Page 60 of Caretaker

Chapter Twenty

Miriam answered the door herself, which surprised me—I sort of expected Clayton to open the door, possibly naked but for bandages and a dog collar.

She stared at us from dark, dead eyes, her face paler than usual, the trailing ends of her long, blonde hair dripping blood. Her arms were stained with red up to her elbows, and though I wanted to believe she’d simply neglected to clean up after she’d wallowed all over Shane at the accident, I knew whose blood covered her.

I inhaled it, and I recognized it.

She wore different clothes—black leggings, white top, sandals—and splashes of blood decorated them like painted-on flowers.

“Why are you here?” Her voice was as dull as her eyes. “Did Shane die?”

I glanced at Rhys, my mouth suddenly dry. I’d never seen her so…lackluster. “Shane will be fine. Can we come in?”

She held on to the door. “You’ve never visited me, Trinity.”

“No.”

“Why are you here now? I’m busy.”

I forced my face blank and emptied my eyes. “We’re coming in. Move aside.”

She seemed to perk up a little. She stared at me, a tiny spark lighting her eyes. She looked from me to Rhys and back to me, and finally, she backed away from the doorway. “Of course. Come in, my friends.”

The interior of the house tried to be as cute and bright as the exterior, but it didn’t succeed. It was too heavy and dark. And cold. I shivered and began to long for the sun, though earlier I’d wished only for darkness.

But not the kind of darkness inside Miriam’s home.

She led us to a small living room. “Sit down.”

Rhys sat on the sofa but I hesitated. I was grimy, and my clothes were crunchy with dried blood. I’d washed my hands and face in the hospital bathroom before I’d gone in to see Shane, but that was all the cleaning up I’d had time to do. Finally, I sat gingerly on the edge of the sofa, hoping I wouldn’t ruin it.

“Why are you here?” Miriam asked, again. “I don’t mean to be rude, but…” She gestured. “You caught me in the middle of something.”

“We’ve come to collect Clayton.” Rhys shot me a look, but I ignored him. “You said I could borrow him.”

She frowned and tilted her head quizzically, and if I hadn’t known her I might have thought she was a bright, pretty, harmless woman. But I did know her and I couldn’t be fooled by her bland innocent appearance any more than I could be fooled by Rhys’s.

They were both dangerous as hell. The only difference was that Rhys had none of the tortured madness Miriam possessed. I had a feeling she had her good days and her bad days, and we’d walked into one of her bad days. One of her very bad days.

“Borrow him?” she asked. “What do you mean?”

“I’m going to Byrd Island tonight. You remember--the old man with no name has sent me there. You offered Clayton as backup. With Shane out of commission, I need Clayton more than ever.”

She put her stained fingers to her lips. “Fuck, I’d forgotten.” Then she focused on me once more. “Rhys can go with you. Clayton is not well. He was injured, you know.”

I leaned toward her. “Rhys can’t go. They know him there, and it’s dangerous for him. You promised me Clayton and I am taking Clayton.”

Her stare was sharp and suspicious. “I know what you’re doing.”

I clenched my fists. “And I know what you’re doing. Are you ashamed to let me see him?”

She stood. “It’s my right to do whatever I please, Trinity, and I am ashamed of nothing.”

I stood as well, Rhys right beside me. “Then take me to Clayton. I’ll patch him up, Rhys will give him some painkillers, and he can back me up on the island.” I softened my voice. “You don’t want them to kill me, Miriam.”

She continued to stare at me, something close to hatred in her blue eyes. “Today I might want them to. Today I might want to do it myself.”

I swallowed. My mouth was dry, I was shivering, and my stomach knotted with fear. But I refused to let her see any of that. I looked down at her, then pointed to the doorway leading out of the living room. “Take me to him.”