Page 27 of Amber Gambler

“That’s a cop-out.” I recalled the friends us Marys had lost over the years between one blink and the next to the public’s indifference and bitter reality. “I’m sure you appreciate the irony.”

“We do the best we can.” He raised his voice before I steamrollered him. “We know it’s not enough.”

Mildly placated, I shifted my anger away from him. “What happens when Leer sees the flag?”

“Odds are he’ll make it official and hand the case off to Carter and me since we brought it to him.”

A sour taste rose up the back of my throat at the prospect of involving myself with the 514 again.

But those lost and forgotten girls deserved an advocate, and I had volunteered to be one.

To give me a moment to process this update, I checked on him. “How are you and Carter?”

Another stretch of silence lasted until I was ready to break, but he beat me to it.

“We talked things out.” He sucked his teeth. “We’re…okay.”

“Okay is good.”

“Yeah.” His breath gusted across the connection. “Okay is good.”

Maybe, if he forgave her for her role in Lyle’s death, he could move past his fixation on Kierce too.

“I need to get back to work.” I gripped the railing and hauled myself to my feet. “Talk later?”

“I’ll call as soon as I know more.”

A sharp jab in my hip brought my attention to Badb, who was pecking at my pocket.

“What is it?” I smoothed a hand over my butt but didn’t feel anything. Except for the result of eating so much of Josie’s cooking. “Oh.” I pulled out the leaf I really should have left in my room. “Is this what?—?”

Snatching it from between my fingers, she launched into the sky.

“This is why the tree got warded,” I muttered as she disappeared from sight. “Hooligan.”

Whatever connection Badb felt with the tree, it was plain she wasn’t impressed with it being off-limits.

Certain this latest theft would come back to haunt me, I returned to my office to finish my shift.

And hoped Badb wasn’t out there chasing cats around with a burning leaf just to hear them yowl.

“Got another one.”

The slight lisp brought my attention swinging from my TV to the small blue outline standing in the center of my couch. Visible only from the waist up, Johnny’s appearance might have startled me if I hadn’t seen stranger things. Muting the investigative crime show I was hoping could teach me some pointers, I hated that this interruption meant I was too late.

“Thanks for bringing me the news.” I twisted to face him. “What can you tell me?”

“There’s a weeping girl on East Victory Drive, across from the Thai place.”

“How did she look?”

“Good for a drowned rat.” He rubbed his nose. “Pretty eyes.”

“Another drowning victim.” I pulled up a map on my phone to pin the location. “Anything else?”

“She’s wailing hard enough to make spooks nervous.” He wet his lips. “Spirits like that…”

“…are dangerous,” I agreed with him. “I’ll head out there and see if I can relocate her.”

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