Page 92 of Visions of Darkness

“It says she was married.” Aria reached forward to click on Abigail’s spouse’s name, but we both froze when we felt a presence cloud over us from behind. We’d been so engrossed in what we’d found that neither of us had heard footsteps.

Violence pulled tight across my chest. It was so goddamn reckless to have let my guard down like that.

In a rush of protectiveness, I shifted in the chair, and I glared over my shoulder. Every muscle in my body was bunched and prepared to strike.

It was a man, maybe in his late thirties or forties, and he’d gone to the Healthy Lifestyle section, which was against the far wall. He kept peering our way, trying to keep it covert, like I couldn’t feel his curiosity spearing into us.

“We need to go,” I mumbled under my breath, frustrated as hell that we hadn’t even gotten the chance to check news articles.

Aria looked back at the screen, wishing to push further, to dig deeper.

“We’ll stop again. At another place,” I promised.

We just couldn’t sit idle like this when we’d captured someone’s interest.

I didn’t feel a whole lot of evil radiating from the guy, but right then, with the sense I’d gotten from the trucker, we couldn’t take that chance.

Nodding, Aria stood, and I ushered her back across the loft and to the stairs. I could feel the weight of the man’s attention follow us the entire way.

And I wondered how strong the Ghorl was who had been feeding evils into the janitor’s mind. How fucking in tune it was. How far it could reach. I wondered if the monster could feel the man’s interest, would take advantage of it and manipulate him in a single beat.

Could he take him from mild intrigue to bloodthirsty?

The only thing I knew for sure was that I didn’t fucking like it, and when he turned and started back in our direction, I hurried Aria down the stairs. By the time we hit the bottom landing, we were close to a jog, me at her side and rushing her toward the front door. “Keep moving, Aria. Don’t look back.”

We were almost through the door when from out of nowhere a hand reached out and gripped Aria’s arm.

Aria’d had her head down, and a yelp of surprise left her at the contact. I whirled, getting between the person and Aria, backing her out of the threshold while I prepared to fight.

“Stay the fuck away,” I growled before I could even process who was there.

My tension minimally eased when I realized it was the older Black woman who’d been working the checkout.

Fear over the way I’d responded to her was clear in her expression, though it was mottled with something I couldn’t quite pinpoint. Still, I kept moving backward, edging Aria through the door while I made myself a barricade of protection in front of her.

The woman stepped forward, and she reached out like she was trying to grab on to a ghost. “I know what you are.”

She whispered it in reverence.

In grief.

Shock blew my eyes wide. What the hell? Did she just imply what I thought she did?

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I gritted out.

We couldn’t trust anyone.

I could feel Aria trying to peer out from around me. Shock rippled across her flesh, and her heart beat manically against my back.

“You do. You know,” the woman pressed.

She reached again, though this time, I noticed she had her hand balled around something she held in her palm. I stalled out, my gaze sweeping from her to the man who was now downstairs.

She swung her attention his way before she turned back to me and urged, “Take it.”

I resisted for only one moment before I accepted the crumpled piece of paper from her hand. The second I did, she turned and called, “What can I help you find?”

It was a clear distraction.

---