Mystically Bound (Frostbite, Book Three) (4 page)

Gretchen appeared taken back by my switch of
subjects with wide eyes and appeared to want to discuss something
further, but she obliged me. “Days before we first met.”

I glanced at the grass beneath my plaid rain
boots, noticing the dew from my flashlight. I thought over the past
days, timed it all out, and a slow horror slid over me. Raising my
head, I could barely manage, “Right around the time I took on the
Lizbeth Knapp case?”

Gretchen cocked her head, regarding me with a
crease to her brow. “I suppose it was around that time.” Her eyes
searched mine. “Why?”

Sucking in a deep breath, my hands trembled
and I clenched my fists. “In fact, it was the
exact
time.”

Was that a coincidence?

Alexander had seemed to know of me and my
gifts, didn’t he? He wasn’t at all surprised at what I could do and
how I could do it. Even the other ghosts that arrived before him
had been stunned at my abilities, but not Alexander. That meant
before his death, he learned of me. Which also meant Dane had come
to Memphis the day or so after his father-in-law’s death.

Why?

He told me himself that solving Alexander’s
crime was important to him, so then why, at such a crucial time,
did he leave White Castle? More to the point, he showed tenderness
toward his grief-stricken wife. Why would he leave the woman he
loved when she needed him the most—to help me, a complete
stranger?

The answer was glaringly obvious.

“I’m going to rip his fucking heart out.”

Spinning on my heels, I made a beeline for
the house, but the damn boots made it difficult. I curled my toes,
doing my best to run. I didn’t give a rat’s ass if I looked
completely ridiculous, which I assumed I did.

“Where are you going?” Gretchen’s feet banged
on the ground behind me. “We have to talk about this, Tess. It’s
important to…”

Her voice became lost to me as blood pulsed
through my veins while my heart hammered. Intense anger fueled my
steps and I pushed all my strength into my legs to outrun her. The
warm wind brushed over my hot skin, but it did nothing to cool the
scorching rage within.

“Stop! Tess!” Gretchen yelled. “Whose
heart?”

The ugly wallpaper in the living room became a blur
as a vice grip wrapped around my middle. My legs swung around in
front of me and my boots flew off my feet, splattering dirt on the
fancy red-velvet chaise near the fireplace. Dane’s aftershave
filled my flaring nostrils and smelled nicer than the man himself.
I pounded my fists against his arms that caged me, and I would’ve
bit him if I had the chance.

“Let me go,” I screeched.

He held onto me for a second longer, and then
with no care, tossed me to the hardwood floor. His knee pressed
into my lower back, pinning me beneath him. I groaned when he
pushed the full force of his weight against me. Totally stuck, I
stared at Wayde’s feet in front of me, now at eye-level, and
cursed.

“You’ve kicked me in the balls—twice now, I
might add,” Dane snarled. “Explain yourself.”

Well no, kicked him once would be more
accurate for the present, but I’d kneed him in the junk after he
kissed me in front of Kipp and put my current hell into motion. But
really, who was counting?

“Best
you
explain
yourself
.” I
bit off, even if it sounded like a grumble since the pressure he
exuded on my back had taken the wind out of my lungs. “You,
no-good-son-of-a-bitch.”

The pressure increased.

“Dane, get off her,” Amelia said in a soft
voice, showing no hint of emotion at either being pissed at me for
the attack on her husband, or bothered by his aggressive
response.

“Promise you
won’t
kick me again.” He
sneered.

I fought against his hold, wracking my brain
to come up with a way to get my knee back at his jewels. To my
annoyance, his hold remained fierce. He did work for the F.B.I. and
perhaps that came with some combat training, explaining why, at the
moment, I found myself royally screwed.

“Fine. I won’t kick you.” For now, I nearly
added. It all depended on what he said next if his balls would be
up in his throat again.

Slowly, as if it pained him to do so, he
removed his knee, and then the pressure at my back vanished. I
pushed off the hardwood floor in two-point-two seconds, noticing
his pale face and the way he wasn’t standing straight.
Good on
him
.

Gretchen finally entered through the living
room doorway—perhaps she’d been stunned by my ninja moves. She
stepped in next to me and fought her smile, but her amusement
showed in the twinkle of her eyes. “Are you all right?”

“Yes.” I smoothed my pink T-shirt over my
jeans, running my hands over my ruffled hair, noting the ends were
a little crunchy. I needed a haircut—desperately—but who had time
for such things? I sure as hell didn’t, and my broken fingernails
proved it. “I’m fine.”

“
You’re
fine?” Dane’s eyes blazed with
fury as he dropped down on the couch, a little stiffly. “What the
hell is wrong with you?”

I didn’t care about
his
wrath. He had
mine to face. “You set me up. Don’t try to deny it. I
know
you did.”

“I…” He glanced at his wife, who stared at
him with wide eyes, and then he looked at me. Some of the heat
removed from his gaze. “I have no idea what you’re talking
about.”

“Oh, really?” I drew in a sharp breath,
scenting the spicy potpourri in the room that should bring comfort,
but didn’t. My blood burned wicked hot. I tightened my fists in
preparation to knock his damn teeth out. “It’s a coincidence then,
that you did your best to ensure Kipp vanished, so I needed your
help.” My voice rose louder. “Help I could only obtain if I came to
solve the murder of your father-in-law.”

He avoided my gaze, looking to the hardwood
floor. “It wasn’t my original intention.”

Gretchen took my hand, squeezing tight,
probably to ensure I didn’t butcher Dane. Maybe she realized where
I was going with this. “But your
intentions
changed, didn’t
they?”

He slowly lifted his head, eyes darkened.
“Perhaps, but it doesn’t change the fact I don’t agree with your
relationship.” He looked at Wayde, who stood in silence, likely in
shock I had kicked Dane in the nuts. “No one here does.”

My anger burned deeper, but I couldn’t deny
the truth to his statement, since disgust filled Wayde’s
expression. “Guess what?” I spat, staring both men down. “I don’t
give a shit what either of you think.”

Wayde snorted as he took a seat on the chaise
by the fireplace, covered in the mud from my boots, which he didn’t
seem to mind. “Loving a ghost is wrong.” His features twisted.
“Sordid.”

Disregarding Wayde and his stupid opinions, I
focused on Dane. “Did you know Kipp was in a coma?” It all seemed
to come together like some sick puzzle, and my stomach churned as
if I had drunk sour milk. At Dane’s silence, I shouted, “Did you
know?”

His eyes became ice cold. “Max told me the
day I arrived.”

Max, the Sergeant I worked for on the
cold-case files, thought I needed guidance with my gifts and went
out to find it. He brought Dane into my life and a shit load of
trouble, too.

Gretchen squeezed my hand so tight it hurt
and shame sounded thick on her voice. “Dane, how could you?”

I pinched my eyes shut and inhaled the woodsy
scent from the crackling fire to calm the rage pulsating in my
veins before I opened them to Dane again. “This was never about my
loving Kipp and holding him back. It couldn’t have been, because
you knew all along that he couldn’t cross over. It’s always been
about you getting me to help you because you knew full well I
wouldn’t do it without a good reason.”

My voice elevated and my body shook from the
inside out. “You came to Memphis not to help me, but to prove my
abilities were accurate. Then, you found a way to force my hand to
help you—through Kipp.”

The only indication my words affected him was
his nostril flare, but I wasn’t nearly done. After seeing what
happened to Alexander, there was a very good reason why Kipp
vanished. “Did you cast a spell on him to force him into the
Netherworld?”

Dane stared at me dead-on. “No, I did
not.
”

While no deception showed in his features,
how could I believe him? I willed myself to think straight, calm
down, and piece it all together. “But if you didn’t force him away,
then how would you know Kipp would go into the Netherworld?”

“I didn’t.” His intense gaze was serious
before he once again lowered his head. “But I hoped.”

Amelia dropped down next to him on the couch
as if her legs held no strength. “No, that can’t be true. You
didn’t go to Memphis for that reason. You went there because father
asked you to.”

Wayde, who had stayed silent, cleared his
throat. “Alexander asked you to meet with Tess?” He looked mildly
befuddled that Alexander hadn’t asked him, or maybe that he hadn’t
been told, since by all appearances, this was a new development to
him.

Who knew why it bothered him—who freaking
cared!

Lifting his head, Dane nodded at Wayde, then
said to me, “Alexander learned about you from Max and asked me to
look into your abilities. I arranged to see you before Alexander’s
death.”

“What happened then?” I snapped, so wound
with anger I thought I might combust. “You realized you had a way
to force me to help you?”

He shrugged so nonchalantly I wanted to bash
his face in. “I saw an opportunity and I took it.”

Before I could step forward to gut him,
Amelia interjected, “Dad wouldn’t have wanted this.” She shook her
head slowly and tears filled her eyes. “He’d be disgusted in how
you’re all behaving.” She turned to me and in a much softer voice
said, “I apologize for them, and for Dane. Your relationship is a
personal matter and I, like Gretchen, understand you can’t help who
you love.” She sent her now angry expression onto Dane. “You can’t
turn your nose up at anyone for loving someone. It’s
wrong
.”
She glared at Wayde. “
Sordid
.”

Perhaps Amelia did deserve to be in my good
book; she seemed to have an effect on the men. Heads lowered in
shame. Turning to Dane, she narrowed her eyes. “Did you spellbind,
Kipp?” Clearly, I wasn’t the only one who didn’t believe him.

He frowned. “I just said I didn’t.”

Part of me—the evil part wanting to hurt
him—hoped I could ruin his life, as he’d ruined mine. I’d never
been vindictive, but right now, I couldn’t hold back. “No, he
kissed me.”

Amelia’s head jerked to me, eyes huge.
“Pardon me?”

“Oh.” I blinked innocently. “Didn’t Dane tell
you?”

The man in question shot me the look of
death, but I returned it. “That’s how he forced Kipp away. He
kissed me—a big, hot kiss—when I didn’t know Kipp was watching,
making Kipp think I was cheating on him and pissing him off so he’d
leave me.”

Even as I said it, it sounded so absurd. I
still couldn’t wrap my head around the fact that Kipp had actually
believed I cheated. He should’ve known better—known I’d never love
anyone else but him. Exactly why, deep down, I
knew
Kipp had
left for another reason. He trusted me—I didn’t doubt that. So why
did he leave? And that daunting question drove my motivation
now.

Amelia slowly stood from her seat next to
Dane, glaring down at him. “Is that true? Did you
kiss
her?”

Dane’s eyes practically threw daggers at me
before he looked at his wife with a tender expression. “The kiss
meant nothing. We need her, Amelia.” He softened his voice as if to
soothe his wife’s concern. “You know this.”

Obviously, he’d said enough, since tears now
rushed down Amelia’s cheeks. I snorted at
her
tears. Dane
didn’t deserve her sadness, but more so, the removal of his
masculine parts.

She shook her head, wiping at her face and
whispered, “I’m so ashamed of you. Everything you’ve done—it’s
horrific.”

Maybe it irritated me she wasn’t more pissed
about the kiss. But I suspected she knew Dane wouldn’t cheat on
her, but that his intention was to do exactly what he did—put me in
a situation where I needed their help. Besides, her reaction only
firmed up why I believed Kipp wouldn’t have fallen for it either.
Which only confirmed to me, once again, there was no logical reason
for Kipp’s departure, leading me to believe Dane magically forced
him away.

Only problem? How to prove it.

Amelia finally tore her gaze away from her
husband, glancing at me. “I would’ve never agreed to Dane’s
actions. My father wouldn’t have gone about it this way.” Her lip
quivered, sending more tears rushing over her face. “He was a
really good man and would’ve just asked for your help.” Her gaze
shifted to Dane and she snapped, “Not tricked you, or put you in
situation where you didn’t have a choice.”

Dammit, why did she have to be so nice? “You
should lead this group and put it in the right direction, since
you’re surrounded by a bunch of assholes.”

Dane, the biggest one, glared at me.

Amelia cut in, giving him a
look
.
“You’re right—I should’ve come in Dane’s place.”

“What?” he growled at his wife.

Another stern look from her had him grumbling
incoherent swear words. He huffed and left his place at the couch
to stand by the fireplace with his back to me.

“I’m sorry for what’s happened,” Amelia went
on, softer now. “Really, I am.” Her voice rose in desperation and
her gaze shone with an equal longing. “But I need to know what
happened to my father.”

I glanced between her and Dane’s back,
repeating the move several times. When my gaze slid to Wayde, his
smart-ass smile told me our
promise
remained and if I didn’t
tell them what I knew, I’d never get the spell.