Chapter 20

"Molly's favorites are adventure stories," I said two days later. Linc eyed the little ghost sitting on my bed. I patted a stack of books on my bedside table. "She stops by most nights."

He nodded.

"And we sometimes use the Ouija board. It's the easiest way for her to communicate more complex ideas." I added the board to the pile I was leaving with him.

"Uh-huh." He continued to stare.

Molly ducked her head.

I threw a pile of jeans into a duffle bag. Today I'd return to my alpha. Couldn't wait to sleep in my own bed.

"Linc, you're making her uncomfortable." I patted him on the back. "She's just a little girl who happens to be a ghost."

He tore his gaze away from her and scanned the room. "I-I knew the Lord Baltimore was supposed to have ghosts, but she's the first one I've seen."

"Yeah, the others don't show themselves much. Heard another popped into Jagger's bathroom once while he was showering. Scared the shit out of him." I chuckled. "Would have paid good money to see him howl."

Linc gave me an uncertain smile.

"And Molly seems to have foresight. She's warned me more than once when someone with ill intent entered the hotel."

"That's . . . good." Linc sat on the edge of the bed. Molly slid over until they were sitting side-by-side. They examined each other. Linc's shoulders relaxed. Excellent.

I continued packing. Molly pointed to me and made the heart sign and pretended to howl. Linc laughed. I glared at them both. They'd get along fine.

I checked my phone. Nothing from Michael. He'd left early this morning to meet with Tommy. Not sure about what. I thought maybe he'd come back and head home with me, though. The last two days, we'd hardly seen each other. Between endless calls about Sally DeSantos, her car, the shades, and explaining everything to the teens' parents, there'd been no time to sort out our own stuff. We were both relieved of bodyguard duty, so we didn't even have that.

A knock. Molly disappeared in a blink. Linc startled, too. I rushed to the door, tugging it open.

Kennedy.

My disappointment must have been obvious because she huffed. "Happy to see you, too."

I pasted on a grin. "Aww, I always enjoy seeing you."

She pushed past me, her lips twitching, but not gracing me with a smile. "How's the arm?"

I wiggled my fingers. "Healed."

Linc hopped to his feet. "Uh, I should go back to work. I can—"

"Get some sleep." Kennedy crossed her arms. "You look like crap. You've given me what I need, so I expect you to rest until tomorrow morning."

He sputtered, no actual words coming out. Finally, he nodded, scooped up the books and Ouija board.

"I'll take good care of these." Linc leaned into me.

"If you have free time next weekend, let's get together for a beer." I caught him in a one-armed hug.

"Sounds great!" Linc looked wistful and smiled at me. "Good luck with Michael."

I gave him another squeeze. "Thanks."

Linc hurried from the room, and Kennedy closed the door behind him, then propped her back against it.

"So, bet you wonder why I'm sending you home."

"I figured Poe freaked out and demanded I return." Since my alpha was her closest friend, he was one of the few people she didn't say no to.

She snorted. "Well, there was that. Something about revoking best friend privileges. But no, that wasn't the deciding factor. With Ike and Jagger coming onboard permanently, I'm sending you packing. They have my back. And with all the information the shades are . . . providing, I'm confident I can handle the issue in due time."

Fortunately, neither Michael nor I had anything to do with the captives. I saw a guard leave the cells after Kennedy had "met" with the shades. A seasoned soldier, he looked green around the gills, so, yeah, relieved not to be involved.

"You sure?" I wanted to go home, but I'd signed on to stay as long as she needed me.

"Positive. You and Michael need to get on with your lives." Her pointed look told me she knew very well it would be together.

I shrugged. "We'll see how that goes."

"I wouldn't worry. You're well matched. Took you both long enough to figure it out. You ravens are really dense."

I knew she referred not only to me but also to Poe. She'd given my alpha a stern talking to when he'd tried to sabotage his relationship with Tommy Tittoti.

"We're cautious," I argued, tossing the rest of my clothes in a bag.

She snorted. "Sure."

Time for another topic. "So, what's the deal with the shades? You've been tight-lipped."

She sighed, sounding annoyed.

"Sometimes my past comes knocking. Unfortunately, for them, I answered."

"They're mercenaries, right?"

"Were."

"Who hired them?"

"No one you need to concern yourself with."

Okay, topic closed. Got it. I zipped my duffle. Seemed weird I'd lived with so few of my things for the last weeks. Made me miss home. But I'd also miss this. A little.

"And Sally?" I asked.

"She connected the dots and, unfortunately, her digging cost her her life. The shades weren't ready to move on me fully, and wouldn't have, if those kids hadn't made off with her car."

"Leave it to ravens," I joked.

"I've let the other Rogers know Sally died a hero, and there will be a service next week to celebrate her life and accomplishments." Kennedy pushed away from the door. She slid into my arms and pressed against me. "Thanks for having my back. Means a lot to me."

I wrapped her even tighter and gave her a good squeeze. "You got it."

She stepped away. "Go home, Abe."

So, I did.