Keepers of the Cave Page 5

“Nothing new, really. They’re doing some background checks. Or trying to. The café and grocery store, as well as the gas station, are all legally owned by the Hogan estate. Financially, those appear to be the only assets they have, other than the adjoining acreage. And they’re trying to get records on the medical school guy, Don Hogan. Other than that, nothing.” CJ came closer, inspecting the pile of vegetables Paige had chopped. “So are you just making this up or what?”

  “Unless you want to volunteer to cook, I would suggest you keep your comments to yourself,” she said. “And no, I’m not making this up. It’s a dish I cook frequently.”

  “Vegetables. What else?”

  “Brown rice. And I’ll make a sauce to put on it.”

  “I meant, you know, protein.”

  “Navy beans, kidney beans. A mixture.”

  CJ’s eyebrows shot up. “Beans? I went shopping with you. I saw us buy chicken breasts, fish, a couple of steaks. So beans?”

  “We’re having burgers tomorrow. I thought we’d do a vegetarian meal tonight. It will go wonderfully with that chardonnay.”

  CJ sighed. “I’m going to miss takeout. That’s how I survived, you know.”

  “No doubt. Lucky you, I love to cook.”

  “Yeah, lucky me,” CJ murmured as she plopped down on the sofa. “I get vegetables and rice. And no TV.”

  “So ask Howley for approval to purchase one,” she suggested.

  “Yeah. We should.”

  Paige put onions and peppers into the hot olive oil while she finished slicing the squash. Their first night together was not going well. There was a visible tension between them, and she knew it stemmed from the fact that soon, they would be retiring into the bedroom together, to share a queen bed that was getting smaller by the minute. So now seemed as good a time as any to bring up...that night.

  “Why haven’t we ever talked about it?” she asked. Thankfully, CJ didn’t pretend to not know what she was talking about. CJ couldn’t, however, hold her gaze.

  “Because that’s what we do. We don’t talk about things. We do our job, we see what we see and we deal in our own way. That night, we just happened to deal with it together.”

  Paige was amazed by her honest answer. It was better than any she could have given. But she did feel she owed CJ an explanation.

  “I know you. I’ve worked with you for several years now. You have this persona that you project to everyone—always a different lover. You go out searching, after we’ve had a particularly bad case. You go to the bar, find some stranger, someone you don’t know, someone you won’t have to know after it’s over with. You go home with her and then you leave and forget all about her.”

  “Hey, wait a minute,” CJ said. “I’m not the one who left. You did.”

  “Yes, because I knew you wouldn’t want to talk about it, to deal with it. That’s not your style. What would we have done if I’d stayed? I wasn’t like the others where you could make your escape before I woke up and never see me again.”

  “No. But you made your escape,” CJ reminded her.

  “Yes. I did that so you—we—wouldn’t have to face it. I left because that’s what you wanted. I left because...well, because I knew it would be awkward. And I knew we wouldn’t have any rationalization as to why we did what we did. And I didn’t want us to be uncomfortable at work.” She gave a quiet laugh. “Which, of course, was impossible. We spent the first few weeks acting weird with each other, so much so that Ice and Billy started to notice. It got back to normal, but...”

  “But? What would we have talked about? We had sex. It was one of those things. It was a bad case and...”

  “And what? I was there? I was available?”

  CJ shook her head. “That’s not what I meant.” She paused. “Well, yeah, maybe it is what I meant. You were there. You were someone who could relate. You weren’t a nameless stranger who didn’t know me, didn’t know the job.” CJ met her eyes, finally holding her gaze. “Why did you come to the bar that night?”

  Paige turned away. She knew if she brought up that night, CJ would ask this question. Despite being prepared for it, she still had no answer. She supposed that night, surely, she had a reason. And if she were to guess, she would say it was because of CJ. Because of the kids. Because she knew how personal CJ took those things. And for some reason, that night, she didn’t want CJ to find solace in some stranger’s arms...and a stranger’s bed.

  “You’re right. I knew no one else could possibly understand what you’d gone through that day. No one would understand what you needed,” she said quietly, surprising herself with the honest answer. She looked back at CJ. “And I think maybe I needed someone who understood me as well.”

  CJ was quite possibly stunned by her words because for once, she had no comeback. Their eyes held for the longest moment, then CJ nodded, finally glancing away. Paige went back to her dinner preparation, wondering if that was to be the extent of their conversation on the matter. If so, it was actually more than she’d thought they’d ever say.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CJ scrolled through Avery’s notes for at least the fifth time, rereading every line, still finding the whole thing bizarre. It was like a bad TV movie. Maybe Paige was right when she said Stepford Wives. From all accounts, the residents in town acted more like robots than anything else.

  She glanced up when she heard the water turn off. Getting used to sharing a bathroom was going to take a while. Trying not to imagine Paige naked, drying off as she finished her shower, was going to be damn near impossible. She remembered every exquisite curve of Paige Riley’s body.

  She shoved away from the table and stood by a window, looking out into the woods across the road. She wouldn’t really call it a street. The cabins, while all relatively close together, were staggered and offset, allowing a little privacy. She tilted her head, hearing the bathroom door open, then the bedroom door, knowing Paige was dressing. She ran her hand through her hair, thinking back to last night. She’d been surprised at Paige’s confession. She had often wondered how Paige had ended up at the bar that night. It was just your average lesbian bar—loud music, dim lights and lots of alcohol and laughter. Not a place Paige Riley frequented, she knew. The circumstances which brought her there...well, CJ wasn’t really sure how she felt about that. Should she be grateful Paige cared enough to do that? Or was it as Paige had indicated? That they both needed each other that night.

  Regardless, it seemed to ease a little of the tension between them. Dinner had been good, the conversation light, and it was nice to share a bottle of wine knowing there were no expectations at the end of the evening. They had actually made light of the fact that they were sharing a bed, and Paige drew an imaginary line down the middle which CJ promised not to cross. And she hadn’t. She slept soundly, and that surprised her. She wasn’t used to sleeping with someone, but she found Paige’s presence reassuring, if nothing else.

  All of which was great and wonderful...if only her mind wouldn’t continually flash back to that night. It was a night she remembered in great detail, which was unusual for her. Normally, the lingering effects of the tequila would erase most of her dalliances from her mind. On that particular night, they’d left the bar long before she’d succumbed to the tequila. She was quite lucid in her seduction of Paige Riley. Or was it Paige’s seduction of her? It didn’t matter. She could remember every detail with delicious clarity.

  “Hey.”

  She turned, finding Paige looking as beautiful as ever—pressed khaki shorts, a soft-looking, low-cut blouse that showed off far too much cleavage, with leather belt and matching sandals. CJ raised an eyebrow as she spied the red nail polish on her toes. That was something she never considered and she found it extremely sexy. She glanced at her own outfit. Her shorts were khaki as well, although worn and wrinkled. Her T-shirt hung loose, her shoes were sports sandals.

  “I feel underdressed,” she said.

  “You look fine. It’s a barbeque.”

  “Then wh
y are you so dressed up?”

  Paige glanced at herself. “This is hardly dressed up.”

  “Oh. I see. That’s your casual. That would be my dressed up.”

  Paige smiled and it was actually a sweet smile, CJ noted.

  “Yes, well, you are you and that’s what you feel comfortable in. And this is what I feel comfortable in.”

  CJ let the conversation end with that. If they’d been with the guys, she would have made a crude mention of the low-cut blouse, of the enticing cleavage. But she refrained. They were getting along well and why spoil that with a crass comment.

  “I’ve packed us some beer and water bottles. Not sure what kind of party this is,” she said. “Or would you rather have wine?”

  Paige shook her head. “I’ll have a beer. Or the water. It’s fine.”

  “And I didn’t touch the meat patties you made up. They’re still in the fridge. What was all that stuff mixed in there anyway?”

  “Just some green onions and peppers and herbs. Nothing fancy.”

  “It looked...interesting,” she conceded.

  Paige laughed. “Is that your way of saying you’d rather have just a plain old burger?”

  “I’ll give anything a try. Once,” she added.

  ***

  Paige was startled when CJ took her hand, then she relaxed, trying to ease into her role as loving girlfriend. They heard laughter in the back, so they skipped the front door and headed around the side. Suzette waved them over.

  “I’m so glad you came,” she said.

  “Hi, I’m Robbie,” a short blond woman said, holding out her hand. “Let me take that for you.”

  Paige handed over the plate with their burgers. “Thanks. I’m Paige. This is CJ.”

  “Nice to meet you both. It’s always exciting to get new members in our community.”

  “I see you found a grocery store,” Becca said. “I trust it wasn’t in Hoganville.”

  CJ laughed. “No, you were right about that. We stopped by. It looked deserted. Are you sure people live there?”

  “Oh, it’s a weird little place. I’m Julia. Everyone calls me Jules.”

  “Hi, Jules. Thanks for having us over,” Paige said.

  “We take turns and do this every weekend. Entertainment is scarce around here.”

  “We go dancing every other Saturday night,” Suzette said. “Do you dance?”

  Before Paige could say no, they definitely did not dance, CJ slid an arm around her waist and pulled her closer.

  “We love to dance,” she said. “In fact, that’s how we met.”

  Paige smiled through gritted teeth. “Oh, honey, don’t tell that story,” she said, hoping CJ wasn’t going to ad lib on their backstory, which had them meeting on a blind date. Their backstory never even mentioned dancing. Paige smiled at Suzette. “I had a little too much to drink,” she explained.

  “You fell for my charm anyway, though, didn’t you?” CJ teased.

  “I think I’m going to love this story,” Suzette said with a laugh. “The nearest gay bar is nearly two hours away, but we still make the trip. Come on, grab a lawn chair and I’ll introduce you to everyone.”

  ***

  CJ was having a fabulous time, and she had to remind herself that they were working. She would pay for it later, when they were alone, but right now, with her hand resting comfortably on Paige’s bare thigh, life was good.

  “I will get you for this,” Paige murmured. “There is no need to overplay it.”

  “Now, now. We’re supposed to be in love. Isn’t this what you do?”

  “I wouldn’t know. But if you move your hand any higher, I’ll chop it off.”

  CJ barely controlled her laughter, instead, she leaned closer and grazed Paige’s cheek with her lips. “Just wait until we go dancing. Now that will be fun.”

  Paige glared at her. “We met on a blind date,” she whispered. “You can’t improvise, for God’s sake.”

  “Lighten up, baby,” she said. “I love to dance. Slow songs,” she added with a wink.

  Thankfully—before Paige could respond—Suzette joined them, holding out a platter of deviled eggs. Paige politely took only one. CJ grabbed two, popping one in her mouth immediately.

  “So good,” she murmured with her mouth full.

  “It’s Becca’s specialty,” Suzette said. “Don’t tell her, but I’m actually sick of them.”

  “This is fun,” Paige said. “Thank you for including us. It’s been nice to meet everyone.”

  “Oh, sure. We do this every weekend, either Saturday or Sunday. Not everyone comes, of course, but all are welcome.”

  “Well, we’ll have to host one soon,” Paige said, surprising CJ when she covered her hand, letting their fingers entwine.

  Becca joined them, pulling a lawn chair closer to their circle. “So, what did you think of Hoganville?”

  “Not sure what to think,” CJ said. “It looked like everything was shut down. We didn’t see a single car.”

  “Car? We didn’t even see any people,” Paige said.

  “Yeah, it’s crazy. It’s like they flip a switch and the place shuts down.”

  “Surely some of the staff at the school is from Hoganville,” CJ said. “Has anyone asked them?”

  “Really, there are only two locals at the school. Well, if you don’t count the part-time janitorial staff and cafeteria workers. We never see them anyway. But you’ll like Fiona. She’s nice. Teaches science. Now Gretchen, the nurse, no. Very standoffish. She doesn’t have anything to do with us.”

  “Just two? Wow,” Paige said.

  “Yeah. That’s weird too, I know. Even maintenance, they hire from outside.”

  “What does Fiona say about the town?”

  “Not much,” Suzette said. “When we comment on how strange everyone is, she just laughs and says that’s how it’s always been in Hoganville.”

  “She lives right on the other side of you, by the way,” Becca said. “Not on weekends. She always leaves. Stays with her mother, I think. Comes back Sunday nights.”

  “How old is she?”

  “Thirty something,” Suzette said. She leaned closer and grinned. “Now, I want to hear how you two met.”

  CHAPTER NINE

  Fiona stared at her reflection in the mirror as she continued brushing her long, dark hair. Mother Hogan had summoned her and she had no idea why. She’d followed every instruction ever given to her. There had been no missteps. She had seen her friends culled long ago for not being true to the flock. She had no wish to suffer their fate.

  With one last brush, she stood, reaching for the white robe and slipping it on. She longed for the day she could replace the virginal white for the black robe worn by most of the others. She was more than ready to couple, if only Mother would allow it. She didn’t know who she would choose if it were left up to her, as there wasn’t anyone her own age in the flock other than Don, and Mother had forbidden the two of them to talk.

  “Fiona? It’s time.”

  She met her mother’s eyes questioningly, but the older woman said nothing. With a nod, Fiona walked past her, heading into the kitchen and to the door that would take her downstairs and into the tunnels. She closed the door behind her, her eyes adjusting to the darkness. She felt along the wall, finding the torch. As always, she did a quick inspection. The damp, musty smell was familiar to her, but she felt a slight surge of fear. The fear that the tunnels would collapse on her was something she’d carried with her since she was a child. She took a deep breath, finally pushing down the anxiety and making her feet move. She followed the maze of tunnels, turning right at the junction where she normally would turn left if going to the monthly gathering in the chambers. She had only been summoned to Mother Hogan’s twice before. Once, when she was told she’d go to college to become a teacher. The second time was when she’d gotten hired at the school.

  Belden was standing guard outside the door that would lead up to Mother’s rooms. She nodded at him but didn’
t speak.

  “Fiona,” he greeted. “Mother is waiting,” he said, ushering her inside.

  She followed Belden up the stairs and into the Hogan estate. The house had been built over a hundred years ago, she knew, and it used to house five families. Today, only Mother Hogan and her brother lived there, along with the child they’d produced. The child who didn’t speak.

  As she had been the first two times, she was taken into the study. The large room was showing its age, the furniture old and worn, the drapes dusty and faded, drawn against the afternoon sun. Mother sat on the large leather chair, her purple robe covering her body, the hood nearly hiding her face. As before, Fiona felt a chill in the room.

  She swallowed nervously, waiting for instruction.

  “Fiona, thank you for coming,” Mother said. “Please, sit.”

  “Yes, Mother,” she said, sitting down opposite her.

  “I’m sure you’re wondering why you’ve been called. A couple of reasons,” Mother said. “First, thank you for alerting us to the two new teachers at the school. I will need you to find out what you can about them. We can’t be too careful, Fiona. We must shield ourselves from the outsiders. Always.”

  “Yes, Mother. I’ll do my best.”

  “I know you will, child.” She smiled then, reaching out to clasp Fiona’s hand, her thin, cold fingers surprisingly strong. “There is something else. It is time for a coupling. Our flock is getting smaller. It is time to replenish.”

  Fiona’s heart beat wildly. “Me?”

  “Yes. In the large chamber. On the sacrificial altar. Tonight.”

  “Who have you chosen for me, if I may ask?”

  “There is only one pure Hogan left,” Mother said. “My brother, Antel.”

  Fiona couldn’t keep the gasp from her voice. “But he...he coupled with my mother.”

  “Yes. You have Hogan blood in you. What better way to improve the line than for him to father your child as well?”

  “Yes, Mother,” she said, feeling relief when Mother released her hand. She rubbed her hands together nervously.