“Oh.” I dropped his hand and scooted back toward the arm of the sofa. What had Neely Kate told me about auras? “Your aura is a light greenish-blue. It means you’re loyal to Skeeter . . . a loyalty that will be rewarded.”
He gave me a leer and slid closer, reaching for my hand again. “I’d like to prove my loyalty to you.”
But before he could finish his sentence, Jed grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet. “Skeeter would prefer for you to save your loyalty for him.”
Panic washed over Seth’s face. “But she works for him. I’m loyal to ’em both.”
Jed pulled him to the door. “She works with Skeeter, not for, and you best not forget that.”
“I didn’t mean nothing by it. I swear.”
“I know, Seth. I won’t mention it to Skeeter, but for the record, he considers her his, if you know what I mean.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean—”
Jed opened the door and pushed Seth out before closing it without another word to the man. “Did you have two visions?” he asked me.
I nodded. “One to see if he was part of the plot to kill Mason and the other to see if he was going to betray Skeeter.”
He chuckled. “And you saw a hot dog?”
“No. I saw absolutely nothing the second time around, just gray haze. I kind of got stuck in it, so I decided to think about what he’s going to have for lunch tomorrow.”
“What about the lawn mowing?”
“I think his wife was nagging him to mow the lawn, but some guy next to him asked if he knew about what happened to Billy Jack.”
“Who?”
“Neely Kate’s cousin’s boyfriend.”
“The girl who’s missing?”
“Yeah. He sound familiar?”
He pressed his lips together and shook his head. “Nope, don’t know him.”
Billy Jack could have something to do with whoever was after Mason. Was Dolly’s disappearance related to it too? Maybe she and Nikko had uncovered the plot?
I’d have to puzzle it out later. Another man was about to walk through the door. “Are there any questions I didn’t ask that I should have?”
“Nope, you’re a natural.”
I wished I felt like one. I spent the next twenty minutes interviewing the next three men. I’d forced two visions with each, and none of them were involved in either Mason’s attack or the betrayal of Skeeter. Instead, I found out what all three of them were getting for Christmas—the question I asked in a panic when I got stuck in the gray haze after asking about Mason—and I knew what they would have for lunch the next day. By the time the last of them left, my head was pounding.
I pressed my hand to my temple. “Can I get a glass of water? And maybe some ibuprofen?”
Jed picked up my glass. “Does your head hurt? How often have you done this sort of thing?”
“I’ve never had this many visions in such a short time period, let alone forced ones.”
“Maybe you should just have one vision each for the rest of these guys.” He went into the bathroom that was connected to the room and came back with a glass of water and two tablets. He handed them to me, worry in his eyes.
I swallowed the tablets and put my glass on the table. “I need to figure out how to combine the questions. Maybe I’ll try it with the next guy. How many are left?”
“Seven.”
My stomach rolled at the thought. “One at a time, right?”
“You can stop any time you need to.”
I shook my head and instantly regretted it. “I can’t. I’ll be fine. I was too nervous to eat much for dinner. I’m sure that hasn’t helped.”
Jed studied me as a knock came at the door. He walked over to peek through the peephole, then turned to me. “Good thing you took that medicine.”
He opened the door and the suspicious bearded guy from the meeting barreled in. Bear Stevens. He didn’t look the least bit happy to there. “This is a fucking waste of my time,” he said without any preliminaries.
My back stiffened, and I struggled to keep my breath even. I’d known I’d face resistance from some of them, but I still wasn’t prepared for his reaction. I suspected I’d see something with him, and I had no idea how he’d react when I did.
“Bear, have a seat,” Jed said, motioning toward me.
All four of the previous men had sat on the sofa beside me, but Bear sat in the chair that Jed had occupied. I wasn’t surprised, but I knew it would be tricky to find an excuse to touch him . . . one that wouldn’t put me in personal danger.
“Thank you for sparing a few moments of your time, Bear,” I said, crossing my legs and placing my hands on my knees. Thankfully, my voice didn’t betray my fear. “What do you do for Skeeter?”
Jed sat in the chair diagonally across from me, and Bear turned his attention to him rather than looking at me. “Why do you want me to waste my time telling this bitch what I do for Skeeter?”
Jed gripped the arms of the chair, his knuckles turning white. “You will treat Lady with respect.”
“Lady,” the burly man sneered. “What kind of name is that?”
“If you feel like comparing names, Mr. Bear,” I said calmly, surprised at the authority I mustered, “then let’s compare what our given names are. Would you like to start first?”