Jemimah reached out to grab the rope dangling from the cliff. She struggled to keep her footing, but found herself free-falling down the ledge. Her arms flailed as she catapulted down the rocky slope. She looked around for anything that might stop her fall. She continued to tumble, feeling the pain as the jagged edges of the rocks dug into her body. She attempted to scream but found herself voiceless. The bottom of the canyon was fast approaching. She landed on the ground next to four corpses, each pointing their fingers at her.
She awoke with a start. Jemimah often had nightmares, but this one left her gasping for air. The clock on the nightstand said four thirty. Three hours before her usual wake-up time. Still disoriented, she had a feeling she was not alone in the house. She got up and wandered into the living room. Whitney was asleep on the sofa. Son of a bitch. Was he protecting her or making sure that Romero didn’t return?
She felt like shaking him, but decided to let him be. She went back to bed, fluffed her pillows and tried to fall asleep. The dream had been far too realistic. She knew it was related to the gruesome discovery of the bodies of those poor women. She couldn’t get the images out of her mind. Maybe she needed to see a shrink; she didn’t have the tools to treat herself. Dr. Cade would probably not be surprised to see her.
She curled up on her side and pulled the covers over her head in an attempt to block everything out. It worked. She awoke again at eight-thirty, feeling more rested than she thought possible. The house was quiet. She turned on the hot water in the shower and luxuriated in its warmth for ten minutes. The phone rang as she dried off. It was Rick.
“Why did you leave in such a huff last night?” Jemimah said.
“Three’s a crowd. Did that bastard spend the night?” He bit his lip. Serves me right for jumping on her, he thought, but she brings the worst out in me.
“That’s none of your business.” She slammed down the phone, only to find it ringing again.
“Don’t you ever give up?”
“Not when the lady is so pretty.”
Whitney.
“Oh, I’m sorry, Whitney. I thought you were still on the couch.” She peered around the corner to make sure he wasn’t calling from her living room.
“Not anymore,” he said. “I took off around seven this morning. You were sleeping so peacefully I didn’t want to wake you.”
“You’re a real gentleman.”
“I let the dog out—”
“Did you feed her?”
“Sure did,” he said.
“I never can tell when she needs to eat. Always keeps coming back to her bowl, even after she’s put a good-sized portion of Kibbles away.” Jemimah wondered what it was about Whitney that caused her to babble on like a teenage girl.
“Everything all right with you?” Whitney said.
“Just got out of the shower. Standing here dripping wet,” she said.
He had a mental picture of her. ”Can we have lunch together?”
“Give me a rain check— Oh god, I’m dripping water all over the bed. I have to go.”
“Get back to you later, babe.” He hung up.
The phone rang again. She picked it up and said nothing.
“Jem, it’s me, Rick. I’m sorry.”
“What do you want?” she snapped. “Haven’t you said enough?”
“I’m driving to the site of the murders to see what progress the techs have made. I’ll probably be checking in with the Medical Examiner’s office also, although it might be a little early for that. Can I catch up with you later in the day?”
“I’m going to be busy,” she said. “Leave me a message if you wish.”
Rick stammered, “Well, all right, but I’d much rather—”
She hung up the phone, dialed Dr. Cade’s office number, and scheduled an appointment for two o’clock.