“It occurs to me that he might not have been the only one who got away.” He slid his hands in his pockets, still frowning.
“You think Gregor was involved?” While the vampire had gotten away with murder—literally—for years, Selina was inclined to agree with Delta. He didn’t fit the profile. This wasn’t his kind of kill.
“No, I don’t mean Gregor.” He shook his head. “I mean you.”
“I don’t follow you.” At all. What was he talking about?
“What, you think it’s a coincidence that my stepfather was attacked? Or that your cousin was murdered?” He lifted his eyebrows. “He knows we’re tracking him. He knows who we are.”
She waved her hand. “It had occurred to me. I mean, it could have been coincidence with my cousin, but Darren, too? No, you’re right.”
“So, what if you were the fifth murder in New Orleans? The one who didn’t happen? What if you’re the reason there were only four deaths there?” He waited for her to respond, but she couldn’t think of a single thing to say. “You said yourself you’re as much a potential victim as anyone else because you married a Normal.”
That possibility had never occurred to her. It probably should have. “I ...”
The car came into view, and Selina pushed the button to pop the locks. They crawled inside and Jack continued with his theory while she pulled out of the parking garage. “It seems a little too easy that he would appear in a city that has a Magickal detective in it he’d studied up on. Delta said he researches his victims until he feels he knows them. So he thinks he knows you. It wouldn’t take an idiot to figure you’d probably end up on this case, since you worked it before, or that you’d want a piece of him. He killed your cousin, and I think he might be back in Seattle to finish what he started thirty years ago. I think you’re the one who got away for him, too.”
Not for long. Shit. She had to tell him. Dread gathered in a pool in her belly, curdling until she feared she might actually vomit. Again. Maybe this was for the best. He might hate her, but it was better than caring for her and having her die on him. Cut ties now, give them both the opportunity to walk away from this thing they had while there was still a chance. The reasoning just made her feel ... empty.
She stared straight ahead, unable to look at him while she did it. “Jack, I need to tell you something else. This isn’t the right time for it, but there really isn’t a right time.”
“What?”
Just do it. Just say it. “Whether I’m the one who got away or not, he’s still going to kill me.”
There was a long, very pregnant pause. His voice was deadly soft. “What did you say?”
A chill skittered down her spine, and she swallowed hard, her heart hammering in sickening thumps. “Merek had a prophecy a year ago that I would die on the job. Now. I figured it would just be a bust gone wrong. It happens. I didn’t figure it would be my worst nightmare dragging me back into hell. But it is. So this is it. My last case. Because I’m going to die.”
“Merek brought you back into this case, knowing it would kill you?” His hands clenched on the strap of his seat belt, strangling the fabric. “I’m going to fucking kill him.”
She glanced at him from the corner of her eye as she drove. “You had to know I would have heard about a string of murders in town and I would have asked around about it. Law enforcement has more gossip than a bunch of high school cheerleaders.”
If anything, his voice got even quieter. “And you didn’t tell me about this until now ... why?”
“I figured it was no one’s business but mine.” She winced, knowing how well he’d take that considering how he’d reacted to her keeping the Bess information from him.
“I thought we were past piling on the bullshit, Selina.” He turned his head to look at her.
She shook her head, but she couldn’t meet his gaze. “I never lied to you, Jack.”
That was the wrong thing to say. He slapped his hand against the dashboard. “You never told me the truth either! You’ve been keeping shit from me this entire investigation.”
“None of it changed anything about how the case would go. It was all my personal shit.” Her palms were slick with clammy sweat on the steering wheel as she wended her way through the deserted Seattle streets. His anger was a palpable force in the car, and she couldn’t even blame him. She braced herself, knowing this beautiful thing they’d had was going to end. One more thing she had to let go of. Ice stole through her veins, leaving her cold and exhausted.
“Our relationship was personal, too, Selina. We’re not just working together.”
“I know. I should have broken things off a long time ago.” She would never forgive herself for letting it go so long that he got hurt. She’d go into the afterlife kicking her own ass for this. Tears burned the backs of her eyes, but she blinked, refusing to let them fall. This was her own fault. She didn’t deserve to cry about it. “I should never have let it go past that first night.”
His mouth dropped open, then snapped shut so hard she heard his teeth clack together. “That’s what you have to say to me? Are you fucking kidding me?”
Her limbs trembled, and she was grateful when she pulled to a stop at the curb in front of his parents’ place. A half-dozen cars were out front, blue lights still flashing, caution tape cordoning off the house, officers and agents swarming the place looking for evidence. She forced herself to twist in her seat and face Jack. “Now you see why I said this wasn’t a good time for me to get involved with anyone.”
Even under the weak light of the streetlamp and the strobelike flashing from the police cars, she could see his face was flushed with anger. “Yeah, but you neglected to mention it was because you’re planning to die. You had no right to keep your personal shit from me when it even remotely touched the case I’m working on. You should have told me about Bess and you should have told me about you.”
She threw up her hands. “If I’d told you everything, you’d have yanked me off the case.”
“You’re damn right I would!”
He still could. Officially anyway. “Try it, and I’ll still work the case. You can’t keep me from it, and there’s nothing you can threaten me with that will stop me. I’ve got nothing to lose.”
“Yeah, because in your mind, you’re already dead. Of course you have nothing to lose! Jesus Christ, Selina.” He shoved a hand through his hair, gripping the strands tight.
“Try to keep in mind that I didn’t have to tell you this. There was no file from New Orleans that would have clued you in.” Her voice shook, tremors running through her body. “It was my choice to trust you with it.”
“Trust.” He laughed, and it almost sounded like a sob.
“I wanted to give you a chance to accept it, like I have. I wanted to give you the chance to say good-bye. I didn’t want to just die on you.” She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to keep from flying apart. It was better if he walked away now. It was better if he hated her. She hated herself for having put them in this situation.
“Jesus Christ.” He swiped at his eyes and blew out a breath. “I can’t believe this is happening again.”
Gods, this was so much worse than she’d ever imagined. “I’m not Heather. I’m not killing myself.”
“You’re not exactly fighting to hold on either.” The leather upholstery squeaked when he turned toward to her.
She huffed out a breath. “How old was she?”
“Twenty-three.”
“Yeah, I’m four hundred and forty-one, Jack. No one’s going to say ‘she died so young—it’s such a tragedy.’ I’ve had a long, long life. I’ve done a lot of things, known a lot of people, and loved my share of them. Hated a few, too. You name it, I’ve probably done it, or thought about it and decided against it. I’ve had the time to consider everything you can possibly imagine.” The gods knew she’d thought about Merek’s prophecy for the last year and had some time to come to grips with it. “I’ve traveled the world, had about fourteen different careers on three different continents. I’ve done extreme shit, I’ve slept with a lot of men, I’ve been married and been widowed. What more could I ask for in life? Nothing. I couldn’t ask for more than what I’ve had, and I think I’ve made the most of the time I’ve gotten.”