sean of reptile eyes. When a long tongue slithered out and licked Michael’s cheek, Sean sputtered, spitting out the drink he’d just taken. He slammed his glass back down so hard he knocked it over.

“Oh, good God, that was sick!” Sean wiped the whisky off his face and mopped up the mess.

Charlie turned toward Michael. “What did you see, man?”

“Nothing.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “It couldn’t be anything,” he muttered. Sean waved the waitress over and ordered another drink.

“You look as beat as I feel. Work must be bad for you.”

“It’s awful. We’re still being hammered by weird, violent homicides. Last night, two men were out eating dinner when one of them suddenly attacked and stabbed his partner multiple times. A few minutes later, he crumbled, crying over the dead body, swearing a grotesque creature sat beside him, not his lover.

“In all these cases, there aren’t any drugs in the perps’ system to cause hallucinations. On top of it all, I’m no closer to stopping the Iron Maiden killer than I was three years ago when the killings started. This last murder was brutal.”

Sean rubbed his chin, noting the scruff of his beard was longer than he liked it. He glanced at the waitress as she dropped off his fresh drink and his food. He fought to rub his eyes, instead blinked furiously. Small, twisty horns peeked from her black curls.

“I feel sorry for the victim’s friend. Even though she witnessed Michael with her friend, and so did I, Michael has an alibi and an excuse.”

Charlie stuffed a cheesy fry into his mouth. “That’s the psychic chick you told me about, right? She seems like the real deal. Did you ask her to do a card reading? It might point you to something you’re overlooking.”

Sean shook his head, then levered his elbows on the table, leaning forward. “I’m afraid to have her read my cards. She might pick up on things … emotions … I’m not ready to face. I’m staying away from her. She brings up too many emotions I don’t want. Not after Ginny.”

Charlie rubbed the rim of his glass. “When are you going to get over that bitch, Sean? Not every woman is as cold or mean as she was. To sleep with someone else in your own bed, that’s cruel. To tell you the truth, I never liked her.” He grimaced before taking another drink. “So who is this psychic chick and where does she work? It’s time I got a reading. And it would give me a reason to check her out and see if she’s good enough for my buddy.”

Sean laughed. It seemed like he hadn’t for a long time. His gaze flicked over at Michael, who fondled the strange woman now sitting on his lap. He wasn’t going anywhere for a while.

Sean took a bite of his burger. “Her name is Catlyn, Catlyn Hennessey.” He noticed Charlie’s eyebrows tick up before he schooled his face. What was that about? He doubted Charlie would know Catlyn. After telling Charlie about her, they discussed the latest football game. He enjoyed the normalcy of arguing with Charlie over the chances of the various teams to reach the super bowl.

As Sean wove his way through the crowded dance floor to the door, an inebriated couple bumbled into him. The woman murmured an apology, but the man glared at him, baleful green light shone in his eyes. He snarled, flashing sharpened teeth in a dark purple mouth. He spat out words in a language Sean didn’t recognize. Charlie bumped into him from behind hard enough to make him stumble to the side. Out of the corner of his eye, Sean caught Charlie’s hands moving in a complicated pattern and a red light burst from them. The man grunted, and when Sean regained his balance, the couple had disappeared into the crowd.

“Sorry about that, buddy.” Charlie patted his shoulder. “I didn’t notice you stopped.”

Sean tried brushing it off as a simple accident. But as he drove home, he replayed the incident. He was beginning to accept seeing weird shit around Michael. But to catch his best friend doing what he could only think of as magic, Sean worried he was going crazy.

He needed to go visit his Granny. She could tell him what was happening to him.

Catlyn moved through her morning yoga routine. She slipped into the postures with more grace and ease than she remembered. Feeling courageous, she tried a pose she’d admired but didn’t think she had the strength, balance, or flexibility to accomplish: the flying pigeon. With her hands on the floor, she wrapped her left foot around her right triceps. She only had to extend her right leg behind her to finish the pose. She hadn’t reached this stage before. Taking a deep breath, she slowly extended her leg. I did it! Surprise made her fall. “This is awesome! If I can do things like this, it’s worth it to have Maak share my body.”

Later that morning, Catlyn leaned back to rest her eyes from the detailed work on a jewelry piece to find her cats staring at her. They’d cocked their heads as if they were listening to something. “Great, she’ll talk to you, but not to me,” Catlyn complained.

In the week since Maak had merged with her, Catlyn hadn’t received any further insights why Maak choose to share Catlyn’s body. Although she found being able to smell emotions helped her with her healing work and tarot readings. Some were easy to identify. Fear, a musty, sour scent, smelled vastly different from the sweet, alluring scent of love. The scent of similar emotions, like happiness, pleasure, and joy, was harder to distinguish between their subtle differences.

Smell wasn’t the only sense that had heightened after Maak joined with her. A few days ago, she’d nearly jumped out of her skin when she clearly heard her client’s heartbeat. Her improved hearing allowed her to hear the customers in the store while still back in her healing room. She scowled at the ceiling. Her upstairs neighbors were at it again. She’d have to learn how to tune out and ignore unwanted sounds, such as her neighbor’s sexual exploits.

Catlyn stood up, stretching after the intense concentration of wire wrapping another crystal into a pendant. Her stomach growled, and she wandered into the kitchen for a snack before she left for her self-defense session with Jade. Mittens and Boots followed her, hoping she’d give them a treat too.

After opening and shutting several cupboard doors and not finding anything appetizing, Catlyn stood staring out her kitchen window. Ivy covered the wall separating her apartment complex with the one next door. Catlyn wished she could afford a house or condo where she could have a small garden. Her window garden provided a few fresh herbs, but she longed to dig in the earth and plant vegetables and flowers.

The sound of Mittens and Boots meowing broke into her reverie. They were both circling her legs, and Mittens reached up to snag something out of Catlyn’s hand.

“Mittens! What are you doing?” Catlyn looked at what she’d been absently nibbling on. Her eyebrows rose. “Catnip! Really? At least it’s in the mint family and won’t kill me.” She snipped a few leaves to give to her cats while stuffing more into her mouth.

When she arrived at Jade’s house, Catlyn paused on the threshold of Jade’s garage. She’d converted half of it into a dojo. Jade wore a gi, the traditional white karate uniform, tied closed with a black belt. She stretched both hands to the ceiling, then lowered to touch the floor with her palms.

“You’re better!” Catlyn strode into the dojo, putting on her gi top and snugging a white belt around her waist.

Jade hooked her thumbs in her belt. “I heal fast. I need to get back into shape, so we’re going to spar.”

Catlyn groaned. She’d been sparring with Jade’s newest recruit for her bodyguard business, Ariana Lambert. Ariana had been easy on Catlyn. Jade wouldn’t be so kind. The young woman waited in a corner, lifting weights, and gave Catlyn a nod in greeting.

The three moved to the center of the room and warmed up, practicing the various punches, kicks, and blocks. Then Jade led them in several katas, or forms, that taught combinations for fighting. Catlyn liked doing katas. When she was in the groove, they provided a type of moving meditation. Today, she was hyperaware of the tensing and relaxing of her muscles as she performed the movements. Joy coursed through her at the newfound strength and power of her body. She threw a sidekick and her gi pant leg snapped.

Jade’s eyebrows rose. “Nicely done, Catlyn. I don’t think you’ve ever been that precise before.”

“I haven’t.” Catlyn grinned, excited at her achievement.

“Let’s spar.” Jade motioned to Ariana, who moved off the mats to stand by the side wall. “We’ll start out easy.”

Catlyn stood several paces away and bowed, then lightly bounced on the balls of her feet, her hands held up in a ready position. Jade rushed forward with a backhand strike toward Catlyn’s nose, following up with a thrusting front kick. Catlyn swung her arm in a downward block, knocking Jade’s foot aside, immediately throwing a punch to Jade’s face.

Jade scooted to the side, barely blocking with an upper block. She gave Catlyn an appraising look. “Your speed has improved considerably.”

They continued to spar, trading punches and kicks. Catlyn saw an opening and threw a round house kick. Her eyes widened when her foot connected with Jade’s ribs. Jade grunted from the impact. She eyed Catlyn. “You’re much stronger, too. Care to explain?”

Catlyn opened her mouth to tell Jade about Maak, but Maak’s voice stopped her. “No, don’t tell her about me yet. She won’t understand our bond.”

“I’ve been practicing,” Catlyn said instead. “Being scared and stalked is great motivation. Your guys might not be there when Smoker Dude or Blond Guy decides to do something to me besides watching and following me. Or worse, if Michael takes a more active role.”

Jade narrowed her eyes. “He hasn’t done anything to you, has he?”

“No.” Catlyn shook her head, then a shiver ran down her spine. “He’s just shown up at the oddest places, then seems to disappear. Monday I was at the grocery store, and he stood at the end of the aisle I was walking down, leering at me. As soon as he knew I saw him, he vanished. When I reached the end—which only took a few seconds—he wasn’t anywhere to be found.”

“Where was Dilan? Wasn’t he your guard that day?”

Catlyn shrugged. “I don’t know. Your guys are good. They mostly stay out of sight.”

“I’ll have to have a talk with them.” Concern crossed Jade’s face. “Has Michael done anything else?”

“No, I’ve only seen him a couple times.”

“If Michael ever makes a move toward you or does anything, let my people know immediately. Don’t try to fight him on your own. Even with your recent improvements, you’re no match for him.”

“Don’t worry, that guy freaks me out. He oozes evil. Every tarot reading I’ve done where he’s even in the periphery of the situation, the Devil card shows up for him. In his case, I think it’s quite literal.”

“It is.”

Jade’s ready agreement about Michael being a demon elicited a low growl from Catlyn’s throat. Maak agreed.

Jade studied Catlyn.

Catlyn held her breath, waiting for Jade to comment on the sound. Instead, she glanced at the clock on the wall. “I have a meeting. Continue to spar with Ariana for another half hour, then you can leave.” Jade strode to the doorway leading into her house. Opening the door, she paused and turned around. “Keep vigilant, Catlyn. And do your protection rituals every day. I want you to stay safe.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Catlyn promised. It was unusual for Jade to leave before their session was over. Catlyn suspected Jade would assign more people to her safety detail from now on. Apparently, Dilan or Charlie hadn’t seen Michael stalking her, or they hadn’t reported it to Jade.