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She shot David a look that would destroy most men.
“Right. Got it. Don’t question the psychic.”
Cassie circled the tree once and knelt at its base. She put her hand to the dirt and felt it pulsing under her fingertips. The pain of Shapiro’s victims radiated through her hand, then her arm, and right into the base of her skull. The strength of it nearly sent her sprawling backwards.
David crouched beside her. “Are you okay? What’s going on?”
“I can feel them. His other victims. They’re all here, right beneath the surface.”
If David said anything else, Cassie didn’t hear it. Two things happened simultaneously—the mystery victim who’d visited her appeared at the base of the tree, and Shapiro himself materialized only a few feet away.
Shapiro’s aura was still that deep, pulsing red. The anger radiating off him made Cassie’s legs shake. The pain in her head intensified to where she could barely keep her eyes open. It was like the worst migraine she’d ever experienced, multiplied by a thousand. She couldn’t stop herself from crying out. But instead of being afraid, she felt only anger. It flowed through her veins like molten lava until it had her jumping up and backing away from the tree.
“No, no, no.”
“What’s wrong? Cassie, what’s going on?” David grabbed her shoulders and shook her until she looked him in the eye. “Talk to me. What’s happening?”
She had to use every ounce of her strength to keep from passing out. Her knees were weak. All she wanted to do was close her eyes and disappear forever. “The victims are in so much pain. They’re so afraid. He’s feeding off it. It’s giving him power. Every second he’s around them, he gets stronger.”
“Can he hurt them? Can he hurt you?”
“I don’t know.” Cassie grabbed her head between her hands and squeezed. She wanted to pull out her hair. “But it’s not fair. It’s not fair.”
“What’s not fair?”
Cassie squeezed her eyes shut as she dropped to a knee. She couldn’t fight it anymore. Couldn’t think. Could only feel. The words came unbidden. “It’s not fair what he did to them. What gave him the right? He was mourning his wife, he understood how horrific it is to lose someone you love, and yet he did that to a dozen other people. What gave him the right?”
“He didn’t think of it that way. He didn’t think of them as people.”
Cassie exploded with anger. “Don’t defend him. They were people. They were living, breathing people.”
“I know—”
“They had lives. They had hopes and dreams and families. They had futures.” There was a growl in her voice that scared her. “He took all of that away. He stole it. What gave him the right?”
“Cassie, you have to resist him. You can’t give him any more power.”
Cassie stood so fast she knocked David back a couple feet. She pointed to where Shapiro had buried his victims. Their whispers were louder now. She wasn’t sure if she was hearing them in her head or if they existed outside. Ignoring them was useless. It would only do more damage.
“That could’ve been me. I was there, in their shoes, but I survived.” She stalked toward Shapiro. The aura surrounding him deepened and turned black. “Do you hear that? I survived. And you may have killed them, but they’re not gone. You failed. You tried to erase them, but it didn’t work. And you know what else? What you did to those people was unforgivable. You can’t stay here forever. You’ll burn in hell for what you did.”
A wicked grin formed on Shapiro’s face. One second, he was still a few arm lengths away, and the next, he was standing right in front of Cassie. Her throat closed. Her skin burned as if she were on fire. Sweat poured from her temples, and her vision blurred.
But then her ghostly visitor appeared and acted as a cool salve against her skin. He formed a barrier between her and Shapiro, and for a moment she felt the reprieve of the killer’s effects. She could breathe again. Shapiro looked surprised his victim had the audacity to challenge him, and when he moved to push him out of the way, the other man stood firm.
The whispers beneath her swelled. She dropped to her knees. Her head was clear enough to realize she looked insane, but there wasn’t any time to think about what David thought of her in that moment.
“You can stop him,” she said. “He’s feeding off your fear. Your despair. Show him you’re not afraid. Stand up to him. He can’t fight all of you at once. We’re here. David and I. We know where you are now. We’ll get your bodies to your families. You’ll be put to rest. But first you have to show Robert Shapiro he didn’t
win.”
Cassie held her breath as the air shimmered around her. Shapiro’s last victims appeared one at a time until all five of them stood against him. Gnashed teeth replaced his wicked grin. He charged at Cassie but met resistance.
His victims kept her safe.
As her body cooled and her mind stilled, Cassie felt peace settle over her that came as much from herself as it did those around her. She smiled at David, who stared at her with wide eyes and a slack jaw.
“It’s going to be okay,” she reassured him.
