Psychic Visions 08-Now You See Her... (7 page)

Dean stood in
the front hallway of the brick two-story building. There were many houses in the neighborhood just like this one, which had been a popular design in the nineties. There appeared to be a half dozen on this block alone.

There was no one home from what he could see. Or she was sleeping soundly. He hated to walk through her house. “Hello? Simone? Are you home? Tia sent me.”

He said that last bit slightly louder, hoping Tia’s name would make a difference. The open kitchen was on the left. The living room in front had double French doors leading to a small backyard. He stood at the side and peered out into the backyard, a small grassy space with a couple of chairs. No sign of anyone. The furniture was in decent shape but not designer. The house was middle class and in good condition. She’d looked after the place.

The stairs were on the right of the living room. No sign of a door to a basement. Good. He didn’t like basements. At the stairs he stopped and called up, “Simone? I’m with the police. Tia sent us. She’s worried about you.”

Still no answer. With a last look around, he walked up the stairs. “Simone, it’s just me. My name is Dean. I’m a detective with the Portland Police Department. I’m coming up.”

There were three doors at the top of the stairs. One a bathroom and one a spare bedroom. The master bedroom door was open. He pushed it wider and stepped in.

The room showed someone having packed in a hurry. There was a suitcase open on the floor, a few items tossed inside, but there was a depression on the bed where another one might have sat. He stood in the doorway and studied the layout. The bed was empty. There were a few items on the floor. The closet was open. There was a gap in the hangers, with clothes on either side, indicating a large group had been removed. The dresser on the side wall had a drawer open and most of the clothing out. He couldn’t tell if the other drawers were full or not.

There was a pair of sandals on the floor. And several likely missing from below the hangers as another gap in the long line of shoes said there’d been some there but no longer.

He didn’t know if she’d run ahead of someone or if she’d just panicked and booked it. If she knew Tia and understood her situation, she had street smarts. Had she the instincts to hide the same way? If so, then they’d be lucky to find her.

He walked into the bedroom and studied the open drawers. Some clothes remained, tossed into disarray. There was a night table sitting beside the bed. Using a tissue from the box on top, he pulled the drawer open to see a few personal items inside but nothing important. He glanced over the bed and realized there was a second door. He walked around the bed and pushed the door open. A small en suite with a bathtub and shower. He turned on the light. And stared. The toiletries presumably from the counter had been tossed to the floor. A pair of sandals sat on the small mat and…

A body lay crumpled, fully dressed in the bathtub.

A man.

A very dead man.

T
ia raced through
Simone’s house, following on Dean’s heels. This didn’t make any sense. She made it to the bedroom as he stepped into the bathroom. Her heart stuttered to a stop when she heard him say, “Shit.”

She glanced around the light disarray in the bedroom. Simone was meticulously clean. She’d never have let her bedroom look like this. And…her suitcase was gone.

She brightened. Good. Simone had managed to clear out.

Dean came out of the bathroom, his phone against his ear.

“Stefan. She’s gone. There’s a dead man here.”

What?

Tia snuck around him and raced to the bathroom to see the folded body of a man. “Oh God,” she whispered. “It’s Brennan.”

And heard a sound behind her.

She spun around.

Dean glared at her.

As in he glared at
her
.

As in he could see her.

Shit.

She caught her breath and waited, her eyes darting to the entrance where he spread his legs in a square stance, effectively filling the doorway. He wasn’t going to let her out. Did he know she was there or was he only guessing? He’d had wonderful hearing in the hospital. And she’d just spoken out loud.

But he didn’t know for sure.

She slowed her breathing down.

“You might as well show yourself. I’m not letting you out of here.”

The nerve of him. What did he know? This was her friend’s house he was searching. Did he have any answers – no. He couldn’t stay here all day. She’d just wait him out.

“Stefan, your little tricky friend is here too.” Dean grinned. “At least I think it’s her. I can hear her, not see her. She’s in the bathroom with the dead man.”

There was silence while she considered her options. She felt like a school kid caught out on a prank.

“No, I’ve called in the police. The place will need to be gone over. So far I’m not sure where Simone is, but it looks like she left in a hurry. The question now is did she kill this man before leaving?”

“No, she wouldn’t,” Tia muttered. “They’d been together for years.”

“Ah, she speaks,” mocked Dean. “Did you hear that Stefan? Tia says the man was Simone’s partner.”

Dean listened for a few more minutes. “You can make that decision. I’m not. She’s here and she’s your problem. Finding a dead man shoots my chance to get some sleep tonight. I’ll call you tomorrow if we find anything.”

He closed his phone and tucked it into his pocket. “Why waste energy trying to hide? I know you’re here. You obviously came in my truck so stop being a child and show yourself.”

“I’m not a child.” She dropped her energy guard and showed herself. “It’s been a long time since I was a child – if I ever was.”

And something in her voice must have gotten through to him for he stared at her hard for a moment then gave a clipped nod. “Then stop disappearing and running away.”

“I’m being hunted,” she said sarcastically. “Maybe that doesn’t mean anything to you, but I’d kinda like to stay alive, thanks.”

“I got that. But if you’re going to hide from those trying to help you, how far do you think you’re going to get?”

She hated the truth of his words, but trust wasn’t something she did easily. “What do you think happened here?” She motioned to the bathroom, deliberately not mentioning the body at her feet. She had no trouble recognizing Brennan. Simone had talked about him for years, even sending Tia photos, but Tia hadn’t actually met the man as he hadn’t been home last night – deliberate choice on their part. The less people who knew she was here the better.

Not that her attempt to keep him out of this mess had done anything for him.

“She either was attacked by him or someone else came in and killed him but she got away. Or she killed him then left.”

But Tia was already shaking her head. “She wouldn’t have killed him. They had arguments like any relationship, but she’d never kill anyone. She was a nurse. She lived to help people.”

“Let’s say I believe you for the moment, what do you think happened here?”

“I think I made a mistake and somehow someone followed me to her place and went after her. She might have had a warning considering she packed a few things. Simone is very street smart.” She’d have disappeared by now. Chances were good Tia wouldn’t ever see her friend again. As long as Simone was free and clear, Tia would be happy for her.

Her heart tripped over the thought of Simone not being free. Could she have been taken? She was a beautiful woman and she was Tia’s friend. She didn’t know if the asshole would do anything to Simone or if he’d keep her as part of his living collection. If so, maybe then Tia could get to her and save her before it got too bad. As long as she was still alive, she could heal. But Tia had to find her and save her. If she hadn’t been taken then there was no finding her. She had street smarts.
She’ll find you – if she cares to
.

She walked out of the bathroom and collapsed down on the side of Simone’s bed. “I suppose the cops will be all over the place now.”

“In a few minutes, yes.”

“And you have to stay here?”

“Not for the whole mess of things about to happen, but I will have to for at least an hour or so.”

She nodded. It was just setting in. Simone had lost Brennan and she had lost Simone. She stared dry-eyed at her present life and didn’t like the look of it. The future was even more depressing. Shit.

“You can go into my truck and wait. Don’t let them see you. Oh wait, damn it. What about your fingertips. Do you leave prints?”

She nodded absently. “I do but I haven’t touched anything.” She straightened. “Oh, but I did earlier.”

He nodded, his tone serious as he said, “We might need to take your prints to compare to the ones here.”

A broken laugh escaped her. “No, you won’t need to. You’ll run the prints and mine will come up.”

“Come up for what?” He walked to stand in front of her, effectively caging her in case she tried to bolt.

Only she had no plans to bolt. She was just realizing what kind of trouble she was in. Stefan might not be able to save her this time.

“Just how much trouble are you in?”

“Prison type of trouble,” she said shortly. “Maybe.”

“What did you do?”

“I escaped a place where I was supposed to stay. Only I was a prisoner. When I had an opportunity, I ran and never looked back,” she said softly. “With my prints all over the place, they might think I did it.”

“Did what?”

“Killed the doctor,” she whispered. “But I didn’t kill anyone. I’m not even sure he’s dead. If he is, then I think whoever did kill him is after me…and if he’s not dead…then he’s the one chasing me.”

*

This was why
he didn’t like cases involving psych wards. Sure, a dead man was chasing her.

He stared down at the bent head, her body solid enough to make anyone believe she was there. And she was – at least right now. Where she’d be in a few minutes was a different story.

He groaned. The problem was – there really was a dead man in the bathroom, and if her friend was in trouble then in theory her story might check out. He trusted Stefan. He didn’t trust someone he couldn’t see from one moment to the next.

That she could do that blew him away and that she’d taken him for a ride – literally – twice now, just pissed him off.

But…what if she was telling the truth? What if someone was after her and the world thought this man was supposed to be dead?

She’d have a hard time convincing anyone otherwise.

“Tell me the whole story.”

Just then sirens hit the air. She gave a broken laugh. “No time. Story of my life.”

He reached down and grabbed her arm. “Stop it. This is no time for games. Did you or did you not kill someone?”

She glared at him. “I did not.”

He gazed intently into her eyes and saw nothing but painful truths.

Then she ruined it by saying, “But I wanted to. And I will if I ever get the chance.”

He gave her a little shake. “Stop it.” He wanted to give her a much harder shake, and maybe rattle her cage enough to get some sense inside. “You can’t go around saying things like that.”

She stood up. “And I can’t keep living on the run. I thought I was fine all this time. I thought I was safe to come out of hiding and contact Stefan for a way to get out of this mess permanently, but he, whoever he is, found me. He found Simone.”

The police cars pulled up to the front of the house.

“You’d better go,” she said. “You have to meet them at the door or else they’ll assume you got into trouble here yourself.”

She was right, but that didn’t mean he wanted to end this conversation. “Go wait in my truck. I’ll finish up as fast as I can.”

She nodded, but it was a little too fast. A little too easy.

He glared at her. “Don’t let anyone see you and don’t leave my truck. If you want help to get out of this nightmare, you’ll do what you’re told for once.”

She glared right back. And disappeared before his eyes. He glanced down at the arm he held in his hand. It felt solid. Like an arm, skin, flesh. But all he could see was the bedding behind her. She shifted slightly and it was as if someone on the bedding moved, but he couldn’t really see who. Now that he knew what he was looking for, he could make out a slight outline of a person.