Dean stood in their path, blocking the way to the exit. “You’re not leaving yet,” he said calmly.
The husband paused, looking Dean up and down. If Dean’s expression wasn’t intimidating enough, the scaly green tattoos covering his skin rippled when he crossed his arms, showing bulky muscles.
“Come on,” the husband muttered. “I don’t want trouble—”
“Look in his trunk,” I interrupted, my voice stronger. “You’ll find work gloves, duct tape, and leaf and lawn bags.”
The surrounding patrons had begun to stare at the husband. He laughed uneasily. “I don’t have to listen to this shit—”
“Plus he has an axe, a shovel, flashlights, bleach, rope, pliers, and a book on forensics,” I cut him off again. “You found out she was leaving you and you couldn’t handle it. So you were going to strangle her, pull out all her teeth, and cut off the ends of her fingers so even if her body was found, no one would be able to identify her.”
He looked stunned. Jackie began to shake while tears spurted from her eyes. “Phil, is—is that true?”
“No!” he thundered. “The crazy bitch is lying!”
And then he made a huge mistake and whirled around, grabbing my shoulders. Dean went to haul him back, but I was faster. The memory of experiencing everything he intended for Jackie made me merciless, and I laid my right hand on his arm, releasing the hold I had over those unwanted currents in me.
Another series of images exploded in my mind, colorless from age, but that wasn’t why I touched him. My vision dimmed as I felt the current surge from me into Phil in less than the time it took Dean to yank him away. Phil fell onto the floor, and after several blinks I saw with satisfaction that he was still convulsing. A few tourists screamed. Jackie sobbed. I felt bad about that, but a few tears now were a far better fate than what Phil had planned for her.
“What happened?” one of the unfamiliar onlookers demanded.
“He grabbed her, so she Tasered him,” Dean said gruffly.
I didn’t have a Taser, but J.D. moved in front of me, blocking that from view with his huge eight-foot frame.
Jackie recovered herself and, with shaking hands, pulled a set of car keys from Phil’s pocket. He didn’t seem to notice, being too busy twitching and pissing himself. No one stopped her as she went out to the parking lot, but Dean followed her after tossing me a grim look.
Jackie’s scream moments later made several people walk out, some throwing money on their tables, some not. Jackie must have seen that I was spot-on about what was in the trunk.
Raquel came up to me and wearily rubbed her beard. “You’re in for it now, Frankie.”
I thought she meant I had to cover the lost revenue from the tourists who were beating a hasty retreat. It was my fault that they stiffed their tabs, so I couldn’t blame Raquel, but covering those expenses was worth saving a woman’s life.
It was only later, after Jackie sobbingly explained to the police what happened, that I realized the full extent of what Raquel meant. By then, it was too late.