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boyfriend."
    "Oh yes, the elusive boyfriend," she
teased.
    "I'm meeting him tonight. He had to work late
and since I was out late…" she shrugged.
    This was so unlike Johanna. "Wow, a midnight
tryst."
    "Not exactly. He's going with me to Salem to
check out some property for sale near the waterfront. It'll be a
great location for a flower shop. My own shop and not
someone else's."
    Isabella knew it was a dream of hers and
hoped it all panned out. "You're leaving tonight? Why not head out
tomorrow morning?" It wasn't like Salem was far away. It was only
fifteen or so miles away, but Marcy's death had left her anxious
for the safety of her friends. Of course, evil wasn't only for the
night, but for some reason the light of day always seemed
safer.
    "We wanted to miss the morning traffic.
Besides, he works nights. It's difficult for him to change his
sleeping habits. I'll call you tomorrow and let you know how it
turns out." She leaned forward and gave her a hug goodbye.
    "Drive careful then, and good luck."
    "Thanks." She looked toward Isabella's
brother. "See ya, Nick." Johanna waved to him.
    "Bye, Johanna." He returned the gesture.
    Isabella locked the door behind Johanna. She
knew it would be a matter of seconds before Nicholas would question
her about Harrison and what he believed he saw going on in
the kitchen. One, two …
    "I thought you told me you weren't interested
in Harrison Connell."
    Her brother was so predictable. "I said we
were friends." She picked up the salad bowl and one of the platters
before heading toward the kitchen. Nicholas followed with his own
plates.
    "You looked awfully cozy." He placed his
burden on the counter near the sink.
    Yeah, real cozy , Isabella thought.
Harrison drops the— I knew your mother and I know you're a
Necromancer like her— as if this was a typical conversation at a
wake. She wanted to corner Harrison and question him further, but
he'd slipped out before she had the chance. She glanced at her
brother. She couldn't share any of this with him—at least not
yet.
    "Why do you care?" She deflected his question
with one of her own. "What's with the overprotective brother
act?"
    "I'm worried about you getting too close to
Harrison."
    "He's nice."
    "With a trail of women behind him to prove
how nice he is. Do you really want to be added to the numbers? I
see heartache for you if you get too cozy with him."
    "Did you inherit a crystal ball I don't know
about? 'Cause I didn't realize you could predict the future." She
turned away and reached for a sponge. "I'll go out with whomever I
want. And if it's Harrison, or someone like him, so be it." She
added water to the sink. Scrubbing dishes and readying them for the
dishwasher proved therapeutic on more than a few occasions, but not
tonight. Nicholas hovered behind her, obviously not through with
his interrogation.
    "So you're going out with Harrison?"
    She sighed with annoyance. Her eyelids
fluttered as she said a silent prayer for control. "No, I'm not and
I don't plan to, either." She looked over her shoulder. "Now will
you let it go? I'd like to finish here and go home sometime
tonight." Her brother stared at her a moment longer before he went
back up front to clear the other tables.
    She may not want to date Harrison, but she
had every intention of speaking to him about Marcy. He thought she
was murdered, claimed there'd been others who had died in the same
fashion. She wanted to know how he came by this information. More,
she wanted to know why he thought to share it with her.

Chapter Twelve

    Harrison tried for two days to convince
Garran he was wrong not to confide in Isabella. The vampire stood
fast to his convictions. "Bloody Scotsman," he muttered under his
breath as he stood guard outside the hospital room at North
Shore Medical . Garran was inside the room assessing if the
woman brought in two days ago was another victim of the Soul
Taker . If so, the Soul Taker had broadened his hunting
grounds to include Salem. Perhaps