Oracle Rising (16 page)

Oh, he’d given them plenty of pleasure, but not with his mouth. Avalon was the first he’d ever devoured like this.

With the others, it was a quick lay and then out the door. This intimacy was special, and he had saved it for the one woman he would love forever.

Her and only her.

Avalon’s legs shook in anticipation. As she was about to come again, he struck.

It shoved her off the edge as Nate buried his raging, hard erection in her body.

There was no gentleness, not because he didn't feel it, or that she didn't deserve it, but because he was that wild.

“Oh God!” she shouted as his body claimed hers.

It took all he had not to fall then and there. Nate clung precariously on the edge.

Avalon tore at his control, making him wild and crazy. Now he’d take and take, offering her more pleasure.

And his heart.

She could have anything she wanted, just to remain his. There wasn’t a mountain he wouldn’t climb or a valley he wouldn’t cross.

All she had to do was say the word.

As he began driving himself into the wetness, her breath became labored.

“I love you,” she whispered. “I love you so much, Nathaniel.”

It caused his heart to skip, his body to tighten, and his erection to become harder—if that was possible.

He pounded himself into her, staring down into her pale blue eyes. “I love you too. You’re mine, Avalon. Only mine. I’m the only man who will ever be between your legs.”

Her body shook. His words did something to her, even though he’d claimed her like this before.

“Mine,” he hissed.

She didn't mind.

There were far worse things that she could be. Having a good man love, protect, and want you was easy. After years of being alone, she was finally safe.

There was no way she’d ever give this up.

She wasn’t crazy.

“More,” she begged, her hips meeting his with each rough stroke.

He gave her all he had.

The room was filled with moans, a creaking bed, and gasping breaths. Nate didn't care. Let the world know she was being taken, owned, and claimed. Let Jagger make a comment about how the ‘old man’ was molesting the younger woman. Nothing mattered but this, oh, and to be buried in her body.

He couldn’t stop if he tried.

She had him by the heart and balls.

As he got to the edge, he could feel her shaking. “Come for me,” he begged, driving his erection into the heat.

She shattered apart, another orgasm rushing through her body, tugging wantonly at his.

It pushed Nate off the edge.

He, too, came and came hard.

He poured into her in wave after wave of greedy need. There was nothing more important than marking her as his.

When they were both satiated, he rolled, taking her with him. Avalon slipped off his body, curling into the space beside him.

“That never gets old. You made me work for it,” he teased.

She laughed. “I’m such a hussy. It’s all your fault.”

He was amused by her.

“Before you, I didn't have any idea it was that good.”

His heart flipped. “And had you known?” Nate asked, knowing that she was beautiful and could have been someone else’s had fate deemed it so. “Would you have slept with someone else?”

Even saying the words pained him.

“I would have waited for you. No one turns me on quite like you, Nathaniel. You’re such a molester.”

He snorted at the use of the word. He’d just thought it, and she was using it. “You were in my head.”

She ran her fingers over his chest. “Actually, I was in your heart.”

He wanted to weep with the beauty of her words. She was right. Over the years, he’d built thick walls to keep everyone out. Now he realized that wasn’t the case. He’d actually built them to keep her in.

Nathaniel Carter was building a safe place for the love of his life.

“I’ll do that for hours and hours on end. When can we go again?” she teased.

He shook his head. “I’m old, Avi. I’m not as young as you are. We old folks have to have some rebound time. I hope you understand, but I need a few minutes.”

She went up on her elbow and placed her hand over the tattoo on his chest. The warmth immediately filled her, like some magic talisman.

That ink was part of them.

It had been the catalyst which started them on the journey. Now it was a reminder of them being inexplicably bound as one.

“I’d wait forever.”

“I’ll be ready for some sweeter Avalon in a few minutes. If you keep touching me, honey, then even sooner.”

She ran her lips over his. “You’re not old. You’re perfect. I like having an experienced man. I don’t think I’d like someone like me.”

He grinned, believing she didn't give herself enough credit. Avalon was great in bed. She had learned fast, and there was nothing to complain about.

Well, maybe the fact that she was voracious, and he was…human. Keeping up with her was a full time job.

Honestly, Nate didn't mind.

He started laughing. “I personally enjoy the fact that you’ve never been with anyone but me, and if you even think of wandering, I’ll lose my mind. I’m not allowing you do this with someone else… You’re mine, Avi, all mine. I don’t share.”

She cuddled and yawned. Her body was warm, satiated, and ready to rest. “No need, Nathaniel. You’re the only man I could ever want. My heart is yours. I promise.”

He thought about her words for a little while, mulling them over in his mind. Finally, he spoke, breaking the silence. “Avi, I was thinking about marriage. I think we should plan to take that next step. We can talk about it, and see what will be best for us.”

She didn't answer.

At first, it freaked him out.

Then, he lifted his head to stare down at her. It appeared that he’d worn her down after all. She was out cold.

“Sweet dreams, sweetheart,” he said, dropping a kiss to the crown of her head. “We’ll talk later—about us, and what has you so worked up.”

He closed his eyes, drifting off into the comfort of sleep.

When he was gone, Avalon opened her eyes. His aura was at rest, and she knew she was safe.

It wasn’t that she didn't want to marry Nate, she absolutely did. Only, he was a planner, and she didn't want to live life like that.

She wanted spontaneous.

Off the cuff.

A surprise.

She’d spent so many years micromanaged to death that it was about time she began living her life on the edge.

With Nate
.

She wanted to only be with him, but how did she tell him it was time to be wild and crazy? Nothing would please her more if he just let go and stopped planning things.

“I love you, Nathaniel. I love you more than anything in the world. I just don’t know how to tell you what I want.”

She wanted him.

She wanted this.

She wanted everything he had to offer.

Avalon held on, making sure to wrap her arms around his prone form. The last thing she wanted was to wake up, finding him gone. He wasn’t the only one with fears.

She had them too.

If he left her, there would be no way she could survive.

She’d be crushed.

Broken.

Destroyed.

As she sought out the future in her head, she couldn’t find them getting married. It just wasn’t there.

She didn't know why.

It scared her.

Was it because fate hadn’t decided yet? Or was it something far worse?

Did something happen to Nate?

Did something happen to her?

There were so many questions racing through her thoughts. It was to the point she might hyperventilate. The fear was making her heart pound.

Avalon forced herself to take a few deep breaths. She had to trust in herself. At some point, Oracle would know. Eventually, the truth would be clear.

The woman within had to be patient.

It wasn’t easy.

“Oh, Nathaniel,” she whispered, cuddling into his body.

When he rolled closer, tugging her into his arms, her heart started thudding in her chest as the tears filled her eyes. What she really wished was that Maura was there. Maybe she’d give her a call tomorrow when she was alone.

She’d understand.

Avalon was new at all this relationship stuff, and Maura had told her to just ask her if there was an issue.

Still, the woman just got married, and it was an amazing and beautiful thing. Maybe she could point Avalon in the right direction.

Better yet, maybe she could make Nathaniel understand that when it came to love, planning wasn’t necessarily a good thing.

Avalon made her plan.

As soon as she could, she was going to call her friend—no her sister. Maura would walk her through this.

There was no doubt in her mind. She’d clear up the confusion and reassure her that nothing was going to happen to Nathaniel.

That’s what she needed most.

A promise.

Nothing could happen to him, or she was screwed. Life as she knew it would be over, and fast.

Chapter SIX

Thursday Early Morning

When the phone rang, he prayed it was only part of his dream. He was lost in a pretty good one. It involved beer, a bar, and the brunette from the crowd. She was hitting on him, and he was about to take her back to his place.

As the shrill ringing continued, he knew there was no way he was going to be going back to sleep. The sexy dreams dancing in his head were gone.

Shit!

Duty called even when you were tired and worn down. There was no rest for the wicked.

“Sheriff Longfellow,” he muttered into the phone as he rolled to his back. The sheet tenting across his lower body proved he was fully engrossed in that dream.

“We have another one, boss. The ME was just called out to a house, and he said it looks like there’s another body inside.”

“What?” he asked, quickly siting up. “Are you shitting me, Willie?”

There was a pause over the phone.

It was apparent that someone was trying to compose himself.

“Boss, it’s bad.”

“Spit it out,” he ordered, skipping his boxers to grab his jeans from the chair in the corner of his room. “What are you not saying?”

“It’s at Caitlyn’s house.”

“Wait! Are we talking the same Caitlyn who’s my administrative assistant?” he blurted into the phone.

“Yes, sir.”

“I’m on my way.”

Rhett rushed to get dressed, all the while, his mind was spinning. He’d recently hired Caitlyn Knox to be his personal assistant. His secretary, Betty, had recently retired, and he needed someone to manage the payroll and paperwork.

He felt bad.

If this was the same killer, had he somehow marked this woman because he hired her? Was this his fault?

Well, shit!

What was he going to tell her parents?

They were citizens of the town, and Caitlyn had been their only daughter.

It looked like he was going to be neck deep in a mess.

Again.

As he drove like a maniac toward the address, he thought about the girl who might have become a killer’s victim. Of all the people who would be marked, how had she gotten into this mess? Everything about Caitlyn was sweet.

Who would want to hurt her?

She was barely an adult.

Caitlyn was funny.

And she would be missed.

His heart pounded in his chest, not only because he was scared for the women in the town, but because he now had to break another family’s heart.

His job sucked.

This was turning into one hell of a mess. If he had a serial killer/arsonist, he was going to have to call in backup on this one. There was no way he could handle this kind of shit fest.

He wouldn’t even pretend their police force in Crosspointe could play with the big leagues. Most of his deputies had never seen a killer before, including him.

All the homicides that he’d investigated had been accidental, or caused by motor vehicles.

Yeah, he was screwed.

If he had any chance of staying on top of this, he was going to have to reach out to the state police or the FBI. Serial killers weren’t his thing.

With lives on the line, he wouldn’t even try to keep up with the big boys.

The truth of the matter was that the mayor was going to flip out if he didn't get this under control, and fast. First, his daughter, and now one of his employees…

Yeah, Mayor Ryan was going to lose it.

As he stopped his truck, there were already three deputies there, and the ME. The firetrucks were wrapping up the hoses and getting ready to return to the firehouse.

Heading toward the house, he caught one of the firemen before he could strip out of his gear.

“Hey, Trent,” he called, recognizing the name on the back of the fire jacket. Trent Calvin was a good man. He was the one the sheriff’s department mainly dealt with when it came to anything fire/crime related.

He was their liaison.

It had been the mayor’s idea, and it was working out nicely. Rhett didn't have to mess around with red tape. If he had a question, he knew who to see.

When the man turned, he held out his hand. Trent Calvin warmly greeted the sheriff. “Rhett, it looks like you have another one,” he stated. “We rolled up and put it out. Inside, we found the remains.”

“Shit! Trent, are you sure it’s a person?” He really hoped they were mistaken. Maybe it was some large family pet.

He shook his head. “Yeah, it’s a person. I’m sorry, man. It’s bad. You’ve got two so far, and I hope this isn't going to be a regular occurrence. I came back here to not have crazies running around. If I wanted to find bodies at fires, I would have stayed in the city.”

Yeah, Rhett got that.

He didn't really want a bunch of lunatics running around either. He liked his town quiet, sleepy, and on the good side of crazy.

“The ME is in there now. I just know the basics. If you need more, you’ll have to hit up the doctor.”

“Thanks.” He patted the fireman on the back before heading toward his deputies.

Willie Hanes was there, and he was pacing.

Beside him was Roosevelt Prince.

They looked rattled.

“Boss!” Willie said, rushing to close the distance between them. “You gotta do something,” he stated. “This is getting out of hand. Two people in two days is a problem.”

Yeah, he was well aware.

Rhett truly liked Willie. He was stable, God fearing, and had been on the force with Rhett’s daddy. The man, if anything, was reliable. If he was freaked out, there was probably a good chance that they were heading to hell in a handbasket.

From his peripheral, he could see the crowd gathering. “Yeah, I’m working on it. Right now, I need you two to head over to the crowd and keep it back. Say nothing.”

Willie hustled past.

Roosevelt dropped his hat onto his head before speaking, “It’s a shame about Caitlyn. I really liked her. We have to find the animal killing these women.”

Then he was gone.

Yeah, his deputy wasn’t saying anything they weren’t all thinking. This was getting out of hand. Having one victim was bad. Two victims were a whole lot of bad for all of them.

Now Rhett needed to figure out why Caitlyn was picked to die. Was it because of them or was it random?

This was going to suck.

As he scrubbed his hands over his face, he prayed for a miracle. He was going to need it.

Waiting for the ME to exit the burnt out rubble, he scanned the crowd. A part of him was hoping the mystery woman would be there. After all, he didn't get enough of her in his dream. Rhett wanted more.

It was wrong, but he couldn’t help it.

There was just something about her. Rhett couldn’t put his finger on it, but she called to him. It was weird, and he didn't understand it.

When he didn't find her in the crowd, he marginally relaxed. If she wasn’t there, then maybe she was some innocent drifter in his town.

He liked that option far better than the one where she was a killer and he was going to have to bring her in. Granted, he did already see her in handcuffs.

His dream was pretty vivid.

He thought back to the previous day and how worried she looked as she tried to blend in.

Something about that fear didn't sit well with him.

Was she afraid of the fire?

Was it a fear of getting caught?

Killers should be horrible creatures, twisted by their past, and not lovely ladies. Maybe he was a chauvinist, but that’s how he really felt.

Sue him.

This was Crosspointe. They still had bake sales, pep rallies, and rummage sales at the local church.

This mess was a nightmare, and at the center, it couldn’t possibly be that sweet looking woman.

Rhett’s gut was rarely wrong. Despite the curiosity, he couldn’t wrap his head around it.

His little daydream was interrupted by a tap on the arm. When he glanced over, he found Doctor Marco Allen there. “Did you need to see me?”

“Actually, I did. What do you have?” he asked, hoping the man was going to tell him that it wasn’t really a body.

This was his last chance before everything spiraled out of control.

Maybe Trent had been wrong.

“We definitely have a body, but the victim is burned beyond recognition. I can’t give you too much, until I get her back to the morgue and start the autopsy.”

“So it’s a she?”

He nodded. “Yes. Like the last one, I can detect breast tissue. She was cooked, but it’s there.”

That sentence made Rhett want to toss his cookies. The victim might be his assistant. The last thing he wanted to think of was cooked flesh. When he thought about breasts, they shouldn’t be used in that connotation.

The woman in the crowd flashed into his mind, and it offered him some control as he focused on her.

“Okay, Doc. When will that be?”

“I’m going to need a couple of hours. I need to chill her down. She’s still cooking on the inside.”

Rhett gave him a look.

“That might have been my employee. Can we not refer to her as being ‘cooked’? That’s beyond gross.”

He sympathetically patted him on the arm.

“I’m sorry, Sheriff. When I’m trying not to think about them as human beings, it makes it easier for me. I’m sorry that she was killed, and I hope it’s not your employee.”

Rhett knew he wasn’t going to be that lucky. His gut was screaming, and soon, so would be the mayor.

“I’ll need you to handle this immediately. She’s bumped to priority,” Rhett said.

The ME went to open his mouth to speak, but Rhett shut it down, and fast.

“She wasn’t a deputy, but she was part of the family. If that was Caitlyn Knox, we owe it to her. I don’t want an argument. I will pull rank on this one. If I have to contact the mayor’s office to put on the pressure, I will.”

The man shook his head. “Sheriff, I was going to tell you that I’d have it done by noon. I was going to get ice brought in to chill her down.”

He closed his eyes. “I’m sorry, Doctor Allen. I’m a little freaked out by all this. I didn't mean to jump down your throat.”

“I get it, Sheriff. You have a killer on your hands, and he’s burning up your evidence. Head in later today, and I’ll have this autopsy, and the results from the other one finished. I’ll give you all I can. I don’t know if you’re going to catch this guy, since he seems to be pretty smart, but I’ll do what I can to help. You’ll have my full cooperation.”

Rhett appreciated that. “Thank you.”

Just as he said it, something caught his eye. It was the slow drive by of a tricked out Hummer. It was sleek, black, and riddled with chrome.

And he’d seen it before.

“Son of a bitch!” he muttered. Rhett couldn’t believe it. He’d just resigned himself to the fact the beautiful brunette wasn’t in the crowd. Now, the vehicle parked in front of her cabin was doing a drive by.

Well, shit.

“Pardon?” the ME asked. “Are you feeling okay?”

“It’s nothing, Doc. You head to the morgue. I have some business to handle.”

It looked like the woman in his dreams had been there after all. There was no way this was a coincidence.

Yeah, no way.

He may be a small town sheriff, but he wasn’t an idiot. He didn't believe in coincidences, especially ones connected to murder investigations.

As he headed toward the crowd, he had one thing in mind.

Find out what the hell that woman was doing in town. Rhett didn't buy that she was just passing through.

Something was going on, and he was going to get to the bottom of it.

Now
.

       
                
* * *
  O R A C L E   * * *

Juliett Deveraux’s

Cabin

She slept like a rock.

It was the best sleep she’d had in the last few weeks. It was untethered from fear and much like the nights she used to have.

It was the first time in a long time where she didn't have to fear for her life. It was really great having that rag tag team of investigators there.

They were miracle workers.

At first, she didn't think they’d be able to pull it off, but she’d been very wrong. Just having Oracle around was cathartic. It helped her find her balance. The woman definitely had a gift. Not even hours of therapy had calmed her down like Avalon.