Page 29 of Dark Visions (Strange Gifts #1)

Aislinn, Kane, Flip, and Adam sat across from one another in a large booth at Martinelli’s, their favorite Italian restaurant in the city. It was Flip’s first time, but he immediately made himself at home ordering a large order of calamari, an order of bruschetta, and a tomato and mozzarella salad, all as his appetizer.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone eat so much,” said Aislinn, smiling at the big man.

“Oh, this is just for starters,” he said, grinning at her. “I seem to consume calories at what my doctor describes as ‘an alarming rate.’” He winked at Adam, and he rolled his eyes.

“You might be a big man, but you don’t want to be obese!” said Adam.

“I don’t have an ounce of fat on me,” smiled Flip. “Besides, for some reason, I’m ravenous tonight. I think that visit with the doc made me feel better, and I get really hungry after exerting myself.”

“Feel better? Feel better how?” asked Kane.

“I don’t know, brother. I can’t really explain it. It’s like everything she said made me feel normal. Like all the wheels clicked into place, and my mind isn’t foggy anymore. I see things clearly, or at least clearer than I did. Does that make sense?”

“It makes perfect sense,” said Adam. “I’m able to hide my gift. It just makes me look like this incredibly competent and gifted doctor.”

“You are competent and gifted,” smiled Aislinn.

“Thank you, Aislinn, but I guess what I’m saying is I can hide my gift within my profession, and to some extent, so can Kane. But I can see where it would be harder for Flip unless he was alone.”

Aislinn looked toward the front door to see a tall, lean auburn-haired man walk into the restaurant. He possessed intelligent, kind eyes. Dressed in jeans and a sweater that hugged his frame, he looked directly at her and smiled, making her blush and a bit uncomfortable. Kane stood, and for a moment, Aislinn was worried he took the gesture wrong.

“Spook! Over here, brother,” he called.

This was Spook!? This tall, good-looking man was the computer geek they spoke of? Aislinn could definitely get used to being in the company of these men. She felt like the prettiest girl in the room with the first four months of the hunk calendar. Women in the restaurant all looked their way, yet none of the men even noticed.

Spook pulled Kane into a brotherly hug, and then Adam, and finally Flip, slapping his back in a playful gesture.

“You must be the beautiful Aislinn I’ve heard so much about,” he said, smiling at her. She nodded and shook his hand. Aislinn was relieved that she only felt calmness emanating from his body.

“It’s nice to meet you, Sp-Spook?” she said questioningly. “Is there another name I should call you?” The guys laughed and sat down at the table.

“My real name is Van Rogers. You can call me Van or Spook. I answer to both.”

“Okay then, I like Van. It suits you,” she said with a smile.

Kane watched his friend smile at Aislinn, and a stab of jealousy filled his chest. He had no right, he hadn’t put a ring on Aislinn’s finger, but he would remedy that situation soon.

“So, you guys needed my help? What can I do for you?”

Kane detailed the situation as best he could without giving away Aislinn’s, or any of the team’s, secrets. He knew that Spook could be trusted, but he didn’t want to take any chances this early on. He gave every detail of the murders and where they believed they occurred, as well as the young woman and Dr. Krauss being involved.

Spook tapped away on his keyboard, taking notes of everything Kane told him. No detail was unimportant.

“What’s the girl’s full name?” he asked. Kane pulled the sheet of paper from his pocket, handing it to Spook.

“Deborah Cook. She’s in the master’s program for psychology at the university.” Spook nodded and tapped away on his computer.

The waitress came over to the table and asked for their orders, giving a list of specials that made Aislinn’s mouth water.

“I’ll have the grilled Caesar salad and a root beer,” said Aislinn.

“Lasagna for me, and I’ll have a light beer,” said Adam.

“Spaghetti Bolognese and a beer,” said Kane.

“Same for me,” said Spook.

“And you, handsome?” asked the waitress, staring down at Flip. He grinned up at her and winked.

“Are you ready? I’ll have the lasagna with a side of meatballs, but I’ll start with a bowl of minestrone and some cheese bread, and then I’ll top it off with tiramisu.”

“Okay then,” she said, smiling. “I’ll be right back with your drinks.”

“Dude, you seriously are going to have heartburn for days,” said Adam.

“Nah, I’ll be hungry again by the time I get home.”

“I found her,” said Spook. “Deborah Ann Cook. Twenty-five years old, a native of Chicago but moved out here about three years ago after the deaths of her parents and sister.”

“I do not have a good feeling about this,” said Aislinn quietly.

“Trust your instincts,” said Spook in a low voice. “The family was found murdered, mutilated with a butcher knife that was left at the scene. Deborah was the only survivor, claiming she was out all night with friends. Conveniently, none of the friends could say for certain she was with them at the time of the deaths, but video surveillance cameras had her going into a club and not coming out until two a.m.”

“A real peach, that one,” said Adam sarcastically.

“The parents didn’t have a lot of money, a modest life insurance policy, but they owned a large home in a prime real estate market. She immediately sold the home and moved. She had three roommates her first year of college. All requested another room due to her excessive partying and ‘strange behavior,’ although it doesn’t say what that means.”

“Go on,” said Kane.

“She was arrested for public intoxication her senior year. Nothing strange about that, except it was outside a private club, The Switch .”

“Let me guess, wife swapping?” said Kane.

“That and more. The Switch is known for their underground world of S&M. This isn’t the shit you see in the romantic movies and books of wrist tying and spanking. This is hardcore.”

“What do you mean?” asked Aislinn softly. All eyes turned to her as if they forgot she was even there. Adam blushed, and Flip looked away for a moment. “I’m not a child. What does that mean?”

“Well, they… it’s pretty sick, Aislinn. It’s not just spankings but beatings, intentionally. They use things to make the experience painful.”

“I see,” she said, blushing and swallowing. “And this woman, Deborah, she likes this type of place?”

“It appears so,” said Spook. “She was arrested outside the club, and the police found bruises, redness, and lacerations all over her body. They think she might have been drinking to numb the pain.”

“So, she likes pain but does she like giving pain?” she asked.

“That’s a great question, and I guess that’s the better question to ask, isn’t it?” said Adam. “Spook? Can you see if the club ever had any complaints against her? Are there any type of records?”

“There are always records, brother. It’s just getting into them. Let me do my magic.” Spook pecked away at the computer as the waitress came back with steaming bowls of food.

“Got it! She was a member for almost three years. During that time, she was placed on probation twice for misuse of power while in the dominatrix role. It says here the last incident prior to the intoxication charges involved a middle-aged man and his wife. She tied the wife so tight she nearly died from asphyxiation. The husband’s cuts were so deep, they required stitches.”

“Fuck! Remind me not to date her,” said Flip.

“She likes to inflict pain, but she likes to receive it as well. She thinks she deserves it,” whispered Aislinn.

“What makes you say that?” asked Kane.

“How did you know that?” asked Spook suspiciously. “It’s right here. It’s all here, but I haven’t said anything yet. How did you know that?”

Aislinn shrugged her shoulders and took a bite of her salad. The others stilled and watched as Spook eyed each of them.

“What the fuck is going on here?” he asked.

“I promise we’ll tell you everything, Spook,” said Adam. “But not here.” He looked around the table, taking in each of his friends, and nodded.

“Aislinn is right. She likes to inflict pain, but she likes to receive it as well, telling all of her ‘daddies’ that she deserves the pain and asks for more pain. One of the incidences where she was placed on probation was because she struck a man in the face who refused to use a cat-o-nine-tails on her. She claimed he wasn’t whipping her hard enough, despite the fact that he had drawn blood.”

“Christ!” said Adam under his breath. “She needs the pain, both giving and receiving. But that still doesn’t tell us about Krauss.”

“Ah,” said Spook with a mouthful of food, “the good Dr. Krauss. Let me see. He, uhhh, that’s odd. I have that he’s at two different hospitals.”

“Two? Well, that’s not unusual, but I’m not sure how that would work,” said Adam. “He’d have to be authorized at both.”

“Something is wrong. This has him working at both hospitals the night of the murders… at the same time.”

“That’s not possible,” said Adam.

“I’m looking at it, dude. Dr. M.C. Krauss at General and Dr. M.C. Krauss at Memorial.”

“It’s not possible for him to be in two places at one time,” said Adam.

“Yes, it is,” said Aislinn, looking toward the door. Her face was pale, her eyes filled with moisture and fear. Kane reached for her hand, her fingers trembling. Flip followed her eyes toward the door.

“Holy fuck! He’s a twin!”