2 Witch and Famous (27 page)

Her turquoise-blue eyes widened with interest. “That sounds wonderful. But let’s make it lunch instead. I’m starved.” She measured him with her eyes to see his reaction at her bold upgrade of their spontaneous date. “It’s only fair that I pay for your lunch after the debacle I caused,” she offered.

He started to shake his head and she interrupted the gesture with a hand to his sleeve. A warm tingle ran up his arm when she touched him. And spread.

Mercy.

“Please allow me to pay, Sam. After all, you paid for the book.”

“All right. Tit for tat,” he agreed. “I can’t remember if I’ve ever turned down a free lunch with a smart, bookish woman.”

She held up the two ruined halves of
The Princess and the Goblin
.
“I don’t know how smart I am. Greedy and impulsive is more like it, but thank you for the compliment.”

He clucked his tongue over the damage to the lovely old book. “Please put that away in your handbag. I can’t bear to look at it like that. After you buy my lunch—I’ll get the tip—perhaps you can swing by my house so I can mend the spine for you.”

“Really?”

“Sure.” He scrutinized the book carefully. “I know it won’t be worth as much with a spine repair, but it might be easier to read if it weren’t in two pieces. Alas, with a spine repair, I can’t give it to little Cindy as a gift. So, you may keep it.”

“That’s kind of you. I’ll take you up on that repair offer, too.” Her eyes twinkled. “I don’t think I’ll ever sell this book. I would like to keep it as a memento.”

He chuckled. “Of what?”

“Of how we met,” she said.

Oh my! Something’s starting here,
blurted the angel in his ear.

A quickening went through him as if he was a young man. He wondered how old she was. There was not one line on that classic New England face. And not a speck of makeup that he could see.
Thirty-two,
he guessed and then inwardly cringed. That was probably about right. Compared to him, she was a baby.

Jessie put away the halves of the book in her handbag, took his arm as if she had known him all her life, and nodded at him to get going.

They set off down the frost-heaved sidewalks to where the warm cafe awaited. The feel of her graceful hand poised on his forearm was a sweet weight. He couldn’t remember the last time he had felt so hopeful. He even had butterflies cavorting in his stomach.

The angel on his right shoulder whispered again in his ear:
After lunch, then what are you going to do with her?

The truth was, he had
no
idea. Unless she really did come over to get the book mended.

Sam turned to steal a look at her while they were walking, but saw she was not watching where she was going. Her eyes were on him! She was relying on him to steer her safely to the coffee shop. As they walked, she measured him intently with those startling blue eyes, as if he was not the type of man to whom she was accustomed.

Suddenly, he felt a lot warmer and tingling in places that should never be tingling in public. He tried not to look down at himself. How long had
that
been?
Months?
Certainly, he had been alone the last time this had happened.

He turned his eyes to hers and couldn’t stop looking at her eyes. Jessie had a dozen questions in them and a half-smile on those moist, curved raspberry-colored lips that had no need of cosmetics. Her lush red hair bounced like a storybook princess. Her step was so light that it was nearly inaudible on the pavement, compared to the heavy clomping of his giant winter boots.

The angel’s voice said in his ear,
Once you go in the coffee shop with her, you’re approaching the point of no return.

Want to know what happens next?

Finding Jessie
is available at:
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The Man Who Fell from the Sky

(Angel Detectives Case #1)

by

Eve Paludan

Prologue

The killer pushed Cody’s headless body off the horse into the waterfalls. Swept into braided channels of gray glacier melt, the body plunged into an underwater gorge where kinetic energy stripped flesh from bone and pounded the morsels into frothy grains.

The vortex released those bits into the river, in a Montana wilderness so remote that once, on a July afternoon, Cody had wedged his fishing pole into a tree crotch while he made love to his wife on a sun-warmed flat rock under the open sky.

But it wasn’t summer when Cody disappeared. It was on the snowy morning of Christmas Day, 2008.

That same day, a velvet sack of Montana sapphires also disappeared.

And, Heaven and Earth would have to move before anyone knew what happened to Cody.

Chapter One

“To be reborn, first you have to die,” whispered a familiar voice in the Council Hall of Angels.

Cody whirled, his wings rustling. “Emily! You’re here?” Her hair was as white as her feathers.

“I wouldn’t miss your hearing for anything, grandson-in-law.”

“But who’s with Mariah?”

“A guardian angel pro tem.”

“Oh!” Cody gulped. “Are you upset that I asked to replace you?”

“No. Your concerns are valid.”

He nodded. “I’ve got unfinished business. Thanks for coming.”

“I’m not a spectator. Didn’t they tell you I’m your Champion?”

“No! Really? I’ve been on retreat since my last guardian post ended. When my charge crossed over.”

“Where’d they send you on retreat?”

He smiled. “Hawaii. I swam and sang with wild dolphins.”

“Sweet mother of pearl. I want to do that when my charge crosses over.” Emily winked. “In about sixty years.”

Chimes rang.

Cody squeezed her hand. “Emily. Thank you.”

“It’s what we do. Godspeed.” Emily glided into the champion’s box.

Cody floated slightly above the dais in the golden-lit room. Whatever the council decided at his hearing, he’d have to accept it.

Haniel, council leader, spoke: “Cody, you requested a new guardian appointment to serve Mariah Bliss of Third Planet, North America, U.S., western Montana, rural district.”

“Yes.” Please. Recollections of his widow surfaced from his mortal memories: coppery tresses, ivory skin spattered with golden freckles, blue-gray eyes and a lush red mouth. Most of all, Mariah’s heart tugged at him. Still.

Haniel addressed Emily. “Does the Champion wish to speak on the Petitioner’s behalf?”

“I support Cody’s request. No one could be a better guardian angel for her.”

Haniel softly conferred with the council and Emily.

“Cody, your request was denied.” Haniel raised an index finger as he felt Cody’s emotions rise. “But only in preparation of a more suitable post.”

Cody bowed his head and replied, “Thank you for your wisdom. Please assign me where I may serve the greater good.”

“Thank you for your humble answer,” Haniel replied. “Based upon your record of devoted service, and by your Champion’s request, you’ll be sent back on official, special assignment to Mariah Bliss. But not as a guardian angel. Your new post requires you to return to mortal life.”

Cody gasped. “How?”

“Your angelic spirit will descend into an existing mortal. You’ll influence his consciousness and use his human form to solve your own murder. Your Champion describes her charge, Mariah, as despondent; she asks if you can assist with some...”

Haniel looked at Emily.

“TLC,” Emily added.

Cody’s feathers quivered with joy. “I can assist with TLC. I’d be honored for the chance to solve my own murder. But I have questions.”

“Ask them.”

“Well, the Highest knows the answer to every whodunit. So why have me ‘solve’ my own murder?”

Haniel paused, then framed his answer with care. “In order to manifest positive changes to the lives of Mariah and others close to her, a re-mortaled angel can’t simply be provided with the identity of a killer. Your investigation will be a labor of love, diligence, even spiritual seeking.”

“Could you explain a little more, please?” Cody asked.

Haniel sighed. “The mortals are bumbling your missing person’s investigation. Mariah isn’t moving forward with her life. She needs closure and compassion. Or as Emily called it, ‘TLC.’ You’re the only being who can provide what is necessary. But the only way you can provide this ‘TLC’ is from within a mortal body because angels aren’t supposed to…”

“Gotcha.” Cody felt a blush rising. “What will I remember in this man‘s body?”

“You keep all your memories, human and angelic -- except for the twenty-four hours preceding and including your death -- so that you can find your killer in due time.”

“To manifest change through the journey,” Cody surmised. “It’s not about the destination at all.”

“Ah, I see that you do understand.”

He nodded. “So, am I allowed to, as a mortal, really love her in every way?”

A hint of a smile crossed Haniel’s mouth. “You will be human. You’ll have free will.”

“Mariah’s been sending up a prayer storm, hasn’t she?”

“A tsunami. She broke the record for the most prayers ever received from Montana.”

“I’m not surprised. How long will I remain a mortal?”

“Until life ends for your host body.” Haniel exchanged glances with Emily and then continued. “Unless you choose to leave it. If you exit the mortal body, you’ll take the form of an at-liberty, free-will angel but you won’t be able to re-enter your host.”

“Why would I leave the host body?” Cody asked.

“Only the Highest knows.”

Cody pondered this. “What happens to the spirit of the person whose body I inhabit?”

“He’s tormented by a tragedy so great that, at first, your spirit will be the primary power. His own separate consciousness will take point as healing progresses. We’re in danger of losing him to the other side, so your assignment is also change his life path. He’s on the Angel of Death contingency list.”

Cody shuddered. “The AOD contingency list? Who is this human?”

“A convicted murderer.”

Cody’s eyes widened. “In prison?”

“No. On parole.”