“Hey, man, she was talking about you, too. Don’t you want to know about the kid coming into your life?”
Kier shook his head. “Hell, no. Hearing fortunes is like reading the last page of a book. It’s cheating.”
“If I know I’m getting a happy ending, I don’t read ahead,” Sinclair said. “If I know it’s going to end badly, hell yeah, I’ll read ahead.”
Rokov glanced at his father. “Grandmother has seen that I am fine. Now it is time to take her home.”
Mr. Rokov nodded. “I am sorry for the intrusion. She would have no peace until we stopped by.” He glanced down at his mother. “But now, Mama, you see that he is fine and we must go.”
She nodded and kissed Rokov on the cheek. “Be careful, Daniel. This man won’t stop for anything.”
His grandmother’s words echoed in his head as he watched his father lead her back to the elevators. When the doors closed, Rokov released a sigh.
“So you said she was some kind of seer,” Sinclair said.
Rokov groaned. “Leave it alone.”
She smiled. “When in your life have you ever known me to leave anything alone?” She held up her index finger. “One, we know that I have to be careful. Two, little David Kier has got a kid sister headed his way, and three ... we don’t know three because you two were speaking in code.”
“Russian.”
Kier smiled, but his gaze had lost the humor and turned serious.
“Kier, I’m sorry about that,” Rokov said. “I reminded her about Angie.”
Kier shrugged. “This is not for public knowledge yet, but we filed adoption papers a few weeks ago. We’re expecting a long wait so we thought we’d start early. But if what your grandmother says is true, we’re looking at, what, eight weeks?”
Rokov would not discount his grandmother to his coworkers. “It’s not an exact science.”
Kier grinned. “Would be kinda nice, having a daughter.” His expression sobered. “But none of you tell Angie. I don’t want her to get her hopes up.”
“Sure,” Sinclair said. “Lips are sealed.” She glanced at her partner, eyes narrowed. “What was the third?”
“Third what?”
“What was the third prediction she said? We don’t speak Russian, my friend.”
He sighed. “She said the killer is not finished.”
When Charlotte glanced at the Entertainment section of the Washington Post, she nearly choked on her coffee. The lead article above the fold was a story on Sooner and the carnival. She was pictured standing in front of her Madame Divine tent, her arms folded and her gaze directly at the camera lens. Her dark hair swept down her shoulders and her olive skin added depth to green eyes that almost seemed to glow off the page. She wore a gold caftan, and dozens of bracelets decorated her arms. She looked mesmerizing.
Like Mariah.
Standing behind Sooner in the background stood Grady, the silent sentinel who watched over his prodigy carefully.
Charlotte read the article and found her blood pressure rising. Grady was quoted several times, referencing Sooner’s psychic talent. He shared several stories about her predictions that had come true. He’d also alluded that the Alexandria Police might gain insights from Sooner on this latest murder.
Charlotte sat back in her chair. “That son of a bitch.”
Angie appeared in the door. “Who is a son of a bitch?” On her hip she had her son, David, who had just turned two. He was a solidly built kid with curly white hair and a big toothy grin that had Charlotte forcing back the expletive. David played with the big chunky necklace hanging around Angie’s neck.
Charlotte rose. Glancing at David, she smiled and tried not to think why Angie had brought him to the office. “It’s an article about the carnival.”
“Bad news?”
“Cheap PR.”
Angie shifted David’s weight and moved into the room. “Why is it cheap?”
“Because Grady just let the world know that his carnival psychic can not only tell the future, but she can find the killer that murdered that young woman earlier this week.”
Angie frowned. “That is the Diane Young case.”
“Yes.”
She shook her head. “That is a rough one. And the killer has not been caught.”
“Grady shouldn’t have put Sooner at risk like that.”
“She is the one you helped out in court?”
“You heard about that?”
“The courthouse is a small world.” David tugged Angie’s necklace toward his mouth. Gently, she pried it free and kissed his fingers. “Everyone was buzzing about the bigwig defense attorney Charlotte Wellington breezing into court and taking up this unknown girl’s defense. You made an impression and raised a few eyebrows.”
“Great. Just what I need.” She smiled at the baby and grabbed his foot. Sooner should have had a mom like Angie.
The boy kicked and gurgled. “Young son and I are off to the doctor’s for his checkup this morning. He needs his two-year-old shots. I’m dropping him off with the sitter and will be back by ten.”
“Sure. Take all the time you need.”
Angie laughed. “Oh, you so do not mean that. Time is money, remember, baby?”
Charlotte smiled. “Maybe I need to lighten up.”
Angie raised her hand to Charlotte’s forehead. “Are you feeling okay?”
She was worried about Sooner. “Fine.”
She arched a brow. “I don’t know. You’re making crazy talk.”
“Maybe I’m just a few quarts shy on the coffee. Give me a few hours.”
“You do look tired
,” Angie said. “Makeup is a wonderful thing, but it doesn’t hide the dark circles under your eyes.”
“I’ve a new client presentation.” No one knew she was selling her condo or moving, and she intended to keep it that way.
“How is it going?”
“Good. We meet for dinner tonight. I’m doing a background check on him.”
“And?”
“So far so good. But I keep thinking I’ve missed something.”
“Knowing you, you haven’t. You’re pretty meticulous.”
“I’ve made mistakes before. I’ve let money cloud my judgment. I need to make sure big bucks aren’t blinding me to a fatal flaw.”
Angie frowned. “Can I do anything to help?”
Charlotte shook her head. “No. Not now at least. Just get little guy here to the doctor.”
“I will. I’ll be back soon.” David grinned at Charlotte.
She didn’t remember Sooner grinning like that. “Take your time.”
Charlotte took her seat back behind the desk and read the article again. Sooner, what has Grady gotten you into?
She’d read the girl’s lease agreement, and they planned to meet for coffee today. She was going to suggest that Sooner pay no more than a thousand a month and that she reduce the length of the lease to six months. However, she doubted the girl would listen. Sooner wanted out of the carnival so badly that she was ripe to make a poor decision. Case in point: the article. She’d no doubt agreed to the article because of the publicity it would generate for her new business.
“Can you blame her?” Charlotte whispered.
Eighteen years ago, she’d felt like an animal caught in a steel trap when Mariah had died. She’d have done anything, anything, to get free. And she had.
She just prayed Grady had not put the girl in danger or on some killer’s radar.
“Have you seen the morning paper, Rokov?” Sinclair dropped the Entertainment section onto Rokov’s desk.
He glanced up at her and then at the article. His attention was drawn immediately to Sooner Tate’s bold, green eyes. “This is the girl that Charlotte Wellington defended in court a few days ago.”