Page 82 of Rags's Awakening
“Then how would he know what I was doing?”Unless he shut down the booth and followed me.A thin shiver wove through her.
“I guess he saw you guys together. So, who’s this guy? Curtis said you’re crazy to give attention to one of those outlaws.”
“Those outlaws are the ones who put on the festival to raise money for children.”
Raven held up her hands. “Whoa, I was quoting Curtis. I don’t think anything like that. If I wasn’t married, I’d be looking over one of those sexy guys. When they walk down the street, or enter a room, or ride by on their big Harleys, they command respect. It’s totally wild and sexy.”
“It can be,” Casey said.
Raven glanced at the wall clock. “Damnit. I have to get back to the stage. Simon wants us to rehearse the second act again. There are some rough spots with the leading man.” She rolled her eyes. “Let’s do lunch or dinner soon. I want to hear all about your sexy outlaw.”
Raven rushed out, waving one hand over her shoulder.
All at once, it was quiet. Casey opened the folder and started working on the marketing invoices, the cloth-covered book staring at her. She pulled out her cellphone and tapped out a text to Devin.
Casey:Hi. Whatcha doing?
Devin:Not much. It’s quiet today. U want to get lunch later?
Casey:Maybe. I have to see how the morning goes. Did u drop off a book 4 me?
Devin:No. Why?
Casey:Someone put a book on my desk. It’s a history bk. Thought it was u.
Devin:It wasn’t. What’s it about?
Casey:Unsolved murders in PWS—it has the 1903 ones. It’s sorta creepy, u know?
Devin:Maybe someone’s playing a joke on u. I can look to see if we have it in the library.
Casey:Cld u? I’d like to know. Gotta run.
Devin:I’ll let u know.
Casey:Thx. If lunch doesn’t work maybe coffee later?
Devin:Sounds good. Bye.
Casey set her phone facedown and tried to lose herself in invoices again. But the cloth-covered book lounged at the edge of her desk like it waswaiting.
A faint chill crept across her shoulders. She pulled the book closer and flipped it open again, tracing old headlines with her fingertip: Women found posed; Necks bruised; Brown hair with crown of flowers.
It had to be a coincidence. Still… someone had put it here. In her office. Without a note.
All at once, Curtis’s face slid through her mind with those unsettling eyes, and the way he never smiled. She exhaled slowly. No. It could’ve been anyone. Lots of people had access to the building. She shook the unease away, but it clung stubbornly to her ribs.
She closed the book and shoved it aside. She had to stop imagining the worst. The murders had her emotions on a tight rope.This is silly. I have a lot of work to do. I need to focus on that, not unsolved crimes from 1903.
After a couple of hours of returning phone calls, paying invoices, and drafting a proposal for next year’s budget, Casey pulled out her phone and saw Devin had sent her a text. She opened it up and read that the museum did not carry a copy of the book she had on the desk. She sent him a thumbs up emoji, then pulled up Rags’s phone number and stared at it. Her fingers hovered over the keyboard. A ridiculous flutter beat in her chest. She could just ask how his stitches were doing. A totallynormal, friendly question. Except they weren’t friends. And she absolutely wasn’t normal around him.
Sucking in a deep breath, she typed:
Casey:Hey. How’s it going? How’s your eyebrow?
A long minute. Then—
Rags:Healing.
