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“One of the deaths, the elderly woman, happened two blocks from your house.”
“Two nights ago?” I asked.
Tom jerked upright. “Yeah, how did you know?”
Crap. I couldn’t tell him about the old woman who’d told me my future. Was she the one who had died? Could she have been a ghost rather than a demon? “I was walking home from work. I saw the ambulance.”
He sighed in disappointment. I’d guessed about the ambulance.
“What else do you want to know?”
His voice lowered. “Ellie, I’m begging you. If you have any idea what might be doing this or how to stop it, either tell me what to do or make sure it’s taken care of.”
My head jerked up in surprise. “What?”
“Whatever was ripping out people’s hearts before suddenly stopped, the exact same night when we found some strange things out at Festival Park. There were circles with candles, salt, and markings very much like the ones you make on your doors. We also found gigantic claw marks on a tree that had been knocked over, along with extensive damage to theElizabeth II.”
We’d been sloppy to leave so many signs of our fight in Festival Park, the re-creation of the first English settlement in Roanoke, that night. We’d been sloppy about a lot of things. David had been certain I was a conjurer and could send the demons back to hell on my own. We’d made a temple of sorts for me, creating seven circles consisting of tribal markings, candles, and salt. I had stood inside the circles and recited the Cherokee chant David had been so sure would end the lives of the badgers. He had been mistaken. I had lured the demons away from David and onto the replica ship. We would probably both be dead if Collin hadn’t shown up to save us.
“I think you did something that night. I don’t know how you managed it, but I think you made that wild animal go away. I’d prefer if you would tell me what’s going on so trained professionals can deal with the situation. But I also know how stubborn you are. So if you refuse to tell me, but you can make this thing go away, please do what you can.”
My mouth dropped open in shock.
He gave me a wry smile. “Not what you expected?”
I took a deep breath and released it. “No.”
“I have to warn you, this isn’t officially sanctioned by the Manteo Police Department. It’s off the books.”
I shook my head, wiping the tears from my cheeks. I was both shocked by his change of attitude and grateful for it, but there was one problem. “I swear to you, Tom. I have no idea what this thing is.”
He leaned across the table, his eyes piercing mine. “Then find out. And take care of it.”
Chapter6
Tom insisted on driving me home. I considered refusing, but I was still shaken from seeing the photo of the little boy. Besides, I suspected that the air-conditioning in his squad car got cool pretty quickly. It was better than walking in the heat.
“Are you going to let me ride in front?” I asked as we walked across the parking lot.
“This time,” he said, opening his car door. He glanced over the top of the car and winked at me. “Don’t get too used to it.”
I slid in the passenger seat. It occurred to me that I’d been in this exact car a nearly two months ago when Tom found me in the botanical gardens shouting at Okeus. “Who says I plan to?”
He put his keys in the ignition and shot me a weary gaze. “Call it a crazy hunch, but I have a feeling this won’t be the last time we’re thrown together.”
I was envious of his AC by the time we pulled up next to my house. I considered sitting in front of the blasting cold air for several seconds, but David burst out of the door, his face contorted in anger.
“Shit. Your boyfriend’s pissed,” Tom muttered as he climbed out of the car, readjusting his belt.
I opened my car door as David started shouting, “What is the meaning of this? On what grounds did you bring her in for questioning?”
He charged toward Tom, but I jumped in his path and grabbed his arm, holding him back. “David, it’s okay.”
“Bloody hell, it is.”
“Dr. Preston.” Tom hooked his thumbs in his belt. “Ellie isn’t in trouble. I asked her in as a consultant.”
The tension in David’s body faded, and he glanced from my face to Tom’s. “What the bollocks does that mean?”
