6
Blessed Falls Police Department sat in the center of town, which made a long and awkward ride for Gabriel and me. Or maybe just me. Nothing seemed to bother this guy.
I glanced at Gabriel out of the corner of my eye. His lips were moving along with the song on the radio, and he looked so adorable I couldn’t help but smile.
“What?” Gabriel asked.
“Just funny seeing an angel singing Taylor Swift.” I kept my eyes on the road so I wouldn’t miss my turn.
“She’s catchy.”
I shook my head and laughed. “Well, I’m sure Taylor would be happy to know she has fans on Earth and in Heaven.”
“Think I could get her autograph?” Gabriel wagged his eyebrows.
“And I’m supposed to what? Somehow approach her as your go-between? No, Miss Swift, the autograph isn’t for me, it’s for the angels.” I snorted. “Yeah, that’d go over well.”
“You have a gift. No one ever said it would be an easy thing to bear.” Gabriel grinned, but he was barking up the wrong girl. I’d been told by many a people I had a gift, but the problem was none of those were humans. Angels, of course, would want me to see them, who wouldn’t? But until humans stopped being judgmental assholes, I didn’t see how my so-called ‘gift’ as a positive. Not unless I was a porn star and needed a bit of fluffing.
“You get to talk to God and all, right?” I asked suddenly. “Maybe you could talk to him for me. Ask him to take it back or make it so I can touch you guys. Cause really, unless everyone else is seeing what I’m seeing, I’m always going to be the weird psychic girl people only want to date so they can say they did it. But if I could touch you guys, at least I’d be getting laid.”
“Really?” Gabriel’s mouth dropped open slightly, ignoring the last bit. “People really say that?”
I snorted and put my car in park as we stopped at the police station. “No, I believe the words the guy used was, ‘Now I can tell everyone I’ve fucked a psychic.’” I got out of the car not caring to see the shocked expression that was probably all over Gabriel’s face.
Slinging my bag over my shoulder, I kept my eyes forward even as I heard Gabriel’s feet on the pavement catching up to me. A cute police officer offered me a smile and opened the door for me as he was leaving. I nodded and grinned in return. Just a normal girl greeting a normal guy.
If only I could be so lucky.
I’d been to the Blessed Falls Police Station before, though never on such good terms. I’d been sixteen and as all teenagers rebelling against my parents.
Let me tell you, no one finds it funny when you break into the school gym and paint the words ‘the angels are among us’ with a big angel giving you the finger. All it earned me was an even worse reputation at school and a hefty fine from the city. I probably would have ended up in juvie, but my father, being who he was, got the sentenced lowered with the excuse that kids will be kids. Wish that excuse worked all the time.
As it was, no one even paid me any mind as I walked through the station doors and to the reception desk. The noise was almost deafening with everyone hustling about. There was a man handcuffed to a bench, a tattoo of a teardrop below his eye. When he noticed I was looking at him, he glared.
Someone was having a bad day.
“Can I help you?” an impatient voice asked me. More like snarled.
Turning back to the counter, I offered the policewoman sitting there a small smile which she didn’t return. Dropping the smile, I explained, “I’m here to see Mandy - I mean Detective Stevenson. She’s expecting me.”
With a sniff, the policewoman, whose badge read ‘Smith,’ pointed behind me. “Take a seat, and I’ll call her.”
I glanced back at the large, menacing man and then back to her with a flabbergasted look. “Really?”
Smith didn’t even flinch but turned her back on me to pick up the phone. Seeing as I was dismissed, I cautiously made my way over to the bench. Taking a seat as far away from the guy as possible, I gave him a nervous smile.
“He does not look happy,” Gabriel stated and sat between Mr. Teardrop and me. He leaned close as if to inspect the angry guy’s teeth. “This guy is about to get questioned about beating up his ex-girlfriend’s new guy. They’ll let him go, but then he’ll go to her house and kill him.”
“Great,” I muttered.
“What’d you say?” the soon-to-be killer growled, scowling my way.
“Nothing,” I quickly said, crossing one leg over the other as I tried to make myself as small as possible. Mandy needed to hurry it the hell up. I didn’t need Gabriel getting visions of every single criminal’s future. People already thought I was crazy, I didn’t need to add to the mix.
When Mandy appeared, I could have kissed her on the spot, but the moment I saw her frown, my relief changed.
“What’s wrong?” I stood from the bench to meet her.
She rubbed a hand over her face and shook her head. “Nothing. The Captain is just busting my balls. Come on. They’re back here.”
“Why was he busting your balls? You don’t have balls to bust. Shouldn’t he be busting someone else’s balls?” I followed her through a door that led into a room full of desks.
Instead of laughing like I had been aiming for, Mandy let out an exasperated sigh and stopped at a door that read ‘Interview Room 1.’ “Please, behave. This is my job, and I’d like to keep it.”
“I don’t know why,” I complained as I backed into the room Mandy led us to. “All you blues seem to have lost your sense of humor.”
“It happens at the academy,” a deep voice answered, and I spun around to find a middle-aged man with graying hair and a twinkle in his eye. Sitting next to him was another man, but his nightstick was shoved so far up his ass, I could see it coming out his face. Oh, wait that was just his nose.
I smiled at the two as I was ushered by Mandy to the seat opposite of them. “A humor-ectomy, huh?”
“Something like that,” the first man smiled. “I’m Captain Welling, and this is Detective O’Connor, Detective Stevenson’s partner, who I believe you already know?”
“Know?” I grinned up at her my hands clasped before me. “We go back to when gel pens were still cool.”
“Gel pens aren’t cool anymore?” Captain Welling asked, his eyes going to Mandy for confirmation. She gave a little shake of her head and then shot me a warning glare.
“Anyway, Mandy - I mean Detective Stevenson” - I grinned up at her, earning me an eye roll - “said you would like my help with a missing person case.”
“Well, yes,” Captain Welling started but was interrupted by Detective Stick Up His Butt.
“First, we have a few questions for you, regarding your background and abilities.” He used air quotes around the word abilities. Someone must have spit in his coffee this morning.
Captain Welling cleared his throat, and Detective O’Connor shifted in his seat his eyes going down to the table. Down, boy. We knew who held the leash in the room now.
“I apologize, Miss Mehr. Some of our police force are having a difficult time believing that people have gifts beyond our understanding.”
I restrained from snorting. That was an understatement. “Don’t worry about it.” I held my hand up and shook my head. “I get it all the time. Some people are just closed off to the mystical world, and that’s okay.” I offered Detective O’Connor a condescending smile. “I’m sure you are a great detective.”
Gabriel, who I hadn’t noticed coming into the room after us, appeared next to me. He took one look at the unbelieving detective and said, “His wife is divorcing him, and they’re going to have dinner tonight to sign the papers.”