Page 6 of Entranced
“Your friend’s a cynic,” Sebastian commented. “Cynicism can be very valuable, as well as very rude.” He started to steel himself to tell Rose he couldn’t help. He simply couldn’t open himself to the trauma and risk of looking for another lost little boy.
Mel changed everything. Just, he supposed, as she was meant to.
“I don’t consider it cynicism to recognize a charlatan masquerading as a samaritan.” Her eyes were hot when she leaned forward. “This psychic business is as phony as a ten-dollar magician in a shiny suit pulling rabbits out of his hat.”
His brow quirked. It was the only sign of interest or irritation. “Is that so?”
“A scam’s a scam, Mr. Donovan. A young child’s future is at stake, and I won’t have you playing your mumbo-jumbo games to get your name in the papers. I’m sorry, Rose.” She stood, almost vibrating with anger. “I care about you, and I care about David. I just can’t stand by and watch this guy hose you.”
“He’s my baby.” The tears Rose had been battling spilled over. “I have to know where he is. I have to know if he’s all right. If he’s scared or happy. He doesn’t even have his teddy bear.” Rose buried her face in her hands. “He doesn’t even have his teddy bear.”
Mel cursed herself, cursed her temper, cursed Sebastian Donovan, cursed the world in general. But when she knelt beside Rose, both her hands and voice were gentle.
“I’m sorry. Honey, I’m sorry. I know how scared you are. I’m scared, too. If you want Mr. Donovan to”—she almost choked on the word—“to help, then he’ll help.” She raised her furious, defiant face to Sebastian’s. “Won’t you?”
“Yes.” He nodded slowly, feeling fate take his hands. “I will.”
***
He managed to persuade Rose to drink some water and dry her eyes. While Mel stared grimly out the window,Rose took a small yellow teddy bear out of her bag.
“This is David’s. His favorite. And this …” She fumbled with a wallet-size snapshot. “This is his picture. I thought— Mrs. Ott said you might need something.”
“It helps.” He took the toy and felt a vicious pull in his gut that he recognized as Rose’s grief. He would have to go through, and beyond, that. But he didn’t look at the photograph. Not yet. “Leave it with me. I’ll be in touch.” He helped her to her feet. “You have my word. I’ll do what I can.”
“I don’t know how to thank you. For trying. Just knowing you are … Well, it gives me something else to hope for. We, Stan and me, we’ve got some money saved.”
“We’ll talk about it later.”
“Rose, wait in the car for me,” Mel said it quietly, but Sebastian could see that she was feeling anything but quiet. “I’ll pass on what information I have to Mr. Donovan. It may help him.”
“All right.” A smile ghosted around Rose’s mouth. “Thank you.”
Mel waited until Rose was out of earshot, then turned and fired. “How much do you think you can squeeze out of her for this kind of a con? She’s a waitress. Her husband’s a mechanic.”
He leaned lazily against the doorjamb. “Ms. Sutherland, does it appear I need money?”
She made another derisive sound. “No, you’ve got just buckets, don’t you? It’s all just a game for you.”
He curled his fingers around her arm with a steely strength that caught her off guard. “It’s not a game.” His voice was so low, so filled with suppressed violence, that she blinked. “What I have, what I am, is no game. And stealing children from their playpens is no game, either.”
“I won’t see her hurt again.”
“We can agree on that. If you’re so against this, why did you bring her?”
“Because she’s my friend. Because she asked me to.”
He accepted that with a slight nod. Loyalty was something else he could feel pumping out of her. “And my private number? You dug that up, as well?”
Her lip curled in something close to a sneer. “That’s my job.”
“And are you good at it?”
“Damn right.”
“Fine. I’m also good at mine, and we’re going to be working together.”
“What makes you think—?”
