Free Cassidy Jones and the Luminous (Cassidy Jones Adventures Book 4) by Elise Stokes Page B

his apology short when he realized the dirty look was aimed at Emery. “You were talking to Emery?”
    From the corner of my eye, I saw Gavin turn around in his chair. Puzzled, I wondered why he and Serena weren’t jumping down Emery’s throat.
    “What did Emery do, dear?” Serena inquired. “Did he say something under his breath?” She gave her son a look.
    “Guilty as charged,” he said and directed his attention back to the laptop.
    I stared at him, baffled. It almost seemed as though his confession were a lie, like he hadn’t made the remark at all.
    “Stop provoking her,” Serena ordered, placing her stethoscope on my chest. “I’m about to listen to her heart.”
    “Oh, you’ll find this interesting,” I enthusiastically said to Jared. I wasn’t about to let Emery’s weird mood put a damper on mine. “My heart beats more slowly now, like forty beats per minute. A healthy heart doesn’t have to work as hard. If you listen, it sounds like I’m dying—”
    “ Shh ,” Serena shushed me with a frown.
    When the exam was finished, I led Jared to the world map pinned to the wall next to Gavin’s desk.
    “All these thumbtacks are where Lily White has struck.” My forefinger hopped from tack to tack. “Gavin is tracking her, trying to figure out if there’s a pattern with her heists.” I glanced at Gavin. His mouth held a small smile on his none-too-pleased face. What was his problem?
    “Well, we should go,” I said to Jared with feigned brightness. “Bye, everyone.”
    We left, and I shut the door behind us, resisting the urge to slam it.
    “This is going to be a problem,” Gavin whispered when we were halfway down the stairs.
    “She’s listening,” Emery warned him, not bothering to lower his voice. He was really getting on my nerves.
    “SPD classed the two new missing persons filed yesterday in this last hour,” Gavin changed the subject. “The media will be notified soon.”
    Gavin had hacked into the Seattle Police Department’s computer system , I deduced, assuming that he had been reading a confidential police blotter.
    The missing homeless people Joe had told me about leaped to memory. I toyed with the idea of going back upstairs to tell Gavin about them, but decided against it for now. Why give Emery another opportunity to take potshots?
     

 

Chapter 8
Odd Encounter
     
    “Cassidy!” Leroy Rays boomed as Jared and I entered my house.
    On his feet in one second flat, Leroy scooped me up into his huge arms and turned me in a full circle around the living room. It didn’t take me aback in the least, even though I’d only met him once before.
    Everything about the big-game hunter was excessive—size, energy, personality, voice, and movements. You wouldn’t think he could sneak up on anyone or anything. However, I knew from experience that he could be quite stealthy. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have managed to shoot me with a tranquilizer dart last November.
    “How are ya, girl?” he inquired with a Texas twang and a Texas-size smile, setting me on my feet.
    He had blue eyes, a shaved head, and a blond handlebar mustache growing down the sides of his mouth. He was wearing his standard ensemble from both of his cable shows, Big Game and Monster Hunters —combat boots, a mustard-colored T-shirt, and camouflage pants that clung to the muscles roping his large legs.
    Before I could answer, he shoved a young, pretty blonde woman at me. “Cassidy, meet my niece, Jenna Wade.”
    As Jenna and I shook hands, Leroy added, “Jenna is my producer for Monster Hunters .”
    Ben caught my attention. Seated next to Dad on the sofa, the cameraman couldn’t take his eyes off Jenna. Chazz sat on Ben’s lap, and Athena was curled up on Chazz’s.
    “Nice to meet you, Cassidy,” Jenna said with enthusiasm. “I’m so excited to be here! Aren’t the Lake Washington Monster sightings thrilling?”
    Dreamy-eyed, Ben sighed. This was a match made in heaven.
    I introduced Jared to them. As