Page 40 of Phantom’s Mate

“It’s possible that the information she’d uncovered about her sister was in a research file.”

“Well, how would I have known that?”

Nick thought, Maybe by talking to her and caring about what she cared about? It seemed like the jerk barely paid attention to her. He probably didn’t even know about the dick inspectors.

The conversation went on, full of more ‘no’s.’ No, Chaz didn’t have Britt’s laptop—he’d wiped the drive and donated it to charity.

He remembered the locket, but he knew it hadn’t turned up because her cousins had asked about it specifically.

No, he couldn’t help them any more. “I’m sure you can understand,” he said testily. “That was an extremely painful time for me. Brittany and I were very much in love. We were going to be married.”

Yeah. So much in love you were groping some woman right in front of her. Nick reached out with his mind and pushed an ugly modern ceramic lamp off an ugly modern side table.

Crash!

Chaz jumped like a scared bunny, his eyes wide. “What the hell?” He turned and raced into the living room, surveying the shattered pieces of the lamp.

Nick rocked a glass-fronted cabinet that held the dude’s liquor collection. The doors swung open and couple of bottles crashed to the floor, followed by a metal ice bucket, which glanced off Chaz’s head. Total accident, of course.

Chaz stared at the mess, then raced back to the front door. Brandon and Remy were standing in the doorway, leaning on either side of the doorjamb.

“Did you feel that?” Remy said. “Must have been an earthquake. You’re lucky you weren’t hurt—you’re supposed to stand in a doorway.”

“You need to leave,” Chaz said. “I have to clean this up. I can’t help you.”

He stared at them until they got out of his doorway. Brandon handed him a business card. “If you remember anything else that might be of help, please give me a call.”

Chaz took the card and shut the door. Nick, still inside, watched him stand there and look at it for a long moment, and then he went into the kitchen to get towels, tossing it in the trash on the way.

Nick blazed through the wall, out of the house. This had been a complete waste of time—the pecker knew nothing, and he didn’t care about Britt.

Fury rose up in him, surprising him with its strength. He turned to look back at the house, seized by the desire to do more damage. Hell, he should torch the entire place. He should—

“Nick. NICK!”

He suddenly realized Brandon was standing next to him. “What the hell is going on with you?”

He fought the anger back. Everything made him angry lately; none of this was fair.

“Come back to the truck.”

Brandon had his alpha mojo going, making it hard to resist him. Nick gave Chaz’s house one more look, but he went.

“What the fuck was that?” Brandon demanded, as Remy drove away. He had the amulet in his hand, so the two of them could talk in the spirit world.

“That guy is a douche,” Nick said.

“Well, obviously. But what good is it going to do to mess up his stuff?”

“It makes me feel better.”

Brandon studied him. “Does it?” he said. “Because you don’t seem to feel better at all. You feel seriously pissed off. It’s coming off you in waves.”

The wave of anger crashed over him again. “That fucker had everything!” Nick burst out. “Britt was in love with him. She’d moved in with him. She’s beautiful and funny and caring, and he fucking cheated on her and made her so hurt and upset she ran into a tree and died. And now he’s fucking telling people how much in love they were!”

“Yeah, that sucks. On the other hand, how would you feel if you had a fight with someone and they died because of it? He probably feels like shit. What difference does it make what lies he tells himself so he can sleep at night? You’re the one who has her now.”

Nick snorted. “Yeah. For how long? We’re out here busting our butts to help her contact her sister so she can get out of her purgatory, and what the fuck do you think is going to happen then?” He stared out the window. “The gates of her fucking human heaven are going to bust open with a white light, and she’s going to go into it and have her own happily ever afterlife.”