Page 26 of Deadly Blooms (Psychic Unraveled #1)

BADGE BEFORE BLOOD

Maggie

Inside the house, Katie sat curled in a throw blanket while the paramedics hovered around her—checking her vitals, flashing lights into her eyes, and murmuring soft reassurances.

Derek and Graham had already been rushed to the hospital, leaving behind a hollow stillness that settled over everything like ash.

Katie had regained consciousness during the chaos, but had stayed inside, too dazed to do much more than breathe.

She still looked a little lost, like maybe she hadn’t fully re-entered her body.

The paramedics packed up, murmuring their last instructions before slipping out the door.

That’s when Captain Nettles arrived—same coat, same toothpick, but something in his posture had shifted.

The steel was still there, but it was tempered now, like he remembered I was a person, not just a case file.

Gone was the clipped bark of our first meeting; in its place was something quieter, protective, and almost kind.

He made a beeline for us, eyes scanning me like he was surprised I was still alive. “Maggie,” he said, “glancing down at his phone. “We’ve identified your attacker.”

I sat up straighter, the blanket the paramedics had wrapped around my shoulders suddenly too warm.

“How’s Graham?” I asked, hugging the blanket tighter around me.

“He’ll be fine. A little concussion and the knife missed anything vital.” Nettles said.

“Who was he?” My voice cracked slightly, but I held his gaze.

Nettles swiped his thumb across the phone and angled the screen toward me. “Lonnie Custer. Private Investigator. Worked with your uncle at the department about ten years ago, before going the P.I. route. Technically, Graham replaced him.”

The image hit me like a punch—crooked nose, broad jaw, the sneer I’d seen too close for comfort. I didn’t need a second look. But Nettles kept swiping. “There’s more.”

The next image was from a retirement party—one of those department send-offs with a garish banner and too many smiles. “The Legend Retires!” it read, in bold red and blue. A white-haired officer stood front and center, glowing with pride.

My stomach dropped.

There was Uncle Silas, tucked in beside the guest of honor. And standing just off his shoulder, younger but unmistakable, was Custer. No sneer this time. Just pride.

This wasn’t random. It was personal.

“I don’t understand.” My voice came out paper-thin. “Why would someone want me dead? I don’t even know anyone here.”

Nettles leaned in, eyes pinned to mine, measuring my reaction.

“That’s what we’re trying to figure out.

But I don’t think you’re out of the woods yet.

” He turned the toothpick slowly between his teeth, jaw ticking, concern folding deep into the lines around his eyes.

“We’re assigning a full protection detail— inside and out.

Apparently, Custer—beat cop turned P.I., turned hitman—wasn’t acting alone.

He was hired. Which means someone’s still watching. ”

My knees went weak. My palms turning slick. Every word out of his mouth added another pound of weight to the dread already sitting on my chest. My heart beat in a solid, forceful rhythm as it rose to my throat, choking my every breath.

“We’ll have agents posted inside and out. They’ll sweep every room before you go in—bedroom, kitchen, bathroom, anywhere you sleep or eat. We’ll need access to your garage. Garden sheds. Anywhere someone could hide.”

Nettles kept talking, but the words blurred into static. Safety. Ghosts. Guns. My mind spun in dizzy little circles, orbiting everything I hadn’t had time to process—this house, these people, these fragile new ties I’d only just begun to form.

Mom had been right—this town was a mistake. I hadn’t even checked out the entire house yet, and someone already wanted me dead.

It was too much. Too fast. I wanted to scream. Not because of fear, but because of how fucking helpless I felt. Everyone knew what was happening except me.

“Maggie? Did you catch that?” Captain Nettles rested a calloused hand on my shoulder—steady and solid. His tone had softened, threaded with something almost like concern.

“Oh—I…no.” I blinked, the fog still thick behind my eyes. “Sorry.”

“Captain…Nettles, right?” Katie slid her arm around me, firm and sure. “Mind giving us a minute? We need air—away from all this.”

She waved toward the blur of uniforms and beeping monitors, the noise pressing in like a living thing. A septic cleanser clung to the air, sour and sharp, mixing with sweat and adrenaline. It smelled like survival. Like trauma.

Nettles gave a quiet nod and motioned to the back porch, like he was steering a lifeboat through the wreckage.

Katie’s grip firmed around my waist as she guided me toward the porch. She eased me down onto the cool wooden steps and didn’t let go until I acknowledged her with a nod.

“Look at us,” I muttered, managing half a smile. “I was supposed to be helping you . You’ve been through hell, Katie—especially tonight.” My throat tightened. “I’m so sorry. I dragged you into all of this.”

Katie plopped beside me, her grin unfazed. “Don’t apologize. Watching my aunts meddle in every doomed relationship in town was getting old—this?” She waved a hand toward the chaos. “This is so much better.”

Then she leaned in, voice low and filled with excitement. “And I’m not giving up on that séance yet. We’re close, Maggie. Real close. We’ll find out why that bastard came after you.”

I threw up my hands. “How are we supposed to hold another séance with half the Port Grey P.D. parked outside? It’s not like they’re Graham and know the situation.”

Katie’s eyebrows crumpled, like I’d just smacked her. How was I supposed to plan anything? It’d be like trying to cast a spell in a fishbowl.

“They’re supposed to give you privacy if you ask for it, right? Like… technically?” Katie bounced beside me, practically vibrating. “We could just tell them we’re doing some witchy shit. Religious rights and all that.”

I shook my head, a wave of anxiety washing over me.

I couldn’t take one more thing, right now.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” I muttered, unable to stop the spiral of horrible scenarios flooding my mind.

All I wanted was to disappear, escape into a dark hole, away from the constant threat that hung over my head like a guillotine, and cry.

Maybe eat a couple snacks and cuddle Chester.

Someone had put a price on my life—and now my new friends were caught in the blast. I didn’t know if I could keep going like this. Always waiting for the next knock, the next shadow. The next fucking ghost that wasn’t going to show when I needed it to.

“Come on, Maggie,” Katie said, taking my hand. “We could actually find out what’s really going on.”

“I said no!” I yanked my hand back like her touch had burned me.

Her eyes widened, and her face went pale.

She looked just like I felt—scared and overwhelmed.

But under all that? Her gaze flickered with curiosity and maybe hunger.

The kind that didn’t scare too easily. And with Derek laid up, I wasn’t going back into that attic without someone who actually knew what the hell they were doing.

“Miss Pierce,” a woman’s voice called through the screen door. “We need to take you in. Run some tests. Just to be safe.”

“Alright, Mags. Get some rest, okay?” Katie stood slowly, brushing off her knees. “I’ll call you tomorrow.” She followed the paramedic down the steps, her silhouette blurring in the porch light and mist.

What kind of stranger wanted you dead before you’re even unpacked?

Custer’s voice wouldn’t stop echoing— make sure you never find… Find what? Something Uncle Silas left behind? Some file, some name? A thread that could unravel the whole damn thing?

If it were here, I hadn’t found it yet.

But maybe he thought I would.

Maybe he didn’t know all of Uncle Silas’s belongings had been sold at auction.

Maybe he was right.

Maybe I didn’t belong here.

The fear stayed. Wrapped tight around my ribs, sticky as sweat. I wasn’t safe. Not yet.

And I wasn’t done being hunted.