Page 74 of Tempt Me

I furrowed a brow. “Funeral Director?”

Micah shook his head, clapping me on the shoulder. He gained some baby weight with his little rugrat and husband’s life. His beard was thicker, too. The usual clean-cut Micah Quinn was a bonafide family man with a growing dad bod to top it off.

His little family had all moved to our little hell town in Texas ever since his past collided with his present.

Now, they all sang Kumba-Fucking-Ya together.

“Don’t you ever read the paper? You are surrounded by teenagers all day, yet don’t keep up with the gossip. I guess I commend you,” Quinn said, chuckling.

“I happen to like keeping my fucking nose out of everyone’s business but my own thanks,” I retorted.

Quinn laughed harder.

“Yeah, okay then. The ‘Funeral Director’ is the new serial killer. They always leave their victims laid out on display. Hands on their chest. Eyes open, on their backs.”

As he was talking, Xenia appeared.

My heartbeat quickened with my memory of her laying on that bed in that pose…

Xenia giggled, twirling her dress.

“You almost found me, Daddy! Keep looking.”

“You okay, Masters?” Quinn was holding my arm, his body keeping me from landing on my ass.

“I…” I shook my head. “No, man. No.”

Quinn frowned, giving my arm a squeeze. “Talk to me, Pharaoh. I’m here.”

I tried to find the words, my mind tingling with the images plaguing my thoughts with Xenia. Her image danced around me, hiding behind trees and running with her freshly picked sunflowers like I was chasing after her.

Her ghostly form was overly vibrant.

“I found…I found Xenia like that, Micah,” I said numbly.

Micah’s baby blue eyes widened before he composed himself in his soldier way—his own mask. He cleared his throat, pulling a pen and pad of paper out of his pocket.

“Pharaoh, tell me exactly how you found her. I know this is hard. I am sorry to ask, but if her…passing has anything to do with this new threat, that would mean…”

“Joe didn’t kill her. He was already dead when she was being murdered, wasn’t he?”

Quinn was silent. That was in itself an answer and the one I needed to shatter the thin veil of my world.

My daughter’s killer…was alive.

Twenty Seven

Sensation: Touch, taste, smell, hear, and see.

How long could I deny what I could feel?

Sensing Pharaoh, seeing him from the corner of my eye as I spoke to the cop in front of me was…nope. I wasn’t going to look at the professor. Glancing his way was not an option. I needed to get home. Ferdinand would wake up soon, and if I wasn’t home when he came to fetch me…

My eyes drifted toward Pharaoh. No matter how hard I tried to stay away from this man—I couldn’t help it. If I was being honest with myself, he had my sole focus.

He was standing in the distance next to a blonde haired cop. He seemed to be in charge from how he talked to Pharaoh.

The professor swayed—oh god. My body leaned toward him, but I forced myself to stand still because the cop grabbed onto his big body.

---