Deadly Chaos (23 page)

Sheila bounded into the room. She saw the Bill/Dakota thing in the middle of the room and shrieked. “He’s possessing him.”

“Over here,” Chaos yelled. “Help Linda.”Dakota’s dream would not come true, she told herself. He would not die tonight and if she could help it, she wouldn’t die tonight either.

Sheila rushed over. “Kat’s upstairs with Dakota’s other half. What’s going on? What happened?”

“Linda hit her head.” She wasn’t going to go into the cancer thing right now. “Take care of her. I’m ending this.” Fury replaced the terror. Her friends were suffering. It had to end. She had to stop it now, no matter what. “All right,” Chaos said. Her voice calm and controlled, much more so than she was feeling. She wanted to rip Dead Bill apart with her bare hands. “Leave him alone. You win.”

“No, Chaos,” Sheila said. “Don’t do it.”

“I have to. I see that now. I have to go to the police and confess.” Chaos watched Dakota’s face for signs that Bill was releasing him. She didn’t know how long he had before Bill took over completely. But she knew instinctively that if that happened, Dakota would die. “Bill, I will go to the police and tell them everything like you asked me to. I’ll leave tonight for New Mexico but I need your help. I have no right to ask it but it’s the only way I know.” Chaos struggled to keep her body relaxed. This had to work. “I need you to get my dad. He was a police officer. He’s dead, like you. I need you to get him for me so he can tell me how to do this, how to turn myself in.” She could tell he was listening. Dakota’s pained eyes replaced Bill’s for a split second. It killed her to watch Dakota struggling for his soul. It was all her fault. This had to work. “Will you do that? Will you get my dad?”

She heard a blip on the K2 behind her. She saw Dakota’s beautiful face again. He was himself. “Get back in your body,” she mouthed. He shook his head no. She wanted to stamp her feet and scream at him but it would alert Bill. “Is that a yes, Bill?” She heard another single blip on the device. “Thank you. Do you know how to find him?” If this didn’t work they were all screwed. Damn, she wished Dakota would return to his body. “Do you see a white light? It’s bright, like the brightest sun on a tropical beach. Do you see it?” She had no idea what the light looked like, she could only go by what Linda had described. Bill wasn’t responding. “Bill, do you see it?”

One blip.

Relief filled her. This wasn’t over yet. “That’s where my dad is. You have to go get him and tell him I need him. I need his help turning myself in for what I did to you. Will you do that? You’ll get your justice, but I need his help.” She watched the K2 meter for a sign. Nothing. “Bill?” She looked around the room for a sign of him. Dakota shimmered full strength. Sheila was still cradling Linda’s head and stroking her face. She looked up with fear in her eyes. Linda didn’t have much time. “Please, Bill, I need him to help me turn myself in. You can understand that. I know you can. Think about how different your life would have been if your mother hadn’t killed your father.” It was a risk, she knew, to bring up that time in his life but she was betting that he had a connection to his father. A cold chill clutched her by the shoulders. She felt his hands on her. His icy fingers dug into the flesh and pressed against bone. He lifted her until her toes barely brushed the ground. The scent of whisky and onions puffed in her face.

Chaos didn’t fight or struggle. “I’m ashamed of what I did to you, Bill. You deserve better. You deserve justice. Please get my dad so we can end this.” Bill gave her a violent shake. Her head snapped back. Pain seared her spine. She thought it was the end of her. She wasn’t ready for it but accepted the possibility. At least she knew without a doubt that there was life after death. It offered some comfort. Almost as if in a dream she found her feet planted solidly on the ground. The room felt lighter.

“He’s gone,” Sheila said. “It’s over. You did it, Chaos. He’s gone.”

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Cheveyo

Chaos woke to Dakota’s face. For half a breath she believed, or let herself believe, that she was having a beautiful dream. Reality quickly invaded. She pushed herself upright on the couch and rolled her head lightly to test her neck. It was sore but nothing she couldn’t manage.

“You should have gone back to your hotel and slept in a bed,” Dakota said, coming over to sit beside her.

“Linda’s couch was fine. Besides, someone had to clean up after Bill’s destruction.” It was her fault Linda’s place was in a shambles. “How is she?”

“You should come see for yourself. She’s asking for you.”

“I’m not going to do that. It’s my fault she’s there, Dakota. People die around me. It’s not the necklace, it’s me. I’m not putting her in any more danger. And you should be afraid. You should walk away and never look back.”

“Is that what you want?”

Was it? She didn’t want to say goodbye to her friends, especially not Dakota, but if she didn’t, they’d all end up leaving anyway from fear or in a body bag. Chaos stood and paced the room. She didn’t know what she wanted. She wanted to stay and be with Dakota but she didn’t belong here. She had a life and a business in New Mexico. She’d never planned on staying. Ghost hunting didn’t fit into her life. Then again, her life was pretty empty. There was room for change. There was room for more. And Dakota? Was there room for him in her life? Did she want him to walk away and never look back? No. She loved him. It didn’t make sense and it terrified her. Their connection was so strong, hurting him was inevitable. “I have to. Once I know Linda is okay and I have my mom’s necklace, I have to go.”

“Just like that?” He crossed his long arms over his chest. The leather on his coat squeaked. “I thought we were starting something, Chaos.”

“You barely know me.” Chaos stopped pacing and looked at him. The room was too small. She needed to do something to distract herself. “Coffee? I’d like some coffee.”

Dakota followed her into the kitchen. Beside her traditional coffee pot, Linda had one of those pod coffee makers and seconds later Chaos had a hot cup of coffee in her hand. She drank it without looking at Dakota. She could feel him watching her. Waiting. Chaos finished her coffee and turned to make another cup. The silence was killing her. “You sure you don’t want some?”

“Nope. Just waiting for you to stop moving and face me.”

Chaos stomped, turned around, and faced him. “What?”

“You belong here. With us. With me.”

She belonged with him? They were the words she wanted to hear and yet she couldn’t let them affect her. “So?” she shrugged. Chaos took a sip of her coffee and avoided meeting his eyes.

“So? So I want you to stay.”

“I can’t. Don’t you get it? Don’t you see that I can’t stay? If I do you’ll end up dead. All the people I care about die and it’s because of me.”

“People die, Chaos. Shit happens. You’re not the only person who has had people they love die. You’re not the only person who has experienced that kind of pain.”

Chaos took a few steps back. He was mad at her. He was right, of course. People died and shit happened. Linda had brain cancer and that had nothing to do with her. But she was the reason Linda was in the hospital. If Bill hadn’t shoved her, she’d be at home where she belonged. “Is this our first fight?”

“Probably. If you stick around, it certainly won’t be our last,” he grinned.

She’d never seen him smile quite like that. He looked amazing when he smiled. It almost wiped away her frustration. “Shit.” Chaos slumped against the counter.

Dakota laughed.

“How is this possible? I just met you last week.”

“Funny. I feel like I’ve known you forever.” Dakota stepped in close and put his hands on her shoulders. “What do you want to know?”

Chaos looked up at him and found that his face was sincere. He felt it, the same connection she’d felt the moment she’d first set eyes on him. But at the same time, she really didn’t know much about him. What did he want from life? Would he consider moving back to Santa Fe? What was his favorite color and what type of car did he drive in the winter when the roads were too snowy for a motorcycle? There were so many things she could ask. “Tell me about how you met Linda.”

Dakota took a step back and released her shoulders. “Make yourself another cup of coffee and let’s go sit down.”

“I died when I was fourteen,” he said, sitting on the couch beside her.“My father killed me.”

Chaos blinked. He wasn’t kidding. A deep anguish took hold of her heart. What kind of misery had he experienced as a child? “Did he cause the scars your back?” Chaos remembered what they looked like. The deep slashes left a vivid and indelible impression.

“He did. He beat me often and usually with a belt. My mom died when I was younger. I was ten and by myself with a monster. He killed her, too. He beat her to death. I was fourteen when he killed me. He drowned me and left me for dead. The white light that people talk about? I saw it and I went toward it. My mother stopped me.”

Chaos fought the urge to reach out and touch him. He sat mere inches from her, all she had to do was shift her weight and touching him would seem natural. Now, she felt like if she reached out, it would be perceived as sympathy. Dakota didn’t want sympathy. “How did she stop you?”

“I saw her spirit. I’m not sure how she did it. Trust me,  I've spent years trying to figure it out. It has to have something to do with her Navajo heritage but she was able to give me part of her life force, her spirit. When she did that, I had the strength to go back. To live.”

“She must be an amazing woman,” Chaos murmured. “To do that for her child. She must love you very much.”

Dakota turned toward her. He grabbed both of her hands in his. “I lived but my mother suffers because of it. When she gave me part of her spirit she couldn't return to the light. She wanders the in between. She has no place to go. I spent years trying to learn about my heritage and the ways of the spirit world. No one has answers. The piece of her spirit gives me the ability I have, to split. I think. I send out my spirit, Cheveyo, to battle, guide or protect and her spirit remains in my body to keep it grounded on this plane.”

“Cheveyo? Is that Navajo?”

“It means Spirit Warrior. It was a name given to me by my mother when she handed over her spirit to me. You asked how I met Linda. I met her when I was looking for answers about my mother. I wanted to know how to set her free.”

“Did Linda have the answer?”

“Yes. She had more answers than anyone else I met. When I die, my mother will be free. Her spirit will be whole again. So I wait until it is my time.”

“That must be hard. But it has to be nice, too, to have that piece of your mother always with you.”

“She doesn’t talk to me, not like a ghost. I can just feel her. She’s out of reach. Sometimes when I close my eyes, I can almost see her. It was difficult for a while. It took me years to come to grips with it, but Linda showed me that with my powers I can help others find their way into the light. My mother is willing to wait. I’ve thought about killing myself but it would only dishonor her sacrifice and if there’s a hell I wouldn’t risk her soul just to assuage my guilt.

He released her hands. “Thank you for sharing that with me.”

“It was time you knew. Will it convince you to stay? Will it convince you to give me a chance?”

Dakota’s cell phone rang. She started to get up from the couch to give him some privacy. She felt his hand on her leg.

“Stay.”

Dakota answered and listened for a few moments. “I’ll try,” he said, before hanging up.

“Try what?”

“Linda’s asking for you. She’s dying. I’m sorry. I should have told you sooner. She wanted to keep it from everyone until the end.”

              “I know. She told me last night. I’m so sorry.” Chaos put her hand on top of Dakota’s and laced her fingers with his.

“It’s not the end.”

She couldn’t help but chuckle. After all she’d seen and experienced over the past couple of days there was no denying it. “I guess not.”

“Will you come with me to the hospital? It might be our last time with her.”

Chapter Thirty

No Time to Lose

Her work boots thunked on the tile floor and echoed down the long hallway. “I hate hospitals.”

“Everyone hates hospitals. They’re packed with a sense of despair, death, and illness. Who wants to be around that energy? Even if you’re not conscious of it, it feels horrible.”

“Great,” Chaos grumbled as they turned a corner. For a small hospital, it sure had a lot of twists and turns.

“Don’t worry. Linda’s not going to die here.”

“How do you know that?” she said. She felt selfish about it but Chaos was glad Dakota was with her. She didn’t know what to say to Linda. How did you comfort a dying woman?

“She told me she dreamt about her death when she was fifteen. She’s always known where and how she will die and I can tell you it’s not here in the Boulder hospital.”

“Where’s she going to die?”

“At home.”

“Do you know how?”

“I don’t. She never told me. Probably better that way because I’d be tempted to stop it from happening.” He paused at the end of the hallway and looked in both directions. “This way. I hope she goes in her sleep.”

“Wild,” Chaos said. “If it’s true.”

Dakota stopped walking and looked at her. “After everything you’ve seen, you still doubt?”

Chaos shrugged. “You always have to look for a logical explanation first. Don’t you? If you automatically assume everything is supernatural or paranormal you make a lot of wrong assumptions. Sometimes things just happen.”

“Then again,” Dakota said, “Maybe everything happens for a reason.”

“I’m not sure I believe that. What reason could your father have for what he did to you? What reason could God have?”

“You’re right.” Dakota gazed at her thoughtfully. “Maybe it’s all just chaos.” He flashed a grin at her, then his face turned serious. “This is her room,” he said pointing at the door beside them. “You ready?”

Was she? Linda had opened up her home and her heart to Chaos. She’d risked her life. She wanted to visit Linda one last time and thank her. She just didn’t want to kill her in the process. “You sure she’s not going to die here in the hospital?”