INK: Fine Lines (Book 1) Read online

  A smile spreads across my face at the double entendre, considering our questionable accommodations. I give my shoulders a little tilt, put a twinkle in my eye and insert my foot properly in my mouth. “I don’t need two hours to make magic happen.”

  “What are you saying?” he deadpans.

  “Never mind,” I dismiss him, clearing the clutter off the desk and replacing it with the sketch pad. I should know better than to try innuendo with McNab. I wonder if he’s asexual? Honestly, he does seem intelligent enough to stay away from the complications of sex.

  I’ve been sketching for a solid five minutes when McNab draws out a long, “Oh, I get it.” His expression shows that he not only gets what I was saying, but he has also figured out what the other smell was. “Are you in heat or something?”

  “No McNab, it was just funny.” I pause, half-lost in the drawing. “What you said, it was funny.”

  I’m trying my best to sketch out the images from my nightmare. All of the technical proficiency is there. My lines are strong, but there’s just something missing from the scene. McNab looks over my shoulder, noticing my frustration. “What’s the matter kid?”

  “Something isn’t right. It’s like I remember it, but for some reason I just can’t get it down like I normally can. Maybe it’s been too long.” I consider for a minute. “Usually when I have the nightmares I get up right away and ink just pours out of me onto the page.”

  He paces back and forth, deep in thought. I go back to drawing. I’ve already done the initial sketches for the panels. Everything is there. What’s missing?

  “Were you alone?” McNab asks studying the panels laid out on the bed.

  “No. Gabriel was with me.”

  “Why isn’t he here on the pages?” He picks up a panel, scrutinizing every line.

  “Huh. You’re right.” I think for moment, looking at another panel. “I know he was there, but I can’t place him.”

  “You keep working on it. I’m going to go pay for another two hours.” McNab leaves the room and I sit pondering the placement of every little thing. The images are all wrong. The placement doesn’t make sense. It’s like I’ve never done this before. I’m feeling very frustrated. This is important. McNab is counting on me to do this. He says it will help. But help what? Seal my death warrant if Taffy is actually dead?

  Dread fills me at the thought of her dying like she did in my dream. I didn’t like her, but no one should go through that. There’s also the fact that I’m likely the first place they will come looking for the killer.

  Although, being over here in Tampa is a pretty damned indisputable alibi. Somehow I’m relieved, but I have to be a little disappointed in myself for thinking this way, don’t I? That it’s okay if she’s dead since they can’t pin this one on me? I focus on the lines and try mentally re-entering the place where it happened. Remember the smells, the acoustics, the lighting.

  I need to get into this scene. I shake my hands out, rattle my head and begin out loud. “Okay. It was cold, very cold. It was dark, except for the back corner where he had Taffy.” The smell of sour milk comes to mind. I try to draw Gabriel into the scene, but no matter how I draw him in, it’s all wrong. I don’t feel it.

  McNab comes in shaking his head. “Is the whole world consumed by their carnal endeavors?”

  “What happened?” I can’t help but smile at his frustration, but this is probably a really good story.

  “Nothing really. I see this all the time in L.A., but honestly it’s disconcerting how everyone seems to be led by their reproductive organs.” He is completely disgusted; that settles it, he’s asexual. I mean, not that coming to a place like this to tickle your fancy is exactly every girl’s dream. But hey, sometimes when it’s all you’ve got, you make do.

  “Well, in fairness to anyone you ran into out there, you did book us into an hourly motel,” I point out.

  He expels a heavy sigh and goes to sit on the bed. After half squatting down I can see the images of naked bodies rolling around on the bed playing on his imagination, and he changes his mind, deciding that pacing would be better. He paces the floor for a good ten minutes nonstop.

  “Hey, um, McNab?” I try to be gentle, but he’s driving me up the wall.

  “Yeah, kid?”

  “That’s not helping my concentration.” I state it as fact.

  “Oh, sorry.” He stops pacing and stands behind me watching me. I think the pacing may have been better—this is just making me too nervous with him looking over my shoulder. I’ve had enough when he starts whistling the Doctor Who theme.

  “Okay, I can’t do this.” I stand up, accidentally hitting him with the back of the chair. “This isn’t working.”

  “All right, well. Pack up. I’ll keep these with me and take you back to your hotel.” He opens the bags for me to put the pens in. “Aiden is probably beside himself with worry that you aren’t there.”

  “Nah, he just popped the question, so he’s probably got work as a stevedore on a slow boat to Zanzibar by now,” I quip.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Two Time Lose-Her

  Aiden

  Here I am again wondering where the hell Shay is. Eli is going to kill me. I dial her number again—straight to voice mail. Pacing isn’t helping, but it’s all I have. Fucking McNab; I thought he would bring her straight back here. I try to call him again, same result. I really thought he was okay, I trusted him; what the fuck was I thinking. He put on a good act about not being interested in her. When I asked him about it he acted like I’d asked him to slam his dick in a car door.

  I check the front desk for messages. Nothing. Jesus, Eli will be calling to check in any minute and I’ve lost her again. On cue my phone rings. It’s Eli. “Shit!”

  Do I answer? What do I do? I pick up right before it goes to voice mail. “Hey buddy, what’s up?”

  Fuck, Eli is immediately suspicious. “Buddy?”

  “Yeah, how’s it goin’, any news?” I try to sound like everything’s fine and get this call over with.

  “Aiden, I’m not your buddy and what’s going on over there? Where’s Shay?” Eli isn’t falling for the ‘buddy’ routine, and of course he’s going to want to talk to her.

  “Everything’s fine. I’m just trying to get along. It’s better for her if we do.” There’s some fancy dancing around the subject. “So what’s happening out there? Has the grand jury convened?”

  “Not yet, and there’s nothing new on this end. I saw the mess at the convention on the news. What the hell happened?” Eli is speaking in that condescending tone again, like it’s my fault.

  “One crazy got through. Not bad considering how many comics she signed today.”

  “Well I would have preferred that no crazies got through.” Aren’t you Mr. Obvious. “Hey, can I talk to her? She’s not answering her phone.” Fuck, I should’ve gotten off the phone sooner.

  I say the only thing I can think of. “She’s not answering her phone for you. She said she doesn’t want to talk to you.”

  “She let you back in.” Eli’s tone was dubious. “She can’t still possibly be pissed at me.”

  “Oh she’s pissed all right. She said she was going to fuck me just to piss you off.” Air high-five for me, nice dig.

  “Well I guess that’s probably the only way you can get her.” Eli bristles at my crudeness; he’s such a fucking prude.

  “Don’t get your hopes up Eli, she always chooses me. Can’t you just be satisfied knowing that I make her happy?” Isn’t this supposed to be about Shay, not about either of us?

  “Aiden, you haven’t made her happy for a long time. If that were your priority I would have backed off a long time ago. Now please put her on the phone, I need to talk with her about the case.”

  I know Eli’s right about me making her happy. But I’m ready to change all of that. It’s my time to shine and show her I’ve changed. But first I need to get this douche bag off the phone and convince him everything’s okay. I calm m
y tone. “Seriously though, she’s resting right now. It’s been a long day.”

  “Okay, well ask her to call me when she wakes up. I really do need to talk with her.” Eli asks, but he knows there’s no way I’ll have her call him.

  “Will do, man. Talk to you later.” Nice work, he has no idea I’ve lost her again, her and Carl. I check my phone again. Frustrated I run my fingers through my hair, sitting on the couch. “And where the fuck is Carl?”

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Strange Bedfellows

  Shay

  Aiden is visibly relieved to see me back at the hotel. He hurries across the room and wraps his arms around me. “I was so worried about you, where were you? Your phone just kept going to voice mail.”

  Wriggling out of his hold I pause, trying to figure out what to say. The truth isn’t a good idea. He cuts McNab a look. “What the hell? I was counting on you.”

  McNab looks at me, then Aiden. “I’m not sure what you mean, but she’s fine. Delivered directly to your door safely.” He holds out his hands toward me in presentation. “See?”

  “But where were you?” He probes McNab like my mom when Aiden would bring me home late.

  I open my mouth to answer when McNab cuts me off. “We had to ditch the press so we went to my hotel for a while.”

  Aiden nods as though it all made sense, but eyes me suspiciously nonetheless. “Are you doing okay? No ‘problems’ other than the press?”

  “Nope, not a one,” I sing-song as a testimony to McNab’s ability to not be a dumb ass. “Did you get my stuff from the signing?”

  “Yeah, everything is in the bedroom.” He motions to the door.

  “Cool, thank you.” I turn to McNab. “I’m going to get my phone, make sure I didn’t miss any important calls. I also need a shower after that motel.”

  McNab and Aiden both flash me the same look for two separate reasons. Shit, I’ve been caught. Think. “McNab is a cheapskate, that hotel was gross.” Ha, I didn’t even have to lie. Aiden looks at McNab and he just shakes his head.

  McNab protests with a cool tone, “We just hung out.”

  I confirm McNab’s statement with a nod. McNab takes a moment for silent contemplation and inhales through his nose. “Are all you people really that driven by your reproductive organs? I mean can you not be friends with the opposite sex without out assuming there will be uglies bumping?”

  “Its ‘bumping uglies,’ McNab, and many men can’t.” Moving over to where McNab is standing I put a kiss on my finger and come within a millimeter of touching the tip of his nose. “You, my friend, are the exception, and that’s why I appreciate you so much.”

  Aiden scratches his crotch absent-mindedly, looking at McNab and me. “I can be friends with a chick, but why pass up on getting a little honey?” He bounces his eyebrows on the last bit.

  McNab and I roll our eyes at the same time and I say, “Aiden, you are disgusting.” I head for the bedroom. “I’m getting in the shower now. Will you be here when I get out?” I ask, looking at McNab.

  McNab shrugs. “Maybe.”

  ***

  McNab

  Aiden looks in the mini-fridge. “Beer?”

  Why not, it’s been a long day. “What do you have?”

  “All the usual suspects.” Aiden starts to list them off.

  Jesus, it’s like the who’s-who of American piss water. “Nah, I’ll pass. Any water in there?”

  “Yup.” He pulls a bottle of water out of the fridge and tosses it to me. After opening his beer he walks over to the couch and takes a seat.

  Checking my messages I sit on the chair across from him. “Hey, did Carl ever show up?”

  “No, I looked for him. I couldn’t find him anywhere,” Aiden answers with a little bit of satisfaction in his tone. Here comes the part where he tries to undermine my abilities. “I figured you’d be able to keep track of your man.” Oh, good point. Track my man. I take my phone back out from the pocket of my cargo pants and dial. No answer from Carl; now I’ll try Lori.

  “Paranormal Transmissions, this is Lori.”

  “Lori it’s McNab, where’s Carl?” I give Aiden a satisfying look. Bet he wishes he could track Shay like this. Or better yet I should shove a tracker up his ass while he’s sleeping so Shay can track him.

  “You want me to track him through the GPS?” Lori’s already looking him up—I can hear her typing. That’s my girl.

  “Are you psychic?” I joke with her, but she does always seem to know exactly what I need when I need it. She’s a real gem.

  “Looks like he’s at a place called Lenny’s on Riverside drive.” No reaction to my joke. She’s always so serious, what’s up with that?

  “Thanks Lori, I’ll see you in a couple of days.”

  “You have GPS trackers on your people?” Aiden couldn’t possibly be mocking me with that look.

  “Yes, all of my people carry trackers. Our work can sometimes be dangerous.” Mock that! He’d shit himself inside three minutes in some of the situations I’ve been in.

  “So what exactly is it that you do?” Aiden leans forward, resting his forearms on his thighs.

  “I’m a paranormal investigator. We seek out the strange and unusual and either disprove it or stop it.”

  “Is that why you’ve taken an interest in Shay’s story? You think this is paranormal?” Aiden’s brows tighten with concern.

  “There’s more to it than normal. We really didn’t know there was a story there. We were just doing a fluff piece for Sci-Net’s Kick-Ass Girl Week.” I remember thinking she was just some vapid bimbo that could draw. But after I talked with her, I knew there was more to her. That and she had psychic pollution dripping from her like a two-dollar whore drips the clap. “I didn’t know there was a story until things started happening.”

  “What do you mean things?” Aiden’s gears are turning; now I have to decide how much I’m willing to divulge to him. Weigh whether or not he can handle what’s happening.

  “You know, things.” If Shay wants to share more information with him, she can.

  “How long ago did you meet her?” His curiosity is growing; he reeks of jealousy and suspicion.

  “It’s been a while now. We met at a convention last year and kept in touch.” I’m going to check his reaction, but I think I need to defuse the ticking time-bomb that will explode into a green-eyed monster soon. It’s the last thing she needs to deal with.

  “So, you’ve been close for a while?” The gears are turning in his head.

  “I wouldn’t say that we’re close, she’s a story.” Hopefully that’s enough to put his insecure little mind to rest.

  “She’s really just a story to you?” He’s not buying it. He should—I can’t imagine having my life totally entangled in that hot mess of a woman. That’s a briar patch I’m going to avoid.

  “Aiden, look. I don’t like to beat around the bush. It hurts my brain when people don’t just say what’s on their mind so let me put you at ease.” Aiden’s eyes widen and he relaxes back into the couch. “Shay isn’t on my relationship radar, she has all the love interest she needs. I have no desire to throw my hat into the ring with two other suitors for a very emotionally damaged woman with mediocre looks. The only thing special I see about her is that she has a very interesting paranormal dilemma that I’m going to solve. To do that I have to keep her alive and well and out of the nuthouse. Can you help me with that, Aiden? Can you help to keep her out of the nuthouse?” Please answer that question correctly or I will eliminate you from this equation. Helping her comes first and everyone else is disposable on every level.

  “I’m glad to hear you feel that way and yeah, I want to help her. It’s all I want to do, is help her.” Aiden leans forward; he’s on board. “So when did this all start happening?”

  “I learned more about her problem nine months ago when she came to L.A. for the interview. It’s supposed to air this week, but I asked the network to pull it.” I wonder how long I can keep it
off the air before I have to let it run. “For now.”

  “Wait, so there’s been things happening for nine months? It’s not just Gary and Alice?”

  “There have been many questionable occurrences just since I’ve met her. There’s been Elise, a man named Jorge, her mom, and now her neighbors. The list goes on and is much too long.” I rattled off the roll-call of the dead. Shay really isn’t sharing any info with him. It makes me wonder if I should trust him with it if she doesn’t.

  “Wow.” Aiden pondered for a few minutes in silence. “And you think this is somehow supernatural?”

  “Absolutely.” Time to test how open-minded he can be. “There’s something that has attached itself to her. I’m trying to figure out how to un-attach it. But the problem is, it’s escalating.”

  Aiden expels a heavy sigh. Not sure whether to believe what he was hearing. “Do you know anything about someone named Gabriel?”

  “Yes, Gabriel Stokes. He’s the hero in Sanguine Specter.” Gabriel is bad news.

  A light bulb switches on in Aiden’s eyes. “She was yelling his name the other night.”

  “Not surprising, he’s in the nightmares. I’m very concerned about contact the Specter is making while she’s awake.”

  Aiden’s face goes paper-white as realization washes over him. “What do you mean?”

  “It’s starting to interact with her waking moments. It won’t be long before it builds enough strength to not be contained in a dream state and do damage without need of a host.” Let’s see if he buys that.

  “The beach and the mirror,” Aiden mutters.

  “What about the beach?” Shay didn’t mention a beach. Aiden fills me in on everything that happened. It’s all starting to make sense. Aiden is even willing to buy into this explanation of the supernatural kind. No matter how implausible it seems, it’s the only explanation that fits.

  ***

  Shay

  I enter the room, drying my hair with a towel. As always, the talking stops as soon as I pass the threshold. I think my Native American name would be Taker of Tongues. “You’re still here, McNab. Couldn’t stand to leave me?”