Pale Wings Protecting Page 8

  *

  The rest of the afternoon passed mercifully uneventfully. The food was plentiful, the beer was cold, and Blythe believed she’d been introduced to enough people to fill an entire football stadium. She sat beside Daryl and was amused to see that Justin kept looking over in their direction, flashing Daryl winning smiles.

  “I think you’ve got a little admirer.” She leaned close to whisper into Daryl’s ear to make sure she was heard over the chatter and the music that was now being played. To everyone’s eyes, it looked like she was nuzzling her lover’s ear.

  Daryl looked up from her plate at the child and he beamed even wider. She chuckled quietly but didn’t say anything.

  “Is he trying to fly?” Blythe asked, watching the toddler flitter about like a demented butterfly.

  Daryl shrugged beside her. “He probably thinks he’s Superman or some kind of weird fairy. Who knows what goes on in a little kid’s head?”

  “Maybe he’s alluding to the fact you flew in to save him from falling in the pool. Daryl, I swear I’ve never seen anything like it. One minute, you were with Niki, the next, you were at the pool edge with him in your arms stopping him from falling in.”

  Daryl looked at her. “Really? Can’t say I remember it much. It all happened so fast.”

  “Did you see him heading to the pool? Is that how you got to him first?”

  “I can’t remember. Good thing I did though. He could have been facedown with the fishes and none of us would have known with all the commotion here.”

  Blythe nudged her gently. “Protect and serve, eh?”

  “Something like that, I guess.”

  “Claire and Liz are saying you’re their son’s guardian angel.”

  Daryl’s laughter was swift. “I’m no angel.”

  Blythe moved closer. “Glad to hear it,” she said and was delighted by the reddening of Daryl’s cheeks. She couldn’t stop the shiver that raced through her when Daryl leaned in closer still and made a show of pushing back Blythe’s hair from her ear to place a kiss there. She also whispered in her ear.

  “The kid I saved is Matthew Malone.” She drew back and went back to picking food off her plate.

  Desperately trying not to be obvious, Blythe sought out the child again until she found him now in Liz’s arms. “You’re certain?”

  “As sure as I know I could eat more of these.” Daryl waved a neatly stripped bone in Blythe’s direction.

  Blythe let her eyes wander around the yard and at the people gathered to party. Her gaze returned to Justin/Matthew who was leaning heavily on his mother’s shoulder, obviously tired now and ready to take a nap. She recalled what Daryl had said to her. When I find my kids, I’ll recognize each of them. Blythe had no reason to doubt her. She watched Liz rock her son to sleep, Claire behind her, both watching over him.

  Just how do we tell them that he’s not their child to keep?

  Her inner turmoil was cut short by Mia loudly tapping a fork against the side of her beer bottle to get everyone’s attention.

  “On behalf of all of us here, I’d like to welcome our new neighbors, Blythe and Daryl, to the neighborhood.” She smiled over at them. “I hope you find what you’re looking for here and that you have happiness above all.” She raised her bottle. “To Blythe and Daryl, Cranston Heights’ new residents.”

  Everyone drank to the toast, but Mia wasn’t finished. “And here’s to Cranston Heights; our own slice of heaven on earth.”

  Chapter Nine

  Ashley Scott slid her newly acquired key into the lock and opened the front door to her lover’s home. Our home now, she thought with a smile. The welcoming call from the cat in residence made her smile widen.

  “Hi, honey, I’m home,” Ashley crooned as the black cat bounded down the hallway, chattering the whole way. The animal began twining around Ashley’s legs, rubbing against her and purring up a storm. “So where’s your other mommy, eh, Trinity?” Ashley asked, picking up the fussing cat and petting her. She carried Trinity into the kitchen where she dutifully prepared some fresh food for the animal whose vocalizations were getting louder. The sound of the front door opening made Ashley pause. Trinity head butted her to remind her to complete the task she was working on before becoming distracted by another human.

  “Ashley?” Rafe called out from the hallway. “I pulled up just as you were opening the front door. How’s that for perfect timing?” Rafe wandered into the kitchen and waited patiently while Trinity was suitably catered to. Once the cat bowl was on the floor, Ashley was swept up into Rafe’s arms and kissed thoroughly. Ashley clung to Rafe, delighting in her passion. Not even when Rafe pulled back for air did Ashley loosen her hold. She kept her close, relishing Rafe’s warmth and the feel of her body pressed hard against her own.

  “I’ve missed you all day,” Ashley told her, tracing Rafe’s angular features with her palm then running her fingertips through hair that was finally growing back. The bruises on Rafe’s face had long faded, but the ordeal Rafe had suffered, at the hands of a drugged up assailant with demonic strength, had left their mark inside and out. Her shaved head was slowly losing its stubble and getting some length back, though it still did little to hide the scars that marked Rafe’s healing skull. “You’re home early for a change.” Ashley leaned up to kiss Rafe’s lips in a welcome of her own. “Not that I’m complaining.”

  “Dean kicked me out of the office. I’m on call if anything comes in tonight.” Rafe rocked Ashley gently in her arms. “But for now I’m all yours. Feel like having takeout?”

  Ashley chuckled. “You’re such a cop. If your food doesn’t come in a carton or in a pizza box then you think it’s not worth eating.”

  “Hey! I resent that insinuation. I can cook just fine,” Rafe argued without much heat.

  “Frosted flakes don’t count, sweetheart,” Ashley said as she slipped her hand to Rafe’s belt and unhooked her cell phone. She speed-dialed a restaurant and gave their regular order then replaced the phone and patted Rafe’s side. “It will be here in less than half an hour.” She pulled back deliberately so she wouldn’t be distracted by the spark of intention she could see glistening in Rafe’s eyes. “We don’t have time, Detective, for what you’re envisioning in that sexy brain of yours.”

  “We can do fast now.” Rafe leaned forward to nuzzle at a particularly sensitive spot behind Ashley’s ear. “Then we could take it slower after.”

  Ashley moaned at the sensations that threatened to derail her thought processes. She struggled weakly in Rafe’s grasp as she tried to recall what it was she had to discuss with her. Finally, before she could weaken any more, Ashley stuck her hands on Rafe’s chest and pushed her back a little. Startled by the unexpected push, Rafe rocked back on her heels.

  “What’s wrong, Ash?” she asked.

  “I need to speak to you before you cloud my brain with sexy endorphins that leave me wanting your body all over mine and nothing between us but kisses and searching hands.”

  Rafe leaned back against the kitchen counter and smiled cockily at her. “Then by all means talk, because I like that picture you’ve just painted for me, and I’d like to get back to it while my motor is still running.”

  Ashley took a deep breath that straightaway altered Rafe’s mood.

  “What’s wrong?” Rafe’s voice changed to her serious cop voice and Ashley wanted to cuddle in close to soothe her.

  “Calm down, tiger, nothing big, bad, and demonic is making their appearance known tonight.” She paused then added, “That I’m aware of anyway. I just wanted to check something with you. Have you heard from Blythe at all?”

  “Blythe? No, not recently. The last time I was in contact with her was reporting we’d caught the killer she’d helped profile for me. She’s undercover on something now so I’m not expecting to be able to chat with her.”

  “She’s in Connecticut, right?”

  Rafe went very still. “You know she is. I told you that.” Her eyes widened. “Why? What have you
heard about her?”

  “I haven’t heard anything about her, so calm your fears, sweetheart. There have been some stirrings in the ether and some mutterings reaching ears.”

  “Mutterings from the angelic or demonic grapevine you have access to?”

  “Via the good guys. There seems to be something hinky going on in that area and I recalled you saying Blythe was there.”

  “Hinky?”

  “It’s a technical term.” Ashley grinned at her, reaching for Rafe’s hand and making sure they were touching again. “Word is there might be a demon there, but whatever it is, it’s staying off the angelic radar.”

  Rafe huffed. “You know, for all-seeing, all-knowing entities they need a better system to keep track of the demonic forces that are roaming over Earth.”

  Ashley nodded in agreement. “Still, something is pinging and drawing attention to an area there, and it made me think of Blythe.”

  “Do you think there’s a connection between that and the case Blythe is working on? She’s investigating babies being snatched. Do demons steal children?”

  “It’s rare. They usually covet more shiny objects. But if there’s money to be made…” Ashley thought back to a previous case that she’d worked on, the breaking up of a large pedophile ring. Oddly enough, Blythe had been in on that investigation, though they had never formally been introduced. Ashley remembered the FBI team going into the house where the children had been hoarded by men for their unsavory dealings. Ashley had gone alone after her prey. She had tracked down the demon running the distribution of the videos taken of the abuse. He’d been banished to hell for his involvement and for daring to come topside. His punishment was nothing compared to what the children had been subjected to in the basement of the house they’d been found in.

  “Is it a coincidence that there are rumblings of a demon where Blythe is when I know you’ve worked on a case with her before?”

  “It probably isn’t even in the same area where she is. It’s most likely just a scavenger demon, a lower class scrounger doing nothing more than feeding from Dumpsters.”

  “Can I warn her?”

  “Warn her of what, sweetheart? Can you really see yourself placing that call? Hi, Blythe, heard there might be some demon activity where you’re living. It’s not like giving people a heads-up to look out for tornadoes, Rafe. You’ll only worry her that you got more than your bell rung when you were attacked.”

  Rafe tugged Ashley close. “Oh, I got more than that and you damn well know it. I got my own personal front seat into watching hell walk on earth.”

  “You got me too,” Ashley reminded her.

  “You are the only good thing that came out of any of it.”

  “That and the fact you can talk to angels face-to-face.”

  “One angel; your angel. I’m still not sure he trusts me completely.”

  “He gave you the Spear of Light to incapacitate demons. How more trusting is that? And he never materializes in our bedroom. I’d say he has more than enough respect for you.”

  “I guess,” Rafe muttered. “Are you sure I can’t find a way to let Blythe know she needs to be careful? I can be subtle.”

  Ashley let out a sudden burst of laughter then hastily kissed Rafe to take away the sting. “Yes, you can be subtle. You are oh so subtle as an avenger armed with your Spear of Light when you banish demons back to hell.”

  “I do have a flair for that; you have to admit I do.”

  Rafe had come a long way in such a short time, from rabid disbeliever to dedicated banisher of the demon hordes. “Yes, you do, and it’s very sexy watching you in demon banishing mode. But I don’t think there’s much call for that in Connecticut this time. So put away your demon hunting go-bag for now, and I’ll apprise you if and when I get any more information. I might not even be called in.”

  Rafe wrapped her arms about Ashley and pulled her close. “Good. I mean, we’ve only just started to live together and sleeping together every night and I’d hate it if you had to go.”

  Ashley smiled against Rafe’s breast. “I’d be coming back, Rafe. I’d be called in to assess the situation, probably deal with it, then I’d be high-tailing it back home.” She felt Rafe’s arms tighten.

  “I like how you say that.”

  “Home?”

  “Home meaning here with me.”

  “And Trinity,” Ashley added mischievously.

  “You spoil that cat,” Rafe grumbled.

  “I like to spoil you more.” Ashley brought her head up and her eyes focused on Rafe’s lips. She licked her own in anticipation at the look that flared in Rafe’s dark eyes.

  Rafe lowered her head with intention but was interrupted by the sound of the doorbell ringing. “Damn, they’re fast. Food first, then you can spoil me all you like.”

  Ashley set the table for them while Rafe paid the man at the door. Only when they were halfway through eating did Ashley ask a question that had been playing on her mind.

  “How open do you think Blythe would be to being told that there are more things walking this soil than she could have imagined?”

  “She hunts monsters for a living. How do I think she’d take to being told that there really are monsters out there? Demonic ones with horns and eyes that burn with the sulfuric fires of hell?” Rafe shrugged. “I haven’t a clue. She’d probably profile you as certifiable if you told her.”

  “I seem to recall you did the same.”

  “Then I got to know you and the crazy world you live in. Now I know you’re certifiable.”

  Ashley reached across the table and took a big piece of meat from Rafe’s plate and took a healthy bite from it in retaliation.

  “Hey! At least we’re now crazy together,” Rafe said, smiling sweetly across the table until Ashley relented and gave her what was left of the meat back.

  “It’s probably nothing to do with her at all,” Ashley said. “I mean, really, what are the chances of her being the key element involved in demon activity?”

  “Slim to zero I’d hope?” Rafe answered around a mouthful of rice.

  “Exactly.”

  “But you’ll let me know if anything else comes from the grapevine?”

  “You can count on it. We make a good team when we investigate together.”

  “So can I come to Connecticut with you?”

  “You’d take time off work to accompany me?”

  “I have plenty of time accruing. We could class it as a vacation.”

  “Vacations are supposed to be relaxing.”

  “I’ll relax knowing there’s one less demon out of the picture thanks to you.”

  Ashley sent her own heartfelt prayer of gratitude up for the circumstances that had brought Rafe to her. No one else had a partner who understood and supported her daily work quite so much as Rafe did.

  “You’re my everything; do you know that?”

  “Yeah, yeah, but I know you love that damned cat more.” Rafe picked out a choice piece of food from her plate and put it on Ashley’s without a word then went back to eating her supper.

  Ashley found the act so sweet but didn’t say anything. She’d make certain Rafe knew exactly where her heart lay once they’d finished their meal.

  *

  Daryl dusted off a few stray leaves from the park bench and gestured for Blythe to take a seat. They sat close together, Blythe’s arm stretched out behind Daryl, her body leaning against her. From that position she had a clear view of the Three Little Ducks Daycare Center they had been observing for the past four days.

  “It would be so much easier if we could just march in there and ask to see their attendance sheets,” Blythe said.

  Daryl hummed her agreement as she flicked through the photographs she had stored on her phone. She brought up the baby picture she had of Heather Jones and then the not so clear shot she had taken herself when last in the area.

  “We’re going to be screwed if her mother has taken her out of the class here.”

  Dary
l rested her head on Blythe’s for a moment. “I have the utmost confidence that Heather’s new mommy has a routine she sticks to and that little girl is in there.” She has to be, I just know she’s here.

  “Your confidence is inspiring, if not a little strange,” Blythe drawled, shooting Daryl a look over her shoulder.

  “If I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard that,” Daryl muttered as she flipped through her messages. She reread a mail sent by the DDU and frowned. “Not sure how I’m supposed to be able to get DNA samples from kids I can’t legally touch.”

  “Then you had better hope your instincts lead you in a way that we can legitimately prove these children are not who everyone thinks they are.”

  Daryl sighed. It always came down to the part of the investigation that could be written down and read without the stigma of her intuition being attached. It wasn’t enough she could focus in and find where the children were; she always needed evidence. Evidence she had no clue how she was supposed to retrieve.

  Blythe shifted at Daryl’s side. “Don’t worry about that for now. Let’s just enjoy the sunshine and the beauty of the park while we sit and wait to watch lots of little toddlers pitter-pat out of the Center like ants on a sugar high.”

  “With Heather Jones among them.”

  “And if she is?”

  “Then we follow her home and gather another address for Trace to research. Hopefully, that will prove I was totally justified in dragging you all into this investigation with me.” Daryl watched as a steady stream of parents started to gather at the gates. “Two confirmed sightings will stand stronger than just one in my case.”

  “Then there’s three children to go.”

  “Yes, and I’m not leaving without them all.” She felt Blythe eyes on her and met her intense gaze with her own. “No child gets left behind.”

  “I understand that. It must be gratifying to return a lost child home.”

  Daryl smiled at the wistful sound of Blythe’s voice. Daryl’s pride at her job was always tinged with the shadow of regret. “It is. Sadly, not all the children I find are alive.”