Free Black-Eyed Moon (A Guinan Jones Paranormal Mystery #1) by Callista Foley Page B

head throbbed.
    "We'd better let her rest," Tamzen said in his direction.
    "Good idea. I was about to leave when you came in." He looked at me. "Your Granddad's just down the hall. Want me to get him?"
    "Please."
    He gave me a quick nod.
    Tamzen smiled and squeezed my hand. "I'll call you later."
    Fragments of my brief exchange with Skeeter swirled in my head. I wanted sleep—deep, dark, and sweet. I thought I heard my grandfather's voice before I drifted off. I saw my grandmother's face again, and she beckoned me into the silence.

Waxing Gibbous
     

Chapter Eleven
     
    I woke up dur ing the night and saw my grandfather asleep in a chair, reclining awkwardly with his long legs stretched out in front of him. I vaguely remembered telling him to go home and sleep in his bed, but it might have been the drugs. I think he told me my parents would be here in the morning. I might have hallucinated that, too. Part of me wished he hadn't told them.
    Tessa came to visit me . It had to be way past visiting hours, which meant she'd snuck in. I opened my mouth to say something. She put a finger to her lips.
    "I didn't get a chance to come earlier," she whispered. "How are you feeling?" Her face stood out against her dark clothing.
    "Better," I said, keeping my voice low. "How are things with you?"
    I could guess just from looking at her. Her usual upbeat demeanor seemed lacking. "Don't worry about me. Get well."
    When I opened my eyes again, I saw a line of light streaming through the partially closed blinds.
    "Tes sa?" I sat up. My neck was stiff, and turning my head was difficult and painful. I stretched my back and pushed away the blankets. The room wobbled, and I closed my eyes until my equilibrium returned. Granddad's sleeping chair was empty. I gently slid the IV out of my arm and climbed out of bed. I used the bathroom without turning on the light and went into the hall. I poked my head inside a few rooms until I found Skeeter.
    There was a thick, white bandage wrapped around his head. He looked different with his hair pushed back from his face—exposed and vulnerable. A tube snaked from his nose, and he had an IV in his left arm. As I got closer to him, I saw bruises and tiny cuts on all over his face. I reflexively raised my hand to my own and felt several rough scrapes across my cheeks and forehead.
    I went to Skeeter's bathroom and turned on the light. A battered girl with a washed out complexion and tangled hair stared back at me. I didn't know how fast he'd been driving, but I considered myself lucky to have escaped serious damage to my face.
    I returned to the room and watched Skeeter. I thought I saw his lids flutter.
    "Skeeter?" His head moved slightly in the direction of my voice. "Can you hear me?"
    I waited several minutes for a sign of regained consciousness, but he didn't move again. A commotion in the hallway broke my concentration.
    "You don 't understand. There's a killer on the loose, and my daughter is nowhere to be found."
    " Mrs. Jones, she probably just went for a walk—"
    "A walk? She has a concussion. And why doesn't she have a guard at her door?"
    "Saundra, calm down," my father said in a low voice
    Oh, boy. I took a deep breath and stepped into the hall. "I'm here, guys. I'm all right."
    Facing the nurse, my mother spun around and gaped. Her face was puffy. A jolt of guilt shot through me. When I reached her, she embraced me, looked at my injuries, and hugged me again.
    I felt my father's hand on my back. I turned to hug him. I looked into his face. His green eyes were watery. I sensed a mix of sadness, guilt, regret, and shame.
    "Dad...don't."
    He blinked, and a tear rolled down his cheek.
    My mother sniffed. "I'm going to kill my father."
    "Mom, it wasn't his fault," I said, trying not to roll my eyes. "Eric Rodman ran us off the road."
    She held on to my uninjured arm as we entered my room, my father trailing behind. I climbed back into bed and raised it so that I was sitting up.
    My mother adjusted