Tori Page 7

  Devon fell into step beside her. “To Genesis? Do you know where she is?”

  “No, I’ll start with her shop, first—if it’s still open, then her apartment is just around the corner.”

  “Makes sense, she’s probably got everything fixed up and back to normal again.”

  Her stomach sinking, Tori couldn’t help stopping in her tracks to ask, “What happened?”

  “Her shop was broken into several times.”

  Her stomach hit rock bottom. Genesis was the gentlest of the three of them. “Why would anyone do that? She’d never hurt a soul.”

  “It had to do with the same mess. I think it’s all good now,” he shrugged. “Maybe even better. I’ve heard through the grapevine that business is brisk at her shop.”

  Tori wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not. Genesis liked her little place, but she was not a people person, so she didn’t know how her sister was reconciling those two elements.

  “I need to go see her.”

  “Yes, you do,” Devon said, his tone sober. “She’s needed you.”

  Tori stared at him suspiciously. “What else do you know?”

  He shrugged. “I’ve heard things. She went head-to-head with Grandfather, and although she had Connor and Matt at her side, she didn’t have an easy time of it.”

  “Shit.” Tori spun around to reorient herself. She was having trouble trusting her gut. Where could Genesis be? They were closer to the cottage, but she wasn’t going to bring Devon there. She had mentioned the cottage in the past but had never taken him there. And she didn’t want to now. “Can you call her shop and see if she’s there?”

  Devon gave her a weird look, but he pulled his phone out of his pocket. “If you know her number, I can.”

  She quickly rattled the number off the top of her head and hoped it was the right one. A year was a long time, and as she was learning, it was too long. Why had she always assumed that Genesis could handle anything? No one could handle everything. Celeste was supposed to stay around, too. Only, Celeste had disappeared around the same time as Tori had. Damn.

  “It’s ringing, but there’s no answer.”

  She nodded. “Please try her apartment.”

  “I could, but I doubt she’s there.”

  With a sinking heart, she stared at him. “Why?”

  He shrugged. “From what I heard, the place was trashed.”

  She closed her eyes. “Crap,” she swallowed. The guilt was piling up, weighing more heavily with each passing minute. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here for her.”

  “Maybe that was a good thing, because Connor was.” And something in his tone of voice made her stare at him suspiciously. Devon smiled at her. “It looks like they might make it now.”

  Good for her sister. But not for Tori. She wasn’t going back in time. No sirree, Devon had made his mistakes and he could damn well live with them. She wasn’t signing up for more pain. Especially not of the Devon variety. Just for good measure, she said, “Maybe I’ll find someone now that I’m home again.”

  Silence.

  She ignored him. “Did you try calling her apartment?”

  “The number?” he snapped out. “What is it?”

  She rattled it off. And could hear the ring as it droned on and on. “Shit. So where is she?”

  “You could try her cell phone,” he said.

  “I don’t have the number.”

  “Okay,” he said slowly, giving her a long look. “I am trying hard to not ask why when you obviously know the other numbers.”

  “She got a new one and I don’t have it, okay?” Of course she should have it. It was her sister. And she didn’t need the reminder that she had been less concerned with what was going on with Genesis, her stable, common-sensical sister, whose life always worked out. And who apparently had her life thrown into upheaval when Tori hadn’t been around.

  Damn.

  “Why don’t I call Connor?” Devon was already dialing while she watched. She couldn’t imagine that the two were friends. Then again, they were both part of Grandfather’s organization.

  “Connor, I have Tori here and she’s looking for her sister.”

  Devon smiled and turned to look at Tori as he spoke into the cell phone. “Sure, we’ll do that.”

  She glared at him. “There’s no we in any of this.”

  Closing his phone, he snagged her arm and walked her back to the parking lot. “Sure there is. We’ve been invited over to Connor’s place. They’re cooking dinner, and there’s enough for the four of us.”

  “There is no four of us. There is no two of us, remember?”

  “Nope, sure don’t.” Cheerfully, in fact. Way too cheerfully. He led her back to the car. “Think about it. There’s something shitty going on, and you need to hear all that Genesis has been through before we can do anything to stop the harmful effects on the forest.”

  The bushes whacked her on the legs as she tried to walk up beside Devon. He had her hand in a tight grip and wasn’t letting her pull away. And trying to walk beside him wasn’t working, either. She tried to step around him, and another bush hit her in the leg.

  “Stop pulling on me like that.”

  He let her go, waited until she walked up beside him, and slung her arm through his.

  “It’s not like you’re going to lose me down here.”

  “The woods are dense.”

  “And I do know my way around.” She couldn’t keep exasperation out of her voice. Surely he’d remembered at least that much about her. In a way, his lack of understanding of her skills hurt.

  Then he did it.

  “Sorry, I was actually thinking of myself,” he said humbly. “You can get out of here, but I doubt I could.”

  Oh. She cleared her throat.

  “Sure you could. Or aren’t you still going through to become an investigator? Along with your puzzle-solving abilities, you’d be phenomenal.”

  “I’m done already.”

  There was a comfortable silence as she contemplated that. “Are you really going to quit working for Grandfather?”

  “I’m not going to quit—I already have. You’re the one that doesn’t seem to be able to accept that fact.”

  “Ha. I remember what you said, I’m just not sure I believe it.”

  “It’s a done deal.”

  “Until he stops anyone else from hiring you. You’ll have to move to another city, or maybe even another planet.” Pangs of loss started in her belly, and she hated them. She’d done without the damn man for over a year. She wasn’t about to get sucked into that belief that he was there for her. Not again.

  “I doubt Matt would buckle to that kind of pressure.” Devon’s voice turned thoughtful. “I should talk to him about the possibility.”

  She snorted. “Are we talking about Celeste’s Matt? The Matt who took her pet and ditched her?”

  “I don’t know anything about that, never even knew she had a pet, and I doubt Matt would have ditched her over that. Celeste has a temper too, you know.”

  “Ha, mine is likely worse.”

  “You think I don’t know that?” At her disgruntled look, he laughed. “It is damn good to see you again, Tori. No one else has quite the same color, the flavor to their personality. You make everything brighter. Happier for me.”

  “Right. So much so that you were dying to come after me and bring me back.”

  “No,” he shook his head. “Not at all. I wanted to haul you back as soon as you left. But all those cool heads around me ordered me to wait. To let you cool off. Let you see what a fool you’d bee—” Devon bent over, gasping in surprise.

  Tori brandished her fist again, ready to throw another punch. “You did not just say that!”

  His grin was on the pained side. “You wouldn’t let me finish—and what was that about Celeste having a temper…?” He held up his hand in a sign of acquiescence. “Okay, I was going to say…let you see what a fool you’d been, but instead…” He paused and backed up a step, e
yeing her warily. “…instead, I realized I was the fool for listening.”

  She lowered her hand, absentmindedly rubbing her knuckles. She hadn’t really hit him, not hard. The shock of his words had her staring down at her hand, her mind roiling in confusion. “You…made a mistake?” Tori would have died of joy if he’d said that to her before. She’d desperately hoped he’d chase after her but had known he wouldn’t. He’d been too stubborn. Too uncaring. She’d accused him of just that same thing before she’d left.

  To be fair, the words had flown out of her mouth in a fit of temper and without a second thought. That was to her detriment. She’d been working on that. Apparently not hard enough.

  “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have smacked you.”

  He grinned. “You didn’t hurt me. I was just kidding.”

  She narrowed her gaze and pinned him to the spot. “About all of it?”

  Instantly, the humor in the air bottomed out, and he became serious. “No. Not all of it. I am sorry. For being an idiot. For not having come after you. For not having seen how upset you were.”

  It was hard to see any deceit in his gaze. He’d always been upfront with her before, but there was still that one problem that she hadn’t understood. Now was the time to ask him about it.

  She opened her mouth.

  Crack!

  In the next instant, Tori was lying on the ground, Devon on top of her.

  “Shh,” he whispered. “That was a gun.”

  “No way. There shouldn’t be anyone here in the first place, and carrying guns around this uncontrollable energy is just asking for trouble.” She glared at him. “Get off—”

  And he kissed her. Hard. And then soft. Then everything in between.

  Passion had always been like that between them. At the first touch of their lips, they’d been ripping clothes off each other.

  He pulled back, her body already mourning the loss, her nerves humming along with joy, then crying out in regret.

  “That was always the best way to shut you up,” he muttered. “Listen to me. Someone is here. There’s no way that was an accident, so it is very likely the shot was meant for us.”

  “Oh, shit.”

  Jessie bounded toward them, jumping from one leg to the other in agitation. “What’s the matter, Jessie?”

  She studied his antics for a few moments. “Not one man. Jessie says there are three of them.”

  That same damn odd silence she remembered from before. She groaned. “Whatever your personal beliefs about Jessie, do not doubt that he is here and telling us the truth. According to him, the men are walking toward us.”

  Devon rose into a crouch and sidled towards the thick brush beside them, peering through gaps in the foliage. He motioned with his arm for her to join him.

  She scrambled to his side and tried to see who was approaching. Three men. All strangers.

  Or maybe not. One of them turned to look at something, and she caught a glimpse of his profile. “That’s the man from the bank robbery.”

  “I think it’s all three of them.”

  She drummed her fingers on the ground, trying to think. “Why would they be here?”

  “For you. Because of what you did. Either they want revenge, or because they want you to help them with their next robbery. That would be my guess.” He looked down at her. “Can you send all three away?”

  She stared at him, understanding what he was asking her to do. She peered through the shrubbery to take another look. “They’re after me and they know about my ability. Look at them. They have their ears covered.”

  The men were all wearing hats and earmuffs.

  “That won’t help them, will it?”

  She shook her head. “Unless they are made of a special material.”

  “Try it anyway. If we can get one of them to walk away, that would help.”

  Knowing it would be beyond difficult, she closed her eyes and focused.

  Turn around and go back the way you came from. It’s a nice day. Turn around and go for a long walk back the way you came from.

  She kept her eyes closed, sinking into the energy.

  “It’s not working. They aren’t doing anything.”

  Shit. She reached deeper inside, strengthening her thoughts. Take off your earmuffs and turn around. Take off your earmuffs and turn around.

  “Um…”

  She tried to ignore Devon, but a part of her was listening to see if she was making any progress. Take off the earmuffs. Take off the earmuffs.

  “You’re doing it! They’re taking off their headgear,” he whispered.

  She directed the energy outward even harder. Turn around and walk away. Turn around and walk back the way you came. Turn around. Turn around.

  “They’ve turned around and are heading back through the forest.”

  Tori sighed with relief and sagged in place. She’d need a moment to recuperate. That took more out of her than she’d expected. It was no real surprise, though. She had to direct these men to abandon something they were very tightly focused on accomplishing. If they’d simply been standing idle and talking to each other, it would have been easier. And, she thought with a wince, moving three of them had actually been physically painful.

  “Are they still moving away?” she asked, after a few moments.

  “They appear to be, but they’re slowing down.”

  “Not good. Time to run.”

  *

  As Tori bolted ahead of him, Devon watched as the fronds and branches parted magically in front of her, as if there was a hidden pathway.

  And maybe there was, but he hadn’t seen one before. Then again, things happened around Tori and her sisters. They’d been called oddballs in town and at school. But no matter what anyone said, they were definitely skilled in the paranormal. He’d been stunned to see all three of those men take off their headgear and turn around and walk away. He’d love to be able to do something similar. But this flat-out run through the thick undergrowth of the woods, and not having anything touch her—well, that was damn near magical.

  A tree branch whacked him in the face, bringing his attention back to the forest around him. He glared at the offending limb as he pushed it aside and then suddenly realized that he’d fallen behind. Was it the trees reaching out to slow him down and hit him of their own volition? Or was it possible that Tori was directing the branches to do this? He did find that hard to believe, though. Perhaps the most logical reason was that he let the space between the two of them widen to the point that her magical pathway was closing before he got there.

  To test his hypothesis, he let the distance widen even more and realized it didn’t really matter.

  Because however it was happening, the path was definitely closing. And at the same time, he realized that Tori was moving so far ahead he was in danger of losing track of her. He raced to catch up.

  And tripped. Pain slammed into him.

  Shit.

  He struggled to his feet and picked up the pace, only now the brush was thicker than ever. She’d pulled so far forward that the energy that allowed her to pass was closing behind her, and therefore in front of him.

  Keeping them apart.

  He couldn’t see her in front of him, nor could he hear her. He didn’t know if he should keep struggling forward, feeling like shit, because he was damn sure they hadn’t come this way in the first place, or if he should try a different direction. He realized with a sinking heart that he was likely lost.

  Chapter 13

  Tori ran, her mind focused on getting away and staying hidden. She had no idea what those men wanted, but she wasn’t willing to stick around and ask them. In fact, she’d be happy to never see them again.

  What the hell was going on in her forest? She’d been gone a year, but apparently a year was plenty long enough for all kinds of change.

  Like Devon. Had he really said he’d been a fool for letting her leave?

  She shook her head, her feet slowing. The energy of the forest was ke
eping her flagging reserves up, but there was no doubt that she’d drained more than she should have by sending the men away. And that should not be. She should be recharged now. Instead, there was a sense of some kind of reversal happening here.

  Not good. She slowed, her hand pressing against her ribs and the stitch in her side. She’d always been a good runner, but apparently she wasn’t as fit as she had been before, either.

  Or…was it possible that the forest was pulling energy out of her? Draining her?

  She turned to look behind her and realized there was no sign of Devon. Shit.

  She doubted she’d outrun him. Had he fallen behind or been hurt? Or maybe even…shot? Surely not. She would have heard the sound of gunshots. Wouldn’t she?

  But her stomach was churning at the possibility. Jogging back the way she’d traveled, she waved her arm, asking the woods to open the path wider so that she could see in front of her, see where he was. She’d never get lost in this forest, but it would be easy for Devon if he’d fallen behind. And she couldn’t just leave him…

  Up ahead, she heard faint noises. Instantly, she closed the branches around her and peered through. Jessie chattered quietly at her side. She looked down at him. “Is it Devon?”

  More chitters.

  “Go see, please.”

  Instantly, Jessie disappeared from sight and worked his way through the branches, climbing up the trunk of a particularly tall tree and bouncing excitedly on a branch.

  “Good. It’s him, right?”

  At the louder chitters, she said, “Can you bring him to me?” It was a futile question, because she knew Devon couldn’t see Jessie, but she was beyond exhausted. Worried that her strategy wouldn’t work, she dug deep inside to find even the tiniest spark of energy and forced herself to follow behind.

  Putting one foot in front of the other, she trudged after Jessie. The branches shifted and eased back as she walked. If she had more energy, she’d be able to open a wider pathway again, but now it was just enough for her keep walking. She mentally called out to Devon, hoping to help him. Just pick up and follow Jessie back to me. He’s in front of you. Trust him. Follow him. Follow Jessie to me.