I sat at the island counter in the spacious kitchen. Parker's family home was a modern-themed estate. Maddie fixed a coffee pot while Harper talked with her husband on the phone. Henry Blaine managed a wealthy hedge fund group that operated out of New York and Washington, D.C. I watched the ginger vixen pace back and forth as it sounded like she was in a little argument. I couldn't blame her, but neither could I blame Henry. His work required him to be in D.C. most of the time. Knowing him, he'd drop what he was doing right now and be on the first flight here or drive himself. Maddie sat a mug of black coffee in front of me. She sat down across from me, sipping the cappuccino she'd made for herself. Her demeanor was off, and that was weird. She seemed scared and on edge. Despite having a spacious home, she was adamant that the girls all slept in the same room. The one down the hall from hers. I got the sense she wanted Harper to sleep in her room too. As shy as Maddie was, I knew her really well. Something was bothering her. I took a long sip from the mug of coffee.
"Listen, I don't know how to say this, Maddie," I said. "It's about Parker…," I added, but Maddie cut me off.
"Parker is dead, right?" Maddie said weakly.
A sharp gasp came from Harper. She'd just got off the phone. I could see the tears forming in her eyes as her face turned a bright red, matching her hair. Maddie was tearing up as well, on the verge of breaking down. The truth was out now, and there was no going back. Parker wasn't coming back. That was the reality of the situation now. Harper stumbled to the island counter, nearly falling over. I caught her before she missed the counter. I sit her down beside Maddie and hug them both. It took everything either woman had to keep their sobs from reaching upstairs to the third floor. I held the urge to burst into tears myself. The two women cried deeply into my shoulders. I just let them as there wasn't anything else to say. Maddie pulls back, her face as red as Harper's hair. Her blue eyes were full of fear more than grief.
"Parker…," Maddie said, between crying. "He said to leave the city if anything happened to him. Go to our vacation home out in Upstate New York. That was the last thing he said to me. We'd just bought that property before our vacation," Maddie revealed.
"Why did he say that? Was someone threatening him?" I asked.
"No, he just has been acting strange the last few weeks. Taking on fewer clients since he got that letter from someone he served with," Maddie said.
"What letter?" I countered.
"I don't know; it came a few months ago. Parker burnt it in the fireplace in his study right in front of me. Since then, he's been researching and taking random trips for days on end," Maddie explained.
"Wait, didn't Henry go on one of those trips a few times?" Harper asked.
"He did, yes. I thought it was just some guy thing until I saw them arguing after one of those trips," Maddie said.
"Did Henry say anything about these trips?" I questioned.
The detective in me was in full swing. I made mental notes of every piece of information they gave me.
"Henry only said that he'd become interested in missing person cases. He told me Parker was helping him," Harper said. "I mean, I understand where he was coming from. He lost a childhood friend and his older brother that way," she explained.
I recall him saying something about that soon after I met him. Due to me being a police detective, he'd wanted my opinion on the matter. I gave him as much information on the subject as I could. Now that I think about it, Parker mentioned something about a client having a family member go missing recently. He asked me to look into it. All I learned is the family member has yet to be found. My mind goes back to the new report from this morning and the radio chatter. 'Missing person cases have increased dramatically in the last year and a half.'
"I need to talk to Henry," I said.
"Well, he's traveling on business. I tried to get him to come home," Harper said.
'Boom!'
Harper and Maddie jump into my arms instinctively as the kitchen goes dark. The house is pitch black now. I pull out my flashlight.
"Do you have any flashlights?" I asked.
"Um, yes, right here in the cabinets," Maddie said.
I shine my light to aid her while she retrieves two pairs of flashlights. "Go get the girls and bring them downstairs. I'll take a look at the breaker. Where is it?" I instructed.
"It's in the basement. In the far-left corner of the basement," Maddie answered.
I shine a light on the two women who disappear into the dark foyer. My mind wandered momentarily to the sultry sway of their hips as they walked away. Sighing as I wondered why I was thinking about something like that after I watched Parker die. 'Maybe I'm desensitized or just a damn scumbag.' The door to the basement was beside the entrance to the garbage. I open the door, peering down the stairs to a black void. The stairs creak as I descend down. Various boxes and furniture are neatly boxed away. The air temperature sharply drops as I find my way to the back.
'Buzz… Buzz… Buzz!!
The sound of my cellular phone startled me. I pull it out and recognize Rachael's number.
"Hey, I heard about what happened. You, okay?" Rachael asked.
"I'm good…," I replied.
"You're good, huh?? Sounds like you're lying. You know it's okay to grieve for a close friend," Rachael said.
"Trust me, I'm fine…," I countered.
"Now, that's not the partner I know. What have you done with Edward, and who are you?" Rachael snapped.
Kyle's unique sense of humor caused me to laugh a little. That all changed when I saw the breaker. The wall and breaker box were charred to the point a gaping hole was in the wall. At least as tall as I was. The exposed dirt burned so severely that parts looked like big chunks of glass. My back stiffened as I put my earbuds and phone in my pocket. As I drew my pistol, a sound came from above. Reflectively, I point my gun up toward the sound. A blur darts at me at inhuman speed. Muscle memory lets me get a few bursts off before I hit the wall hard, collapsing to the floor. The wind nearly knocked me out.
"What the hell was that?" Rachael yelled over the phone.
I catch another glimpse of the shadowy figure in the light of my dropped flashlight. Without thinking, I empty my magazine. The figure climbs all over the wall and ceiling before finally miraculously squeezing through a small window at ground level.
"Edward!" Kyle cried again.
"Shit, there was something down here! I couldn't tell what, but it charged me. What the fuck is going on here!" I snapped. "I gotta go; Harper and Maddie are with the girls upstairs. They might be in danger!" I added.
"I'm calling in backup!" Rachael stated.
The call abruptly ended as I stood up. Whatever that was, it hit me hard, even with me being as tall and built as I was. That thing had to possess incredible strength. I waste no time racing up the stairs. My thoughts were on the women in the house. I burst through the basement door, coming face to face with a bright light in my eyes and the barrel of two 12-gauge shotguns. Harper and Maddie instantly lowered the powerful difference makers. The girls were right behind them. That was good; they needed to get out of the house. A loud crash came from somewhere upstairs. I gave Harper the keys to the SUV.
"Get in the cruiser, and don't stop until you get to Thomas's precinct!" I ordered.
Thomas's precinct was the closest to them, and I didn't trust anyone else to look after them other than the brothers in blue at his station. I open the door and watch as they hurry to the vehicle and pile in frantically. As soon as they were clear from the garage and off down the street, I turned to the kitchen, grabbing the set of keys off the hook beside the door. Sirens fill the night as the lights of two patrol cars flood the garage and exposed kitchen. This time, I wasn't clearing this house alone. Two officers slowly approach the garage; the other pair is probably going to the front door. I move to where I can be seen with my badge and signal for them to come up.