Vibrations (4 page)

Nick watched the door close and
turned to Whitney. Now he wasn’t just expected to bring her to crime scenes, he
was responsible for feeding her and who knew what else.

Whitney was watching him with a
wary expression. “I guess I’m at your mercy, Detective Naylor. If it’s a
problem, you can just give me directions and I can get a cab.” When he didn’t
answer she nodded her head and reached for the phone. “I’ll call a cab for now
and I can rent a car later. Don’t worry. I’ll stay out of your way. I would
have brought my car, but they said Sarah would be driving me around. It makes
me feel like an invalid or something. It’s just that I get so tired when I am
working on a case.”

“You don’t need a cab,” he said
trying to put on a friendly smile. “It’s no problem. Where would you like to
eat?” Nick was still doubtful, but if she really did see something she was the
only witness they had. Nick needed her help.

“I know it’s late but I’d
really love a big breakfast,” she said looking very uncomfortable.

If he had only heard her voice,
he’d have thought she was in the mood for a cheery meal. Instead he could see
the pain in her eyes and the way her hands shook.

“There’s an IHOP down the road,
and a little café just down from that. They serve breakfast all day and it’s
quiet in there.”

“Then the café it is. I’ll grab
my stuff and meet you in the car.”

Nick realized she
needed a minute to freshen up so he headed outside. His body felt like it was
in shock from the events of the morning. He felt in his pocket for a cigarette.
“Damn! Great time to quit.” He had quit four months ago but he still felt the
old habits kick in when he was under stress.

“Man, this sure qualifies for a
stressful moment,” he thought to himself. “What I wouldn’t give for a Marlboro
Light right now. Didn’t see her smoking. Nope, probably not her.”

He slid into the car and ran
his hand through his hair. Maybe a good meal would calm him down. “But alone
with her? That can’t be the best thing for my nerves.”

Soon they were settled in the
booth in the back of the café. The whole place was done in a western desert
theme, just like so many businesses and homes in Arizona. Nick had grown tired
of the western décor but at least it was bright and comfortable and almost
deserted. After finishing her breakfast of three eggs, home fries, toast,
juice, and a couple cups of coffee, Whitney started to look a little better.

Nick had picked at his omelet
and was working on his third cup of coffee. He finally broke the silence.

“Do you mind if I smoke?”

“I didn’t think you smoked,”
she said, eyebrows rising and nose wrinkling. “You don’t smell like a smoker.”

“Well, I just quit. A few
months ago. But I really need one right now.”

“Oh Nick, I’m sorry. Please
don’t let my stupidity get you started again.”

“It’s not your fault.” At least
he didn’t think so. “And you are not stupid. I think you are probably very
brave, and maybe a little stubborn, but not stupid. I just need something to
calm my nerves right now. I still have this feeling that this is all a dream
and I’ll wake up any minute. In that case, I won’t actually be smoking and I
won’t have to worry about it.”

“Ya gotta do what ya gotta do.”
Whitney shrugged and tried to smile. She had too much on her mind to deal with
his habits right now.

“Thanks”.

Nick went up to the register
and bought a pack and a lighter. He went outside and sat on the bench. The
first drag tasted like ashtray, and after the second drag his head spun. It was
the dizzy rush of the first cigarette after a long abstinence.

“Better?” Whitney stepped
through the door and walked toward him.

“A little. So, what’s the deal
with Sarah? Haven’t you worked with her before?”

“Well, she tries really hard.
I’ve worked with her a little, but not on such a stressful case. She’s been
around the department for a while, and really wants to be a part of it. She
thinks she has some psychic ability, but nothing that really works in the
field. I guess she might have some ability, because she was able to block me
enough so that I had no idea what she was planning.”

“Block you? You mean some
people can keep you from sensing their…thoughts?”

“Yup.” Whitney sat on the bench
as far from Nick as possible. “Some people put up barriers. Those with psychic
abilities have different levels of awareness and some can block others. Even
some without any gifts are able to keep up barriers. Many times it’s the same
person who puts up barriers to relationships and other normal human contact.”

“So, when people can’t do this,
like most of the population, you can read their thoughts?”

Whitney could see Nick
fidgeting in his seat and couldn’t help laughing. How many times had she been
through this? She could either get irritated and angry, knowing that he would
probably try to keep his distance from now on, or she could see the humor in
the situation. He looked like a little boy getting caught with his hand in the
cookie jar, or something much worse.

“Something like that. Sorry. I
know it’s a pain for you, but it just happens. It’s not like I try to do it. I
don’t dig around in your head for info. At times people are sending the energy
out so strong it’s hard not to catch bits and pieces. The more the person
becomes agitated or angered or any other emotion that happens with the thought,
the stronger it is.”

“So I didn’t imagine your blush
in the station?”

Whitney shook her head, as her
cheeks got pink again.

“I’m so sorry.” Nick started
talking faster. “I had no idea. I didn’t mean to, I mean I wasn’t trying to be…
Oh hell. I’m sorry. How can someone keep from thinking like that around you?”

Whitney was trying to keep from
laughing again. “Nick, it’s okay. Everyone has thoughts like that. It’s normal,
and flattering. Being exposed to everyone’s thoughts from a young age has
taught me to ignore most of it. I do wish I could turn it off sometimes, but I
can’t.

“Okay. Let’s change subjects.
Back to Sarah.”

“Sarah just gets too nervous
for this work. She was on the verge of being let go, but I wanted to help her.
Give her another chance. See, stupid. I didn’t realize the next assignment
would be so…hard.” Whitney sighed. “Well, I guess I had better get back to my
room and get started on my report.”

“Can you tell me anything right
now that will help us?”

“Not yet. I have to take the
time to go over it. It’ll take a while. Thanks for taking me to breakfast and
for being patient.”

“Do you know who did it?”

“Nick, if I knew that I’d tell
you. Really. Just give me some time.”

Nick shrugged and put out his
cigarette. If she could see things, why didn’t she see the killer? It still
wasn’t making much sense, and his belief system was going haywire. His mind was
deep in thought all the way to the motel. She seemed lost in her own thoughts
as rode along in silence. Just as they pulled into the motel his cell phone
rang.

“Naylor. Yeah. Dropping her off
at the motel. No. No. Fine!” He turned to Whitney. “It’s Agent Hollerman. He
wants to talk to you.”

Whitney slowly reached for the
phone. Nick’s face had turned to stone. He was being asked to do something he
didn’t like.

“Hello.” It was Agent
Hollerman. “Yeah. Uh huh. No! I’ll be fine.” Whitney could hear the whining in
her voice and tried to sound more commanding. “No. Look, this is getting
ridiculous.”

The agent on the other end
sounded like a father talking to his errant teenager. “Look Whitney, you know
you shouldn’t be alone. It’s one thing to take risks, but not unnecessary ones.
You need someone there, and I can’t get away. I’ve tried, but everyone is out
on assignment and no one can be pulled off. Nick has already been through the
worst of it. Let him stay with you just until you finish the report. Whitney? Whitney
if you can’t do this, I can pull you off the case.”

“No! That’s not fair. You know
I can’t stop now. I want to stop this guy as bad as you do.” Whitney paused.
“Fine! Whatever. We’ll do it your way. Are you sure he’s willing?”

Whitney handed the phone back
to Nick. “He wants to talk to you again.”

Nick talked over the details
and hung up. So now he was the new “assistant”. The captain had cleared it as
long as Nick agreed. He thought about saying no, but he just couldn’t do it,
even though in this case an assistant was a glorified babysitter. Of course
that meant she would be accompanying him on any detective work, which would be
another headache. He looked over at Whitney. She was looking out the window,
but he could see the tears rolling down her cheeks. He couldn’t believe he’d
started the day thinking she was a nut, and now he found himself wishing he
could do something to ease her pain. What kind of life could she have reading
everyone’s thoughts? Even worse, she offered her skills to dig into the
thoughts of victims and killers. He was starting to feel protective and that
worried him.

“Don’t get so involved. She can
read your mind,” he thought. “She’s not someone you want to start worrying
about. It’s not your job,” he shouted in his head. Glancing back at Whitney,
seeing the tears and rigid posture, Nick realized his own self talk was like
screaming at her.

“Sorry. It’s okay Whitney. I’ll
try to stay out of the way. Just let me know what you need.”

She just nodded and got out of
the Mustang. Nick followed her into the dim room.

“This is the best the FBI can
do? This place is a dump.”

“I just like out of the way
places. Sarah booked it. I think she wanted to make sure we were away from the
station, and the agents.”

“Look, since we’re stuck
together for a while, and it’s not exactly cheerful in there, what do you say
we head to my place for the afternoon? It’s closer to the station, but in a
quiet little neighborhood. I live out in the country. Well, the desert.”

“I don’t know. I feel like a
big pain in the butt already. I don’t want to be a problem, but maybe you would
feel more comfortable there. I guess you could keep yourself more occupied at
home than in this little room.” She thought for a minute and finally agreed it
was the best choice.

Nick called the station to
leave a message for Teddy, and headed down 10 East. He had a little place in
the town of Gilbert. The house was a little run down, but he liked it because
it had the same kind of siding you find out east. No stucco for him. He saw too
much of it every day. And it came with five acres of land. The past owners had
a horse, but Nick didn’t even have a dog. He did have a big friendly mutt that
liked to visit him from down the road. Nick let him visit because he was a good
alarm when rattlesnakes were around. The dog spent most of his time searching
for snakes with his nose to the ground. He loved the chase and when he finally
had one cornered, he would bark up a storm. Nick was waiting for the day when a
snake would get tired of all that noise and sink it’s fangs in the mutt. So
far, the dog always won.

The dog barked and jumped when
Nick stepped out of the car. “He won’t hurt you. He’s from down the street but
I think he likes my house better. Maybe it’s all the bones I give him. But you
probably already know that. Can you read his mind?”

“No. I can’t. Very funny.
Animals don’t have the same kind of thought patterns. Thank goodness. I don’t
believe I’d want to know what they think about all day.”

She grabbed the laptop and
other bags in the back of the car. He reached around and took the heaviest bag
out of her hands. When his hand touched hers she jumped and pulled back. Nick
stopped and looked at her for an explanation, but she just turned away and
clutched the laptop to her chest.

“The house is great.” Whitney
wasn’t interested in explanations, but she didn’t want to offend him. “It’s
very peaceful here. I really do appreciate it.”

They stepped inside and Nick led
her through the house. The whole place had a rustic look. Large pine beams ran
up the vaulted ceiling. The living room had large windows that looked out over
the desert scenery. There was an old brown recliner sitting by the picture
window, and a worn couch sitting on the other side of the room. The floors were
hardwood, and he had thrown a pretty gray rug in the middle of the room.

They walked through the neatly
organized kitchen and out into a large, glassed in porch.

“Hope this works for you. It’s
right near the kitchen. The bathroom’s over there and there’s a small table
right next to the couch. Make yourself comfy. I’m going to go upstairs and
change. If you don’t need me right away, I may I lay down for a nap. Maybe I’ll
wake up and the world will be back to normal.”

She smiled at him and felt
guilty for putting him in such a state of confusion. She was his nightmare, and
he was hoping to wake up. Well, at least it would be over for him eventually.
There were times she wished she could wake up and her gift would be gone. She
had dreams about it.

Whitney looked around at the
room. It was surrounded with large windows and filled with plants. “No wonder
he thought my room was depressing,” she thought. “This guy likes to see sunlight.”

She arranged her paper, pens, voice
recorder and other supplies on the table. She opened the laptop and set it on
the couch. Time to do it. She was hoping Nick would really take a nap and give
her a little time. She turned on the voice recorder and stretched out on the
couch.

She tried to relax and let the
images come back slowly. Her own body had a way of protecting itself by hiding
the images in the far away corners of her mind. She didn’t want to remember but
she had to, for the kids. The smell of the cave came back to her. She started
describing her experience out loud so she could use the recording to finish her
notes. She didn’t want to overlook even the smallest detail. The smell of wet
rock, and dirt, and blood. A small whimper escaped her lips. She could hear the
boy crying again. Crying and begging. What did he see? It was blurry. Were his
eyes injured already? A tall longhaired figure loomed over him. “Mama!” he was
crying out in his head, but he was only able to mouth the word “No” over and
over. “It hurts, please stop.” He was losing consciousness. She couldn’t see,
couldn’t breathe. She thought she was going to pass out when the images
shifted. Now she started to feel the adrenaline and the anger. “Everything
comes naturally for you doesn’t it! How does it feel to lose this time? Little
Bastard. I told you you’d pay. Let’s see you get up from this one you little
punk.” The image was turning red. She could see the hands slashing with the
knife. The hands were strong looking, with short fingernails and long fingers.
It was hard to get a good look since they were covered with blood. Now he was
slashing at the boy's feet. His socks were a bloody pulp. The last thing
Whitney felt was the hot spurt of blood as he stabbed an artery in the neck.