Echo.
An envelope had arrived this morning containing Echo’s number inside, with a note that only had a winking emoji on it. It wasn’t from her. At first, I thought it was because Phillip knew I wasn’t done with my once house cat, but now I’m wondering if it was because he knew I’d call in that favor she owed me. She hadn’t left her number after the kiss—just punched me in the gut and walked out the door.
I opened my hand and willed the air to carry the paper with the number to me, along with my phone, staying by the woman’s side, making sure she didn’t die.
My fingers were slightly shaking as I dialed her number and waited for her voice to come through the speaker.
“Detective Cross.”
“Echo, it’s Asher. I’m calling in that favor.” I was getting straight to the point. I heard a sigh on her side, but she didn’t hang up.
“What do you want?” she grumbled, and I wanted to laugh at her anti-enthusiasm, but considering the circumstances I held it back.
“I’ve got a woman dying in my bar. She was cut up bad, no clue what fucking happened. I’ve healed her, so she isn’t bleeding anymore, but she already lost a lot of blood. It’s like someone was trying to blood-let her or something. She had two big-ass slices in her back. Shit, I know I should call 911, but someone dying in my bar would literally kill business.”
I felt like shit saying that, but business had been off and on lately, and this would be the nail on the coffin for the bar on the off side. Someone being murdered in the bar? No witnesses? Shit, I would be the first suspect!
Echo hadn’t said anything for a few seconds, and I wondered if she was still on the line.
“Echo?”
“I’m on my way,” she said softly and hung up the phone.
“I’ll be right back; you are safe now,” I told the woman and then raced upstairs to grab a shirt for her, because the one she’d been wearing was shit now. Once Echo was here, she could help me get it on the woman.
I was back down in a flash, just talking to her, keeping her awake, and calm.
Echo showed up about ten minutes after my call and walked in with a look of horror on her face. Her tanned skin was unnaturally pale, and I worried she was going to faint.
“Help me get her in this shirt; the one she was wearing is all torn and bloody,” I demanded. I looked the woman in the eye and told her exactly what we were going to do. She gave me a weak nod. Then I helped her get up, holding her body as best as I could without touching anything inappropriate. Echo was subtly shaking as she walked over and grabbed the shirt.
We managed to get her clothed, but the woman was so weak.
“She needs blood. We have to take her to the hospital,” Echo stated, and I looked at her with a grim face. I knew she was right.
“Sweetheart, I just realized I never got your name.” I scooped up the woman and held her in my arms, resting her head on my chest.
“Lisa.” She whispered so low I strained to hear. We were running out of time.
“Let’s go.” Echo was right behind me as I walked out of the bar. With a quick finger flick toward the door, it locked.
“Handy,” Echo murmured and walked over to an all-black classic Camaro, then opened the door for me to put Lisa in.
“A girl after my own heart.”
Little did she know I too was a fan of old muscle cars.
In fact, in the parking lot behind the bar was my very own version of her car—but mine is red. Built it from a rust bucket to the perfection it was now. The pro section of the Echo-and-me list just kept on growing.
She drove us to the hospital without much delay; people weren’t really out and about this late on a Wednesday.
“What are we going to tell them? Can’t exactly say she was sliced open, and I healed her. I don’t want that kind of attention,” I told her, and truly I didn’t. Something like this would attract the attention of my coven, and I was happy with them doing their thing and me doing mine.
“I know a girl that works there. She’s helped me out on a few occasions.” Echo pulled into the parking lot, and we got the girl out. I carried her into the hospital, ready for whatever fate had planned for me tonight.
Chapter Eight
Echo
I didn’t even talk to the nurses as we entered the emergency room. I simply requested Esme come to meet us, and while the woman at the desk gave me a stern look that would have probably frightened many people, she paged Esme to the floor.
We’d met when I’d been shot, and the chief forced me to go to the hospital. She was kind and knew about my powers but didn’t care. She was nice to people like me and had no quarrels with working with them. Anytime I had an issue that needed medical care, she was the one I trusted. So, in this situation, with a magical element to it, she was our girl.
I peeked a glance at Asher, who was standing to my right, holding Lisa in his arms easily.
At first, when he said his name on the phone, I thought he was calling in a favor for something way different. I’d thought about his kiss a few times when the silence surrounded me at night. I had been taken by surprise by his lips touching mine, then there was a low-running current of electricity moving between our connection. It was strange but somehow comforting. Then it hit me, everything that had happened, and I was in a bitchy mood, so I pulled back and punched him. Just a tap, with only ten percent of my strength, against his muscular gut, but he got the point. Then I left. I really didn’t think he would call me after that, but he did.
My eyes moved from him down to Lisa.
The M.O. was the same.
My legs had given out on me at the apartment when Asher started describing what happened to Lisa. It was the same as my mom. I didn’t want to believe it. That nightmare had been so long ago, tucked neatly away in my past.
Until now.
Whoever had murdered my parents was back.
“Echo. What did we injure this time?” A sweet voice spoke to me from our left. Esme had a tall frame, with her reddish-brown hair tied up in a messy knot on her head, wisps of it framing her elfish face.
“Not me this time, but I have a special patient for you.” I nodded my head toward Asher and Lisa. The smile on her face fell, then her expression turned very serious.
“This way, please.”
We followed behind her to a private room where Asher laid Lisa on the paper-covered table.
“What happened? I need all the details you can possibly give me,” she demanded as she started looking over Lisa with the normal routine while Asher gave her a rundown of what happened.
“She needs blood. I’m going to go grab some, and then we will get her all taken care of. You did a good job sealing up the wounds.” She complimented Asher then went to get blood for Lisa. She wasn’t gone long and came back with a bag and an IV stand.
We sat back and let Esme get to work. Lisa fell asleep shortly after the first bag was done, and Esme assured us that she was going to be fine.
“She’s going to be okay, really. Why don’t you go home and rest? I’ll give you a call later and give you an update.”
I wasn’t ready to go yet, but I did want to leave the room for a bit. I needed space from the past that was threatening to take over my head.
“Come on, Snow White, let’s go get some coffee.” Asher lightly touched my arm and guided me out of the room. It took a few minutes of walking in a mindless stupor to realize he called me by my cat name.
“I’m not Snow White!” I jerked my arm away from his and looked at his face. He had a smug smile going on.
“I’m aware, but it got that feisty Echo back instead of the ghost that showed up at the bar and never left.” He walked over to a table and pulled out a chair for me to sit in.