Page 5

Chance

F lorence’s nails were digging into the skin of my forearm. It was as if she thought that if she buried them deep enough, I wouldn’t leave. Fortunately for her and unfortunately for me, Mom was eyeing us across the room with a gaze like a hawk. They were flashing with greed. At one point, as if they shared the same single brain cell, both my mother and Florence licked their lips like they were about to devour my soul and condemn me to the tediously miserable, captive existence of a high-society husband.

No. Fucking. Thank. You.

Florence’s high-pitched giggle was a perfect match for her outward appearance. Fake, shrill, and a complete turn-off. The Botox in her forehead made every facial expression look plastic. Combined with the floral monstrosity that was her evening dress and the bleached blonde hair that clashed with the orange of her fake tan and her heavy makeup, she reminded me more of a doll than a person.

A walking, talking, horror movie.

Her needle-enhanced lips protruded from her face in an obnoxious display, and I realised she likely got her nose job to raise it up and away in a feeble attempt the keep her nostrils clear. Even now, I was concerned her top lip would suffocate her, though I doubted that would be a real issue since they were so heavy her bottom lip struggled to close.

She was the loudest mouth breather I had ever met.

‘Oh, my goodness,’ she shrieked, her laughter trilling annoyingly through the room and stabbing at my nerves. ‘You’re so funny, Chancey. I can’t believe you do something so… quaint.’

I tried to school my features into something at least apathetic, but the frown pulled my eyebrows down anyway. ‘I suppose some people might consider it ‘quaint’, but I enjoy my work. If nothing else, it uncovers a lot of history that has previously been ignored or forgotten.’

She waved my comment away like it was an errant fly rather than my passion and my livelihood. ‘It’s a cute hobby. A little morbid for my tastes, but I do enjoy the occasional scary movie. Though I absolutely need a man to hold onto when I get scared. There’s nothing more attractive than a protector.’ She bit her lip coyly as she looked up at me from beneath her ridiculously large fake lashes, like her terrible attempts at flirting would make up for the insult.

‘Really? Personally, I enjoy a woman who can stomach a scary movie on her own. With the lights out. In the middle of the night. There’s nothing more attractive than bravery.’

Her smile stiffened, but she held it in place. ‘I don’t see a reason to watch a movie on my own. It’s much more fun to share the experience with someone else, don’t you think?’

Dakota caught my eye on the opposite side of the room. She was standing by the buffet, and my mother was heading straight for her. The panic and pleading in her gaze gave me the out I needed, and I took it without a second thought.

‘There’s not much room for socialising during a movie. My apologies, Miss Staten, but it seems I am being called. It was lovely to meet you.’

Her claws dug in even further, so much so that I thought she might actually draw blood, but she withdrew with a tight smile that didn’t reach her eyes. ‘Of course. I don’t want to monopolise your time when there are so many other people who would love to speak with you. Come find me later?’

She shot me another coy smile that I ignored, waving off her invitation like she’d waved my interests off before. ‘Perhaps,’ I replied noncommittally. ‘Enjoy the rest of the luncheon, Miss Staten.’

And then I was striding away, my shoulders tight as I felt her gaze boring holes into the back of my head. And my ass.

I barely restrained my shiver of revulsion.

Just as Mom was about to reach Dakota, I snagged her around the waist and pulled her in the opposite direction. I didn’t know what I was about to say just yet, but I knew I needed to come up with something on the spot or else her glare would melt me into a puddle of disappointment on the floor.

‘What are you doing?’ she hissed through clenched teeth disguised as a smile.

‘What, I can’t come say hello to my mother?’ I asked, but she saw right through me. Her red painted nails dug into my forearm much like Florence’s pink ones did only moments before, and she dragged me from the room. People attempted to stop us as we wove our way through the crowd, eager to strike up a conversation with her in a bad attempt to surreptitiously get a closer look at the mysterious elder son with the wrong last name.

It was moments like these, however, that I was glad to be separated from the rest of my family in the eyes of polite society. Because I was not a polite man, and I didn’t like pretending to be. I let my lips spread wide in a wry grin and enjoyed the way everyone moved out of our way. Made it easier to get to whatever private place she was leading me. We could get this berating over with.

We rounded a corner, and she shoved me into another room. A glance around showed it was a meeting room with a single, long table surrounded by high-backed, ergonomic chairs. A projector screen was rolled up while the projector itself hung from a shelf on the ceiling directly above the centre of the table.

She left the lights off, keeping us in the dim light of the east-facing windows. When she rounded on me, those shadows made her well-hidden wrinkles stand out as she frowned, the lines on her forehead and around her mouth were more prominent than ever these days, though the bags beneath her eyes had lightened a little. Kali’s disappearance and the more recent official declaration of her assumed death had added years to her appearance. Even now, despite her attempts to dye her hair, I could see the grey peeking through.

‘What are you doing?’ she demanded. ‘You’re supposed to be wooing the Staten’s daughter, Chance. There aren’t many more women I can throw at you before you choose one to settle down with. Enough is enough.’

I withheld my sigh. It would only anger her further and raise her blood pressure, which I wanted to avoid since she’d recently been placed on medication for it after a few fainting spells. I honestly didn’t intend to be difficult, but I also wasn’t the kind of man to allow others to dictate my life for me. I’d never once wanted to be a part of this high-society hullabaloo, but I also wasn’t going to take accountability for her inability to listen.

‘Mom, I’m not interested in Miss Staten. I’m not into the whole surgically-enhanced look, not to mention her personality is abhorrent.’

‘ Chance Dodd,’ she chastised, then immediately winced when I scowled at her use of the wrong surname.

‘Weiss, Mother. Perhaps we can have this conversation when you can at least get my goddamn name right.’

I moved to exit the room and re-enter the throng of social climbing vipers, but her hand on my arm stopped me. Not because she placed it there, but because she was exhibiting a rare gentleness that caught me off guard. Just like the open desperation in her gaze. The pleading.

‘I’m sorry. I just… I don’t understand why you never took Calvin’s name. The rest of us are Dodds. Your surname differing from ours just isolates you further.’

I knew she meant well, but this conversation was getting far too close to dangerous waters. ‘Your husband never liked me,’ I reminded her. ‘Even if you forgot Dad and rejected his name, I never will. If that isolates me from these fake-ass people who only want me for what I can do for their bank accounts or social status, then so be it.’

I tore my arm out of her grip and ignored her scowl as I stormed from the room. A deep breath helped me to compose myself before I stepped back into the luncheon that posed as a charity function, but it was really just an excuse for everyone inside to throw around their money like it proved they had the biggest dick.

Or, like my mother and most of the other women inside, they were eager to prove they had married the biggest bank account.

It was truly repulsive to me, particularly because it went against everything my father had instilled in me. Before he’d died, Mom had agreed with him. When she’d become a widow and a single mother in one fell swoop, that had all changed. Suddenly, the only thing she’d wanted was a fresh start with a man who could take care of everything so she wouldn’t have to.

That fresh start had brought my little brother into my life, however, so I tried not to be too bitter about how things had turned out. My stepfather, Blake’s dad, had hated me from the onset. It wasn’t anything I’d done, besides existing, but I was a reminder that his wife had had a life before him. Proof that he wasn’t the only man she’d ever loved. And I didn’t doubt that she did, I just knew that she loved his money more.

I had been too young when my father died to remember much about him, but his hard work ethic and morals had stuck with me. His face might have blurred in my memories, but I remembered how he’d thrown himself into his passions with an enthusiasm I’d admired. He had been just as intrigued by the paranormal as I was. It was one of the biggest contributing factors to why I’d chosen my career in the first place.

Alas, I was doomed to be surrounded by vultures in couture. At least until I could find an excuse to leave. Ashe was waiting on me to slip out so we could start the journey to Gilchrist.

‘Everything okay?’ Dakota asked in her sweet voice as she sidled up to me as soon as I stepped back into the room. She handed me a plate filled to the brim with tiny portions of my favourite foods, and I was irrationally annoyed that she’d paid close enough attention to know what I liked.

I pushed those feelings aside, aware that they came from a place of grief and longing rather than anything she’d done to deserve it. If anything, I was more annoyed with myself for being annoyed. She was a genuinely kind woman, and Blake was a lucky man to have found a second love just as wonderful as the first.

‘Thanks,’ I mumbled as I lifted a crab puff to my mouth. It was delicious, just like I knew it would be, and I gave her a small smile of gratitude.

‘You could probably slip out unnoticed in about ten more minutes. I could cover for you, if you like.’

I inhaled deeply before releasing it through my nose in a staccato huff. ‘That would be greatly appreciated, Dakota. Thank you.’

Her answering smile was bright and relieved. Our relationship was strained, and a sudden stab of guilt punched through my gut. That was my fault. I couldn’t let go of Kali, but that wasn’t Dakota’s burden to bear. She had enough to deal with trying to live up to a ghost, but I couldn’t help but keep her at arm’s length.

She tucked a piece of her dark brown hair behind her ear, and both the style and the colour helped me to remember that she was completely different from Kali. Dakota wore her hair in a short bob that she curled into gentle waves, and her hair was the colour of dark chocolate with caramel highlights, the complete opposite of Kali’s long, platinum blonde hair. It was natural, too, almost white, though despite the icy shade it never retracted from her warmth. A warmth that was mirrored in Dakota, whether I liked it or not.

And who the fuck did I think I was to hate a woman for being genuinely kind?

I was going to have to pick myself up by my bootstraps and stop being such an ass.

‘I can stick around for a little while longer, but only if you keep that… thing away from me,’ I said, pointing my chin vaguely in the direction of Florence’s jealous eye twitch.

‘Oof. Yeah, I tried to stop Mallory from playing matchmaker, but it only seemed to spur her on.’

I blinked down at her in surprise. ‘You did?’

Continuing with the surprises, her hand patted my forearm, not a single claw in sight. In fact, her nails were cut short with rounded edges and painted a very respectable nude colour. And they remained blessedly out of my flesh.

‘Of course. Blake mentioned how much you hate being tossed at these women like a sacrificial lamb. I tried to at least curb her attentions towards a… well, I’d say a better option, but none of them are, are they?’

I chuckled, and she giggled, a moment of reprieve from my constant battle. Kali was gone, and though it hurt like a bitch, I needed to let her rest. There was no reason for me to take out my anger and grief on Dakota when she had never been anything but warm and welcoming to me. Even now, she was trying.

It was… nice.

‘So, where are you and the crew off to this time?’ she asked.

My entire being lit up at her question. I could tell she was interested and not just making small talk, and it was a pleasant shift from the constant dismissals I’d received in every conversation I’d had today.

‘Klamath County. There’s been a string of deaths down Highway 97, followed by sightings of a mysterious man. No prints, no tracks, the guy just disappears without a trace.’

Her eyes were wide as she took in the information, but then her brows dipped low and little lines appeared at the corners as worry set in. ‘Are you sure that’s safe? I mean, if this guy is somehow connected to the deaths, don’t you think you’ll be putting yourselves at risk? What if he comes after you just because you’re looking into him?’

Her concern was a breath of fresh air I didn’t know I needed until I felt it wash over me and fill my lungs, and I smiled down at her with a new tenderness I’d never allowed myself to feel for her before. ‘Don’t worry about me. It’s probably nothing. The Little Deschutes runs through the area. It’s more than likely just people being reckless and creating ghost stories out of nothing.’

She didn’t look convinced, so I kept going. ‘How about this? Why don’t I check in at the same time every day so you know everything’s fine?’

She relaxed ever so slightly at the concession, and it felt good to have someone other than Ashe, Mikey and Gloria care. ‘Okay. I know Blake worried as well, so I’m sure he’d appreciate it, too.’

This was news to me. My little brother cared, I knew that much, but we’d never had the kind of relationship where we openly talked about our feelings. It was mostly just unspoken understandings.

‘Well, I’ll be sure to keep in touch while I’m on the job from now on, but a little ghost isn’t going to scare me.’

She didn’t return my smile, her expression one of deep concern. ‘And what if it’s not a ghost? What if it’s a serial killer or something?’

‘Then we leave and let the police do their thing,’ I assured her softly.

‘You don’t normally take these kinds of jobs, right?’ she asked.

‘What kind do you mean?’

‘The present ones. The ones where things are happening now .’

‘Ah,’ I said, comprehension dawning. ‘No. We typically stick to places steeped in history. The macabre kind, sure, but the dead are dead, regardless.’

‘Have you ever actually caught a ghost on camera?’ she asked, and I was practically giddy as I answered.

‘Yeah, a few. We mostly catch electromagnetic readings. A few words here and there are pretty common, too, but yeah. We’ve got footage of a ghost or two.’

‘Can I see?’

I grinned. ‘Sure. We post all our findings on our website.’

‘Oh, I didn’t realise you had a website.’

‘Sure do. We get a good portion of our income from our blog, but we sell merch as well as other services.’

‘Other services?’

‘People can hire us.’

‘Really? What kind of people hire ghost hunters?’

I shrugged. ‘It depends. Some people like a good story to tell at a party. Some people just want us to talk about what we do and why. Others want us for our equipment because they can’t afford it themselves and they want to try their hand at it. It ranges.’

‘That’s… not what I expected at all. That sounds incredible. You must have a lot of adventures.’

I laughed at that, the sound louder than I expected, so I quickly dampened it behind my hand. ‘Yeah, you could say that.’

‘Do you think I could come with you sometime? I’d love a front row seat to watch you work. It sounds fascinating.’

Again, she took me by surprise, but pleasantly so. ‘Uh, sure. I don’t see a problem with that.’

Her smile was tentatively hopeful. ‘That would be awesome.’

My phone buzzed inside my pocket, and I took it out to see that Ashe had texted me, urging me to hurry it along. I shook the phone in front of me with a sheepish smile. ‘Looks like I need to get going.’

‘Don’t worry, I’ll keep Mallory off your back. Go catch some ghosts.’

Shocking myself this time, I awkwardly patted her shoulder before skirting around the edge of the room towards the exit. I caught Dakota dragging Florence’s attention away from me just in time for me to slip out the door and rush towards my van. When I was settled behind the wheel, I took my phone out again to shoot Ashe a text to let her know I was on my way, then put the pedal to the floor so I could get as far away from charity luncheons, blind dates, and overbearing mothers as I could.