Page 3 of Dead Rattled
“We’regonna work a case? Who’s we?” Ronan asked, feeling as alarmed as he sounded.
Everly pointed between herself, Ten and Ronan. “All three of us. I’ve gotta go get your drinks. I’ll be right back.”
Ronan watched as Everly headed off. He took a breath to get his emotions under control. Everly loved getting involved in the cases he and Tennyson worked, but Ronan hated that so much of her innocence was being stripped away. On the other hand, who was he to turn down help that was always right on the money? The Salem Police Cold Case files were filled with crimes that Everly could help solve. “Do you know anything about this?”
Ten shook his head. “I shut down my gift today. I didn’t want to hear what the other parents thought of me after I went to jail.” Ten’s voice was barely above a whisper.
“I hear that,” Ronan muttered. “I remember how hard it was after I’d been arrested for Corbin St. Pierre’s murder. People looked at me like I was the scum of the earth. It got better over time. The same thing will happen with you.”
“Here we go!” Everly handed each of her fathers juice pouches.
“I’ve punched the straw into a million of these things, but this is the first time I’ve ever had one to drink.” Ronan took a sip and nearly gagged. It tasted vaguely like fruit punch, but with the horrible aftertaste of sugar substitute. He had a feeling the drink would be more healthy with the full dose of sugar rather than the chemical sweetener used in its place.
“So, what’s this case you were talking about earlier?” Ten asked, before taking a bite of his sandwich.
“It’s something to do with a baby,” Everly said. “I gotta go get my lunch now that you guys are served.”
“A baby?” Ronan asked. “We’re not going to have another one, are we?”
Ten, his mouth full of tuna salad, shook his head. “No, we’re definitelynothaving another baby.”
“Oh, Jesus,” Ronan muttered, feeling gut-punched, “is someone’s child going to die?”
“I’m not getting anything about that and I’m not sure Everly is either.” Ten looked worried.
It was one thing for their seven-year-old daughter to work on cases with them that involved grown-ups hurting each other. It was another matter entirely to be part of a case that involved a dead child. Ronan took a breath, hoping to calm his shredded nerves.
“Here I am!” Everly set her plate on the table and took a seat.
“Explain what you know about this baby,” Ronan said, hoping he sounded calm and not completely freaked out, like he felt.
“I can hear a baby crying, but I can’t find it,” Everly said. “I don’t know what it means. I can’t see if it’s a boy or a girl or if it’s hurt or…” She looked up to Ronan.
Ronan knew exactly what Everly was hinting toward. “Why don’t we give this a little more time to develop and see where we are tomorrow, okay?”
“Sounds good, Daddy!” Everly munched on a chip. “Maybe we can go shopping for bikinis later, since we’re going to the beach for Memorial Day Weekend, right Aurora?”
“Yes! We need cute beach clothes, sunglasses, and new sandals.” Aurora squealed with excitement.
Ronan grinned as the girls discussed summer fashions. Maybe taking the kids shopping would get Ten’s mind off Autumn Miller and this baby Everly mentioned. He could use some new clothes for vacation himself. Maybe some new board shorts or a sexy speedo for private time with Ten.
Whatever their upcoming Memorial Day Weekend brought, Ronan hoped time away from Salem would help Ten get back to his old self and allow him to leave Autumn Miller and her machinations in the past.
2
Tennyson
Not only had Everly shopped until she dropped, but so had Ten and Ronan. They were completely outfitted for the upcoming Memorial Day trip to Hampton Beach on the New Hampshire seacoast. Fitz and Jace had been in charge of lodgings and they’d rented a gorgeous house mere feet from the sand, so there wouldn’t be a repeat of the Old Orchard Beach disaster that Jude had booked at bargain prices.
With the details of the trip off Ten’s plate, he could focus on his day at West Side Magick. His first client was due to arrive at any second. The woman was a referral from one of his regulars, which usually made Ten’s day, but after the Autumn Miller situation, he didn’t really trust anyone’s referrals.
Knowing he couldn’t continue to worry over every reading, Ten took a deep breath. Yes, he’d been traumatized when officers ripped him out of this very room to arrest him. If he closed his eyes, he could still feel the ice-cold metal of the handcuffs against his wrists and the explosion of pain when his face was slammed against the wall. Former Danvers Police Captain Dutch Vance had pleaded guilty to all charges and was serving a twenty-five year sentence in prison.
“Hey, Ten?” Carson poked his head into the reading room. “Natalie Fairchild is here for you.”
“Wonderful!” Ten hopped out of his seat, hoping the smile he’d plastered on his face wasn’t too bright or fake.
Carson escorted an older woman into the room. She was dressed in a black pantsuit with her stylish grey hair cut into a bob. Natalie looked to be around sixty years old.
