Derek didn’t flinch or pull away. He simply nodded.
“I told him it was his turn to help,” she added softly, shame squeezing the words.
“Hey.” He reached a scarred hand out and lifted her chin until her gaze met his again. “It’s hard to tell the ones we love they’re hurting us. Hard to call them on their bullshit. I’m proud of you.”
Whenever soul renters blabbed about the sensation of taking on an extra soul, they sang about the light in their chest, the lift, the reprieve from whatever crushing concerns held them back from what they wanted most. It was like a guilt-free euphoria, supposedly. Callie hadn’t gotten as much as an endorphin high the one and only time she’d had a second soul wedged in her body. This, though? Right now? It was the closest she’d come to that rush. It wasn’t that her body warmed so much as that her ribs expanded on a fully oxygenated breath and in that newfound space lightness built scaffolding along the ribs. Each inhale was easier. Callie couldn’t remember the last time someone outside the family had said they were proud of her. Fuck. She couldn’t remember the last time anyone was proud of her. Derek didn’t say shit like that to score points. Tears prickled along her lower eyelids. She sucked in a quick breath through her nose, and hoped her sinuses would get the “hold that shit in” message.
Derek simply smiled at her. “It’s okay. I’ve got you, doll.”
“Thanks” might not have been the right answer to anyone else, but Derek’s chest expanded and from the other side of the table it sure looked like satisfaction.
“I guess we need to find Johnny Rocks then,” Derek said without a hint of irritation.
He continued, “But I want to look through Adam’s phone later, too. There might be more info to squeeze from it.”
They left Callie’s car outside the taco shop, and swapped for Derek’s car. He didn’t drive it often, but it was too damn cold to be on the motorcycle. It was a basic black and both the right level of new to be quiet and the right level of old to be forgettable. The interior heated more quickly and thoroughly than hers. She tugged off her gloves. The car bumped its way down a two-lane road on the edge of town before turning into Gem City’s industrial corridor.
The pawnshop they pulled up to had iron bars over the windows and a neon pink sign in the window proclaiming, “We Buy Gold.” Callie’s few pawnshop experiences had been about recovering important items her brother had put up for cash. The diamond studs their grandmother had left Zara had cost Callie quite a bit to get back, but heirlooms and legacies were worth the money. Zara had yet to give them to Callie, and considering the way they parted and her mother’s current predicament, those earrings might never make it to Callie’s hands. Whatever. She shook the errant thought away. Diamonds were nothing compared to her mother’s life. She had to focus. Johnny Rocks. Adam. Nate. Zara.
If only it could be that simple.
The door buzzed to admit them. The interior of the shop was bright, and the tile floor polished. She’d often suggested the Charmer’s emporium was a pawnshop for souls, but his place was much darker. Callie and Derek edged along one wall covered with an array of guitars, a sitar, two trumpets, and a lone trombone. A quick scan proved the store empty aside from the clerk. He was the most average guy she’d seen in ages. Shorter than Derek, slim build with pudge around the middle, and a short beard. The case behind him held dozens of firearms. Callie’s pulse sped, but she figured that was the point. Mr. Average wasn’t intimidating, but having rifles at the ready put him in a position of power.
“Can I help you folks?” he asked, not moving from behind the counter.
Derek barely moved. His hands were at his side, but he stretched his fingers back toward Callie. She slipped her hand into his, and he squeezed twice. He’d read the room, too. Callie was fine with letting him do the talking.
“Hey, Greg. We’re looking for Johnny. You seen him lately?”
One didn’t get into the pawn business if they scared easily or were a shitty liar.
“Johnny?” Greg didn’t bother hiding his sneer.
Derek’s back vibrated against Callie’s shoulder, but this grumble didn’t reach anyone’s ears. “Johnny Rocks. Found him here a few months back. He’s late on owing my boss, which usually means he’s looking to sell something good to you.”
Derek’s eyes were narrowed, and Greg’s did the same. Whatever had happened last time, these two weren’t friends.
“I don’t buy from thieves.”
“Didn’t say he was a thief. Just said he has debts to pay.”
“I also don’t do business with people who can’t pay.”
“Fine. You see Johnny, though, can you nudge him in the Soul Charmer’s direction as you boot him out the door?”
Greg offered a slow nod.
Callie started to move toward the door, but Derek squeezed her hand once more and she stopped.
“You want to extend your term while I’m here? Looks like you’re a little lacking in employees to cover for you.” If Callie hadn’t known Derek didn’t steal, she’d have thought he was making a threat.
Greg shuffled beneath the counter, and Callie regretted eating the taco earlier. Her stomach plummeted.
Long quiet seconds passed until Greg lifted a hand. Green bills peeked from within his palm. “I’ve got four hundred. How long will that add?”
Derek released Callie’s hand, and walked slowly to Greg. He accepted the wad of cash and shoved it in his pocket without counting it. “The Charmer will let you keep it for another month
