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“I don’t know. I’m thinking of having a steel door installed over the existing one.”
She got two beers and opened them. She set trays in front of him then offered the other to Owen when he came in with Cleo.
“You were hurt, and it could’ve been a lot worse.”
“But it wasn’t.”
Cleo patted Sonya’s arm. “I’ll get us some wine. The windows in that room started slamming. Hard enough I don’t see how the glass didn’t break. The dogs went crazy.”
She pulled the stopper from an uncorked bottle, poured two glasses.
“The dogs went crazy, and we all ran to the house. They’re barkingand snarling and racing upstairs. We heard banging and crashing. You were shouting.”
Owen took another long pull of beer. “Was I?”
She nodded. “Your turn.”
“It was mostly my fault. I’ve gotten everything about that room and Dobbs secondhand. So, you know, let’s have a look.”
“Nice try. Commendable.” Steadier now, Sonya sipped her wine. “But Trey’s a big boy, and—obviously—he can take his lumps.”
“Just saying. So, the light’s off in that wing—got a dingy look to it—and the air’s cold. Did you notice?”
“No.” At her look at Cleo, Sonya got a headshake. “But we were a little distracted seeing Trey crumpled on the floor.”
“I wouldn’t saycrumpled.” He added.
He picked up the story, careful not to leave out any details. Not fair to her, and he had to admit, he hadn’t been fair to her.
“A lot like before then.” The anger faded, leaving just a shade of resentment.
“A lot like,” Trey said. “But not altogether. This time I saw her.”
“You saw her.” Instantly Cleo dropped down into the chair beside him. “And you didn’t lead with that?”
“Just for a second, but I saw a woman, black dress, black hair, and one who looked a lot more pissed off than either of you.” He looked at Owen. “You didn’t?”
“I was pretty busy watching you go airborne. And the door slammed shut.”
“Sonya did some drawings of her. Like I said, I only caught a glimpse—while airborne—but I didn’t have any trouble recognizing her. Or recognizing that most of what we saw in there was bullshit.”
“So you said before you flew,” Owen reminded him.
“The curtains weren’t moving. The room’s full of wind, but the curtains don’t move?”
Frowning, Owen sat. “You’re right. You’re right about that.”
“Illusions. Trickery.”
“The bloody nose and the lump on your head aren’t illusions.”
“No.” Because he thought they could both use it, he rose, put hisarms around Sonya. “But she couldn’t, or wouldn’t, come past the door. Like the bird that vanished a few feet out of the window.”
He kissed her forehead. “We’ll figure it out.”
“Any way we can figure it out with food?” Owen wondered.
“Damn it! I forgot to get anything out for dinner.”
