Unspoken (Shadow Falls: After Dark #3)(60)

You saw, Mrs. Chi repeated and then she and the basketball vanished.

Della snagged her phone, and called Burnett. It went to voice mail. “Call me,” Della said and started toward the door.

“Where are you going?” A scared Miranda popped out of the bed.

“To see Chase,” Della said, realizing they’d never gone over the vision. Maybe Chase would have an idea what Mrs. Chi’s words had meant.

“Can I come?” Miranda asked. “I don’t want to stay here with a dead cat.” Then the girl paused. “Or are you and Chase going to get naked again?”

“We weren’t naked,” Della snapped.

“If I’d been a few minutes later, you would have been.”

Della growled and wanted to deny it, but wasn’t sure it was altogether untrue. “There wasn’t a dead cat. Just a … dead … person.” Then, flinching at how that sounded, and hoping Mrs. Chi wasn’t in earshot, she added, “A sweet ol’ lady.” She flinched again. “Not that old.”

“I’m still coming.” Miranda stood up, looking around the room as if afraid something might jump out at her. “Why did I have to get stuck with two ghost-magnet roommates?”

“You’re just lucky like that,” Della said.

And so it seemed Della was lucky too, because Kylie stepped up on the porch and the witch decided not to come.





Chapter Twenty-six

The heavy-footed steps moving to his door told Chase the identity of his visitor before he got Burnett’s scent.

“Come in,” Chase said, though he doubted Burnett considered an invitation necessary.

The man stormed in. Chase didn’t waste a second. “Did you get anything from the guy Stone sent?”

“What the hell were you thinking?” Burnett thundered.

“I didn’t know Stone knew where I was!”

“I’m not talking about that! I’m talking about you going to that damn prison!”

“I was acting on some advice I got from another agent.”

Burnett stepped closer, his eyes bright with anger. “What idiot of an agent would have advised—”

“You,” Chase said, proud of himself. “You told me that to find the scum, I needed to ask other scums. The prisoners at—”

“I would have never allowed you to go alone!”

“Alone was the only way I could get in.” Chase held his shoulders tight and recalled his ammunition. “According to rule twenty-six, an agent is expected—”

“You are expected to have enough sense in your brain to know the risks.”

“I was aware of the risks,” Chase said.

“No, you weren’t. You think you’re invincible. You are young and dumb.”

“It would only be dumb if I didn’t get anything.”

Burnett scowled. “And who would have given us this lead if you hadn’t made it out?”

“I did make it out.”

“You think I haven’t seen this before? The first agent I was asked to train was nineteen. She thought nothing could touch her. She took a stupid risk and went after a killer by herself. By the time I got there, the only thing I could do was hold her hand while she died. They gave me the job of telling her mother that her daughter was dead. I refuse to have to tell another parent their kid is dead.”

I don’t have parents, Chase almost said, but caught himself. “I probably should have spoken with you. You win. I was wrong. But can we start working on my lead, now?”

“Probably?” Burnett groaned, then looked at Chase. “We’re talking about Hell’s Pit, aren’t we?”

Chase nodded, a little surprised Burnett was aware of it.

“I weighed the risk and made the decision to go,” Chase said.

Burnett exhaled. “You know what? I’m wrong. I apologize. I mean, weighing the risk is an important ability, isn’t it?”

“Yes.” Chase felt validated.

Burnett nodded. “How about we send Della in to confirm whatever lead you got? I’ll call her right now.” He pulled out his cell and started punching in a number.

Chase’s breath hitched in his chest. Burnett hadn’t dialed Della’s number, he told himself. This was a ploy.

“Della,” Burnett said. “I’m at Chase’s cabin. Can you meet me here in five minutes? We need to discuss something.”

“I’m on my way now.” Della’s voice rang out from the phone. Chase’s blood fizzed with frustration.

Burnett put the phone back in his pocket. “I want her to know the risk before she decides to do it.”

Now it was Chase’s time to grit his teeth. In his heart, he knew this was just Burnett’s way of bringing home his point. The man would never let Della go. Chase just wished the point wasn’t so damn sharp.

Burnett lifted one brow. “What’s wrong?”

Chase swallowed. “Okay. It was too risky. You win.”

Burnett ran a hand over his face then met Chase’s eyes again. “I don’t want to win! This isn’t some friggin’ game. It’s life and death. If right now I thought I could go to the FRU and get your ass tossed out, I’d do it. But no, it’s too soon, and they’d just give you to someone else. Then when you ended up dead, I’d be stuck thinking I could have saved your sorry ass if I hadn’t passed you on.”