Chapter 7
1517 Words
Logan sat on her bed, she'd been ready to go down for a while, but had waited. For what she didn't know. Her home would be filled with cops from today, and she didn't know if she was ready for it. She knew she didn't have much choice, since a dead body, normally brought cops. She wanted to strangle the person who brought it to their home. Logan did like the idea that Alex was staying in Winter House with them a little longer, and that the other cops would also be staying in the main house, it meant she could feel safe. And not worry about Harley and her mom so much.
Olivia came floating in, she looked tired if a ghost could look tired. She drifted closer to Logan and sat next to her.
"Harley tried to sneak out." She sighed. Devina and Logan were the only ones that talked to Olivia.
"What?" Logan shot to her feet but Olivia shook her head.
"No, she tried. But Alex caught her. I had the other one following me all night." She complained.
"He's just confused. Alex stopped her?" Logan sat down again.
"Yes. She said that you would be very upset if she was wandering outside alone, with a dangerous person on the loose. She's been with her all morning, Harper and the other two are also here, they're setting up in your den."
"They are what?" Logan shot to her feet again, this time anger propelling her forward.
"Miss Devina told them it was okay." Logan looked at Olivia.
"I don't want them setting up here. They have a bloody police station in town."
"I told Miss Devina that. She said they are closer to everything here, and the chances of keeping things low-key are better. Nash was already here this morning."
"Nash is not my problem, my impressionable daughter is." Olivia floated up and into Logan's space.
"Why does it scare you so much, Logan?"
"I don't need to bury my daughter, Olivia. Paine was enough."
"He was not half as smart as Harley. Even now at her age, she is smarter than most."
"She's still my daughter." Logan opened the door and made her way downstairs. She would chase them, this was her home too.
"I like Alex," Olivia said.
"What does that have to do with anything?" Logan asked. She had to admit she liked Alex too, but that didn't mean she wanted her to lead her daughter further into the dark side of being a cop.
"Just saying she's a good person."
"Okay," Logan said and decided to ignore Olivia. Olivia laughed softly behind her then moved off into another room. Logan walked to where she heard voices, her daughter's right smack dab in the middle of it. "Harley?" The three people turned to her as she walked into the den. Her eyes widened at the one wall, they'd obviously decided was going to be their murder board. "Really? You can't put that stuff up in here, anyone could walk in and see it, Harley is seeing it!"
"Mom, come on, I've seen worse." She shrugged. "He just looks like he's sleeping."
"Sure, in a pool of blood," Logan said. She glared at Alex. Then turned her gaze on Harper. "You have a police station, go there."
"Devi..."
"I don't care what my mother said, I'm telling you to get that stuff down."
"Logan, can I have a word, please?" Devina called from the kitchen. Alex looked down at Harley. "Go on kid, we'll talk later."
"But I want to stay here, maybe I can help." Alex saw Logan draw a breath to start shouting and held up her hand. Logan glared at her.
"Look kid, let's see where this goes, with my guys coming later, and then we can talk later, I think we need to let your mom have a say here." She hated that her words caused a dim in Harley's sparkling eyes. "It's going to get a bit crowded in here." She looked up at Logan. "When you're done with your mom, could I maybe have a word too?"
"Fine." She turned. "Come on Harley." She didn't wait for her to follow, just left to go to her mother.
"This sucks," Harley grumbled, but followed her mom.
"I agree with the kid, this sucks."
"Logan has her reasons," Harper said and pinned more pictures on the board.
"I know. But still, Harley has a good eye, and she's bright."
"Doesn't matter. She sees cop, she sees Paine's dead body."
"Harley's dad?"
"Yeah, he was a good guy, I let him down." She looked at Alex. "I should have been there."
"The way I heard it, you were, and he let you down." Alex saw the way Harper looked away and knew she'd hit a nerve. "Sorry."
"No, I've been so angry at him, you know. He died, and I'm angry at him."
"That happens when a person you care about, dies. Especially being so close, but not close enough." Alex touched Harper's arm. "It's a s**t deal."
"Yeah." Harper shook herself. "You made her very angry."
"I figured. Logan seems like the type to play a long game at revenge." Alex laughed, Harper grinned back.
"Oh, you have no idea, and messing with a Grey witch, not so smart."
"I've heard the town calling her that. What does it mean?" Alex asked confused.
"Nothing, you'll figure it out. Or not. Either way, good luck." Alex felt a shiver go down her spine and looked over her shoulder. "Olivia getting to you too?"
"Don't start with that crap," Alex said. "I'm still wondering how I'm going to explain finding the body to my guys."
"Yeah, I can imagine you city guys don't do well with ghost stories." She stepped closer to Alex. "I don't know if she's real or not. I just know that sometimes things happen around here, and sometimes Logan does things, and sometimes they appear out of nowhere. I don't have to believe in ghosts, to believe in Logan and Devina." Alex shook her head.
"Can you really imagine telling the mayor the only witness we have right now, is a ghost?" She threw her hands in the air. "He'll have us all committed and this case will go to someone else, who won't care about Logan, Harley, or Devina."
"You've been here a week, but you already protect them like your own." Harper grinned. "They worked their magic on you already."
"Shut up," Alex said and got busy with pictures, they put his laptop and phone aside for Eva. She didn't know Harper that well yet, so she wouldn't tell her that she was freaked out and worried about just how much she cared.
"I don't care for the way you treated them, Loggie, they need to be close to us and also to the crime scene."
"They don't, the other police don't stay with their crime scenes. You're up to something, and I don't like it." Logan said. She handed a sulking Harley an apple. "I don't want those pictures and things in this house, it's not child, or other guests friendly."
"Mom, come on!" Harley whined. "I just want to be there, see how they do things, just observe."
"Just observe? You want to look at that dead guy's pictures?"
"You know what I mean, don't turn my words, mom." Harley sat and bit into her apple. "I have a chance here to watch two amazing women work, do something I want to do, maybe, one day. Don't you want me to learn from the best?"
"I see what you're doing, I don't like it." But she sat and held her head. "Observe, here. No riding along with them, or even asking me to go with them, and no sneaking out." Harley rolled her eyes.
"Olivia."
"Harley?"
"Okay, yes, no going with them or sneaking out." She grinned and jumped up to hug Logan. Then ran back to where Alex and Harper were still talking. Voices joined them and she recognized Carson and Lexi.
"Are you okay?" Devina asked her.
"I don't know mom, I want to keep her as far away from what Paine did as possible, but it just seems like around every corner there is something pulling her like a magnet."
"She's not him, and besides, as she said, she has two very capable women to learn from, more actually, Carson and Lexi are good too."
"I know, and I think that scares me more." She turned to go talk to Alex. "I want her to see the danger, not the way these women make it seem so easy."
"Trust in them, if not Alex yet, Harper. She would never let anything happen to Harley."
"No, but I thought that about Paine too." She regretted the words as she said them. She felt rather than saw the words hit home as she realized the conversation had stopped in the den. "Damn it." She spun and went out the back door. Not having the courage to face Harper's wounded soul.
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