Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 62923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 315(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 62923 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 315(@200wpm)___ 252(@250wpm)___ 210(@300wpm)
Talk about setting the scene, Ryder thought dryly.
Her eyes focused on Ryder. “Are you going to share your name with me? I vividly remember Remington and all his friends, but you weren’t with them before. Would you be willing to share?”
“You’re the psychic; figure it out,” Ryder snapped irritably. He felt like they were being toyed with—like Mystic Mary was a cat and they were mice.
“Yes…well, let’s take a few moments to explain what Mystic Mary does, shall we?” She said when it became apparent Ryder wasn’t going to play along with her games. “Being psychic doesn’t pay the bills. The police don’t take you seriously and people who are desperate for help rarely have money…which, again, doesn’t pay the bills. This means that, at times, I’m forced to take money from the people who visit my home as a prank or to have a good time. Try to withhold your obvious contempt at my means of survival while you’re in my home. Agreed?”
The cat just crunched down on his head, Ryder thought. Shit, she’d made him feel like a jackass. Ryder didn’t want to believe her, but, then again, she had known about Remi.
“Who was the lady that bumped into Remi when he was leaving your house that night?” Ryder asked, his voice not nearly as hostile. “She has something to do with what’s happening to him, doesn’t she?”
Mary remained calm, which Remi found to be amazing because Ryder looked damn scary at the moment, even though he was apparently trying to rein in his hostilities.
“Why don’t we start by discussing what has been happening to Remi, shall we?” She turned her attention to Remi. “Tell me what abilities have manifested since we last spoke to one another.”
“Fuck,” Ryder grumbled. He wasn’t used to not getting his way or being ignored.
Realizing he had no other choice but allow Mary to take the lead, Remi answered, “I’ve seen some dead people…witnessed a young man being tortured and murdered…managed to stop someone from being killed. Oh, in my dreams, of course. They are dreams, but they’re real, too. Is that enough information to make you give me another crumb regarding what’s happening inside my head?”
“Yes,” she answered. “What you’ve described is quite significant, especially for someone just becoming acquainted with their psychic abilities. Very impressive, Remington,” she complimented him. “First of all, those aren’t actually dreams. Yes, your body is in an extreme state of relaxation, but you aren’t sleeping. What’s happening to you is referred to as Astral Projection. Your soul is exiting your body and traveling to a completely different destination. Normally, this happens voluntarily; people tend to make an effort to journey to a specific place. I assume that isn’t what’s happening where you’re concerned?” she asked.
“Hell, no! I don’t enjoy watching people suffer and die,” Remi roared. “No! I want it to stop! You’ve got to make it stop!”
Mary, as she gazed at him, looked somewhat sympathetic. “I’m sorry, Remington; I can’t make it stop. You’re being summoned by someone. With enough practice, you could possibly learn to reject the summons but…well…that would be…rude.”
“You know what’s rude? Ruining my life; that’s what’s rude!” Remi retorted. “Fine; I’ll practice. Tell me how to reject the summons.”
Remi noticed Ryder’s frown and immediately felt shitty. Hell, what was he saying? Jason Waylon would be dead if he’d known how to reject the summons. Was that what he wanted? Was he really that big of a coward?
“If that’s what you really want, then Gertie will be able to assist you with that. Astral Projection is beyond my psychic abilities.” She tilted her head to the side and asked, “Why do you think you were summoned, Remington? Surely you realize the spirit had a reason for reaching out to you?”
Yeah…she went there. She went straight for his throat and twisted the knife as soon as it was lodged inside him. A guilt trip; he might have known. Unfortunately, he was falling for it. Whatever had moved into his soul, causing him to do whatever the hell it was he was doing, wept from his thoughtless words.
“To try and save somebody’s life,” he muttered. Shame caused his cheeks to burn.
“You already know all of this, though, don’t you, Mary?” Ryder interrupted. “I bet you even know who summoned him. Stop playing games and tell us what we need to know. This isn’t fair to Remi or to the people already murdered by this man and those he still intends to kill.”
Her eyes widened. “You think there will be others?”
“Remi feels confident there will be. What’s the girl’s name? Tell us that much.”
Mary looked troubled. “I can’t do that.” When Ryder started to bark at her again, she held her hand up to silence him. “It isn’t that I won’t, son; I can’t. When Remi and his friends visited my house, it was a walk-in appointment and a huge joke to all of them. I never expected there to be another psychic within their crowd. When someone makes an actual appointment with me…when they need spiritual guidance, I refuse to allow them to give me their real name or any personal information. People are pessimistic of psychics by nature. I don’t enjoy hearing accusations that I dug through the internet to learn the information I share with my clients. The young lady that visited me that night didn’t give me her name, nor did she give me the name of the girl she searched for. Normally, I would never share information regarding anything I’ve learned with another client, but since the spirit has reached out to Remington, I don’t believe revealing what I know would be considered unethical…if I know anything that might be considered helpful.”