Authors: Lorena Wood
The reporter’s face was turning
red and he shook his head to signal a negative answer.
“I didn’t think so. We’re all
trying to keep people from dying, and that includes everyone working on the
case. That woman is risking her life to try to save these boys. I know you just
haven’t had a chance to see it from this point of view, but now that you have,
you can see how she wouldn’t appreciate any more big stories about her. Right?”
He nodded his head up and down
and Nick loosened his grip a little.
“I knew you were a reasonable
guy. Now, let’s just make sure we understand each other. The Phoenix police are
working hard to stop this guy, and you are going to do your best to help them.
You’re going to leave the lady out of this, and that includes not mentioning
our conversation today. Right?”
The reporter was obviously
shaken, but he was taking a moment to consider the question.
“I know you like to print all
the important news, but you can appreciate how silence can be golden at times.
Like when it comes to a young reporter’s new career and having a story about
his not so nice background leaked to the press. It would be a shame to spoil
his relationship with his new co-workers and his new boss. Probably get him
sent to Montana to check on the latest mad cow disease or something. Might even
get back to a girlfriend or his mom. Things like that have a way of getting
around.”
The young man slumped back
against the car and Nick released his grip. Nick waited for the reporter to get
back to his car before he slipped in the back door. Teddy was at his desk waiting.
“So did you make a new friend?”
Teddy didn’t always agree with Nick’s methods, but he never complained. He just
tried to bring a little balance to their partnership by being the voice of
reason. When that failed, Nick usually new exactly what was needed.
“I just explained the
situation, and he took it under advice.”
“With your usual persuasive
skills.”
“Hey, you’re the organized one,
and I’m the…”
“The passionate one.”
“I like that. Speaking of
passion, I’d better check in with Whitney.”
Whitney picked up on the second
ring.
“Hi Whitney. Miss me?”
“Hi. Actually, yes. I’ve been
pretty bored. So, what’s happening with the little boy?”
“He’s doing pretty well. The
doctor wants us to wait until a little later to talk to him. He’s nervous about
him remembering the trauma and relapsing. He’s showing signs of coming out of
it. Actually, he’s been awake a few times, but it takes a while to get back to
reality. They’ll keep us posted on it.”
“Let me know. I’m hoping I can
visit him later tonight. You coming home late?”
Nick assured her it would be an
early night and not to worry. He would be busy doing the boring legwork of a
detective, and he was looking forward to heading home early. How could he ever
keep his mind on the job with her waiting at home for him? There was no way he
could let her go back to living in Sedona.
Kevin hadn’t been awake again
that day, and his doctor didn’t want any unnecessary visitors. Whitney felt
useless and restless waiting for something to change. As soon as Nick came
through the door she peppered him with questions and finally plopped into a
chair.
“I need something to do.”
Nick gave her his wicked grin.
“That’s not what I meant.” She
threw a pillow at him.
His neck was sore from stress
and his body was still recuperating from his injuries. He winced as he knocked
the pillow away.
“Well, I guess I could be a
little useful and give you a massage. How’s that sound?”
Nick sighed and gave a hopeful
grin. “Like Heaven?”
Whitney grabbed the lotion from
the kitchen and worked for a few minutes in silence. She tried all the
techniques she knew, but the knots weren’t going away.
“Nick, your neck and back are
as hard as a rock. I can feel the lumps and bumps, but I’m not sure I’m helping
any. Does that feel good?”
“It’s helping. Dig your thumb
right into that knot by my shoulder blade on the left.”
Whitney found the lump and
pushed on it for about twenty-five seconds until she finally started to feel it
relaxing. Rubbing Nick was like massaging a boulder. You didn’t get much
satisfaction because it never got any softer.
“Your muscles are pretty tight.
You need a professional massage.”
“Are you offering?”
“Not from me, from someone who
gets paid to do it. My hands aren’t strong enough and I don’t really know what
I’m doing.”
Nick turned around and took
Whitney’s hands.
“Here, let me show you what
feels good.”
Whitney laughed and wriggled
away just as the phone rang. Nick got up and walked to the kitchen as he talked
to Teddy. When Nick got off the phone, he noticed Whitney had gone pale and
looked distressed.
“Whitney, what’s wrong?” He
moved over to the couch and reached for her shaking hands.
“Nick…I felt him. I feel like
he’s right outside. He’s here.”
Nick jumped up. He called Teddy
back and turned on all the outside lights. He strapped on his gun did a quick
search outside but couldn’t find anything. Teddy and another patrol car arrived
and they searched the whole area. When they were certain he wasn’t lurking
outside, they sent everyone home.
“I’m sorry Nick. I really
thought I felt him. Maybe I’m just spooked from everything. I feel so stupid.”
“That’s okay.” Nick stroked her
hair and pulled her closer. “I hope that’s it. But…have you ever been wrong
like that before?”
“Not exactly. It’s hard to tell
what it was. It could have been left over energy from something I was reviewing
earlier. I don’t know. It’s gone now.”
“Good. Let’s get some sleep and
hope that’s all it was.”
Whitney and Nick snuggled in
close and talked for a little longer. Nick stroked her hair and talked about
upbeat things so Whitney could feel calm and safe and go to sleep. He wondered
how much therapy they would all need when this was over. He wasn’t too worried
about himself, but he couldn’t stop worrying about Whitney.
She seemed so fragile and
devastated by all the recent events. It was hard to believe she lived her life
experiencing such torture through other victim’s eyes and minds. If this world
wasn’t such a sad place, she might be able to use her talents for something
better, something that made her happy.
“Ever think of going into your
own business? You could find lost puppies and help old ladies remember where
they left their keys.”
“I have helped some old ladies
before, but I don’t think I could charge them for my services.”
“That’s true. Maybe you could
work for rich people, and let them know which employees they can trust. There
must be a need for that somewhere.”
“I’ve been thinking about
taking a long vacation anyway. Maybe I could go to a beach in California and do
fortune telling for a while.”
“Can you do that?”
“No.” She slapped his arm like
he should have known that was a stupid question. “But neither can the other
people who make a living at it.”
They laughed and tried to think
of some funny jobs Nick could do to get out of police work. Whitney’s favorite
was picturing Nick as a lifeguard on the beach running around with bikini clad
women in need of help.
“Sounds like a tough job, but I
could do it.”
“I bet. You’d have all the
girls chasing you around once you put on your spandex swim shorts.”
“I don’t think I’d make a great
life guard. I’m afraid of sharks.”
Whitney laughed and turned out
the light. She wished that this moment would last forever. She didn’t want to
wake up in the morning and deal with the world again. She was having too much
fun dreaming with Nick.
Whitney woke in the middle of
the night in a cold sweat. She could feel him out there. She didn’t want to cry
wolf and wake Nick again, but it felt so real. She quietly got out of bed and
looked out the window. She didn’t see anything out there, but she could feel
him. It didn’t feel like she was imagining it.
What if he was really out
there? Why didn’t they find him? Why would he come back here? The questions
were spinning in her head. He’s bound to get caught hanging around here.
Whitney shivered thinking that he might be stalking her. She was afraid that
having her on the case had made a psychotic killer even crazier. She finally
climbed back into bed, but she didn’t get much sleep the rest of the night.
Whitney waited until after
breakfast to tell Nick that she had felt him again. They decided to take a look
outside in the daylight, but they found no evidence of anyone hiding around the
house. Nick took the day off. He would go shopping and get her out of town for
a while. He decided to post some unmarked police cars around the house tonight
to see if they could spot him.
Whitney felt better
once they left the house. They went down to the mall to look for some gifts for
Kevin. For some reason she felt guilty that the boys had suffered.
“Why do I feel like it’s my
fault?”
She was probably punishing herself for not finding the killer
sooner. Her gift could be a curse at times, but this time she wished it worked
a lot better. It would be nice to be able to control it and just figure things
out immediately. Life was never that easy.
They decided to pass some time
by going to see a movie. They picked the newest comedy that sounded good, and
spent a couple hours laughing together.
“Maybe we should both work at
the movies. That would be a good job. We can watch all the new movies when they
come out, and we won’t have to catch bad guys.”
“I don’t think the workers get
to sit and watch the movies Whitney.”
“True. But we could probably
eat all the buttered popcorn we want.”
“Maybe you need to work in a
place with lots of food. We can start a restaurant and Teddy can join us.”
“Let’s do it. Call him now.”
Nick laughed as he
pictured telling Teddy he quit, and inviting him to join him in the restaurant
business. He’d probably think it was the best idea his partner had ever had.
It was almost ten o’clock when
they returned to the house. Nick knew there were cars watching the area, and he
checked around first before he went inside. He felt pretty certain that no one
could get close to the house without someone noticing. Nick didn’t want Whitney
to worry, so he kept her very distracted right up until they fell asleep.
Whitney spent the next few
nights waking up and feeling like something was out there. She stayed close to
Nick and tried to push it away. When she couldn’t push it away, she tried to
reach out and contact it. She couldn’t help holding back because the vibrations
she felt were black and cold. It gave her chills every time she felt it. She
finally told Nick, after a week of sleepless nights, that it was still
happening.
“I thought something was wrong.
Have you looked in the mirror lately? You have dark circles under your eyes and
you look like hell. You need to wake me up if it happens again.”
“Nick, I don’t even know what
it is.”
“We have to figure it out before
people start mistaking you for a raccoon.”
“I’ll let you know, but I feel
foolish when we don’t find anything.”
That night, at 3:15 a.m.,
Whitney woke Nick. He could see she was frightened. It wasn’t something she
could just ignore.
“Tell me what’s happening
Whitney.”
“I feel someone, or something.
It makes me feel…creepy. It feels dark and evil. I know that sounds like a
Stephen King book, but it’s all I can think of to explain it. I can’t read the
vibrations. I can’t get specific thoughts, just a sense of a presence out
there. And I feel like it’s focused on me! I feel like something is out there
waiting to get me.”
Whitney felt foolish breaking
down into tears, but she’d held it all inside for the last few nights. It was
so hard to be terrified of something so vague. What could she do to stop it? She
cried on Nick’s shoulder and he held her without saying anything. She looked up
and saw he was angry.
“I’m going outside. You stay
here. I’ll lock the doors behind me. Stay right by this phone and dial 911 if
anyone else comes near the house except me. I’m not going far. I have to see.”
“Wait. Can’t I come with you? Maybe
I can track the vibrations and point you in the right direction.”
“I guess that’s a good idea,
but you have to stay at my side at all times.”
Whitney tried to hone in on the
direction she felt the malevolent vibrations coming from. She pointed Nick down
through the yard. They walked slowly and quietly in case a person was hiding
outside. Nick remembered how the person had come out of nowhere to attack him,
and wondered why he hadn’t seen him. He looked closely at the ground to be sure
someone wasn’t hiding under a ground cover of some kind.
Whitney stopped and tried to
locate the source again.
“I think he’s moving. It feels
like it’s going away. I’m sorry. This is ridiculous.”
“No it’s not. We have to
consider everything. We know someone’s out there hurting kids, and someone
attacked us.”
Whitney sat down and tried to
think. The feeling had passed and it seemed calm again. She looked up at the
stars and noticed it had been a while since she had done that.
“The stars look so bright
tonight.”
“That’s because we’re in the
middle of the desert, and it’s the middle of the night.”
“I wish we were just star
gazing and relaxing instead of chasing a ghost. I’m sorry I keep freaking out.”
“Stop saying sorry. We can sit
and star gaze a while if you’d like.”
“No, we’d better get back.
Maybe I’m just sensing some other evil person planning something in the
neighborhood. Maybe he wakes up at night and thinks about it or he’s dreaming
it.”