Page 13 of A Touch of Murder
"Anytime." She smiled.
"I'll meet you there," Adam told Barret, giving him a chance to talk to his sister alone, and himself a chance to mentally prepare to read that bracelet again and feel the fear that Trina had felt when it had been forced from her wrist.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Barret said goodbye to Becky and promised to come over for dinner one night when things slowed down. He was glad he'd dropped in the bakery early. He'd been nervous about talking to Adam again, but having him there in a neutral environment helped ease his worries. He was slowly coming to understand what Adam did, though he still struggled to believe it was possible. The thing was, he didn't have any other explanation for the things he'd seen and heard over the last few days.
He stopped by his car to grab the evidence bag with Trina's bracelet. He hadn't wanted to touch it and leave his impression on it should Adam really be able to read it. He still didn't know how the evidence team had missed it in her car, but like many other items, they'd probably thought it was just something she'd kept in the car, not something she'd been wearing at the time of her attack.
As he made his way over to Adam's store, he thought about what he'd said about growing up with having to wear gloves all the time. Barret couldn't imagine having to always be careful what he touched, let alone having people stare all the time because he was wearing gloves in places they usually weren't worn. He imagined Adam was right and being a teen wasn't easy. He felt a bit of sympathy for the man, but he also felt admiration that the man had managed to find a career that worked for him. Even if that career still seemed a bit kooky to Barret.
He opened the door and saw Jacey Bills at the desk. He knew the kid and his family and had grown up with several of Jacey's brothers and sisters. "Hey, Jacey. How goes it?"
Jacey grinned. "Barret, good to see you. Sorry I missed you the other day. I hear it was an interesting day. I always miss the good stuff."
Barret hoped he was talking about what had gone on with Mrs. Anderson and not what happened later in Adam's apartment. One thing about Adam was that Barret trusted him when he said he would keep things confidential. "Just came in with a question. Didn't expect to make an arrest because of it. But I'm glad we got him off the streets."
"Me too. The guy always gave me the creeps. I know Macy had to call a tow truck about a week ago and that was the driver. Macy said she was glad she had Keith with her, or she wouldn't have gotten out of her car to talk to the guy." Jacey stood up. "Adam will be right out. He just needed a minute. He told me you were going to have help with Trina's case again. Any leads?"
Barret wasn't sure if Jacey had been there for the first reading and knew that Trina was dead. He wasn't going to be the one to start the whole town talking about it. He'd leave it up to Trina's parents to announce her death. "Nothing I can talk about. I'm hoping Adam can help."
"If anyone can, it's him." Jacey nodded toward the coffee pot. "Want a cup to take in there with you while he reads?"
"I won't say no to coffee," Barret told him. "I just came from the bakery, but I could use another cup."
"It won't be anywhere as good as Becky's coffee, but it will help keep you awake." Jacey poured him a cup. "Cream or sugar?"
"Black is good." He took the cup Jacey handed him just as Adam walked out from his office.
"Come on back, Barret. Let's see what we can find out." Adam stepped aside and allowed Barret into his office.
Barret wasn't sure what he expected. Maybe some dangling beads, some psychedelic artwork, or metaphysical imagery. The office had none of that. It had a simple desk in one corner that was piled with papers and boxes, and in the other corner sat a small table, large enough to seat four.
"Have a seat at the table. I just need to grab some water and a candy bar to have close by." Adam opened a small fridge that had been nearly hidden behind Adam's desk.
"What does the water and chocolate do?" Barret asked, honestly curious.
"Sometimes readings tire me quickly and I always feel dehydrated after one. I'm not sure why it happens, but I've learned through the years that I can drink several bottles of water after a single reading and that sugar helps take away the shaky feeling I get afterwords. It's not blood sugar issues. I've checked that, but for some reason, sugar helps. Without it, I will want a nap and sometimes sleep for hours. Hershey is just my favorite."
"Odd." Barret took a seat at the table.
"Very, but it's just another thing about my ability that I have accepted. At first, this was back when I was preteen, my mom thought my blood sugar would drop after I touched something, but we got a glucose tester and my levels stayed the same. I've tried other healthier options like fruit, but I don't recover as quickly with that. Seems chocolate helps more than anything else I've found."
"Would you pass out without having it?"
"No, I'd just be sluggish and tired, but I do readings quite a bit when I don't have stuff on hand and am fine. Usually, it's the water I crave most. Again, not sure why I get the dehydrated feeling." Adam set two water bottles on the table, and two candy bars beside them. "Okay, since you heard my initial reading with Wilsons, you know I felt Trina's fear, saw a bit of a struggle inside her car as she lost the bracelet, but didn't get much else to help know who attacked her."
"I'm curious, did you see anything else? You smelled lavender with my grandmother, was there a smell with Trina? Anything you might have overlooked saying out loud to theparents that might help us." Barret was still hesitant to use Adam's skills on a police investigation, but so far, Adam had been the only one to bring them any actual leads in the case. He was willing to try anything to find who killed that girl, even if it meant putting his own doubts aside and trying something he didn't fully believe in or understand.
"I don't remember seeing anything else or even a smell. There was a large, what I assumed to be, male hand around her arm. He was pulling her out of the car, and she was fighting him. She was so scared. The bracelet fell off her arm when he pulled on it, trying to get her from the driver's seat. After that, Trina showed me her body at the morgue. I don't get visions like that often. Stuff where I see something not related to the object I'm reading. The only thing I can guess as to why I do see them when I do is somehow the person's spirit is trying to help me find them. It only happens when someone is dead. Never with the living. So don't ask me to explain it." Adam shrugged.
Barret wasn't going to let his doubts get in the way of getting answers, so he focused on what Adam said. "That was all she showed you was her at the morgue? She didn't show you how she was killed or if she had any injuries?"
"No, I didn't even see her body. I saw a body bag and a feeling telling me she was in it. I saw a medical examiner's table. It was plastic looking, tan in color, and a few medical instruments around it. Then I saw the toe tag but didn't see a name or writing on it. As I mentioned before, I can feel a different feeling, a vibration when someone is dead. The living have a faster vibrational feel to them than someone deceased," Adam told him.
"Are you willing to do another reading on the bracelet and see if you can see anything else? Focus on things you usually wouldn't, like the area around you. Her car was found in the drive-in movie theater's parking lot. She worked late. The finalmovie ended at one and she had to stay a bit longer to clean up. It was nearly two in the morning when she walked out. She'd parked in the west part of the lot and the others she worked with were on the south side. I want to know if there are other cars around her, anything on the ground outside her car if you can see that. Any reflection in her mirrors or even the windows. See if you smell something. I guess what I'm asking is to focus on everything except the object." He would take anything new to give them a direction to search.
"I'll see what I can do. You have the item?" Adam asked.
