Dark Horse by E A Copen

Author:E A Copen [Copen, E A]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: E.A. Copen
Published: 2019-05-23T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

I didn’t want to stay above Paula’s but I didn’t want to go home either. The house was too strong a reminder of Pony D’s presence, more than I could stand. As for Paula’s, I knew if I stayed there I’d just go downstairs to peruse the booze and just get wasted. I needed out of there, somewhere I could get some fresh air and space to process, but I wasn’t going to get any of that if Emma was looking over my shoulder.

I went out to the little balcony that overlooked the parking lot while Emma was in the bathroom. It wasn’t an ideal thinking spot, but it was as close to alone as I’d been in the last forty-eight hours. Cars slid by on the road, little more than milky headlights in the fog that’d settled over New Orleans. The fog was thick enough to feel like rain on the back of my neck.

Keep walking the path I’m on, I thought, looking out at the wisps of grayish white moving through the city. Since when was Samedi a fortune teller? Maybe he knew what I wanted the Spellweaver for. Maybe I didn’t need one at all.

Emma had said things had been different since Fort Pike. It could be because I had accidentally drained some of her life energy and that disrupted the spell. A little more and she might break free on her own.

“There you are.” The door thudded closed behind Emma as she stepped out to join me on the balcony.

I hadn’t heard her open it. That’s how tired I was. A monster could sneak up on me right then and rip out my heart and I’d never even notice.

I tried to smile at her as she leaned against the metal railing, but it was hard. Just looking at her and knowing something was wrong hurt. I wanted to help her, to fix things between us, get back the smart, sassy, no-nonsense homicide cop I knew and loved. She was in there somewhere. I just had to coax her out.

Emma smiled back. “You okay?”

I shrugged. “I’m exhausted, but I won’t be able to sleep here. Don’t want to go home because...”

“Because home is Pony’s house.”

I nodded.

Emma chewed on her bottom lip a moment. “What about my place?”

“Your place?” I pushed up from the railing.

Emma hadn’t been home since Loki cast his spell on her. I’d checked every day for a while, watering her plants and dusting the place while she was gone. I thought maybe if she came back, I could get an explanation. But she didn’t come. The daily visits became weekly, then bi-weekly until I stopped going altogether. I hadn’t been to Emma’s since the middle of May.

“It’s still there, isn’t it?” Emma asked. “Power’s probably off since I haven’t paid the bill in a while, but at least the house was paid off. The bank shouldn’t be knocking down the door yet, and there haven’t been any fires that I’ve heard about. Must mean it’s still standing.

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