Page 6 of Death Raiser

Jacobs scoffed. “You’d think, right? Not everyone is smart and not all police departments contract necromancers, so we gain a little insight into the killer’s mind. This probably wasn’t a crime of passion and probably not the killer’s first victim. Personally, I prefer the messy, clueless ones,” Jacob said before turning to Kang. “I need to ask the technician some stuff. You guys can finish up here. Catch you later, Morgan.”

I nodded and lifted my hand in a half wave. “No offense, Jacobs, but hopefully, we don’t see each other too soon.”

“Hah! You’d die of boredom without us, Morgan.” The detective turned away with a smirk and walked over to where a forensic technician waited, leaving me with the dead body and a grumpy cop.

Kang frowned at his partner before returning his attention to me. “Do you need a ride home?”

I straightened, not expecting that question. Usually, I got dismissed and had to find my own way back to my apartment.

“This spirit seemed to really affect you,” Kang explained. “Maybe it’s not such a good idea for you to head home on your own.”

“I drove,” I said. “I don’t want to leave my car here.”

“We can take your car and I’ll get someone to pick me up or I’ll catch a cab back,” he said.

“You seem intent on giving me a ride.”

He leaned in. “You have no idea.”

I laughed and shook my head. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were worried about me.”

Hell, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say he was flirting, too.

Kang sighed and looked over his shoulder. The others were busy talking and processing the scene. “I just witnessed a spirit’s wailing bring you to your knees, Lark. Let me take you home.”

Kang rarely used my first name, but when he did, it made my knees weak and did funny things to my stomach.

I…I think I liked it.

Ugh.

I totally liked it.

Kang’s determined expression told me I shouldn’t bother arguing about the ride. If I truly pushed back, he’d respect my answer despite his feelings on the matter, but he was right. I wasn’t okay and having someone else drive me was probably for the best.

“Fine,” I relented.

Chapter Two

I sat in the passenger seat of my car while Kang expertly navigated the streets of Victoria. Before we left the crime scene, he’d consulted with one of the analysts and grabbed a thick folder full of papers from Jacobs’ vehicle before heading over to join me. He dumped the folder in the backseat and held open the passenger door for me to get in.

It was almost sweet.

Oh hell, it was sweet.

And I had no idea how to process Kang taking care of me, so I remained speechless for the first half of the trip.

Kang didn’t need directions. He’d dropped me off at the apartment building numerous times but even if he hadn’t, he would’ve known my address. Kang was the type to investigate everyone in his life, in both a personal and professional capacity.

Part of me wanted him to keep driving around so I could avoid going home.

This morning, I’d found a single rose outside my apartment door. Technically, it could’ve been for my assassin brother Logan or his lawyer boyfriend Brandon, but something about the rose gave me chills. Why would anyone leave a flower outside our apartment door without a note?

Logan and Brandon swore they weren’t fucking with me, which I took with a grain of salt, but if they didn’t leave it, who did? The only other person who’d sent me flowers recently was Kang.

“Random question,” I started. Kang really wasn’t the type to sneak into an apartment building to leave a flower for a woman, he was too direct for cat and mouse games. But I had to ask. “Did you leave me a flower?”

“A flower?” Both his eyebrows shot up.

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