AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Mel instantly jerked. He jumped over to the bed, locking his eyes on Knight, his breath coming out in shallow puffs. “Have him say that again.”
The sudden move to the bed and the urgency of his voice told Anastacia all she needed to know. She didn’t hesitate and chuckled a bit despite her throat. “What kind of saying is that?”
“Something I’ve just learned out on the beat. I just really admire a soul too stubborn to die.” He patted her hand and stood up as a nurse came into the room. The nurse grabbed the water pitcher from the cart next to Anastacia’sbathroom to refill her cup. Knight watched the nurse for a moment and checked his watch. Like he was timing something.
Mel hadn’t moved from his spot by the bed, other than to lean further over Anastacia as if building a new wall between her and Knight. Anastacia picked up on a new energy around his form as he watched Knight closely and the gun on his belt closer. Anastacia tried to keep her expression neutral, but this wasn’t something Mel did. He didn’t even move out of the way for the nurse as she went around to adjust the IV bag and check the monitor. He hated people phasing through him.
The nurse shivered a little and looked down at her. “You cold at all, baby?”
“No, I’m just fine. Thank you.”
“I’m sure we’re out of the woods here, but we’ll get the doctor in to look you over to be sure.”
“I can hope.” Anastacia nodded and wished the nurse would step away so Mel could take form again. At the moment, she could only see his face, his eyes honed in on Knight.
“I’ll let the doctor know you’re awake.”
“Thank you.”
The nurse shivered one more time, smiling at Knight before she walked out the door.
Knight gave his watch another look, shoving his shooting hand in his pocket. The sudden movement made Mel clench the hospital bed’s railing, freezing the metal under his hands.
Knight rubbed the back of his head and cleared his throat. “I guess we’ll have to have a rain check on the dinner. I gotta get some paperwork done and update the captain and Baker about you.”
His normal tone and controlled accent were back in place.
“Okay, let them know I’ll make it.”
“We’ll see. You’re a magnet for trouble.” He leaned over and laid a gentle kiss on her forehead. “Goodbye,cher.”
Mel watched him closely as he left the room, the bathroom light flashed as if his emotions and protective instincts were fluctuating in short energy pulses, despite his obvious efforts to keep it under control.
“Mel, what’s wrong?”
His eyes connected with hers. “Stay in your room and keep the nurse call button nearby. Knight called off the police guard on you.”
“Mel?”
“I’ll be right back.”
Not wanting to alert the nurses and have hallucinations added to her chart, Anastacia bit back the desire to call out to Mel again. He pushed himself past a couple of doctors who unknowingly opened the door for him. Something was wrong. Very wrong. She struggled to move her legs over the side of the bed and was about to attempt to stand when her nurse and doctor entered the room.
“Miss Geist, good to see you’re up. How are you feeling?”
Hedidn’tknowhow,but he beat Knight’s elevator to the ground level. Mel zig-zagged his way through the people in the lobby, ignoring the shadows moving in the corner as he followed Knight to his car.
To hell with believing everything was solid. If people could go through him, then Mel could go through a door without needing it to open. Otherwise, what was the point of being a ghost? Concentrating on the transparency of his hand, he pushed it through the window of Knight’s passenger door. Not wasting time celebrating, Mel shoved the rest of his body through the door. The hardness of the metal felt like it was slicing through his whole being. He landed in the passenger seat in time to see Knight pull a cigar from a small collection he had stashed in his glove compartment. With a quick snip at the end of the cigar, he lit it, puffing with a satisfied release.
“Didn’t know you were a cigar man,” Mel droned, watching as Knight brought out his cell phone. “Though let’s be honest, there’s a lot we don’t know about you. Isn’t there?”
The pre-saved contact only needed a single number to connect the call. Knight waited for a few rings, slowly puffing on the cigar. There was a muffled and higher-pitched voice who answered immediately, and Knight frowned as he listened.
“You know how I feel about excuses. I would have done it myself, but there would have been too many links back to me. I mean, I know how to kill someone without them ratting me out because I make sure they stay dead. It’s your fault you didn’t finish it. Now I’m telling you to. You do it or you know what happens.”
There was another quick series of phrases spouted out against his ear.
Knight laughed, deep and low. “I have so much on you, Dubree. Murder is the least of your troubles. Now finish it. And do it quickly before the nurses make another round. If they stay on schedule, you have a good twenty minutes. And don’t make her passing linger. The girl is golden, no reason to make it painful.”
