I set aside the vegetables, tossed more butter in the pans, and ladled in the eggs, not bothering to look at Mikey to see how he reacted to my words. I turned the heat down and went to check the potatoes as Luke returned.

  “She left,” he said, sauntering over to make himself another espresso. “Hopefully she doesn’t drive so pissed she wraps the car around a tree.”

  “Not likely,” I said.

  “She was pretty hot.” He looked at Mikey. “Keep that up, would you? Every time you poke pins in her, she gets closer to my bed.”

  “You wish,” Lorraine said.

  “I’ll only make her feel good,” he said. “I’m a safe space. That jackass—” He pointed at Mikey. “—spends all his time trying to make her feel small and unworthy. I just want to celebrate her.”

  “Her body, you mean,” Jen said with an eyeroll.

  “Sure. I love her body, but I love the rest of her, too.” He leveled a stoney look at Mikey. “I love her just the way she is.”

  Lorraine, Jen, and I exchanged a startled glance. Love? Did he mean that? Or was it a figure of speech? And if he did mean it, what sort of love? The kind he had for a favorite pair of shoes or piece of art? Or the real kind?

  “Maybe you should leave, too,” Luke told Mikey. “You don’t want to be involved. If you stay, you will be.”

  The other man stiffened and nodded. “I’ll call a cab.” With that, he walked out.

  “And then there were four,” Lorraine said, sipping from her cup. “How are we going to do this cat burglary?”

  I finished with the omelets and we ate, discussing our options. We had no idea where the cats were, or if they were even on the property.

  “Is there any magic you can do to find out?” Luke asked me.

  “I’ve never been able to locate things or people,” I said. “I’m sure there must be a way, but if there is, I don’t know it.”

  “Then we just have to search. When you think about it, he probably isn’t hiding them. As far as he knows, the only person who might come after them is Lydia, and there’s no way she’s getting in without him or his security finding out,” Lorraine said.

  “You make it sound like he’s using them for bait,” Jen said, cocking her head thoughtfully.

  “He could be. Think about it. He’s harassing her, stalking her, stealing from her, reporting her to the police for things she didn’t do, getting her evicted, and making her lose her jobs, but all of those only isolate her and make her desperate. If she gets desperate enough, he can swoop in and get her under his control again,” Lorraine said.

  “It’s definitely a possibility. Stacey didn’t say why she left him, or if he wanted her to go. Maybe all of this really is a ploy to lure her back. Or force her back.” I frowned. “But why would he want to have a wife who hates and fears him if he’s running for office? Wouldn’t she be a liability?”

  “She’s made accusations against him, even if no one believes them,” Luke said. “His opponent would use those to attack his campaign. The accusations become a lot less compelling if Lydia goes back to his bed and even recants and says she was just angry and wanted to hurt him or some bullshit,” Luke said. “If that’s his goal, he hasn’t got a lot of time. Not if this party is kicking off his fundraising. He’ll have to declare he’s running soon, and he needs her toeing line by then.”

  “Is it me, or is anybody else worried about what he might do to the cats?” Lorraine asked, setting her fork down, her face growing pale.

  “How do you mean?” I asked, but I was already putting the pieces together, and they weren’t pretty.

  “What if he’s holding them hostage? I know a lot of people wouldn’t sacrifice a lot for their pets, but a lot of people would.” She looked at me. “What wouldn’t you do for Ajax?”

  “I’d burn the city down,” I said without hesitation. It sounded like hyperbole, and maybe I wouldn’t actually burn the city, but I’d risk my life to save his. I knew that without a doubt.

  “These cats are all that Lydia has left. Flannery would know what they mean to her. So maybe he steals them and tells her if she doesn’t come back and tell the world she’s been an awful wife and lied, that now she wants to be the wife he deserves and blah blah blah, then he’ll kill them. Hell, he might convince her he’s serious by maiming one, or even killing it.”

  All three of us stared at her. My mouth went dry and I reached down to pet Ajax. He’d come to lay just behind my chair. He caught my mood and sat, laying his head on my lap, his liquid gaze full of love and trust.

  As far as I was concerned, Aunty Mommy had been the most evil person I knew or could imagine, but this sort of thing was next level cruel. Animals were innocent and loved unconditionally. They deserved everything wonderful in life. I’d rescued Ajax from a horrific situation where he’d been kept on a short chain, his collar chewing into his neck, his skin covered in sores. He’d been starved and scared and angry, and he’d been protecting two little girls from their homicidal father. I’d been glad when the bastard was killed. The fucker deserved it. He deserved a lot worse, and I hoped he was getting his full due in hell. But that had been casual neglect, which was awful enough. What Lorraine was talking about now was sadistic. Evil.

  “That’s….” I didn’t even have the words.

  Jen nodded. “That’s fucked up, insane, and hopefully way outside of reality.”

  “Trouble is, it makes a lot of sense,” Luke said.

  “Only if Flannery is a psychopath,” I said, hoping like fuck that he wasn’t.

  “He’s a politician. Aren’t they psychopaths by definition?” Lorraine asked. “Everything for them is about power, money, and getting more of both.”

  Her cynicism was well earned. Her own father had abandoned his family when she was young and had gone on to have a celebrated career, first as a federal judge, then as a senator. Years ago he’d guaranteed that success by forcing her mother to sign a non-disclosure agreement, saying she wouldn’t ever reveal he’d fathered Lorraine or that he’d abandoned her, and in exchange he’d give her a substantial payoff and would pay for Lorraine’s college and vet school, and he’d smooth the way in her career in any way she needed. She’d have to repay all the money if she or Lorraine ever revealed the truth. He’d gone so far as to have himself removed from her birth certificate, though how he’d done that, I had no idea. It hadn’t been legal, that’s for sure. He’d had their marriage nullified as well.

  He was now jockeying to either get on the Supreme Court, or become the Attorney General of the United States.

  Like Lorraine said: psychopath.

  “Whatever his plans, he won’t risk doing anything during his party,” I said. “We’ll just have to make sure he can’t do anything after.” I picked up the invitation and glanced at the clock. “It’s already started.”

  “We’ve got time.” Luke said, taking it from me. “The party will go on until late, no doubt with rivers of alcohol to loosen up the checkbooks. Most people will be fashionably late, anyhow.”

  “One problem,” I said. “I don’t have anything to wear. I lost my wardrobe when Garrett destroyed my apartment. I’ll have to see if I can find anything off the rack somewhere.”

  “Or…” Jen said, drawing the word out.

  I eyed her, sure I was going to hate her next words. I was so right.

  “You could raid Aunty Mommy’s closet.”

  “No,” my mouth said before my brain even got a chance to think about it.

  “You’re close enough to her size to find something, and you could probably wiggle your nose and make both the clothes and shoes fit.”

  “I’d rather go naked.”

  “That would certainly distract Flannery,” Lorraine said.

  “It would also get you tossed out,” Jen said. She glared at Luke. “And keep your mouth shut. We already know you’d support her going naked.” She turned back to me. “Up to you, but you know you’re more likely to find something at Aunty Mommy’s than at some store. You’re stuck with whatever’s open on Sunday, which is going to be the mall and Walmart.”

  I glared. I hated that she was right. I wasn’t going to say it out loud, either.

  “We might be able to help.”

  Rhi stood in the door. Her eyes were bruised looking and tired. I jumped up.

  “How are you? How’s Lindsey? Are you hungry? Sit down.”

  I ushered her to my now-empty chair, scooped up my dishes and went to make her an omelet. Ajax followed, leaning against my leg. Talk about an emotional support animal. I was supposed to be his support.

  “Lindsey’s still asleep. Lorel is staying with her.”

  “I’ll fix her something to eat and take it to her.”

  “What did you mean you might be able to help?” Lorraine asked after I introduced her.

  “Lorel and I design clothes. A lot of A-listers wear them. In fact, we’ve designed for Lydia Flannery. She’s lovely, and her husband is scum. I’d love to help her. I know we have something you could wear. We’d just have to run to our house in Sutton.”

  She hesitated, looking around at all of us and flushing when she met Luke’s admiring gaze and quickly looking away. I rolled my eyes. He was such a tomcat.

  “You’re looking for something special, aren’t you?” She sounded uncertain.

  “For a garden party,” I explained. “I need to look rich and eager to give away my money to a hungry politician.”

  “I have some things that would definitely work,” she said.

  I slid the omelet onto the plate and sprinkled some gruyere and parmesan on top, and added some of the potatoes I’d left in the warming oven. I put it down in front of her and pushed the plate of toast in her direction.

  “What would you like to drink?”

  “Tea would be good. If you have any.”

  “Luke?”

  “Pantry, left side, third shelf.”

  I opened the door. “Got a favorite?” I called to Rhi.

  “Earl Gray or Orange Pekoe.”

  I grabbed both, along with a handy diffuser and set them on the table before grabbing a cup and drawing hot water from the spigot on the espresso machine.

  “Cream or sugar?”

  “No, thank you.”

  I set the hot water down and went to get Lorel’s plate ready.

  “Should I make something for Lindsey?” I asked. “Do you think she’ll wake up soon?”

  A shrug. “I wish I knew. I’ve never seen a vision take her like this. Did you see what she did?”

  I shook my head. “I didn’t.”

  “You need to. Whatever it is, it’s for you.”

  “For me?”

  Rhi nodded. “She said you were going to need it. She said….”

  “What?”

  She looked down and took a breath and looked back at me. “She said you’re running out of time.”

  My brows stitched together. “Running out of time for what?”

  She shook her head. “I’m sorry. I don’t know. I’m hoping she’ll be able to say more when she wakes up, but she usually doesn’t remember anything.

  I grimaced. “That’s helpful.”

  “At least you’re forewarned. That’s good, right?”

  “Only if the shit doesn’t hit the fan first.” Since my stars always aligned under the influence of Murphy's Law, the shit storm was inevitable. The only real question, how bad would it be? My stomach curled with foreboding and I shuddered as a shadow wrapped around me.

  Whatever disaster was coming for me, it was going to be very bad indeed.

  Chapter Eight

  “So now we mingle,” Luke said, his hand touching bare skin at the center of my back.

  We’d arrived at Carson Flannery’s garden party closer to five than four. I was dressed in an elegant green dress. It wrapped my neck, and left my shoulders and back bare all the way down to just above the curve of my ass. A sexy weaving of thin strips of fabric played peek-a-boo with onlookers, while keeping the back from gaping open. Made of silk charmeuse, it flowed over my body to a couple inches above my knees, giving it a semi-conservative appearance, instantly belied by the slit running up to the top of my thigh. Rhi had finished it off with a pair of stiletto pumps, the heel made of clear acrylic, the rest made of emerald cloth and mesh to match the dress.

  I don’t know that I’d ever looked so good. Luke’s eyes had almost bugged out of his head when he saw me, which only made me sad that he wasn’t Damon. When he rested his hand in the small of my back, I didn’t get even the slightest jolt of electricity. With Damon, I’d have been buzzing like a live wire. I set that aside to consider later.

  He still hadn’t called or even texted since the one telling me he’d landed. That should have irritated me, but the business with Lindsey made me worry instead. Her warning was so vague—something bad was coming. That could mean almost anything. Her frenetic activities last night had only increased my uneasiness.

  I was starting to feel like I was standing blindfolded on the railroad tracks and it was only a matter of time before a train mowed me down. My skin itched with a constant warning, but I had no idea what to do. How did I protect myself from an unknown problem so vaguely defined as...something bad?

  “Beck?”

  Luke’s voice called me back to the present. We were walking along a stone path, the afternoon sun gleaming through the canopy of leaves shading us.

  “What?”

  “Are you alright?”

  “Just wondering how Lorraine and Jen are doing.” My phone gave off a scroll of musical notes. Stacey. I pulled the cell out of my clutch and answered.

  “What’s up?”

  “Lydia’s gone.”

  “Gone?” I echoed, the foreboding in my stomach twisting tighter. “Where? When?”

  “We went shopping and stopped to eat. She got a call and went outside. She never came back. I went to look for her and her car was gone.”

  “Where are you?”

  “I called an Uber. I’m on my way to the party.”

  I nodded. “I’ll have Luke meet you and escort you inside.”

  “I’ve got a bad feeling about this, Beck. She wouldn’t have just left without telling me. She must have had a good reason.”

  “You mean Flannery.”

  “I don’t know. I didn’t tell her you were going after the cats at all, much less today. I wanted her to be totally surprised if and when the cops questioned her.” The worry in her voice was palpable. “What if Flannery threatened to hurt the kitties unless she came to see him? By making her take her car, he could claim she came of her own free will.”

  “We’re here at Flannery’s party. I’ll look for her.”

  “What if he had someone kidnap her? She could be anywhere.” Stacey’s voice pinched off like she was trying not to panic.

  “We’ll find her. Let Luke know when you get here.”

  After I hung up, I explained the situation to Luke, while texting Jen and Lorraine to keep their eyes open. My glamour had worked exactly as I’d planned. Luke and I had been stopped by security to check our invitation, and Jen and Lorraine had walked in on our heels with no questions asked. They might as well have been invisible.

  Once inside, they’d gone in search of the cats, and we’d headed for the pavilion, which was really just an oversized gazebo. Really oversized. A band played off to the side of the central dance floor. On the other side was one of several bars. Seating areas had been situated in shady spots. Water ran along a carefully constructed course, tinkling over small waterfalls and flowing into a fish pond and then out to wind through the vast yard. Flowers bloomed, battling with the scents of food.

  The catering was set up on a patio, with tables scattered over the lawn. Clusters of people stood about chatting, and a few danced.

  “I hate these things,” Luke said softly as he collected a glass of white wine and a scotch and water from the bar. He handed me the wine glass. “What do you want to do now?”

  “Meet Flannery.” I couldn’t help smiling. It wasn’t friendly. I had a plan for Flannery, but to implement it, I needed to touch him. I hadn’t told anybody else my plan, but the asshole had a lifetime of unexpected misery coming.

  “He’s over there.” Luke motioned with his chin. “Talking to Gloria Machado.”

  “I know her. I’ve sold her some furniture and jewelry before.” I started across the lawn.

  Gloria was a force of nature. Somewhere in her seventies, she was vigorous, outspoken, and didn’t take crap from anybody. She dyed her hair scarlet and wore masculine clothing, usually with a vest and tie. She came from one of the oldest families in the state, and had money to burn. Seeing her here didn’t surprise me at all.

  As I drew closer, I examined Carson Flannery. I guessed he was in his mid-thirties. He had the look of someone who cared a lot for their appearance. It never hurt to be good looking when running for office.

  He wore gray pants and jacket, a white shirt, and wingtips. His hair was a light brown and had enough product in it to protect it from a hurricane. He had a casual Cary Grant air about him. It made him seem debonair and world-wise, while at the same time, he seemed entranced by everything Gloria said.

  His appearance didn’t match up with the stories of what he’d done to Lydia, but abusers had a knack for disguises. An ambitious man like him would hide all his viciousness and ruthlessness behind a genial mask, while doing whatever necessary to climb the political ladder, making all the money he could along the way.

  He looked up as we approached and I saw a flicker of annoyance cross his face, no doubt because we were interrupting his sales pitch with Gloria. That meant he didn’t recognize Luke or me. Since I hadn’t been invited, not knowing me made sense, but Luke was his neighbor and equaled Gloria in wealth. Thanks to Aunty Mommy, I probably had more money than both of them put together, but I’d just as soon not advertise that fact. Not that I had a choice. My guess was he had handlers in his ear telling him everything he needed to know about whoever he was talking to, so he could appear suave and knowledgeable and therefore a good candidate for state senate. He'd probably have our shoe sizes within a minute.