Free Resurrection in Mudbug by Jana DeLeon Page A

and closed the door. 
    As he sat down at his desk, Jadyn’s words came back to him.
    “…or it’s someone who’s above reproach.”
    He turned on his computer and sighed. Maybe it was time to dig a little deeper into Bill and Marty. 
    Maybe it was time to dig a little deeper into everyone.
     

 
    Chapter Nine
     
    “You’ve got to get these off of me.”
    As she hurried downstairs in her normal nighttime outfit of yoga pants and T-shirt, Jadyn heard Helena whine for at least the hundredth time.
    “I’m trying.” A clearly frustrated Maryse poked at the hole in the cuffs with a bent paper clip. “I’m not a criminal, Helena. This isn’t in my skill set.”
    Maryse looked up at Jadyn as she stepped into the lobby. “I don’t suppose you have any at your office?” Maryse asked, sounding a little desperate.
    “No, sorry,” Jadyn said. “If I’d known the state wasn’t going to have my equipment here when I arrived, I would have bought some supplies of my own and brought them with me.”
    “Cut it off,” Helena said.
    Maryse sighed. “I’m not even sure what kind of saw it would take to cut that cuff off, but I’m certain I don’t have one. Give me a minute.”
    Maryse pulled out her cell phone and tried again to reach Luc. She’d made several attempts before Jadyn had gone upstairs to change, but they’d all gone straight to voice mail. Jadyn was surprised when Maryse actually started talking.
    “Do you have your handcuff key on you?” Maryse asked.
    There was a slight pause, then Maryse blushed a bit. “No, it’s not that kind of night. Actually, I need you to stop by the hotel on your way home. I’ll explain when you get here.”
    Maryse slipped her cell phone back into her jeans pocket.
    “He should be here in a couple of minutes,” Maryse said. 
     Jadyn looked from Helena to Maryse and bit her lip. “What are you going to tell him…I mean to get the key without showing him what’s going on?”
    “Hiding all this mess isn’t necessary,” Mildred said as she walked into the lobby with a tray of coffee. “Luc knows all about Helena.”
    Jadyn’s stared. “Seriously?”
    Maryse nodded. “Luc’s Native American. When we first met, he shocked me by admitting he could see her, then for a couple of weeks, he saw more than he ever wanted to. After he shot Johnny, she disappeared…to him anyway. When she ascended last year, Luc hoped it was permanent. Although he hasn’t had the pleasure of sharing the same space with her again, he’s not happy she’s back.”
    “So you think he’s going to be pissed about the handcuffs?” Jadyn asked as Maryse paced the hotel lobby.
    “He’s not going to be pleased,” Maryse said. 
    Jadyn sighed, wishing her cousin wasn’t in this situation. “I wouldn’t be, either.”
    “That’s rude,” Helena complained, “since I’m wearing these cuffs because I was protecting you.”
    Jadyn shook her head. “That idiot Junior would never have touched me. The only thing you accomplished was assaulting the sheriff and stealing his handcuffs. I hope Junior was the only one who saw them floating. At least Colt will dismiss that as a drunken hallucination.”
    Helena crossed her arms and huffed. “See if I try helping again.”
    “Why didn’t you call, Helena?” Maryse asked. “That was the whole point of the cell phone. Not only did you forget all about the phone, you went running off down the street, leaving Mildred and me with no idea what we were walking into.”
    “I guess you think a floating cell phone wouldn’t have looked out of place.”
    Maryse threw her arms in the air. “Then go into the storeroom or a bathroom stall or step outside behind the bar. You’ve got more options for avoiding detection than a human ever could, but you refuse to take them into consideration when making these half-assed decisions.”
    Helena clammed shut and went into pout mode, which meant she knew Maryse was right but wasn’t about to admit it.