Succubus Rising, An Urban Fantasy (The Telepathic Clans Saga)

by BR Kingsolver

  Tell him we need a telekinetic, too, Rebecca sent again.

  “Shut up and start healing the damage,” Rebecca told Brenna. She started draining life energy from those standing around and channeling it into her wounded friend.

  “I can’t. A healer can’t heal themselves,” Brenna said in a weak voice.

  “Bullshit. You’re the Goddess’ chosen,” Rebecca said through clenched teeth. “The rules were written for other people. Heal yourself, damn you.”

  Brenna had already scanned herself and knew the extent of the damage. She began to try and close off the bleeding. Energy flowed into her, more than she was losing from her wound. She managed to close off one of the major damaged blood vessels, and started on the next.

  Two minutes later, Seamus appeared holding Dorothy’s arm, materializing out of thin air. Dorothy knelt beside Brenna and put one hand on her, while opening her medical bag with the other.

  “She said the bullet is next to her spine,” Rebecca told her.

  Dorothy nodded, “Seamus, come here. Enter my mind. Do you see the bullet? I need you to freeze it against the bone. Don’t let it move.”

  “Rebecca,” Brenna whispered, a tear running down her cheek, “it hurts. I’m scared.”

  Rebecca entered her sister’s mind and laid a weak Comfort on her, then damped down Brenna’s pain receptors.

  “I didn’t know you were a healer,” Dorothy muttered, ripping open Brenna’s blouse and laying a pressure bandage in place.”

  “I’m not,” Rebecca replied. Dorothy shot her a glance and then returned to her work.

  “Should I keep feeding her energy, or feed it to you?” Marie collapsed on the sidewalk and Rebecca switched to another bystander. Five people lay there, all half drained.

  “Can you direct it to multiple people?” Dorothy asked, not pausing in what she was doing.

  “I can split it.”

  “Keep her levels up, and give me whatever is left. Seamus, hold that bullet. We’re ready to go. Take us to the DC infirmary.”

  Seamus leaned forward and put his hand on Dorothy’s back. Realizing what he was about to do, Rebecca gripped Brenna’s arm. The four of them materialized on the floor of the infirmary.

  “Seamus, get Mark,” Dorothy said. Her older brother was one of the best surgeons in the city. Seamus paused a moment, then disappeared. He reappeared less than a minute later with Mark Cavanaugh.

  The staff healers who lived at the DC compound rushed into the room, one moving to prepare the operating room, the other approaching Dorothy.

  “I’ll prep her for surgery, you two get scrubbed,” she told the doctors. Swabbing Brenna’s arm, she pushed an IV into her vein. Turning to Rebecca, she said, “Help me lift her onto the gurney.”

  “I can do that,” Seamus said. Brenna floated off the floor and onto the gurney. Her clothes disappeared.

  The healer nodded. “Thank you. If you ever need a part time job, let me know."

  ~~~

  Brenna was in surgery for two hours. Karen MacIntyre had come down and made Rebecca wash and change clothes. Someone brought her something to eat and drink. Karen made her eat it, but she didn’t taste it and couldn’t have told anyone later what it was.

  Collin was frantic when he called, and Rebecca attempted to talk to him. Seamus took the phone from her and spoke to him. Collin had known the instant Brenna was shot, feeling it through his link to her.

  Rebecca had been numb from the time Brenna had gone under the anesthesia, and the link she had to her sister went silent. Moira had come in and attempted to talk to her, but Rebecca didn’t know what she’d said. Seamus sat next to her several times, gathering her to him in a hug. She was grateful for his presence, but unable to respond.

  Mark and Dorothy finally walked out of the operating room. “She’s going to be all right,” Mark announced. “There wasn’t any major damage and she should be back to normal in a few weeks.”

  Rebecca’s eyes rolled back in her head and she slid off the couch to the floor. Seamus picked her up like a child and held her on his lap.

  “The spine?” he asked.

  “The bullet came to rest against one of the bones that sheathes the spine, but no, there was no spinal damage, not even bruising. She was very lucky. We had to fix holes in her bowel and uterus, but it was a solid-jacketed slug and it didn’t tumble. For a gunshot wound, the damage was minimal,” Mark told them. “It was a low-velocity bullet, a .32 caliber, and the angle was low. Up another foot and it would have been far worse.”

  “Will she be able to have babies?” Rebecca asked, her voice almost inaudible.

  Dorothy sat down beside Seamus and put her hand on Rebecca’s shoulder. “Yes, she’ll be able to carry a pregnancy. She healed her uterus first. I’ve never seen a healer with a traumatic injury who was able to heal herself.” Dorothy took a deep breath, “I’ve also never seen someone without the Healing Gift be able to affect someone else’s pain receptors, or lay a Comfort on someone else’s mind.”

  “I used her Gift to lay the Comfort,” Rebecca replied, “and I just used normal pain dampening like I’d do on myself.” She didn’t notice the looks that everyone in the room turned on her. “She couldn’t spare the energy. She was completely freaked out about her uterus being damaged.”

  “You can trigger Brenna’s Gifts?” Seamus asked.

  “Yeah, it’s just part of maturation, right? I mean, she can’t do it yet, but I couldn’t when I was her age.” She looked up at her grandfather. “You can do that, right?”

  He shook his head.

  “I’ve never heard of such a thing,” Dorothy breathed. “You shouldn’t even be able to see how she does it if you don’t have the Gift.”

  “I can’t find where the Healing Gift is triggered in my mind, but I can see it in hers. She’s shown me where all her Gifts are, so I just go there and do what she does. Then I can use them through her.”

  “How did you discover this?” Seamus asked cautiously.

  “I wanted to talk to my horse,” Rebecca said matter of factly, the depth of her bond with Brenna accepted as something natural. The interaction between the two women sent shockwaves through everyone else.

  “I can’t dampen your pain, either. Where did you get the idea you could do that?” Seamus asked.

  “From Callie. She showed both Brenna and me how to scan our bodies for pathogens and toxins, how to control ovulation, all that kind of stuff.”

  Dorothy shook her head, confused. “You mean she let you in her mind and showed you how she did it on herself.”

  “No,” Rebecca also looked confused, “she went into my body and showed me how to do it. She did the same thing with Brenna, and with Irina. It’s how she teaches it, and how she showed me to teach it. I guess you could do it the other way, but I think it’s more effective to feel it in your own body.”

  “Can you use my Krasevec Gift to tell Collin that she’s all right?” Seamus asked gently.

  “Sure, if you let me into … I don’t know what level it is in you. I’m used to doing it in her mind. She lets me use her to talk to Carlos when he’s out of reach.”

  Seamus showed her the place on his fifth level and watched as she triggered his Gift and sent spear threads to Collin and Irina simultaneously. That in itself amazed him. He hadn’t learned to send multiple individual threads until he was over thirty, but she didn’t seem to think it was unusual.

  “Granddaughter, I think I need to sit down with you and Brenna and find out what other unusual Talents the two of you have.”

  “Grandfather, we don’t know what’s ‘unusual’,” Rebecca, a bit bewildered, made quote marks in the air with her fingers. “I know Brenna’s a mystery, but all I’ve been told is that the interactions between my Gifts may result in ‘unexpected manifestations’,” again quote marks. “It would be highly appreciated to know what is normal and what is not,” she didn’t attempt to mask the irony in her voice. “I take it that something I did isn’t normal.” />
  Seamus studied his new granddaughter, considering what it meant for a telepath this powerful not to have grown up in a telepathic society. Goddess knew what she might manifest as she matured. And she was the best conduit they had to the enigma that was Brenna. Rebecca had always been the ideal wilder, anxious to please, glad for any acceptance. That she might be one of the strongest telepaths in generations had been submerged in the excitement Brenna engendered.

  He made a mental note to pay more attention to her. She might be Brenna’s shadow, but she deserved respect in her own right. If they had never found Brenna, Rebecca might be the shining star of the next generation. The two of them together, and bound together, made a formidable pair.

  “Rebecca,” he pulled her to him and kissed her forehead, “I apologize for underestimating you, for not seeing you for what you are. Granddaughter, you are amazing. Never think you aren’t precious to me, to the Clan. You may be the most amazing woman I’ve ever met. And that includes your sister.”

  Rebecca jerked away from him, looking at his face and then into his eyes. “Really?” she breathed.

  “Really,” Seamus replied. “We tend to get caught up in the number of Brenna’s Gifts, but Goddess, you are truly amazing. You’re not Brenna’s shadow, you’re her complement. For the first time, I realize she knows that, but the rest of us have missed it.” He squeezed her so hard she thought her ribs would crack. “Damn, I’m so glad you love me. You didn’t even know we were related. That’s a greater gift of love than anyone has ever given me.” A tear rolled down the old man’s cheek.

  Seamus, Dorothy sent him on a spear, I think I need to get together with Callie. She’s done an outstanding job of cataloguing Gifts and Talents, but I think we need a systematic documentation of manifestations.

  I think I agree with you, he answered. I’m also interested in her assertion that Callie can do some things I didn’t know about.

  ~~~

  CHAPTER 25

  It is our duty as men and women to proceed as though limits to our abilities do not exist. - Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

  Collin drove in two hours after Brenna came out of surgery. She had awakened from the anesthesia and Rebecca had been able to speak with her for a minute, then Brenna had drifted off back to sleep. Irina came in by train and Rebecca sent a limo for her.

  Seamus convened a meeting with the Protectors on Rebecca’s team in one of the conference rooms.

  “How many speed limits did you break?” Rebecca asked Collin. His trip in from West Virginia with Jeremy had set records.

  “Easier to tell you which ones he didn’t break,” Jeremy said dryly.

  “Tell me what happened,” Seamus said. Now that Brenna was out of danger, Seamus’ mood had changed from fear and worry to anger.

  “She stepped away from the shield of the limo and that gave the shooter his chance,” Donny Doyle told them. “Marie was walking down the street and Brenna went to meet her. He was across the street. I had him pegged as a telepath, but it happened so fast there wasn’t time to stop it.”

  “And we don’t have him,” Seamus sounded disgusted. “You burned him out, or whatever, and left him on the street for the cops to find. You also left the bystanders Rebecca drained. Bodies lying all over the street.”

  “We blurred memories as best we could,” Rebecca said, having taken Donny’s report on what happened after Seamus teleported Brenna back to the compound. “Teleporting into the middle of a crowd was something we had to take care of. Marie and the other OD employee I drained were taken inside, and we allowed the other people I used to be taken to a hospital. They’ll all recover and attribute it to fainting at the sight of someone being shot.”

  “The major containment issue is the police want to know what happened to the person who was shot,” Donny told them. “The cops were there as soon as you teleported out. There wasn’t a lot I could do about people hearing the shot and seeing the blood on the sidewalk.”

  “Well, we’ll deal with that as best we can. They know the limo was registered to MacIntyre and the shooting was right in front of the OD offices,” Collin shook his head. “A larger concern is that we don’t know who he was or why he targeted her.”

  “We can find out,” Rebecca said. “I haven’t had time to interrogate him.” She paused. “Actually, I’m not sure how to interrogate him.”

  They all turned to stare at her.

  “I have his soul in a box like the ones I use to store constructs. I’m just not sure what to do with it. It’s different than capturing someone’s mind. I’m not sure how to read his mind through his soul.”

  “You ... you have his soul?” Seamus gaped at her.

  “Yeah, I, well, I was worried about Brenna, and after I broke his shields, I didn’t want to take the time to control him, so I just grabbed his soul.”

  “I hit him with neural disruption and so did Kristin. Eric and Sean hit him with mind fists, and you stole his soul before any of that?” Donny said in wonder. “I saw him drop the gun when I hit him.”

  “He dropped the gun when I took his soul.”

  “Jesus,” Collin breathed. He looked at Seamus, “How do you do that? How do you take someone’s soul out of their body?”

  “I don’t know,” Seamus said. “What Brenna did with Gless was trap his mind, but his soul was still in his body.”

  “Oh my God,” Rebecca exclaimed, a look of revelation on her face. “In the card catalog. Brenna’s mother documented several old books that talked about a Soul Thief. I’ve never looked at any of them.”

  Seamus stood, walked around the table and grasped her wrist. They disappeared. Those left in the room stared at the empty space where Rebecca and Seamus had been.

  “Well, I guess that leaves us to discuss containment,” Collin said after a long period of silence.

  Mike Riley spoke up, “The DC police are hopping mad. They want to see the person who was shot. I can’t put them off much longer.”

  “How are we supposed to explain that we have our own surgical facility?” Collin asked. “And by the way, how did we get a full surgery? I don’t remember that being here.”

  “Brenna had it put in after that battle at CBW headquarters. She asked Mark what we were lacking and had the infirmary facilities upgraded at all of our headquarters across the world,” Mike told him.

  “Damn. I always wonder what she’s doing when everyone else is asleep. Okay, what do we tell the police? Anyone want to volunteer for a flesh wound?” The tone in his voice made it obvious that Collin wasn’t serious. “We certainly can’t let them see her.”

  “That flesh wound idea … let’s work with that,” Donny said. “We don’t have to actually injure someone, just plant the idea in the cops’ minds that they saw the wound. People saw Brenna get shot, and they have a description of her, but if Seamus could bring Morrighan here …” Donny had been with Brenna’s team for over a year and had always been amazed at how much the two women resembled each other.

  “That’s brilliant.” Collin clapped Donny on the shoulder. Dorothy, could you trick up a fake wound on someone that would pass the cops interviewing her? A minor flesh wound. Tell them that was the person who was shot instead of Brenna?

  Yes, I think so. Would just a graze work? Dorothy responded.

  It would have to be something that bled a lot. We have to explain the blood on the sidewalk, but minor enough that we didn’t take her to the hospital. We can plant something in their minds to make it more real than it is.

  A scalp wound would bleed a lot but wouldn’t have to be very serious. Dorothy was silent for a minute. Let me talk to Mark. I’m sure we can figure out something.

  “Dorothy and Mark will work on the wound idea. I’ll call Seamus and Morrighan and see if he can get her here,” Collin told them. “Now, what are we going to tell the media? It’s already on the TV news.”

  ~~~

  Brenna opened her eyes and tried to focus. There was something on the white ceiling ab
ove her. Finally, she realized it was a picture of her with Collin and Irina in front of the Big Eye carousel in London. Someone had taped it to the ceiling over her bed. She turned her head and saw Irina sitting in a chair next to her.

  “I guess I’m still alive, unless they’ve started accepting succubi for angel duty in heaven.” It was an effort to speak, and her voice sounded faint and raspy.

  Irina leaned over and said, “Open up and I’ll give you some ice chips.” Brenna did as Irina asked, and nothing had ever felt so good as the cold wetness that flooded her mouth.

  “I don’t think I’d want to be an angel,” Irina chuckled. “Just think of all the alterations I’d have to make to my clothes to accommodate wings.”

  Brenna could see the worry mixed with love in her face.

  “The doctors say you’re going to be fine,” Irina said. “No permanent damage, just a few weeks of taking it easy until you heal.”

  “My uterus …?”

  “It will heal. Dorothy says you’ll be able to spawn dozens of brats without a problem,” Irina smiled. “No major damage to any organs.”

  “Collin?”

  “I sent for him. He’s on his way.”

  Collin pushed into the room, worry on his face and love radiating from him through their link.

  ~~~

  Collin called Morrighan, and she was willing to help with the ruse. She was also anxious to visit Brenna. To his surprise, she told him she’d be in Washington in half an hour. Shortly thereafter, Fergus O’Byrne, Brenna’s other grandfather, contacted him by mental link and asked for visualization of a landing spot. He arrived a minute later, holding Brenna’s aunt by one arm and her grandmother Caylin by the other. Collin hadn’t known the extent of Fergus’ power, but on reflection realized he shouldn’t be surprised. Brenna had inherited her unique genetic makeup through both of her parents.

  Quickly, Mark and Dorothy, along with Rachel, their master makeup artist, created a ‘wound’ on Morrighan’s forehead. She lay in bed, and the police detectives investigating the shooting were allowed to interview her. The Clan couldn’t have chosen a better actress. Morrighan’s succubus Talents lent themselves to just such a subterfuge.