I Kissed a Dog

chapter 34

I swallowed the urge to cry as my eyes adjusted to the near nonexistent lighting in Joshua Smart’s room. The fact that his living space was well-furnished and immaculate couldn’t conceal its cell-like atmosphere.

But it wasn’t the surroundings that prompted my tears, it was the boy.

Imagining him as a laughing, energetic, baseball player was no longer possible. He resembled a ghost, trapped in a human shell, unable to escape his anguish. His eyes were glazed and unseeing, yet, at the same time, seemed glued to an empty chair below the room’s sole window, a window protected by bars.

Uneasy, I found myself staring at the chair wondering if he was envisioning someone or something seated there. My fear level amplified, pushing me closer to my own personal fright limit.

Alcuin had advised that I leave the door open. I struggled with his suggestion, but decided to compromise. I pushed the heavy door into the halfway position, allowing us privacy while leaving a quick escape route.

The boy was lost in a trance, or another dimension that I was unlikely to access in the short time we had together. If the last news reports were accurate, not even the best specialists had been able to communicate with the Smart boy.

Maybe I should have stayed in Plum Beach with Zane. At least there I’d felt semi-safe.

No. No. No. I would not allow Zane to invade my thoughts. Just thinking about him made my heart tighten. I never knew a broken heart could hurt so much.

Get a grip, Chloe! Pay attention to that boy. He needs you. Zane can take care of himself. My mental motivation did the trick, and I refocused my attention on the task at hand.

I took a seat in the chair.

During my quick appraisal of Joshua’s room, he’d not once looked away from his beloved chair. It was if he’d been waiting centuries for a very specific guest to arrive.

He’d have to settle for me.

“Hi. I’m Chloe.” I searched his face for a visual response — a twitch, blink, or movement of any kind — nothing. “I’m sorry about your dad, and I know you saw something that night, something scary. You tried to tell the police about it and they didn’t believe you, did they?” I paused, hoping for a miracle and some sign that I was correct about him knowing more than he’d first let on.

He blinked once, twice — the third time his eyes stayed opened.

They locked on me.

All I could do was stare back. I hadn’t expected him to respond, yet, here he was, clear-eyed and waiting for me to continue.

“Joshua, can you understand me?” The question slipped out before I realized how demeaning it might sound. The kid was traumatized not an idiot. “Sorry. I’m just so glad you’re okay.”

He scooted to the edge of his bed and grinned, a boy-smile that warmed my heart. I let my mask of concern drop and replaced it with my brightest smile. “It’s great to see you smile.”

Curious, he looked at me. “Chloe?”

I kept smiling, not sure where to start now that I had his undivided attention.

“You’re the first person to talk to me like you believe me. I’m not crazy like my mom thinks I am. She won’t even visit.” His gaze dropped to his lap where he twisted his hands.

“I’m sorry to hear that, and I’m sorry to rush you, but I don’t have much time. Can you tell me what you saw that night?” I doubted he needed me to verify which night I was referring to.

He looked up. “Sure. I’ll never forget it. I got home after my game. When I walked in the door, I smelled something awful. Like wet dog, urine, and a pot full of pennies.”

Blood and mutant body odor; smells I’d prefer to avoid in the future.

“Did you see a woman?” I pressed, growing more anxious about the time.

“I found my dad …” he gulped. “I guess I was in shock, because after finding him, I started to think I was in a nightmare. I thought I was dreaming.

The sliding door off dad’s bedroom was knocked out, into the backyard. When I looked, this is the weird part — I saw what looked like a wolfman from the old horror movies, and the back of a woman disappearing into the trees. She had pretty red hair. I don’t know why I noticed that. My dad’s all torn up and I’m admiring some lady’s hair.” He hung his head again.

I wasn’t sure what to say, but I couldn’t just let him shoulder all that shame. “You know shock does mess with a person’s mind. Believe me, I know. The red hair was the one pretty thing in the picture. It’s not surprising you noticed it.”

His eyes met mine and he gave me the sweetest smile. It was obvious our conversation was doing wonders for his mental health, far more than the psychiatrists and their medications had accomplished. He just needed someone to listen to his story and believe it.

Like Joshua, I understood how hard it was not to blurt out the truth to anyone willing to listen. I was also aware that if I decided to open up about my own supernatural situation, I’d be in a room just like Joshua’s in some comparable adult facility.

Society didn’t take kindly to people who spouted off about vampires, werewolves, and witches. On the other hand, vampires, werewolves, and witches didn’t appreciate blabbering humans spilling their secrets. Talk about feeling nuts with no one to tell.

“Why won’t my mom see me? She acted so weird after dad’s murder. Not sad, just strange. Like she knew I was telling the truth but didn’t want to hear it.”

I felt like kicking his mom’s ass. I’d already added finding out what her problem was to my list of things to accomplish. This kid didn’t belong here, nor did he deserve to be left alone like this.

Not used to playing the mother role, I forced myself to get up and walk the few short steps to Joshua’s bed. I surrounded his small frame with my arms. He stiffened at first, and then collapsed against me. He did what I’d expect any kid in his position to do: he cried.

For one brief moment, I considered taking him with me, but wasn’t sure that would be the safest option. If his mom was somehow involved, maybe he was better off here.

“Joshua, I want to bring you with me, but it might be best for you stay here, just for awhile. I promise I’ll get you out. Start talking with people; just don’t talk about the monster. We know it’s real, but they don’t. Eventually, they’ll see your improvement and release you.”

I didn’t know how much to say about my other worry, but I had to warn him. “If your mom asks again about what you saw, tell her it must have been a bad dream. I’m not sure you can trust her. I’m so sorry.”

I waited for more tears, surprised when he squared his shoulders. His expression turned stern, and his lips tightened into a thin line. “I already wondered about that. I’ll be careful. Don’t worry.” He patted my leg like a parent consoling a child. “Oh! I almost forgot. The night after my dad died, a funny looking guy in a weird cloak-thingy came into my room. He gave me something, a note. I couldn’t read it.”

I raised my eyebrows. The kid was intelligent, so he not being able to read didn’t add up. Then it hit me. And who’s the slow one? It’s in a foreign language, like the coins.

I tried to contain my excitement, afraid to get my hopes up. “Do you have it here?”

He was already facing a dresser in the corner. “They let me bring a couple of books and my journal. I have all kinds of notes and doodles inside. When they searched my things, they must have thought the paper was just another drawing I’d shoved in my book.” He flipped through the worn notebook. “Here!” He handed me the paper. “I hope this helps.”

“I’m sure it will. I better go. Remember, be careful. I’ll find a way to get you out of here. Now write down these names in your journal: Zane, Logan, A-l-c-u-i-n …” I spelled out. “Misty, Mack, and Michael. Only leave with one of them if I don’t come. No. One. Else.”

He nodded, his face flushed. I knew right then that he’d be okay.

“Chloe!” Alcuin hissed. “Now!”

I stuffed the paper in my back pocket and gave Joshua a quick hug, at the same time an alarm’s siren pierced the calm. A stampede of footsteps pounded in the distance, coming fast.

Without a backward glance, I rushed into the hallway, pulling the door shut. Alcuin flashed to my side and grabbed my wrist. We fazed before I could protest.

“You sure know how to push the limits, Doll.”

“Don’t call me, doll!” I quipped, relieved to find myself standing in my hotel room.

Alcuin paced to the window, pulling the curtain aside. “That was way too close. You could have been caught, killed even.”

“Killed? At a state hospital for children?” For once I thought my vampire protector was overreacting.

Dropping the curtain, he spun to face me. “You may not have noticed, but that was a pretty isolated location, and there were men with guns, big guns, not just handguns like Hall Monitor Randy was using. Some of those kids are criminally insane. I got a look inside their minds. I’m a bloodsucking vampire, and even I didn’t like what I saw.”

For once I was glad I couldn’t read human minds.

I didn’t want the responsibility of deciding what to do with criminals, children or not. Animals and a few supernatural minds were plenty for me. What bothered me was Alcuin. My never-show-emotion vampire was reaching a breakdown level. He seemed worried about my wellbeing.

“You care about a human,” I teased, shocked by this latest development.

He looked appalled. “What human might that be?”

“I think you know.”

Rather than bothering to respond, he launched into a detailed explanation of how the additional security force had uncovered the breach he’d managed to create. With no intention of returning in the near future, I wasn’t too alarmed. When it came time to free Joshua, I’d worry about the details. Until then, I had way too much on my mind — like the latest message from my new best friend — the ugly man — David.

I pulled the folded paper from my pocket and handed to Alcuin. He spent a good hour examining the letter, with no results and fewer comments. We decided it would be best for him to take it back to Plum Beach and have Rita and the others examine it. From what we could tell, it was the same ancient language engraved on the coins.

It was close to midnight when Alcuin made his usual dramatic exit, leaving me alone in the hotel room. As promised, he again pledged to keep my whereabouts private. For a brief moment, I’d considered returning with him, but was unsure how to handle the situation with Zane.

I felt angry, hurt, confused, and a ton of other unproductive and unpleasant emotions. I’d wanted time to think about accepting the mating mark, and I planned to take that time.

I was no longer sure that Zane would still want me as his mate or wife.

Luke had given me the week’s remaining days off. For the first time ever, I had nowhere I needed to be in the morning. The guys could handle things back home without me. My riff with Zane would serve as a distraction for everyone involved. Staying away for another day would give him time to cool off and focus on the latest evidence.

As far as I knew, there were no new animals on my need-to-interview list at the park, and I wanted to see my parents. I hated the way we’d left things. Going home without a personal visit would be just plain rude. The person I wanted to be rude to was Zane, and Jazmine, and Rhonda.

So I had a few bones to pick.

What twenty-four year old female didn’t have conflicts?

***