Easton had destroyed every good memory he had left of Tessa. Some of those letters had been knives in his gut, but a few had been good. Some of those she’d written in the beginning when she still cared about him. When she’d been excited about Turning him and keeping him forever.
“Where are Willa and Gia?” he asked as betrayal cracked across his ribcage. “They could’ve stopped this. Where the hell are they?”
“They’re in town loading up on winter supplies,” Creed answered quietly.
Matt knelt down beside a line of white powder that encircled Creed’s entire trailer. He reached down and lifted his finger, then tasted the stuff. “It’s salt.” Matt looked at Creed with a baffled expression in his wide, blue eyes. “Why would he make a circle of salt?”
Jason’s face went slack as realization slammed into him. Burning Tessa’s things. Salt. Jason had been born and raised in the bayou and had heard of this kind of paranormal warfare before. Jason looked around, completely shocked as the mess took on new meaning.
Beaston knew more about evicting ghosts than he’d let on.
The rumble of an unfamiliar vehicle sounded across the trailer park.
“What now?” Creed muttered, striding for the road to meet whatever trouble was headed their way.
When Georgia’s Jeep appeared through the trees, Jason’s pulse hit its stride, like a racehorse’s hooves beating the sand. She was here, in his territory. He looked around the littered yard and hooked his hands on his hips at the overwhelming task before him. She was going to see all of this, all of him, spread all over the trailer park and out in the open.
Jason narrowed his eyes at Easton who sat in her passenger seat. What the fuck was he doing with her? He and Matt followed Creed to the mouth of the road to meet them.
Georgia pulled into the grass, and her eyes met Jason’s. She dropped her gaze immediately, though, stealing that blue and gold flecked color from him. Maybe she was still mad about the other day.
Creed introduced himself, and Matt followed suit. And right when she swung her attention to Jason, Easton stepped in front of him and gripped his shoulder.
“Where?” Easton asked.
Confused, Jason asked, “Where is what?”
“Where is she buried?”
Jason blinked slowly, but Easton seemed serious. All right then. “Dodge City, Kansas. Tessa didn’t want to be buried in a Louisiana cemetery on account of ghosts. Pretty damn ironic. She’s under the branches of an old oak tree at Maple Grove Cemetery. Why?”
Easton’s eyes softened as he gestured to his half healed neck. “Because I can be a good friend.” He turned and strode toward Georgia’s Jeep. “I’ll be back in a couple of days. Keep your ranger close.”
“What are you going to do?” Jason called.
Easton looked over his shoulder, and his eyes held such fierce determination. “I’m going to burn her bones.”
“What do you mean burn her bones?” Georgia asked as Easton hopped into her Jeep.
“You stay here and keep the ghosts at bay. You’ll be good. Willa and Gia will be nice to you, but that one…” Easton said, pointing to Jason. “He needs your protection.”
Easton spun out, whipping the tail of the forest green Jeep and scattering gravel. Georgia ran after him but stopped after ten yards. She’d never catch up to him.
“Easton!” Creed yelled.
If Easton heard, he didn’t show it. A blaring Beatles song trailed in the Jeep’s wake as he disappeared around the bend in the road.
In Easton’s own fucked-up and slightly psychotic way, he was trying to do something Jason had failed to do for five years.
Sure, Easton had just about slit Jason’s throat earlier. He’d trashed Jason’s trailer and burned his personal belongings, and yes, he’d definitely kidnapped Georgia, even if she didn’t realize it yet. Easton had also committed grand theft auto, and he was about to dig Tessa up from an old cemetery and break into her coffin to burn her bones.
But Beaston was making a run at getting rid of Tessa.
And that right there was the nicest thing anyone had ever done for him.
Chapter Six
“He just stole my Jeep.” Georgia turned to Creed and Matt who wore matching frowns. “He just drove off in my car!”
Creed opened his mouth, sighed, and then snapped it closed again.
“I’m calling the police,” she muttered, pulling out her phone.
“Lady, out here you are the police,” Matt pointed out.
Oh. Right. “Okay, he said he’d be back in a couple of days, but I have work. I have a lot of territory to manage and my ATV won’t cover it all. Plus, I have to meet Damon Daye and go into town for supplies and food and…” Her voice trailed off as Jason turned and began picking up trash from the ground.