Free Don't Touch by Elise VanCise Page A

that it wasn’t
doing her any harm. “Let’s get you home.”
     
    She had fallen asleep on the way home.
Jackson opened the car door careful to keep her from falling out.
“I hate to wake her.” He shook her gently. “Ryan, your home
hun.”
     
    Stretching and rubbing her eyes like a sleepy
child she got out and headed up the walk. Thomas waited while his
partner walked her up. Once inside Ryan didn’t even try to make it
to the bedroom. She sat on the couch yawning. “Thanks, I’m
good.”
     
    He grinned shaking his head as he plopped a
pillow on the end of the couch and gently pushed her over. “We’re
pushing you too hard.”
     
    She laid back. “No, I’m pushing me too hard.”
She smiled a sparkling smile that made her brown eyes twinkle. “And
I’m loving it. I feel like me again. If I can learn how to control
this thing maybe I can get my life back.”
     
    Her eyes closed she thought only for a second
but the easy rhythm of her breathing soon slipped into slumber.
Jackson pulled the blanket over her and brushed the hair from her
face. He made sure her door was locked before running into Thomas.
“What?”
     
    “Not a thing, ready to go?” They had been
together long enough for him to know it was never a good idea to
pick at Jackson when his heart was on his sleeve. Neither Jack nor
Ryan could see where this was going.
     
     
    When they reached the station Heinz was
sitting in their cubical. “It has come to my understanding that you
are using some rather unorthodox methods to gain leads in your
cases. I want an explanation, now.”
     
    Thomas stepped up to the plate and began
explaining the situation in detail. By the end of the conversation
Heinz didn’t look any happier. “So, the two of you are telling me
that this crazy ME is giving you this information?”
     
    Jackson knew he should just keep his mouth
shut but felt the need to come to Ryan’s defense. “Dr. Reign is far
from insane, Captain. If you were to meet her yourself you could
see that. I believe she has a gift and she is the one that will
help us find this guy. The description she gave us at the cemetery
today is the same as the suspect caretaker saw wandering off into
the citrus grove.”
     
    Heinz glared at the two of them for good
measure. “Bring her here and we will have a professional come in. I
want her tested.”
     
    He almost smiled at the shocked look on their
faces. “I’m not adverse to paranormal events detectives. I just
don’t want some unproven amateur ruining our chances of making this
stick when we catch this guy. Especially now that he’s changed his
ways. I have the name of a professional that works with the police
I’ll set it up for tomorrow at three. Make sure Dr. Reign is
here.”
    Jackson wasn’t sure if Ryan was going to like
this but he nodded and tried not to let the doubt show. “I’ll pick
her up myself, sir. I know you won’t be disappointed.”
     
    When Heinz left and they settled into their
cubby Jackson sagged in his chair. “She’s going to be unhappy about
this.”
     
    Thomas took a turn and shrugged. “You might
be surprised. She’s been around police work enough to know what’s
what. I never would have expected her to be willing to jump back
into it after the Kessler house but she was ready for the next
thing we could think of.”
     
    “Yeah, she’s tougher than they give her
credit for.” Jackson flipped his monitor on and started pulling up
the reports again. Hoping the blood work and toxin screens were
back. Probably not, after all this was real life not CSI. It could
take a week or two to get the simple tests back, DNA comparisons
would be longer.
     
    Pulling up the earliest victim Dana Hodges he
searched her reports. There had been no chemicals in her system and
no foreign DNA. Going back to number two Sarah Green it was the
same. She was clean. They had to figure out how the killer was
luring these women in. He wondered just how far Ryan would be
willing to