8

Cope

No one was more surprised than Cope when Carson knocked on his door and said Kit Savage was asking to see him. With all of Ten's experience working with the BPD, Cope assumed his friend would have been the first psychic on Kit's list, but here he sat.

"Are you familiar with Ghost After Dark , Cope?" Kit asked, his dark eyes glowing with excitement.

Cope felt himself blush, which was completely ridiculous. This guy was a local podcast host, not Robert Downey Jr. "Not until yesterday. I've got small children at home and don't really have a lot of free time. Carson let Ten and I know you'd mentioned us during the podcast, so I listened to the first episode." He wasn't about to tell Kit that he'd also spent an hour or so last night researching the man himself, reading his Wikipedia page and searching the archives of People magazine for articles about him and the podcast. Nor was he about to divulge that he often did the same thing with RDJ.

"That's completely understandable. I don't suppose that husband of yours could wrangle little Wolf and Lizbet while you take some much-deserved time for yourself."

Cope was taken aback by the fact that this stranger knew his kids' names. He opened his mouth to say as much when Kit interrupted.

"I googled you. There were several articles about your kids and your heroic husband, who almost gave his life to catch a killer at Salem Mercy Hospital last year. That alone would make for one hell of a compelling story."

Relaxing back into his seat, Cope nodded. "Having Jude use himself as bait wasn't exactly what I had in mind when he mentioned having a plan to catch the killer. He's the sort to ask for forgiveness after the fact rather than to ask for permission at the outset." What the hell was he doing? Yes, what he'd said was the absolute truth, but this stranger didn't need to hear details of his marriage that weren't available for public consumption.

"I get it. I'm the same way. When I'm working on a new season of the podcast, I do whatever I have to do in order to uncover the story and report the facts." Kit wore a cocky grin, which reminded him of Jude.

Cope found himself studying Kit Savage. Sitting here in the small reading room, he felt like a force of nature. A whirlwind that, if Cope wasn't careful, would consume him. "Why are you interested in me, Mr. Savage?"

"Please call me Kit." He offered a smile, which Cope thought wasn't entirely sincere, reminding him of a used car salesman. "So many of my listeners have been asking me to profile a local haunting. The others I've done took place at the Eastern State Penitentiary in Pennsylvania and at the Winchester House in California, among others. The one angle I've never pursued before was having a psychic medium on the podcast. After we heard the voice of Domenica Fibonacci, I knew now was the time to bring someone on board who had more experience in the paranormal than I did. Like I said, I googled Salem psychics, and your name came up, along with your partners here at West Side Magick. You have an established reputation and a large following yourself, which makes you an ideal choice."

"What exactly are you looking for this psychic to do on the podcast?" Cope asked, wanting to leave the discussion as hypothetical as possible. He didn't know if he wanted to be a part of the project, despite Jude thinking he was ready to jump in blind to a situation that could be detrimental to his reputation.

"I want to host a live séance. Usually, my episodes are prerecorded and dropped online on specific days, but I think in this situation, it has to be live so that we can't be accused of manipulating the audio."

"What about the voice heard on the first episode? Was it real?"

"I was hoping that's what you'd be able to tell my audience." Kit offered another charming smile. "I can tell people until I'm blue in the face that the voice was real, but there will always be doubt in some people's minds until someone in your profession can validate the haunting."

Cope couldn't help but notice Kit hadn't actually answered the question. "Even with someone in my profession, it will still be difficult to get everyone to believe the voice was real."

"Maybe so, but I think someone with your charisma would be very compelling. The two of us working together could be great for both of our careers. You'll bring in more listeners for me, and I'll bring in more customers for you. Why don't you think it over and get back to me?" Kit pulled out his wallet and slid a business card across the table to Cope. "My cell number is on there as well. Call anytime. And I do mean any time!" Kit stood up.

"Hold on, don't you want me to do a reading for you?" Cope opened his gift and felt as if he'd hit up against a brick wall. Why was a simple podcaster able to block him like this?

"Why don't we save it for the podcast?" Kit offered another smile. "Call me."

Before Cope could object, Kit was out the door.

What the hell had just happened? Cope felt like he'd been swept off his feet.

A knock on his door startled Cope. "Come in, Ten."

"Hey, I just passed Kit in the store. He seemed to be in an excellent mood. Did you agree to do his podcast?" Ten stepped into the room and shut the door behind him before taking the seat Kit had just vacated.

"No, I didn't agree to anything. He offered for me to come on the podcast and hold a séance in hopes that Domenica will reveal herself."

Ten shook his head. "How do you feel about that?"

"I'm not sure. There are a lot of traps and pitfalls involved in doing this sort of reading live." Cope took a deep breath. "It's hard enough to prove what we do is real, but throw in the fact that this is only going to be heard and not seen, and that presents all sorts of room for doubt. Same goes for all the AI-related technologies and their growing list of uses."

"I totally agree with you, but this is a show about hauntings. Most of the people who subscribe are likely to be into the paranormal in the first place. It's not a 60 Minutes piece where facts are paramount."

Cope had to admit Ten had a point. "I hear you. I am interested in doing this, but this fight with Jude really has me feeling like I'm completely off-balance."

"After you stepped into your reading room with Kit, I had a little chat with Jude."

"You did?" Cope was surprised Ten would do that for him.

"I did," Ten agreed. "Jude and Ronan were so much alike when they first met, which is why I think they were like oil and water for a while. As their friendship and professional partnership has grown, they've each picked up things from each other, which makes them more alike than ever. I figured I was uniquely situated to offer some advice in this situation."

"I agree." Cope had noticed the similarities between his husband and Ronan. Not all of them were positive. "What did you talk about?"

"Jude seemed confused about what was upsetting you." Ten nibbled his bottom lip, as if he were nervous to explain the conversation.

"Why does that not surprise me?" Jude had never been good at dealing with his own feelings, never mind handling Cope's.

"He came to a very important realization."

Cope wasn't about to get his hopes up that this revelation would be life-changing. "What was that?"

"Jude realized he never asks how you feel about anything. He just tells you what's going to happen, and since you always agree, Jude never thought to question his actions."

"Wow, that is really deep." Cope meant every word. He'd noticed that tendency in Jude years ago, when he'd told Cope he was happy to fuck him but didn't want a relationship. Cope merely bided his time until Jude came to the realization that he wanted a relationship with Cope more than anything. Most of their major decisions over the years had followed a similar pattern, with Jude telling him what he wanted and Cope trying to figure out how he could live with that decision.

"I think he'll have a different attitude when you get home tonight." Ten paused, looking unsure if he should ask his next question. "What are you going to do about Kit Savage?"

"I don't know. I need to do more research on him and to hear what Jude thinks of his offer. I'll text you later and let you know what I decided. Do you want to be involved in this podcast?"

Ten shook his head. "No, thanks. I've had my fifteen minutes of fame with that Dateline episode. This is all yours if you want to take it on. Of course, I'm here to help if you need me."

"I appreciate that, Ten. Now all I have to do is figure out how to talk to Jude." It wasn't going to be as easy as it sounded to get through to his stubborn husband.

What Cope needed to do was figure out if he actually wanted to be involved. If the answer was no, then there was no real need to rock the boat.

Maybe Jude could help him make up his mind. The way to his man's heart was through his stomach. He'd make Jude's favorite meal and go from there. Having Jude on his side would mean the world to Cope. The question was if he would be willing to do this podcast without his husband's support.

Time would tell.