Unthinkable Games (LIttlemoon Investigations Book 3) Page 23

  “How about the woman?” Tori asked.

  “Squeaky clean. While the brother is deep in debt, she’s not. She’s had this business the last five years, and from the looks of it, she’s rocking it out. Are you going to get your cards read?” she asked out of the blue.

  Tori had a ghost running around in her head. She wasn’t letting a wannabe psychic join her. “No. That’s not my thing.”

  Before they began their business, it wasn’t Julian’s either. Now they had a partner who used her dreams, an associate who could feel the past, and his wife was a medium.

  Yeah, he never saw any of this coming. He was thinking of putting a few new questions on the interview paper for any future hires.

  “I would do it just to prove her wrong.”

  Julian saw how uncomfortable Tori looked. “Wow, I could use a nice tall glass of cold, wet, water.”

  “You’re horrible!” Christina said, dropping the phone.

  Tori gave her husband a fist bump. “If you do that to me, you’re a dead man. Consider this your one and only warning.”

  Kane picked up the phone. “Wow! She can hustle. I’m sure she’ll be right back.”

  Julian laughed. “We’re done anyway. Is Vivian doing okay?” While his brother was en route, he wanted to check in on his sister-in-law.

  “Yeah, she is.”

  “Any dreams?”

  “Nope, and she looks happy as a clam. The women were planning a three-way party. Sadly, that’s not nearly as exciting as it sounds on paper. This is going to be a girl-boy baby shower for our women, and none of us are exempt.”

  “Crap,” muttered Julian, and then he saw his wife staring at him. “I mean, I can’t wait to go and play how wide is the pregnant woman. That couldn’t possibly go wrong, now could it?”

  She started laughing. “I love you.”

  “I actually miss you two making out in the office. That’s how desperate I am,” Kane stated.

  “You’re funny,” Tori said. “We could extend this trip and keep Justin in the field.”

  “Please don’t.” Quickly, he changed the subject. “How’s the treasure hunt going? Have you found anything yet?”

  The let him in on everything. From the book, to the body found in the concrete.

  “Wow, you’ve been busy. How many artifacts are there?” Kane inquired.

  “We don’t know. It could be three, it could be twenty three. That’s how overwhelming this is.”

  “Well, if you need help, I’m available. In fact, I insist.”

  Yeah, there was no way that was happening. Kane had to be the voice of reason at the office. While Julian trusted his brother, he knew Justin was more gung-ho. If there was going to be a military coup, his twin would be behind it. Kane, on the other hand, was logical. He’d think everything out.

  “We’ll let you know.” Why not give him some hope? It was the least he could do.

  “I’m going to head out, Julian. I’ll check in if something else happens here. We should be good.”

  “Thanks, Kane. Great job.”

  When the man hung up, Julian pulled his wife against his side. “It looks like we have capable people to run our business while we’re out.”

  She nuzzled his cheek with hers. “Yeah, but we need more people.”

  He was still aware. “I’m selective, unlike you, Mrs. Army or Navy.”

  She winked at him. “Let’s head out. They obviously haven’t discharged Claire yet. We should get some interviews under our belts.”

  “Good idea, Mrs. Littlemoon. I’ll let you do the questioning. It always gets me wild watching you work.”

  She kissed him softly on the lips. “Oh, Julian, that was so sweet, but you’re still going to the baby shower.”

  “Well, shit!”

  Tori laughed, all the way to the car.

  Julian Littlemoon wasn’t getting out of it that easily.

  * * *

  He didn't want to leave her side, even to get some coffee, but he did. If he had to watch the doctor poke and prod at her, Beckett was pretty sure he was going to lose his mind. Plus, not being in contact with her as the energy in the room inundated him was enough to make him crazy.

  A break was definitely needed.

  When he returned, he held two cups of coffee in his hand. His heart skipped as she tried to get dressed. Claire was hesitantly moving, and that concerned him. The other thing that bothered him was she was pulling on the hideous green scrubs.

  “Hey, Claire, I have something you can wear,” he stated, placing the cups down to dig through the bag that Tori had brought with her.

  Inside, he pulled out a really soft cotton t-shirt. It would be huge on her, but at least she would be comfortable.

  “God! Thank you,” she stated. “Tori brought me clothes, but my body hurts.”

  He knew why. He’d been roughly manhandling her to get Claire to breathe. “I’m sorry. I guess that’s my fault,” he said, handing her the shirt.

  Claire pulled it over her head, nearly weeping with how soft it felt against her skin. In fact, there was a slight trace of his cologne on it, and that gave her so much peace.

  “You’re my hero. They told me that you dove in to save me, so I can deal with the sore body.”

  She crossed to him, went up on her toes, and gave him a kiss. “You’ll always be my hero.”

  That gave him hope.

  “I love you, Beckett.”

  When she placed her head on his shoulder, immediately, his arms went around her.

  Claire tried not to be hurt that he didn't return the words. She wouldn’t let that eat away at her. He was trying, and that’s all that mattered. At least he didn't run from her.

  For a while, that had been her biggest fear.

  “Maybe you should go home,” he offered. While his brain was ordering him to believe that, his heart knew what would happen if she left.

  He’d fall apart.

  Claire was all that held him together, and he was man enough to admit that. She was his anchor to reality.

  “I can’t leave, Beckett. You’re my partner, and you need me here. That house is full of things that can hurt you. If I leave, you have no one to keep you safe. I can’t live with that. I promised that I’d keep you protected, and I won’t break that promise either.”

  His heart flipped.

  That was music to his ears. “I’ve decided that I can’t hide this anymore. Julian and Tori know, and they don’t seem to judge me.”

  “They never would. They’re my family, Beckett, and I’ll share them with you.” She knew he had no one left, but she didn't know why. One day, maybe he would share that with her.

  “Claire.”

  She took his hand in hers. “I’ll never hurt you, Beckett. I know you still don’t believe it, but it’s the truth. I plan on waiting you out until I can prove it.”

  He didn't have the words. In his heart, she didn't need to prove anything. She already had. He wanted her to be his forever, but he didn't want to screw it up.

  So, he’d move slow.

  But first, he needed to know one thing. “Will you ever think I’m a freak? Will that ever make you leave?”

  She was horrified each time he called himself that. What Claire wanted to do was hunt down the woman who hurt him and break her.

  Reaching up, she ran her fingers over his cheek. “It doesn’t make me think you’re less. It makes me believe you’re more. You have a gift, and that’s a treasure. I’m very lucky, Beckett, because no one else has what I have. You’re unique. That to me is better than boring.”

  Leaning down, he ran his lips across hers. The words were poised on the tip of his tongue, just begging to be spoken. Yet, he couldn’t.

  It wasn’t time.

  He’d know when it was.

  Until then…

  “We should call Julian. He might have something for us to do,” he offered, as he pulled away from her mouth. If he kept kissing her, they wouldn’t be dressed for long.


  “We can do that,” she stated.

  Moving toward the bed, she sat down. “Um, Beckett?” she asked, waiting for his beautiful green eyes to focus on her.

  “Yes, Claire?”

  “Can you tie my shoes?”

  He started laughing. “Yeah, I think I can do that for you.”

  Claire sat patiently. In her mind, she was working on a plan. Not to catch the man kneeling before her, but to show him once and for all that he was the perfect catch.

  For her.

  * * *

  Town

  Julian and Tori walked down the crowded street toward the psychic’s shop. There were countless couples walking up and down sidewalks, enjoying their day.

  It was calming to have the time alone.

  “Are you ashamed of me?” she asked out of the blue. From the look on his face, Tori knew she caught him off guard.

  “What? Where did that come from? Why would I be ashamed of you?” Julian asked, needing to know.

  “About the way I handled the mother situation. I couldn’t forgive her, Jules. It didn't feel right to me.”

  He knew this was a slippery slope. While he respected his wife’s choice, he hoped that somewhere down the road she didn't regret it.

  If the woman were to die, would Tori be upset that she had carried the grudge?

  Would she blame herself?

  That was the last thing he wanted to see.

  “I’ll never be ashamed of my wife. How you handled your mother was your choice. It wasn’t my place to interfere.”

  “But you didn’t agree.”

  Julian pulled them out of the path of all the oncoming people. “I want to be honest, but I’m afraid you’ll get upset.”

  Tori respected Julian and his thought process. “I won’t. I’m asking your opinion.”

  “I think you’re going to be sorry that you didn't take the opportunity to forgive her.”

  “I see.”

  “See? You’re mad.”

  She crinkled her brow. “What? No, I’m really not. I’m trying to see it from your point of view.”

  Julian watched her.

  “I understand why you’d think that I’d regret it, but I don’t think I will. You had a great family when your father died, and you still had one after, Jules. I didn’t. It was so hard to be happy. I spent all these years wondering what I did. I finally understand. Maybe I’m screwed up in the head, but I don’t want to see her.”

  “How hard was it, Tori?” he asked, knowing that she never really spoke about it.

  “Hard. If I didn't have Trey, I wouldn’t have made it. If Beau is a third of the man my brother was, I’ll be lucky.”

  He kissed her. “Promise me that you’ll never blame yourself if you can’t forgive her.”

  “I swear.”

  “Then we have nothing to discuss. I stand behind what you did. I think your brother is a decent guy.”

  “When this is over, can he stick around?”

  He lifted her chin. “You don’t have to even ask me that. Our place is just that--ours. If you want him there, that’s great. You tolerate Justin, and God knows that makes you a saint.”

  She snorted. “Hell yeah, it does. He’s a handful.”

  Julian kissed her. “Feel better?”

  “Yeah, yeah, I do.”

  “Great. You need to kick the crap out of a psychic and her brother. I get to watch. That’s my reward for being a saint.”

  She pulled him toward the building. “You’re a sick man, Julian,” she stated. “Oddly, I find that hot.”

  He wiggled his eyebrows. “Thank God for that.”

  When they arrived, they were disappointed to learn that the business was closed. That was odd, since it was a Tuesday. Most businesses were open this time of the season.

  As they prepared to leave, they were flagged down by a familiar face.

  “Hey! How’s the ghost hunting?” called the man, getting the attention of people around them.

  Julian wanted to slap Dorian Hardwick in the head for being an idiot.

  Terrific.

  So much for laying low.

  Tori greeted the innkeeper with a handshake. “How are you, sir?”

  The man smiled at her. “Oh, you know. Once you get to be this old, everything hurts,” he stated, patting his hip.

  “Oh, you’re not that old. What are you, thirty?” she asked, fishing for information. Maybe he’d be a good source. If he lived here all his life, he might be able to tell them more about the older missing people.

  “You’re sweet. I’m almost sixty.”

  Julian knew where his wife was taking this. “So, you were here in the seventies.”

  “Yes, I was. I worked at the courthouse in the deeds office. When I got sick of paperwork, I decided to be my own boss. This is far more lucrative.”

  They recalled the B&B being very busy the night they stayed. In a tourist town, that was likely the case.

  “Do you remember much about the people who bought ‘The Killing House’?” Tori asked.

  It was a long shot, but it might pan out.

  “I recall some Luther guy. He was spouting something about beautification of our town. It was funny then, because that house is way back in the middle of nowhere. He wanted to tear it down.”

  They listened.

  “The funny thing is, that when he went missing, no one realized it for a while. He’d hired the people to do the work, but he never paid them. So, they never started. Eventually, the taxes were due, and when they sent the tax man out to collect them, they found that he was missing.”

  “What happened then?”

  “The house sat there. No one wanted to touch it. They say it’s cursed. I say it’s all coincidence.”

  Julian made notes while his wife did her thing. She was getting the man to spill just about everything. She definitely was meant to be in this type of field. She kept smiling sweetly, charming the pants off him.

  They were going to be discussing that later.

  “What about the next man? I think his name was Marshal Salvatore,” she stated.

  “Oh, he was some hotshot. He drove in with lots of money, a fancy car, and immediately started renovating it. Only, he wouldn’t let a work crew in. He did most by himself. He told everyone it was to save money, but he was throwing it around in the bars and shops.”

  Julian looked at his wife. Maybe the man was looking for some treasure.

  She signaled that she got it.

  “How about the last man?”

  “Young. That’s all I know. He would pop into the shop over there,” he stated, pointing at the psychic shop.

  “Really?”

  “Yeah, all the time. He was always hanging all over that woman. What’s her name…”

  “Elianna Dawkins?” Tori offered.

  “Damn! You’re good with names. I can never put a face with anyone anymore.”

  She nodded. “By all over, do you mean in a sexual way?” she asked. Tori was digging, especially since the woman swore that she never met with the man.

  The entire thing was odd. They now had a witness saying that she was friendly with their missing man.

  Curious.

  It looked like someone was a big fat liar.

  “Are you sure it was her?” Julian asked.

  “Yeah, she was wearing this slutty little outfit,” he began, and then realized that there was a lady present. “I beg your pardon. I didn't mean to sound like I was checking out a woman who is young enough to be my daughter. It was just that she was barely in the dress, and he was all over her.” He motioned to his chest, signaling the woman’s breasts were the main focus.

  Tori didn't mind. “That’s okay, continue.”

  “They got into his car and took off.”

  “Why are they closed today?” she asked.

  The man glanced down at his watch. “They’re doing their psychic thing today. She takes tourists for a tour of the local abandoned historical sites during the day, and
then at night too.”

  “Interesting.”

  “Yeah, that’s a big hit around Halloween. I think it amuses the tourists. I think that’s how she makes most of her income.”

  It was good to know. Maybe they’d be taking a tour.

  “I hear you found a body. Who was it?” asked the man.

  Julian didn't say anything. He was leaving this up to Tori. She was the trained investigator.

  “Yes, we did, but we have no clue.”

  “It’s sad. That house is damn scary. I remember going out there as a kid. My dad used to help out with the maintenance.”

  There was no doubt that they needed to move on. If they stayed, the man would be trying to pump them for information.

  “Thank you for your help, sir,” stated Tori, taking Julian’s hand. “We have an appointment to keep.”

  As they walked away, Julian’s phone rang. When he finished talking to Beckett, he pointed down the street to a café. “They’re going to meet us there. We have a lot to discuss.”

  Yeah, they really did.

  “It looks like we’re going to be taking a tour later.”

  They probably were, but Julian had goose bumps. Something about that didn't sit right.

  * * *

  His boss was going to be proud of him. He’d followed them all over town, and they never even noticed him.

  He was damn good at this.

  His dad would be proud. He wished he was alive to see this happening. It felt awesome being able to watch them and report back to the sheriff.

  This was why he became a cop.

  He wanted to serve and protect, but he also wanted to find and solve things.

  That was his true calling in life.

  When the sheriff asked for his help, he was worried that he wouldn’t be able to do the job.

  Well, he was worried for nothing.

  He was absolutely able to do it.

  The two investigators didn't even know he was right behind them.

  Pulling out his phone, he made the call to report in.

  His boss was going to be very interested to hear all about this.

  He was sure of it.