Deadly Chaos (16 page)

“Okay,” Sheila said. “You're sufficiently chill, it's time to spill. Ha! I made a rhyme.”

“You’ve had too much to drink.” Kat lit another cigarette and Chaos wondered if she’d made it through the entire pack yet.

“I’m dying to hear all about you,” Sheila said, waving her hand at Kat.

Chaos wasn't used to someone being so curious about her. It made her feel both uncomfortable and happy at the same time. It’d been a long time since anyone had shown any interest in her or her life. It was her own fault. It needed to be that way. People died when they were around her. She’d lost everyone she ever cared about and it had been her fault. To protect others, and herself, she put off a very big “leave me alone” vibe but the walls were down with these people. Linda, Kat, Sheila and even Dakota had sort of welcomed her automatically into their little group and for the first time ever, she almost felt safe.

Chaos began to tell them about her experiences. She told them about how she’d been swinging with her best friend in kindergarten. Pretending to fly, Chaos had jumped off the swing. It swung back and smashed her friend in the face. She was knocked unconscious and ended up with severe brain damage. She told them about her first boyfriend and how they were attacked by a group of boys from a rival school and how he was beaten and landed in the hospital for three months. She told them about the drunk driving charge that wasn't drunk driving and how she held the dying woman in her arms. She finished by reminding them about Dead Bill. “No one gets close to me without paying the price.” She finished her beer and set the empty glass aside.

“Shit, lady,” Kat said. “That is some fucked up curse. It’s amazing you’re still sane.”

“I’m not sure I am. I'm hunting ghosts with you, asking dead relatives to help free me from an angry spirit, calling on the sun to help me and using that energy to help cleanse Dakota. It is all a bit too wooey for me.”

“Wooey.” Kat laughed. “Yeah, we’re a bit wooey.”

“Wait a minute,” Sheila said. She was on her fifth beer and starting to get a little loud. “Using the sun to help you? What do you mean?”

“You know. Linda told me to imagine filling his body with light. So I imagined the sun shining down and filling him with light.”

“The sun?”

“Yeah. Why? What’s the problem? What else would you use?”

“No problem. It’s just that most people imagine God's energy, or the Universe’s energy, filling them up with the light. You don't imagine that?”

“I stick with what I know. God doesn’t do me any favors.”

Both Kat and Sheila set their beer down on the table and stared at her.

“What?”

“So how does that work? How do you use the sun?” Sheila asked.

Sheila suddenly seemed more coherent, less drunk. “Energy.” Chaos said. “I’ve been thinking about it. Everything is energy, right? When I’m outside working on a project I can feel the energy of the sun. The sun, it’s the center of our survival. It’s the energy that keeps all things alive. And energy doesn't go away. It just changes. Plants convert the sun’s energy into food. People do too. We need the sun to make vitamin D and we eat plants. And plants break down and provide energy for other plants. It’s all just a cycle of energy.”

“Look at you, Mother Nature. You got it all figured out.” Kat flicked her cigarette and dropped her ashes onto the floor. “So what about ghosts? What’s the sun got to do with dead people?”

“Ghosts are just a different form of energy.” She really had been thinking about it a lot lately and it was the only logical explanation that she could come up with.

“Ooh. I like that,” Sheila said. “That’s true. I think we may use that when we talk to some clients. So what happens when you die? Does everyone stay here on the earth in a different form? Is there a heaven?”

Chaos shrugged. “I don't know. Does it matter?”

Sheila nodded her head. “Someday it might. We’ve come across some very angry spirits and if you don't have faith in something more powerful than humans or the sun, then you can be in real trouble.”

Her eyes widened and Sheila reminded Chaos of a little kid telling an exciting story. Kat and Sheila shared some of their more interesting ghost hunting stories with Chaos and while it was all interesting, she wasn't convinced that most of it wasn’t just their avid imagination. They ordered another round of beer and a plate of nachos. "I haven't eaten this much food in a long time."

“Looking at you I'd say you’ve never eaten this much food, ever.” Kat laughed. “I’d kill to have your figure.”

“Are you kidding me? I look like a boy compared to you.”

“No, I have to work it. Every head in this bar turned when you walked into the room. Get those ugly work boots off your feet and men would be lined up to buy you a drink.”

Chaos crossed her arms and stiffened in her chair. “I’m done drinking for the night.”

“One step at a time,” Sheila said to Kat. “We have your proof,” Sheila said over the top of her beer glass.

“Proof?”

“Kat analyzed that video you took on your phone. Smart by the way. Most people wouldn’t think about doing that.”

“My sanity was at stake.”

“Well, you caught him,” Kat said. “I was able to clean up a lot of the audio and hear more than a few words. And there’s a dark shadow that moves around your room. You can see it pretty clearly in a few of the frames. I’ll show it to you tomorrow. I can show you lots of cool stuff. We have this great thermal image of an entity in a bar in Colorado Springs. We had a standard video camera running at the same time and there's nothing there but you can see the heat signature as clear as day.”

“Will any of that stuff I caught help get rid of Dead Bill?”

“Anxious to get rid of us so soon? Or is it just Dakota you’re running away from?”

“What’s up with you?” Chaos asked. She’d finally had enough of Kat’s mixed signals and not so subtle barbs. “One minute you’re friendly and the next you’re snarky. What did I do to you?”

“She’s just jealous,” Sheila said, patting her hand.

“Bitch.” Kat jerked her hand away. She lit a cigarette and turned her attention to the dance floor, essentially removing herself from the conversation.

“Jealous? Why? Of what?” Chaos had only been there a day and she’d managed to get attacked and cause problems. If she was jealous of that she was crazy.

“She doesn’t like the way Dakota looks at you.”

“He looks at me like I’m the devil.”

“A devil he wants to fuck,” Kat said. The cigarette hung between her lips as the words left her mouth in a hiss.

“Hey,” Chaos set her beer down on the table with a thump.

“Sorry. It’s true.”

“Dakota hates me. He doesn’t want me. He swore at me the first time we met and slammed the door in my face.” She kept the morning’s conversation to herself, “And it wouldn’t matter if he did have an interest in me. I’m leaving soon and I’m not interested. He’s all yours.”

“He isn’t and he never will be. We’re his family, like sisters, you know. We’re the family he never had. It doesn’t matter. He wants you and you can deny it all you want but you want him too. I know what I see.” She took a drink of her beer. “Sorry I was a bitch.”

Chaos shrugged. She’d never actually had a fight with anyone. It felt kind of good. “We’re good?”

“Yep.”

“Yay. Enough about Dakota,” Sheila said. “Come on; let's dance.”

Feeling more free than she had in a long time Chaos hit the floor and let her body move to the music. She allowed thoughts of Dead Bill and Dakota to float away and focused on the beat of the music and the feel of the bass beneath her feet. Sweaty and happy she sat back down to catch her breath. "Last call, ladies,” the waitress said.

“You guys want one final beer before we head home?” Not waiting for an answer, Kat ordered three more. They finished their beers as the band finished its last song.

“Time to head home,” Sheila said, rising to her feet. Chaos stretched. She shouldn’t have had that last beer. They were going to have to sit in the parking lot or take a walk before they got in the Jeep to head home. She glanced out the window of the bar to see if she could spot a 24 hour coffee shop. Not likely. This town didn't seem to have any chain establishments. No Starbucks, no 7-Eleven. Nothing. She saw someone leaning against her Jeep. Her heart skipped a beat and then she got mad. “Speak of the devil.”

Heading out of the restaurant she stepped into the cool night and stopped a few feet from him. Her heart hammered in her chest. “What are you doing here?”

Dakota shrugged. He looked like the Jeep was holding him up. “I’ve been here all night.”

“Spying on me?”

“Just making sure that you're okay.”

She didn’t believe him. She wasn’t sure why but she got the feeling he was protecting Sheila and Kat from her. ‘We’re his family,’ Kat had said. Chaos knew that if she had a family she’d protect them with her life too. But why did he feel he needed to protect them from her? She glanced up to where they were sitting and wondered how much of their conversation he’d been able to hear. They were sitting right by the window and they hadn’t exactly been quiet. “Why wouldn't I be?”

“Jeeze, Dakota, you look like shit,” Kat said, coming up on them.

“Thanks.”

“Shouldn’t you be sleeping or communing with your ancestors or something?”

“I'm okay. Chaos did something that helped me heal more quickly.”

Kat looked at Chaos. “What’d you do?”

“Sunshine. I filled him with sunshine. I told you about it.”

“Little Miss Sunshine. That’s what I’m going to call you now.” She flicked her cigarette onto the asphalt and crushed it with the toe of her boot.

“Never mind her, she gets bitchy when she’s had too much to drink,” Sheila said.

Dakota nodded. “Whatever. Chaos, toss me your keys.”

“No.” Chaos hated the way she felt when she saw Dakota. Actually, she loved it but it both elated and destroyed her at the same time. She had a schoolgirl crush and needed to get over it. She needed to steer clear of him and focus on getting rid of Dead Bill.

“What do you mean, no?”

“N O, two letters. One word. No.” Chaos heard Kat snicker behind them. Chaos had just about had enough. Her life was spinning out of control and she wanted it back. “Shut up, Kat.” Look,” she said poking Dakota in the chest. What a nice chest, she thought. Before her thoughts went wayward and she pictured him naked, she focused her attention on what she was trying to say. “I don’t need your protection and I sure as hell don’t need you spying on me. And you,” she said turning to look at Sheila and Kat. “You’re all wonderful, if a bit thick.” The buzz was giving her a bit of liquid courage. “But we can’t be friends. My friends die. Do you hear me? Everyone I’ve ever gotten close to, and some I barely knew, died. I’m not staying here. When Bill’s gone, if you’re still willing to help me get rid of the bastard, then I’m going back to my life in New Mexico. It’s a good life with a company I built from the ground up. I’m good at what I do and I like my house. I really like my house.” Okay, she knew she was babbling and sounding stupid now but she couldn’t stop. Her mouth just kept moving. What was her point? Oh, yeah. “And I don’t need your protection,” she said, looking directly at Dakota. She poked him in the chest partially for emphasis and partially because she simply wanted to do it again. She hit hard muscle and repressed a swoon. Damn, he was sexy.

“You done?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“Here.” He pulled a thermos out of his backpack. “It’s coffee. You’re drunk. Hand me your keys.”

Chaos stomped her foot. She knew she looked like a two year old. Dakota wasn’t going to take no for an answer and she couldn’t drink hot coffee from a thermos and drive a stick, especially not with a broken left arm. And she wanted that coffee. She wanted to get sober as quickly as possible. “Here,” she said handing over her keys. Unscrewing the cap on the thermos, she climbed into the passenger seat. She held the cup like it was a golden goblet. Sipping the miraculous brew, she waited for the coffee to take hold and her fuzzy mind to clear.

Kat and Sheila sang in the backseat. Off key and horrible, it still made Chaos smile. Nothing had happened tonight and for that she was grateful. An uneventful night out with friends is something she'd never had. She’d remember this day for the rest of her life. Sheila got out when they stopped at Kat’s condo just north of Boulder. The building sat nestled against a rolling hillside. Occasionally, lights twinkled on the hill. Homes burrowed deep in the trees. The Foothills is what they called this area. The place where the flat land grew into mountains. The hills weren’t really hills, not by her definition anyway. You wouldn’t roll down one or go sledding. No, these hills were like mini mountains. Large enough for dozens of homes to hide in secluded peace. Hiding in peace was exactly what Chaos wanted to get back to. No ghosts. No danger, and no new friends who have your back, she thought. And just might pay for it with their lives.

“I’ll sleep here until morning,” Sheila said. “Kat can drive me home. You good?” she asked, looking at Chaos.

“I’m good. Sorry for my outburst and thanks for a great night out. I’ve never had that before, you know.”

“I know. Sleep tight.”

The car door closed. Chaos watched them stumble, laughing, to the door. She glanced at Dakota. The lights from the dashboard shone on his midnight hair and sharpened his already chiseled features. Desire fluttered deep in her stomach. She was in so much trouble here. She needed to get rid of Bill and get out of here before she fell head over heels for Dakota and got the man killed. He was tough and resourceful from what she’d seen but if anyone could get him killed, it’d be her. She had a track record to prove it.

Dakota turned to her. He met her eyes and paused. She saw compassion and desire. He blinked and it was gone.

“It’s not safe for you to be alone tonight.”

“Excuse me?”

“It’s two in the morning,” he said, tapping the dashboard.

She looked at the clock. Bill’s favorite time would be here soon. “Shit.”

“You can come home with me. Linda lives two doors down so she’s close if anything happens.”