“Why didn’t you just go to sleep then?”
“I tried, but then I started worrying, you know. I started thinking how weird . . .” He cleared his throat; shifted from one foot to the other. “So I got up and came over, just to make sure she was okay.”
“What did you do first?”
“Knocked on the front door. Called out. She didn’t answer, but— I knew she couldn’t be asleep, not after all that racket. So I tried the door.”
He flushed, looked from one of them to the other. “I’m not going to get in any trouble for that, right? I’m mean, I know her dad’s some sort of big deal.”
“A senator. But no, you won’t get in any trouble. The door was open?”
“No, locked. I almost went back to bed, but I just had this feeling. So, I went around back. To the kitchen door.”
He paused, as if struggling to speak. “That’s when I saw the mess.”
“The mess?”
“Like a tornado had gone through the kitchen, stuff everywhere. I ran back to my place and called you guys.”
“You see anyone coming or going?”
“No one.”
“You’re certain?”
“Yeah.” He shrugged. “But I wasn’t watching.”
“Thank you, Jeff.” Micki closed her notebook. “Detective Harris, do you have any—”
“Your partner left.”
She glanced sideways at the spot where Zach had stood moments before. “Where’d he go?”
“Around back.”
Micki nodded and handed Spears a card. “If you think of anything else, call me.”
He said he would, and Micki went in search of Zach.
Chapter Twenty-seven
Saturday, July 13
5:47 A.M.
Zach decided not to wait for Mick. From what the neighbor kid had said, the kitchen was ground zero. And he didn’t want an audience for his reaction to this thing. His nerve endings were crawling and he hadn’t even stepped inside.
He went around back. Like a lot of the homes in the area, this one sat on pilings. Three steps led to a small landing and the back door; through the open door, he glimpsed chaos.
He started up the steps, a pressure settling on his chest. With each step, the pressure grew stronger. It effected his ears, his equilibrium.
But he took the last step, crossed to the doorway. And stopped. Every cabinet door stood open, as did the refrigerator and freezer. Kitchen table and chairs on their sides. Bottles and jars smashed, food products spilled across the floor.
He stepped cautiously through. The physical chaos was nothing compared to the energy that swirled around him like a funnel cloud. Angry and aggressive. Like before. But bigger, More insistent. It clawed and tugged at him. Wanting in. Wanting him.
Not his physical being, he thought, head growing light. Something else. It felt as if his head was about to explode. As if—
Get out. Now!
He responded to the command without question, stumbling backward, outside. His ears popped; he dropped to the top step and brought his head between his knees. He breathed deeply—in his nose, out his mouth.
With each expelled breath, he promised himself he would not be sick. Not this time. This bastard was not going to get the best of him.
But how did he protect himself from it?
Use your light, Zach.
A woman’s voice. As clear as if she was standing behind him. He looked over his shoulder, even though he knew he’d find no one there.
His cell went off. Parker, he saw. “Yo,” he answered. “Your sense of timing’s sensational.”
“You’re at the scene.”
“You know I am. Come on in, the water’s warm.”
Parker didn’t laugh. “Feds are on their way.”
“So I heard. They know about me?”
“No. And they can’t.”
“Great.” He paused, lowered his voice. “Having my ass kicked here. I could use some help.”
“Figure it out. We need answers.”
The arrogance infuriated him. “You know more about this thing than you’re telling. Give me something, Parker. Throw me a bone.”
For a long moment, Parker was silent. “Earlier, you asked who we’re after.” He paused. “Not a who, Zach. A what.”
Before Zach could respond, Parker was gone.
Chapter Twenty-eight
Saturday, July 13
6:07 A.M.
Micki found Zach sitting on the back steps. The steps lead to the home’s secondary entrance. It stood open; she saw it led directly into the kitchen.
She returned her gaze to his face. He didn’t look good. “Who was that on the phone?”
He confirmed what she’d suspected. “Parker.”
“What’d he have to say?”
“Feds are on their way. They don’t know about me. And they can’t.”
She nodded. He sounded as off as he looked. She pointed toward the doorway. “Find anything?”
“Haven’t made it all the way in.” He paused. “Don’t know if I can.”
“The same energy?”
“Yeah. But worse.”
She cocked an eyebrow. “What does that mean?”
“More pissed off.”
She frowned. “After the way you reacted last time, I would’ve bet money it couldn’t get worse.”
“You and me both.”