The Touch (31 page)

“I know, it’s not your fault.  How could you have known it wasn’t even Allie who came to the door?” she assured him, enjoying that contact, so simple and yet so alien.  For whatever reason she wasn’t picking up anything from him but she chose not to question it too closely for now.  “So what tipped you off then, and brought you back to the house?”

“It was Maddie’s talk about where the kids were hidden for the last round of kidnappings.  She wanted me to look at the plans to the house, but we couldn’t get to those until morning.”

“That would have been too late for us.”

“Well lucky for us all, Cooper decided he wanted to impress your friend.  He looked into the original case files and found the mention of the secret room.  There were pictures of the kids, all lashed to chairs at the table when they found them.  Scary stuff.”

“Yeah, well it was even scarier from the inside looking out.  It was like there was nothing left of Allie, except for at the end when she was dying,” Lexi stared off at nothing, lost to her own thoughts for a few moments before she thought of something else.  “What about Chloe?  What will happen to her now?”

“Well, as soon as she’s released from the hospital she’ll go to a temporary housing facility until Child Protective Services can decide what to do with her.”

“No, she’s coming home with me,” Lexi stated, her chin coming up in determination. 

“It might not be as easy as that,” he said gently.

“There’s no way in hell I’m letting her go to foster care after everything she’s been through.  I’m her only relative around here; she can stay with me at least temporarily until they figure out what to do.”  She was pretty sure Neil’s parents were still alive and there were cousins on her side of the family.  There was bound to be a stable home she could go to eventually, but for now she’d fight tooth and nail to keep Chloe at her place.  “You’ve got to help me get out of here, and I’ll go see them myself, convince them that I’m the best thing for her right now.”

Gabriel held her hand hostage in his.  “Whoa, slow down a minute, you’re not going to do her any good if you land yourself back in the hospital again.  The first thing you need to do is make sure you’re feeling well enough to take her in.”

“Oh come on, you know Maddie and Paul will help me with her, she’ll get way more attention at my place.” 

“Hey, you don’t have to convince me, but I’m telling you that they’re going to do whatever they think is best for Chloe.  So the first order of business is getting you all better.  Now are you going to stay put or am I going to have to cuff you to the bed?”  His hand went to the cuffs at his waist and she was mostly sure he was kidding.  Mostly. 

“Okay, I’ll stay put, but the doctor thinks I can be released around noon, he said so just before you got here.” 
Not a lie
…
well
,
not exactly
.

“That seems soon,” he frowned.

“Don’t look so happy about it,” she laughed, which brought on another coughing fit and she scowled over his ‘I told you so’ look. 

“Here, drink this, it might soothe your throat,” Gabriel offered, handing over the Starbucks. 

The aroma of coffee and chocolate wafted towards her, making her mouth water; and she
was
cleared for liquids...  “I don’t want to steal your coffee though,” she protested.

“I can get another one later,” he replied, waiting for her to tug on one of the gloves before pressing it into her hand. 

“Thank you,” she smiled up at him, struck again by how important he’d become to her. 

“It’s nothing,” he grinned back.

“No really, thank you… for everything.  I don’t know what I would have done without you these past couple of weeks.”

Gabriel sobered, and Lexi could tell he was gearing up to say something weightier than the flippant reply he’d given before, but the door opened again, and Maddie and Paul barged in, all smiles.  Careful hugs were given amid cheerful chatter and well wishes, and when Lexi looked up again from the noisy distraction Gabriel had edged closer to the door. 

“I should probably head on out, leave you to visit with your friends.”

“Do you have to get back to work already?  Didn’t you earn a day off?” Lexi protested.

“Actually no, I’m off for a few days until I get cleared from the shooting.”  They all sobered at that and Gabriel took another uncomfortable step towards the door.  “So yeah, I should probably go…”

“You don’t have to rush off if you don’t want to,” Lexi offered.  Maybe he felt a little uncomfortable around her friends, but she was hoping they’d all get to know each other better. 

“No?”  Gabriel seemed surprised by the invitation.

“Yeah, stay,” Maddie nodded.  “Help us convince Lexi that automatic beds and her own private TV are worth another night’s stay.”

“Maddie…” Lexi scolded lightly.

Paul spoke up, leaning in confidentially.  “I talked to the nurse, she said you really should be here another day.  Lexi, if it’s the money…”

Lexi interrupted before she died of embarrassment.  “I just don’t like hospitals,” she insisted stubbornly.

Gabriel got a thoughtful look on his face.  “Maybe I can work something out.  I’ll be back,” he promised, ducking out before she could say another word. 

Paul stepped forward to lay a kiss to her forehead the moment Gabriel disappeared behind the door.  “I’m glad you’re okay, Kiddo.”

“You and me both,” Lexi smiled up at him.

“You scared us to death when you disappeared like that, never do that again,” he admonished her sternly.

“I’ll try not to,” Lexi couldn’t help but feel warmed by the concern.

“Great, we’ll get that tracker surgically implanted under your skin, you know, like dogs have?  I’ll bet we can even slip it into the scar you’ve already got going there,” Maddie gestured to her arm, tongue firmly in cheek. 

An inelegant snort left Lexi’s lips.  “Oh yeah, I’m sure the doctor will like that.  Oh Paul, I almost forgot, can you call that friend of yours, the lawyer?”

“You mean JJ?”

“Yeah, I’m thinking he might be able to help me get temporary custody of Chloe.”

“You want her to come and live with us?” his brows rose in surprise.

“That’s okay, isn’t it?”  Lexi looked from Paul to Maddie, never dreaming that either of them would have a problem with it, though she did understand that having a ten year old around was probably going to be an adjustment for all of them. 

“Yeah, of course,” he replied after a moment’s hesitation.  “It’s fine, I just hadn’t thought that far ahead.  But it’s your house too, of course you can have her move in with us, it’ll give me an excuse to paint the spare bedroom that I’ve been putting off for far too long.”

“Yeah it’ll be fun, I never had a little sister before,” Maddie chimed in and Lexi had to wonder if they were putting on a happy face for her benefit because they knew she was stuck in a rough place, or if it really was okay. 

Opting to change the subject, she decided to try a little experiment.  “Hey, I found out something a little weird.”

“You mean weirder than the past few days?”  It was Maddie’s turn to look surprised.

“Yeah, I found out I can touch bare skin with my hand and not pick up anything.  At least, I think I can.”  Lexi told them about the experience in the ambulance, as well as just a little while before in the hospital room.  “It’s the damndest thing… but my hands aren’t on the fritz, I’ve been picking up everything else in here like crazy.”

“Hm, do you think it’s just him, or will it work on anybody?” Maddie asked.

“I’m thinking there’s only one way to find out,” Lexi shrugged, holding up her bare hand, expecting Maddie to take it.

“Okay then.”  Paul sat down on the edge of her bed, holding his palm up, but not touching, letting her make the first move. 

Taking a deep breath Lexi touched her palm to his. 
Nothing.
  “Try projecting your thoughts to me, send me something specific for me to try and pick up.” 

Paul regarded her intently, and Lexi swallowed at what she found behind his eyes.  She could only guess what he was sending to her from the expression on his face, but still, there was no connection to what he was actually sending her way. 

“Can you guess what I’m thinking?” he asked softly.

“No,” she swallowed again, thankful she could cling to that ignorance before it changed things between them. 

Gabriel returned, taking in the scene with interest.  “Am I interrupting something?” he asked with a faint smile.

“Just a little experiment,” Lexi replied, snatching her hand back.  “It turns out I don’t pick up anything from bare skin.  I can’t understand it,” she shook her head.  “I have clear memories of picking up my mother’s thoughts from holding her hand when I was a little girl,” she frowned; they were memories she’d rather were lost.

“Maybe it wasn’t you picking up, it was her projecting?” Maddie replied thoughtfully.  “I mean you’ve got this ability to read objects, who’s to say your mom didn’t have her own psychic touches?  Can you think of anyone else’s thoughts that you’ve read?”

Lexi cast her mind back but came up blank.  “I don’t know… it was a long time ago.  I’ve been wearing gloves for years and years.  I never take them off around people, not even when…” she flushed, her mouth snapping shut before she revealed something a bit more personal than she’d intended to. 

“I’m willing to bet you won’t pick up on anything organic like people or even animals as long as you stay away from their collar or leash,” Maddie replied. 

“So you’re saying I’ve been afraid for all these years for nothing?”  For some reason that bothered her more than any injury she’d incurred the night before.  All those years of lost intimacy… why hadn’t she ever tested it before now?

“So… I’m guessing you’re not pissed at me for holding your hand in the ambulance?”  A slow grin spread across Gabriel’s face. 

“Are you kidding?”  Lexi held her hand out to him, relishing the feel of his palm sliding against hers as their fingers entwined. 

“Come on Paul, let’s go get a cup of coffee,” Maddie nudged him, but Paul stood his ground with a frown.

“I don’t want a cup of coffee.”

“Yeah, you do,” she dragged him by the arm with surprising strength for her petite form.  “We’ll be back in a little bit.”

“Take your time,” Gabriel winked at Maddie so quickly Lexi almost didn’t catch it. 

“I’m glad to see you getting along with my friends.”

“Maddie and I have a lot in common.”

That was news to her.  “Oh?  Like what?”

“The need to keep you safe, for starters,” he pointed out.

“Anything else?”

“Well let’s see, we both like to stick our noses into other people’s business, neither of us is very patient, and we both think Cooper is an acquired taste.” 

Lexi’s jaw dropped, “You’re kidding, Maddie and Cooper?”

Gabriel waved his hand in a so-so manner.  “Not yet, but I can tell he’s starting to get to her.  She kissed him when he told her what he did to find the secret room.”

“She did not!”

“Is that such a big stretch to believe?  Most people are impressed when a guy pulls out all the stops to win a girl over.”

“Is that what you were doing when you showed up, guns blazing?”

“That isn’t quite how I remember it…”

“Well, I was impressed,” she smiled up at him.

“You were?”

Lexi nodded, tugging lightly on their joined hands.  “Would you like me to show you?”

“We’re not allowed to accept bribes, Ma’am.”

“I’m pretty sure I told you not to call me Ma’am.”

“Sorry about that Ma’am, won’t happen again.”  Gabriel pressed his lips to hers in a gentle kiss until she reached up to sink her fingers into the hair at the nape of his neck, marveling at the myriad of textures there.  “How about I take you home as a form of apology?”

“I wish,” she gave a heartfelt sigh.

“No seriously, I talked to your doctor and convinced him that it would be a lot less stressful for you to recuperate in peace and quiet, and… that it’s in his best interests to cooperate with your wishes.”

“You’re kidding, and that really worked?” 

“Some people find me intimidating,” he shrugged.  “Can’t think why.”

“Yeah, can’t imagine why,” she snorted.  “So I can really go?”

“They’re putting your paperwork through now.  Which means it’ll still probably take a couple of hours, but yeah, you can go after that.  And maybe after you’ve had a little rest and relaxation… you and I can do a little experimenting of our own?” The slow smile spread over his lips again, thumb stroking the inside of her wrist.

The light touch brought a fluttery feeling of anticipation.  “I like the sound of that.”  It brought to mind all manner of things she wanted to try with this new freedom of touch.  “Of course, there’s always the possibility we might dissolve into name calling and fights before we get there.”

“I feel fairly confident we can make things work,” he tugged her close again, tilting her face up to meet his.