Chapter 12

Jac looked around the empty parking lot. It wasn’t clear why anyone would ever need to be here. She glanced back at the two men sitting in the car. They’re going to think you’re crazy. She turned and walked over to the spot that had been pointed out to her.

It wouldn’t be the first time someone thought she was crazy, she frowned at the broken asphalt, it probably wouldn’t be the last.

She took a deep breath and placed both hands on the ground. There were vibrations, faint but there. She focused harder, nothing was solid enough to grab. Moving her hands slowly to try a few more places.

“What is she doing?” Reid growled.

Brent shrugged. “I’m not sure.” He looked over in the direction she was looking. “Does she see something?”

Reid frowned. “Maybe.”

Brent looked away from her and studied his partner. “Why, exactly, are we doing this again?”

Reid rubbed his forehead quickly and then glanced back at her. “Because we’re out of ideas, and she has looked at the same things we’ve looked at all along and then come up with something to follow. Every time.”

Brent nodded and turned back to watch Jac. “She’s presently looking at an empty lot, surrounded by nothing, pretty sure she’s seeing the same things we did.” She was walking slowly back towards them. “Why do we have to wait in the car?”

Reid shook his head. “I don’t know.”

Both men swung around in their seat to look at her when she got in the back seat. She smiled. “Next.”

Brent snorted at Reid as he turned back around.

***

She knew they were both aggravated with her as she climbed out of the car at the third site. The second one had been between two buildings, and again there was nothing for her to pick up energy from.

Stopping in front of the bench, she looked at it before making sure no one else was in the little park.

Walking behind the bench, she glanced over at the car holding the two detectives waiting for her. “Please.” She whispered to herself. “Just see something.”

She placed her hands on the back of the bench and turned away from the watching men. She smirked as the vibrations from two amorous teens flew through her mind. Moving slowly, she ran her hands across the wood towards the end of the bench.

Breathing slowly, she scanned as she went; there was a vibration on this bench that wasn’t quite right. She had to pinpoint the spot where it was strong enough to drown out everything that came after. She frowned as she concentrated, there it was. Just a bit of anger.

Frowning again, she walked around to sit on the bench, placing her hands beside her. Come on, one glimpse, that’s all she would need to grasp at the images filtering through her mind. Again, she had to sift through the layers of time until she sensed a fear so intense that every nerve in her body jumped at the same moment.

Jac could feel the struggle and panic. Turning her head, she closed her eyes so she could see clearly. Willing her mind to let it come through, she took several slow, steady breaths. This was the spot she had been looking for. The emotions were intense, consuming but not evil. She began to absorb the emotions and visions that were present in the vibrations.

Her stomach tightened, as it always did, when she subjected herself to absorbing emotions. Jac fought against the faint tremor in her muscles, and forced her body to relax and let things happen.

“Is she taking a break, or thinking or what?”

Reid snapped his head around to look over at his partner. “How the hell should I know? I’m still wondering why we have to sit in the car.”

Brent frowned and looked back at Jac. She was still sitting on the bench, looking at a building on the outskirts of the park. At least, he thought that was what she was staring at.

Both men jumped when she suddenly looked straight up, bolting up off the bench. She stood looking at the same building holding her hand over her stomach.

Reid’s hand was on the door handle, ready to rush over, when she turned and took a few slow steps toward them. Her head came up, and she started sprinting to the car.

Climbing in the back, she huffed out a breath, “Quickly, let’s get to the next one before this is gone.”

Brent watched Reid turn without question and start the car. Reid wondered if his partner was thinking the same things he was. Once again, she’d thought of an angle they hadn’t. Jacinda would be dynamite if she ever had any investigative training.

He glanced in the mirror for the tenth time. She just sat there with a faraway look on her face.

When they pulled up to the empty factory, Reid opened his door. “I’ll show you where to go.”

Jac climbed out of the car and shook her head. “No, stay here, I read the report.” She walked, almost swaying, over to the door hanging open with no latch of any kind and stepped inside.

Brent climbed out of the car and looked across the roof at his stewing friend. “I don’t think it’s safe for…”

Reid nodded. “I know, that’s why I’m listening in case she runs into trouble.” He looked at his partner, turned, and started walking towards the building.

Brent followed him, giving him a puzzled look when he stopped outside the door she’d gone in.

Both stood there in silence and listened.

Jac found the location without issue. Remnants of the yellow police tape were still hanging. Standing there for a moment, she looked down at the faded marks on the floor. How did he kill these women, yet their clothes were without a wrinkle? Why did her mind keep going back to that?

Walking over, she knelt where the few chalk outlines remained. She took a deep breath and placed both hands on the dusty board floor. A wave of nausea hit her so fast; she lifted her hands to her chest and took a few breaths to steady herself. Slowly, she opened her hands and placed them on the floor again. The killer had touched this part of the floor. Swallowing the bile in her throat, she quickly moved over further, hoping she didn’t contact the killer’s thoughts again. The suffering she would go through to find out who had done this was for the women, the victims, she wasn’t sure if she would be able to climb back to the surface if she absorbed a murderer’s inner emotions.

Taking a deep breath, she placed her hands on the floor again. When the black swirled through her, she fought against it and reached deeper. Jac could feel Elaine’s desperation, the panic engulfing her as she struggled to do anything to free herself. She saw a hand move towards her again.

The panic and fear began to fade as acceptance took over.

Jac closed her eyes and lifted her face towards the ceiling as she felt the other woman’s emotions: fear, revulsion, and a strange acceptance flood into her. Jac’s stomach fought violently against the sensations. Steadying her breathing, she knew the headache that always came wasn’t far off. Her own determination to finish this was the only thing that kept her kneeling there.

They heard her footsteps moving quickly toward them. With one hand on his gun, Reid pulled the door open further as he looked in cautiously.

Brent had stepped back to get a clear view of whatever came out of the door.

Jac ran through it, almost running into them. She stopped in front of Reid, gripping her stomach. “We have to hurry. If I lose this, I can’t do that again.” She turned, heading quickly to the car.

“Lose what?” He called after her.

When Reid climbed in the car and looked at her, he was determined to get answers. Her face was pale, she was shaking. She was holding her head and squeezing her eyes closed. When she turned and looked at him with a plea in her eyes, he hesitated.

“I’ll tell you everything soon, we have to hurry,” she whispered.

Brent rubbed the back of his neck as he looked at him Reid looked in the mirror. She really didn’t look well. “As soon as you look at this last one, you better tell me something, or I’m going to get really pissed.”

Her empty eyes didn’t meet his in the mirror, but she nodded.

She almost asked to keep going when the car stopped at the dock. She knew this site would hold stronger emotions than the others since very little time had passed since the murder happened. She also knew it might give her a very clear image of the killer, which alone made her body move to get out of the car.

Every muscle in her body was threatening to quit on her. She had to concentrate on her breathing to keep her stomach under control. Carefully, Jac walked over the rocky ground that led down towards the old dock that seemed oddly out of place in today’s modern world of cement. A small wooden boat sat under it in the shadows of the faded planks. She took a deep breath and looked around to see if they were alone. She could see no one.

Walking out onto the swaying dock, she stood above the small boat. Staring down into it, she willed herself to take the steps and move toward it. She looked out into the water for a moment and then dug deep to find the courage she needed. It was buried under the queasiness from the emotions her visions had brought. She had never intentionally tried to see this much at one time before; fear gripped her when she realized she wasn’t sure of the outcome. Would she be able to stay conscious through it?

Nodding to no one, she turned and walked off the dock, heading to the small boat in the overgrowth of shoreline weeds, long forgotten in today’s world of metal and motors. Stopping, she looked at the reeds that were bent over, broken, and dying. She couldn’t look back at the detectives waiting for her in the car. If she did, she would lose her nerve and would never come back.

Jac wished she wasn’t in plain view of the men but knew she had pushed her luck with them as far as she could. She would have to do this in front of them. Please don’t do anything embarrassing, she begged herself silently.

To steady herself, she grasped a large support beam. Dropping her hand, she gasped. A flash of anger washed through her. She stood there for a moment, trying to feel what was behind the dark emotion. It was too scattered and unfocused.

Breathing slowly, she bent down and climbed into the boat. She slowly lowered herself and sat, only touching the gunwale at the top to steady her. The vibrations were humming through her arms; she knew this was going to hit her harder than anything ever had before. She’d encountered dark emotions before, but this was going to be like nothing she’d ever experienced.

Keeping her breathing steady, she closed her eyes and braced herself for whatever she was going to see. Lowering her hands, an inch at a time, she touched the floor of the rotting craft. She held her head high; needing to gently feel the clear air brushing against her face.

A feeling of grogginess was first, a lethargic sensation she hadn’t felt from the others. Had Dawn Thomas been drugged? Show me, she silently asked the woman no longer physically in this world.

Shock flooded into her; she could feel her fighting against the groggy weight taking over her body. Jac glimpsed a flash of a jacket or shirt before another moment of darkness.

Focusing, she breathed through the pounding that started in her head as she ran her hands further over the floorboards. If she could just find that one clear moment.

She felt the veil of fog lifting from Dawn, the realization that this was really happening. Sluggishness changed to anger so quickly that she jolted but forced her hands to stay on the wood.

Feelings of utter shock, then more anger filled her mind. Shaking her head slightly, she watched and waited. Her heart sped up; she could feel it beating through her whole body as a burst of strength from the victim’s spirit enveloped her.

Folding herself forward, Jac fought against her body’s desire to escape into unconsciousness, threatening to overtake her. You can’t pass out now, she told herself. Pushing her hands harder against the wood, she grit her teeth in determination.

Reid leaned closer to the windshield, watching her. He sensed Brent was also leaning forward, trying to see better. “I don’t think—something is…” He was out the door the second she flipped out of the boat, landing sprawled on the ground beside it.

He heard Brent behind him as he raced down the worn pathway leading to the dock. She was trying to get to her feet, scrambling along on her hands and knees, still heading towards them.

Kneeling on the stones, she rested her forehead in her hands for a moment. The cool stones beneath her cheek helped her to focus. Trying to stay conscious, she fought the nausea that almost drowned her. She could hear the footsteps advancing towards her on the loose stones. Get it together before they get here.

Pushing herself up onto her hands and knees, she leaned slowly back, trying to breathe through the dizziness. Opening her eyes, she concentrated on bringing the men into focus. Up you get now. Everything was blurry and shaking. Pushing against her knees, she managed to be close to upright. Bending over, resting a hand on the cool stones, she held up her other hand towards them. They were a few feet from her. “Don’t touch me.” She gasped, trying to say it as loud as she could. Squinting, she saw both men’s feet beside her. Dropping her head, she took a few more deep breaths. “Happens all the time.”

Reid shifted on the loose stones and leaned down. “What happens?” She could hear the panic in his voice.

Jac shook her head, trying to clear the haze. “I need to get home.” She tried to straighten up but dropped back down to lean on her knees. Fumbling for her pocket, she pulled out her phone, promptly dropping it on the rocks. Opening her eyes again, she watched Reid squat down, studying her face. The concern in his eyes almost made her cry. History reminded her that he would lose that look when he learned the truth.

“Jacinda.” He hissed out a breath. “Let us help you get to the car.”

Jac could barely manage to shake her head; at least, she was pretty sure she shook it. “Can …” She took another breath; the nauseous feeling was almost more than she could bear. “Call Sandy, press one.” She moved slowly into a squatting, half-kneeling position, holding her own thighs to keep her head and shoulders upright. Her muscles were shaking and so weak she wasn’t sure how much longer she would be able to hold herself up.

Reid silently flipped her phone open and pushed the button. Putting out her hand, he set the phone in her palm. With a shaking arm, she held the phone to her ear. The second she heard her voice, she almost cried. Sandy the only person, since her mother, that would help her. “Sand—need—home…”

Reid could hear the woman’s voice on the other end.

“Jac? Where are you? Are you alone? Jac...”

“Detectives,” Jac whispered into the phone.

“Give him the phone. Jac? Stay focused and give him the phone before you pass out on me!”

Jac leaned down onto her legs further and moved the phone in Reid’s direction. “Talk.” She panted to him.

Reid took the phone, hesitantly putting it to his ear. “Doctor?” She began barking orders so quickly, yelling into the phone because even in her present state, Jac could still hear her.

“Has she passed out yet? She should have smelling salts in her purse. Use them. Get her home now! I’ll meet you there. Don’t touch her if you can help it, it only makes it harder for her.”

He paused for a second and looked at her, he seemed blurry through her eyes right now. “We’ll meet you there.” He abruptly hung up the phone. Stuffing it quickly into his pocket, he turned to the man beside him. “She has salts or something in her purse.”

Brent turned and ran back up the incline to the car.

Reid reached out to touch her, then dropped his hand down onto the rocks to lean closer to her. “Jacinda, let me help.” She didn’t reply just kept breathing very loudly. He didn’t know why she would pass out, but if she carried salts, it meant that passing out was bad. “Talk to me, can you hear me?” He wanted to brush the long hair off her face but didn’t because he still wasn’t sure why he shouldn’t touch her. “Stay with me, Brent has gone to get your purse.”

“I’m not a freak,” she said breathlessly.

Confused, he shook his head. “Only freak here is me freaking out, honey, just stay with me, we’ll get you home shortly.” He turned when he heard Brent sliding down to kneel beside him. Grabbing the purse, he dug through it. Why was it that when a man put his hand in a woman’s purse, he felt like he was violating some sacred space? Unable to tell one thing from the other that he touched, he leaned back down to her. “What am I looking for here?”

If she hadn’t wanted to throw up, she might find the uncertainty in his voice amusing. “Black case.”

He nodded, pulling out a few more things. He finally pulled out a black case; dropping the purse, he opened it quickly. The smell must have hit him because he made a weird face before he held it in the vicinity of her face.

Jac gasped and then turned her head toward it and inhaled a few times. Taking a few shaky breaths, she lifted her head. She couldn’t bring herself to make eye contact. If she did, she might start crying to see the concern she knew would change to abhorrence soon enough. “I don’t know how long—that will work.” She tried again with shaky arms to push herself up further. “Have to get to Sandy.” She whispered and chanced a glance at them.

“I’ll carry you,” Brent said as he stood quickly.

Reid shook his head quickly at him. “Touching her will only make it worse.” Brent shot him a look of confusion. Reid shrugged. “I don’t know either.”

Jac felt sorrier for them than she did herself. Here were two big guys, used to just taking over, and now they stood here feeling helpless for, most likely, the first time in their lives. “Don’t touch my skin, just get me standing, please.”

She heard both men scramble on the stone, moving behind her. Big hands grasped under her arms and had her on her feet before she could have gotten there on her own, even in a normal state. She felt the hands hesitantly let her go. Nodding, she stood there for a moment, breathing shallowly. Looking at the loose rock, then the distance to the car, she tried to move her foot. “Just don’t let me fall and break my face on those.” She wobbled on the first step, reaching out quickly to grasp Reid’s sleeve. Weakness filled her head again; she knew then she couldn’t walk this uneven ground on her own accord.

Hanging onto his sleeve, she looked up at the worried eyes studying her. Her stomach still churned from the emotions she’d drawn in. She blinked as a tear rolled down her cheek. “I’m not going to make it up there, Reid…” She felt her knees give out a bit and gripped his shirt harder.

Reid stood there looking down at the pale woman. Her eyes were begging him to help her. When they filled with tears, he wanted to scream, ‘how’? Glancing quickly at his partner, he knew if he didn’t pick her up and take the chance, his partner was one second from doing it. “Get the door open.” He growled as he bent down, quickly scooping her into his arms. He resisted the urge to push her face into his neck as he moved quickly up the hill.

Brent, two steps ahead of him, held the back door open. As he put her gently into the back seat, he saw his partner flinging her purse in and climbing into the driver’s seat.

“I’m driving. You’ll get us all killed.”

He heard him mumble as he shut the door. Reid looked at her again, she was leaning with her head back, eyes closed, hugging the black case against her chest. Brent was right. He closed the door and ran around to the passenger side, climbing in the back beside her.