Lost Souls (Cainsville 3.6)

"Gabriel?"

"Yes. We have a case. I was ph

oning with an update, but it isn't urgent. Olivia can call me in the morning."

"Whoa, no. If I let you go, I'll catch proper shit. You've got her hooked with the mystery. I'm keeping you on the line, like it or not."

A chuckle, a little bit forced, a reminder that Olivia wasn't the only one Gabriel had hurt. Not the only one he'd betrayed. And Ricky didn't even know about his hesitation in the bell tower.

Fresh shame licked through Gabriel.

Ricky continued, "And because I know you despise small talk, my dad wants me to run a few things past you when I get back. Normal business." Which meant the Gallaghers' legitimate business interests, rather than their criminal ones. "He wants me to handle it, but if you'd rather--"

"No, that's fine. We'll talk."

"Great. And here comes Liv." Ricky's voice faded, as if pulling the phone away. "It's Gabriel. I told him you're not interested in the case, and you don't want to hear anything about it."

Whatever Olivia did, it made Ricky laugh. Then he said into the receiver. "Here she is. I'll call Lydia tomorrow and set up a meeting."

Olivia came on the line with a breezy, "Hey, there." Gabriel eased back in the driver's seat and told her what was bothering him about Christina Moore.

"Exactly what I was thinking," Olivia said. "It's a one-eighty in haunting style. Weepy ghost to vengeful spirit with no apparent transition period. I say 'apparent' meaning I have to dig deeper to confirm that. To that end, I've tracked down the woman who claims to have encountered weepy Chrissy right before Tanya Gross--the first to fall to the vengeful version."

"Excellent. We can speak to her tomorrow."

"Actually, I thought Ricky and I would pop by there tonight."

A chill settled between Gabriel's shoulder blades. A dangerous chill. The one that slid into his gut and made his voice ice over as he said, "I see."

Olivia did not fail to catch that chill. She hurried on, saying, "She lives outside the city. Right on our way to Cainsville. It makes sense for us to stop by."

"Of course."

He heard his chill deepen, and he tried to put on the brakes, change direction, avoid this destination. She was right. It was efficient. No insult to him. No rejection. So why did he feel that same impulse rising? To reject. To shun. To freeze her out. Just as he had when she'd told him about Gwynn.

"Unless you'd rather I waited," she said. "Or maybe you want to do it yourself?"

"No, of course not. Your plan makes sense."

A wary, "Okay," as if she suspected it wasn't okay at all. "So we'll pop by, and then I'll call you with whatever I learn--"

"No," he said. "I'll be busy tonight." Stop. Damn it. Stop. Reverse. "I'm very busy, Olivia. I'm still catching up from before, and I really don't have time for this case."

"Okay..." Uh, weren't you the one who suggested it, Gabriel? She didn't say that. She would have, a few weeks ago. Now she trod carefully. So carefully.

Back up. Tell her you were joking. She'll laugh and say you need a lot more practice, and you'll insist it's fine for her to conduct that interview with Ricky. Just call when she's done and--

"If you wish to pursue it, you may do so," he said. "I'll let Patrick know. But I don't have the time. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to work."

ELEVEN

GABRIEL

Gabriel was in the gym. He'd been there often enough in the last two weeks for the staff to notice and say it was good to see him coming regularly. One made the mistake of clapping Gabriel on the shoulder. One glance, and the man had pulled away so fast you'd think he'd been in imminent danger of losing the limb. Today, as Gabriel stalked in, the young woman behind the desk hadn't even waited to see his membership card, just pointed mutely at the locker rooms.

He had excuses for increasing the regularity of his visits. With Olivia away, he had more time. And he may, in hauling Ricky onto that balcony, have realized how long it'd been since he'd done more than go for a run or a swim.

There was also the undeniable fact that his physique did not fare well under poor diet and exercise conditions. A large bone structure meant it was easy for him to gain muscle...and equally easy to gain not-muscle. Also easy for him to conceal the not-muscle. Or conceal it until he shed his shirt and proved it had been a while since he could feign a flat stomach without inhaling.