Page 29 of Killer Knows Best

“You ready for a formal meet and greet?” I ask and she nods without hesitation. Seeing that the ride home was rife with silence, and I certainly wasn’t in the mood to make nice or make formal introductions, I think it’s time to turn things around. I clear my throat as we head their way. “Mom, this is Special Agent Fallon Baxter. Fallon, this is my mother, Sandy Stone.”

“Well, well.” Mom gives us a once-over, her gaze lingering on our clasped hands, and I can already see her gears turning. “Looks like someone’s getting cozy at the field office.” She lifts a brow and smirks. “I’m guessing she’s not in on all of your dirty laundry just yet.”

“She knows the full story,” I say flatly. “Nothing to hide here.”

“Nice to meet you,” Fallon says, holding out her hand, only to meet with empty air.

“Yeah, right,” my mother mutters. “Likewise,” she finally pushes the words through her remaining teeth. At last check, I counted five. “Any friend of Jackie’s is a friend of mine. But then, you two look like you’re more than friends. When you knock boots, do you keep the guns strapped on or?—”

“Enough,” I say, more bored than exasperated. “You’re not going to scare her away. She’s seen it all. We’re nothing new.”

“Oh hon, I’m not trying to scare you away.” She grabs Fallon’s hand and shakes it despite the fact she picked it up from her side. “Jackie has always been a storyteller. I’m just glad that he’s got someone to warm his bed at night. You know what they say, everyone needs someone—even you gun-toting lunatics that run the government.”

I nod because if Fallon didn’t get a full flavor of what my mother was capable of, she’s just been fed a spoonful the hard way.

Jet is still grinning like an idiot, oblivious to the tension. He claps his hands and rubs them together as if he’s relishing the moment.

“Let’s order some food.” He whoops as if to punctuate his enthusiasm and most likely his hunger. “Jack, you got your card on you?” Jet pulls out his phone, already eyeing the menu for the local diner.

“Yeah, sure. Go nuts,” I say, handing it over.

My mother’s eyes light up. “Oh, we’re living high on the hog now, huh?” She gives a loud whoop herself before snatching the cat off the floor and giving it a little celebratory shake—only to get a set of claws across her wrist. “Hey! That hurt,” she yelps,dropping it like a brick. “Someone shoot the darn thing, would you?”

“Misty is harmless,” Fallon says with a little laugh.

Ten bucks says she’s cheering the cat on internally.

“Misty?” My mother looks at Jet. “Was that the cat’s name? I thought her name was Pepper?”

“It’s Misty,” I say firmly, cementing the moniker that Fallon chose. Jet calls in the order and I grab a water bottle for my mother and offer one to Fallon as well, but she refuses. My mother and Jet settle on the sofa and my mother gets right to regaling him with terrifying tales from prison. “I think I’ll head to the back,” I say before turning to Fallon. “Care to join me?”

She nods, and we make our way to the back porch. It’s quiet out here, so quiet that it settles in my bones. The moon has finally decided to make an appearance, hanging low and casting a silver glow over the lake, and the air smells like pine and damp earth.

I grab a few logs and get the fire pit going. The flames crackle to life and their warmth fights off the chill almost instantly.

Fallon settles onto the cushioned sofa and I drop down next to her, watching the fire as I poke at it with a stick. For a while, neither of us says anything.

The night is still as death, save for the occasional splash from the lake. The water shimmers and glitters and it adds an enchanted appeal to what has already amounted to a haunted night.

“I don’t know what comes next,” I admit, finally breaking the silence. “With her out now…” I sigh at the thought. “It’s like waiting for the other shoe to drop. It won’t be long before she finds her way back in. If anything, she’s cyclical.”

Fallon leans in and rests her hand on my arm. “You don’t have to figure it all out tonight, Jack. We’ll deal with it one step at a time. Together.”

“Together?” I shoot her a lopsided grin as I wrap an arm around her and pull her close.

“That’s what I said.” She doesn’t hesitate to double down.

“I’ll give you some time to rethink your offer. Jet is one thing, but my mother is a whole other bag of tricks.”

“Nothing can scare me away, Stone. She can give it her best shot. And something tells me, she will. But I’m not going anywhere.”

I let her words sink in, the warmth from the fire mixing with the warmth in my chest. Maybe, for once, I’m not completely alone in this mess.

But I can’t shake the feeling that trouble is already on the horizon. I know for a fact it’s sitting in my living room.

Fallon’s lips tug at the corners as if she’s holding back a smile.

“We don’t get to choose our families,” she says. “And even if we did, I have a feeling we wouldn’t make any changes.”

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