Bitten by Cupid(64)

The doctor confirmed that her brain was fine. Then she’d started hearing voices. After seeing numerous doctors, she’d been taken to a psychiatric facility. It scared her to think she was going crazy. She’d been evaluated, questioned, and while she’d waited in that terrible place, she’d heard real craziness. The patients lived in a haze of paranoia and nonsense. Then she could hear the doctors’ thoughts about the patients. That was when she’d realized she was hearing their thoughts.

She sat on the hard plastic bench on the train and thought about what to do. At least she knew what was going to happen. She could prepare for it, protect herself. Not like those other women she remembered seeing in the news. Not like her friend Patsy in college. If he couldn’t get to her, though, would he abort his plan for the year? No, he would find another victim. No way could she let that happen. She had to go to the police and convince them she wasn’t nuts. Yeah, that was going to be easy.

Do it for Patsy.

She got off at the next subway stop and got back on to return to the stop close to the coffee shop. She found the nearest police station and asked to see an officer. Detective Jake Voigt came out to fetch her. He was good-looking, with short, brown hair, probably in his early thirties. Though he was clean-shaven, his weary eyes and crooked tie made him look as though he had been working twenty-four hours straight.

“You’re working the Kiss and Kill Cupid case?” she asked, just to make sure.

“One of a few. You have information?”

She nodded. “I’m going to be the next victim.”

He blinked at that. “You’d better come on back.”

She followed him into a large area filled with desks and people and thoughts. Her chest got tighter with each step. She’d envisioned talking to the detective in an office or interview room, but he led her to one of those desks and nodded for her to take the plastic chair beside it.

He sat down. “What makes you think you’re going to be the next victim, Ms….?”

“Morgan. Kristy Morgan.” She looked up, a slight grimace on her face. “You’re going to find this a bit, uh, hard to believe. And I don’t blame you, but please hear me out. I can hear people’s thoughts.”

It was hard to hear any particular thought, but she was pretty sure she heard one of his: Oh, brother. Another loony.

“I am not a loony.” She softened her tone with a smile. Hotly denying it wasn’t going to help make her case. She was still sensitive about it, even after all these years. It didn’t help that her parents treated her with kid gloves even though she’d long ago lied and told them she didn’t hear voices anymore. “See, I knew you thought I was a loony.”

He raised one eyebrow. “That’s not a stretch.”

“I can prove it. Think of something.”

I don’t have time for this.

She gave him a shocked look. “You don’t have time to catch the killer?”

His eyes widened, but he didn’t look convinced. “I don’t have time for this weird stuff. Do you know how many psychics have come in to give me clues?” He did finger quotes on that last word.

“A lot?” she guessed. “But I’m not a psychic. I’m a target, and you can use me to catch him.”

He released a soft breath. “Tell me what you came here to say.”

“I was at a coffee shop four blocks from here and heard someone thinking I would make a great next victim. He commented on my hair and on my scarf.” She fingered her scarf but quickly released it.

“So I suppose you want us to put you under protective custody.” He didn’t look like he was going to do that anytime soon.

“No. I can take care of myself, lock myself in my apartment with my finger on the 9 on the phone and a kitchen knife in my other hand. What I’m concerned about is the next victim. And the next. I had a friend who was murdered. Raped. Left naked and bloody in her dorm room. The murderer was never found.” She swallowed the hitch she felt in her throat. “I want you to use me as a decoy, put me under surveillance, and catch this guy.”

He leaned forward. “What am I thinking now?”

She tried to focus in on just one thought, but there were so many. “That you don’t believe me.”

“Wow, you can read minds.” He feigned surprise and wonder. “Look, we can’t assign men to watch your place because you…heard the killer’s thoughts.” He shook his head. “Yeah, I can see the captain going for that.”

“If you have a chance to get this guy, keep him from killing someone else…please, you have to.”