Wolfwraith (26 page)

He shrugged. “I wish I knew. Both times—when I found the bodies—I had this strong feeling...okay, hunch.” He corrected himself when he saw her grinning. “There was something else involved—something, well, supernatural.”

“I’ve never heard of a ghost arrested for rape or serial murder,” she said, still smiling. “So, if you’ll allow me to obviously change the subject, what’s the word about the park being shut down?”

Shadow thought about telling her what Helen had said, but didn’t want to mention the other woman. Besides, he didn’t know what evidence Helen had and it might not be smart to mention the governor’s alleged plot. “Nothing new,” he said. “But the closing’s another thing that doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t seem to tie into the killings, but I overheard...”

Lorene snorted. “Okay, that’s it. You can’t let it go, can you? No more shop talk. We’ve only got the morning; let’s enjoy it.”

Shadow realized she was right. He didn’t want to bore her. He planned to ask her for another date, a real date, before she left. She seemed to be having a good time, so far, and he wanted to keep it that way.

They explored the coves south of Wash Woods for the rest of the morning. Lorene, not familiar with this part of the country, had never seen a great blue heron or osprey up close and asked him about everything.

Then, about an hour before noon, he noticed dark clouds forming to the southwest.

“We’d better head in,” he said. “We don’t want to be out on the bay if a storm comes up.”

“It doesn’t have anything to do with the hurricane, does it?” asked Lorene. “I’m not used to this east coast weather.”

Shadow had watched weather reports on Hurricane Adelaide. An odd storm, way early in the season, it was a threat but it was still far from the coast.

“No,” he replied. “Adelaide won’t make landfall for a couple of days, if then. Besides, the Gulf Stream usually pushes them to the northeast when they hit Cape Hatteras. This is probably a summer storm brewing; they’re usually over quickly.”

Taking the lead, he headed directly east, toward the shore. “We’ll go straight in,” he told her. “Then we’ll head north along the shoreline, parallel to the wind. If it picks up too much, or at the first sign of lightning, we’ll run aground and walk back. I’ll fetch the kayaks later.”

It seemed to take forever before they neared shore. They then turned north and paddled rapidly, the light craft skimming over the increasingly angry waves. They were close to the Wash Woods dock, near his house, when he heard the first roll of thunder. They reached the pier and were dragging the kayaks out of the water when a sheet of driving rain swept across the bay and pounded down on them. They were soaked to the skin by the time they had secured the kayaks. Shadow quickly unlocked the padlock, water dripping from his face, and opened the side door of the boathouse. They dashed in, Lorene carrying a small pack she’d had with her all morning.

“Whoa,” Lorene said, shaking water from her hands. “Where did that downpour come from?”

The interior of the boathouse was dim, so Shadow turned on the light. It smelled of mildew, with a hint of paint thinner.

“Happens all the time,” he said, turning. “Mother Nature loves to mess with the tourists sunbathing up at Sandbridge Beach; she sends a lightning storm every day or so, just to let them know who’s boss.” His eyes dropped to her body and quickly shot away.

“Oops.” Lorene looked down at her chest. “I guess I’ve entered a wet tee shirt contest. I’ll probably win, since the only other contestant is you.” She seemed amused with her disheveled state, her hair plastered to her head and water running down her arms and legs. “Good thing I’m wearing a bra.”

“Uh, yeah, well...” Shadow didn’t know where to look. The sports bra was nearly as transparent as the wet tee shirt.

“Take it easy,” she said. “Pretend I’m wearing a bathing suit.”

“That would be better,” he replied. He forced himself to look at her, but avoided staring at her chest.

She laughed. “Has anyone ever told you you’re a bit of a prude?”

He flushed. “It wouldn’t matter so much if I didn’t like you.” There, it was out! He couldn’t believe he had said it, but he was glad he had.

Her eyes widened for a moment, then she smiled. “I’m glad you do. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t think a lot of you, too. But look, the rain will let up in a few minutes and we can dash to your house.”

“You’re cold, though. Let me get you a blanket to wrap up in.”

“Thanks.” She shivered. “It is a bit cool in here but I’ve got something. Reaching into her pack, she pulled out a vest with F.B.I. emblazoned on the back and put it on.

“You come prepared don’t you?” Shadow felt more comfortable when he didn’t have to avoid staring at her chest. It hadn’t bothered Lorene, though. He hadn’t dated in a long time and women had become more at ease in sexual situations it seemed. Perhaps it was because all of his dating experiences, before his marriage, had been with girls still unsure of themselves.

Shrugging, she looked around and sat on a bench in front of a worktable, scattered with tools. “It pays to be ready. Just in case.” She patted the seat beside her. “Let’s sit and wait for the storm to pass. It’s only a summer shower.”

She was wearing a small automatic pistol beneath her shirt, he’d noticed earlier; now she took it out and dried it ineffectively with the vest. Shadow got a rag from the workbench and handed it to her.

“Damn, I’m going to have to oil this sucker,” she said, wiping the gun down thoroughly.

He sat next to her, wanting to say something to take their relationship further, but, unsure of himself, he said, “I was thinking, on the way back in, what you said about my hunches...?”

She raised her eyebrows. “A storm coming up, paddling like hell, and you’re thinking about your supernatural instincts.”

“Yeah, well, it’s been bugging me. I’m still absolutely convinced I felt something when I found the girl in the bay and later on, in the cemetery. I guess, with all that’s happened, I lost sight of how convinced I’d been at first. Especially since everyone told me I was full of shit.”

Lorene looked at him curiously. “Cemetery? You never mentioned that.”

“Someone took a bunch of small animal skulls and set them up around the church steeple—oh, you haven’t been there, have you?”

“Yes. The cemetery is on the park’s brochure, so Morrow and I dropped by there to check it out. It’s a bit spooky with all that moss hanging down.” She gave a final wipe and put her pistol away.

“Did you see skulls on the foundation bricks when you went there?”

“Yes, I pointed them out to Morrow. It was definitely odd, but we didn’t know what to make of it.”

“Did you step inside the foundation?”

“No. What’s the point?”

“I felt the same force there as when I found the girl’s body. It has something to do with the killings, I’m sure of it. I felt it again, when I found the Gordon woman. It was weak, because she had been buried for days, but it was there. And I bet I would have felt it near Jonesy and Jenny Ostrowski, if I’d been allowed to get close.”

She curled her upper lip. “You’re really convinced you felt something, aren’t you?”

“Absolutely. I’d about talked myself out of it, but I have a feeling Jennings isn’t your man.”

“Shadow, we’ve got DNA, damn it!”

“Screw your DNA. I tell you, I...” he stopped. An evil aura washed over him, like a wave. It was the same presence he had felt before, but he couldn’t tell where it was coming from. “I feel it now! The same thing.” He looked around the boathouse.

Lorene also glanced around, and then looked at him worriedly. “Are you sure you’re all right?” she asked. “There’s nothing here.”

“I tell you there is! Not in the building, though. Outside.” Jumping up, he strode to the only window, which looked out toward the E.E.C. building. He could barely make out the structure through the driving rain. “Something is here, close by; I just don’t know where.”

Lorene walked over to him and put her hand on his arm. “Shadow, you’ve got yourself all upset; I don’t feel anything. It’s because you were talking about the supernatural and here we are in a run-down shed, full of cobwebs, with a storm going over. No wonder you’ve got the heebie-jeebies.”

Shadow’s skin tingled where she touched him. He became very aware of her standing beside him, but still peered from the window.

“Come sit down,” she said. “Let’s talk about something else.”

“Like what?”

“Like, what are we going to do on our next date?”

“Uh...our next date?”

“Sure. You did mention liking me, didn’t you? Or was it just the wet tee shirt?” She turned her face and looked up at him. He saw the same small, enigmatic smile he had first noticed when she’d played bad-cop.

He wasn’t sure who made the first move, but their lips came together.

Pulling her close, he could feel her firm body against his. The front of her vest gaped open, so only thin, wet layers of cloth separated them. He was amazed at the spark ignited inside him. It was like every other kiss in his life had been a battery-powered toy car and now he’d slid behind the wheel of a Porsche. The kiss lingered and Shadow had begun to envision making love on a pile of tarpaulins in the corner when she pulled away slightly.

“Whoa,” she said. “This is happening too fast.”

He stared into her eyes from inches away.

“The rain stopped a couple of minutes ago,” he heard her say, barely aware of her words. “I think we can go now.”

Mesmerized, Shadow took a deep breath, wondering what had happened to him. He looked at the window and saw the rain had, indeed, stopped. Dazed, he was too slow to react when she gave him a quick kiss and stepped back. “Let’s drive into town and grab something to eat,” she said. “I have to get back soon.”

Shadow wanted to tell her how he felt, but couldn’t think of the words. His body was aroused and overheated and he shivered as the moisture evaporated from his saturated clothing. He savored the taste of her mouth, his lips still warm.

“So what would you like for lunch?” he asked, trying to keep his voice from shaking. The recent feeling of dread had evaporated in the thrill of her kisses. “Burgers? Tacos? Subs?”

“Something quick,” Lorene answered, taking his arm and leading him to the door. “I really do need to get back, even though I’d rather spend the day with you.”

“I would, too.” Shadow opened the door.

“Oh, you spend the day with yourself often?” She turned her face toward him with a wide grin.”

“Uh..., I meant with you, of course.”

She laughed and he savored the sound, reaching out and holding her arm for a moment as she passed through the door. Neither of them spoke and he regretted that she had broken the kiss so soon.

The sun was emerging from the clouds and he noticed vapor rising from Lorene’s wet clothing. When he glanced down, he saw his own clothes were emitting steam-like wisps. As they began to walk toward his house, a mist rose from the ground around them. The only sound was the water dripping from the trees and it was as if they were in another world.

“This looks like a scary scene from some movie,” said Lorene. “You know, ‘Revenge of the Swamp Creature,’ or something like that.”

“This seems spooky because you’re not used to the cape, that’s all.”

“Oh, so that’s it. When I feel spooked, it’s because I’m not used to something. When you feel it, it’s something supernatural.”

“It’s a different...”

“Never mind,” she said. “I was kidding. There’s something I wanted to ask you.”

He took her arm and guided her around a low, soggy area. “Uh-huh?”

“Your name,” she said. “How the hell did you end up with that?”

Suddenly he realized his full name would be on the files Lorene had studied. “My Grandmother. She was a bit, well, weird.”

“I can see why you go by Shadow. It’s sort of interesting, the way Indian names mean something but why Aveng...?”

“Actually,” Shadow broke in, “it’s not an uncommon practice in Virginia tribes to give someone both a white name and an Indian name. So, I became Hubert Avenging Shadow Fletcher. It’s not all a Native American thing, though. Fletcher means something, too.”

She looked over with obvious surprise. “Fletcher is an Indian name, too?”`

“No, believe it or not, it’s Scottish,” he admitted. “In the eastern tribes, over the years, a lot of women married Scottish farmers in hopes their children would also be fair.”

“So they could pass for white.” She hadn’t made it a question.

“Yeah, I guess being an Indian wasn’t very popular back then. Anyway, Fletcher originally meant ‘arrow-maker,’ in the British Isles. So it wasn’t just an Indian practice to...” He stopped in mid-sentence and held her back.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“I feel it again.”

“Not again! You’re really...”

Shadow wasn’t listening. He strode quickly forward, convinced something deadly was near. Lorene, after a quick sigh of exasperation, was only a pace behind.

When they came around the side of the house, he saw a bicycle propped against the lone tree in his front yard. Turning the corner, he stopped so abruptly Lorene bumped into him. There was a body on his front porch! The lower half of a woman, clad in shorts, sagged unnaturally down the porch steps.