Page 40 of Haunted Prey

Emery’s corpse under the river. His skull face smiling at me in the dark. The shadow dripping water everywhere. And blood. So much blood.

“Some locals found it on a beach along the north point of the island park. Probably just floated down.”

Floated. His body floated. Then sunk deep into the dark…

My hand shook as I gave him back the photo. “Thanks for letting me know.”

“They're still searching for the body. But it could be several more weeks. Who knows. I can let you know if we do.”

Numbly, I nodded. I wanted to curl up on my little futon now and shut out the world.

I went to say goodbye to him when a chill ran down my spine.

Some instinct made me look around. I scanned the tree line again but didn’t see any movement.

“What’s wrong?” Liam asked.

Eyes on me.It felt like someone was watching me.

“You swear you don’t have one of your guys hiding?”

I turned back when he didn’t respond and saw the hurt flicker in his eyes. “Trust me, Eve, it’s just me.”

I wanted to believe him, but I still couldn’t shake off the feeling of being watched.

“I have to go. Thanks again. Maybe we’ll talk soon.”

He looked disappointed, but my paranoia was growing, and I wanted to leave. Thankfully, he didn’t pressure me to stay.

“If you ever need anything, Eve, please don’t hesitate to call. I hope…I hope I’ll see you soon.”

Before I could step away, he closed the distance between us, pulling me into a hug.

I didn’t pull away, but I didn’t relax either, nor did I put my arm around him. I let him hug me, and it felt like a goodbye. And that was fine.

His lips brushed against my hair, and that was when I pulled away from his embrace, turning my head aside. “See you around, Liam. If you learn anything else, let me know. And if your Fed buddies decide to look into everything I uncovered, let me know that too.”

I left him there, turning my back on him as I started for the lot.

Jamie rose from where he’d been sitting to join me, waving goodbye to Liam.

“That went well, right?” he asked.

“Sure.”

“At least he was honest,” Jamie said, not noticing my sudden paranoia. “No feds lurking in the bushes or anything.”

I wasn’t so sure about that.

Yet, as we got to Lena’s car, no one stopped us. I hopped in, said goodbye to Jamie who said he’d come to hang with us in aday or two, and shut the door. No cars blocked us as we left nor followed us out of the park as we raced toward Marcus’ house.

Still that feeling didn’t leave me until we got several miles away, and I couldn’t help wondering how close I was to being dragged back to Severfalls or how close I was to a mental break.

CHAPTER NINE

EMERY

What’s tall, dark, and holds the weight of a sinner?

---