Page 58 of In Her Bed
“Why would you ask me that?”Her voice had dropped an octave.
“It’s a standard question in our investigation,” Jake offered.
“But why me specifically?”Diana turned to face them fully, crossing her arms over her chest.The movement caused her many bracelets to jingle softly.“What makes you think I’d be a target?”
Jenna chose her next words carefully.“You’re a well-known figure in Pinecrest.You have a public presence.Sometimes that can attract unwanted attention.”
Diana’s lips pressed into a thin line.She moved behind the counter, putting a physical barrier between herself and the officers.
“There was an email,” she finally said.“Last week.I almost deleted it as spam, but...”She reached beneath the counter and withdrew a folder, sliding out a printed page.“I printed it.Old habits from before digital backups were reliable.”
Jenna accepted the paper, holding it so Jake could read it simultaneously.
The email was addressed to Diana’s business account.The sender’s address was obscured by a series of numbers and random characters, clearly a temporary account.The message itself was brief but disturbing:
“Your corruption of the astral plane ends soon.The frequencies you manipulate have consequences.Dawn approaches, and not all survive the light.”
“It’s anonymous, but I know who it’s from,” Diana said before they could ask.“Tyrone Voss sent it.He runs something called Firmament Reach—part cult, part self-help seminar.He charges people thousands of dollars to ‘ascend to their higher selves’ or some such nonsense.”
Jake raised an eyebrow.“And you two have history?”
Diana snorted.“If by ‘history’ you mean he’s been trying to discredit me for years, then yes.We met at the Midwest Metaphysical Conference in 2013.I was a featured speaker on intuitive sound healing.He was just starting out, selling cheap meditation CDs recorded in his basement.”
She began pacing behind the counter, her kaftan billowing slightly with each turn.
“He claimed I stole his techniques, which is absurd.I’ve been working with sound and energy for decades.Before he was even born, I was...”She stopped abruptly, glancing at them with sudden wariness.
“Before he was born, you were...?”Jenna prompted gently.
Diana waved a hand dismissively.“Just working in related fields.The point is, he’s always been jealous of my client base, my reputation.This is just his latest attempt to frighten me.”
Jenna squinted hard at Diana before asking her next question.
“Ms.Wells, is Tyrone Voss aware of your history as the ‘Midnight voice’?”
The change in Diana was immediate and alarming.Her eyes widened, darting around the room as if searching for hidden recording devices.She took several steps backward until she bumped against the wall of merchandise behind her, causing a small avalanche of precariously balanced dream journals.
“Who told you anything about the Midnight voice?”she demanded, her voice high and thin.“That information isn’t public.That was—that was a different life.How do you know about Midnight Voice?”
Jake raised both hands in a placating gesture.“Ms.Wells, we’re just trying to establish if there might be a connection between this threat and your past work.”
Diana’s breathing had become rapid and shallow.“No one knows.No one except—” She suddenly focused on Jenna with laser intensity.“Who are you really?Who sent you?Is it them?After all these years?”
Jenna took a cautious step forward.“No one sent us, Ms.Wells.We’re investigating a potential crime, that’s all.”
“Lies!”Diana’s voice rose sharply.“They always find a way.The government never really stops listening, you know.They monitor the frequencies.They knew what we were discovering back then—how sound can pierce the veil between dimensions.How certain frequencies can alter consciousness, can open doorways...”
She reached beneath the counter again, this time extracting a clear quartz crystal the size of a fist.She clutched it before her like a weapon.
“I can see your energies,” she continued, her voice trembling.“You’re not what you appear to be.Especially you.”She pointed the crystal at Jenna.“Your aura is...fractured.Split.You’re connected to the other side, aren’t you?They sent you to infiltrate, to find out what I know.”
Jenna felt a cold trickle down her spine.Diana couldn’t possibly know about her dreams, about her ability to communicate with the dead.It was coincidence, the ramblings of a paranoid mind, but still...
“Ms.Wells,” Jake said firmly, “we’re here to help.If you’re receiving threats, we can provide protection.We can have officers patrol this area more frequently, check in with you—”
“I don’t need your protection!”Diana almost shouted the words.“I have my own protection.I have a guardian spirit.”
“Who might that be?”Jenna asked.
