“I've never been in the field without Logan,” I admitted.
Vincent didn't respond. To give myself something to do, I grabbed a gear bag from behind the seat and started rummaging, trying to think of what we might need. We'd probably need everything. Grabbing my phone, I read the file to myself again.
“Logan won't really kill you, you know,” I said, reading the descriptions of the fairy clan in question for the third time.
In my peripheral vision, I saw Vincent grip the steering wheel tighter. “I'm not as confident about that as you are.”
“That's ridiculous. I'm fine. Right as rain and all that.”
If anything, he gripped the steering wheel harder. “If that was true, why did I spend the evening in the guest room?”
“Physically I’m fine. Mentally, I’m—”
“Shattered.”
The words sat heavy in the air, threatening to weigh me down.
“Not your mind,” Vincent said in a stiff voice. “Your soul.”
Anxiety started to creep in, so I turned back to files on my phone. Mentally, I was fine, and I’d be damned if I let anyone tell me anything different.
Vincent's tension started swirling against my anxiety. Usually, I had to be reading the Path to feel the atmosphere this strongly. Now I was being swamped by the emotions swirling through the air. Shivering, I sat the phone aside, took a few deep breaths, and closed my eyes. A whirl of worry from Vincent meandered around the other emotions.
“You need to chill out,” I said opening my eyes. “I'm fine.”
Vincent looked like he was concentrating hard on the road and the air cleared a bit.
Deciding it would be best if I centered myself, I closed my eyes again and started emptying out my thoughts, concentrating on the feeling of my body. Sometimes I employed this meditation technique to center myself before using my gifts. Today my body seemed to fight me. Nothing seemed to flow correctly. After trying for a while, I gave up.
“We need to come up with a plan,” I said.
Vincent stared hard at the road. I watched him, expecting an answer, refusing to let him slide by without a response. Once I folded my arms and started glaring in his direction, he took the hint.
“I'm not used to working with a partner. I've always worked alone.”
“Company policy is that no one works alone.”
“There are rare exceptions to that rule. Most would prefer not to work with a Walker.”
Here I was, stuck with a Walker, alone, with no back up.
Chapter 7
We entered the sprawling state park and skipped the ranger station, instead, choosing to go straight to the location on the GPS. The temperature stretched toward eighty-five degrees. We passed cars parked on the edge of the road and people out enjoying a hike on the warm day. Once we parked, I hopped out of the truck and pulled a few items from our bags. Like most of our assignments, a handgun was out of the question with people so close by. Any shots could ricochet and hurt someone. The tranq gun and pepper spray would be adequate.
Vincent grabbed his gear and stowed the bags while I carefully went over the map on the phone. My mind worked furiously fast. Do we have everything we need? Do I take the lead here? What if I can't read the Path? Will I be of any use?
I pushed these thoughts aside. Putting forth my best was all I could do. Plunging into the woods, we headed to the fairy homestead. We decided to talk to the fairies and then scout the surrounding area. We'd see how close people came to the fairies and provide facts to the agency. The agency would decide if the fairies needed to be relocated.
We hurried to the fairies. The open spaces and fresh air worked wonders on my nerves. Vincent followed close behind.
“Do you get this type of job often in the North West?” I asked, slowing down to walk next to him.
Vincent’s jaw tightened. “I’ve done many surveillance jobs.”
“This isn’t really surveillance though, is it? I mean, we’re talking with the fairies, not staking them out.”
He didn’t respond, but I pressed on, determined to know what type of expertise my partner had. “Surveillance jobs don’t sound too bad. We do more relocation and integration here. What other types of jobs do you do?”
Vincent stepped in front of me and faced me in one fluid movement. I nearly walked into him.
“Why are you pressing this?” Vincent asked. His voice would have frozen a pixie to the spot.
“Pressing this?”
Vincent was a head taller than I was. He loomed over me with eyes darker than I remembered them being.
It wasn’t the best time to remember that I was alone with him, in the middle of nowhere. Instinct yelled at me to take a step back. I decided to screw instinct.
Crossing my arms, I glared at him. “Why do you think? We’re on a job together. Like it or not, You. Are. My partner.” I slowed down the words to emphasize them.
Crap, did his eyes get darker? I shook the thought out of my mind and continued, “In order to work with each other, we need to know what to expect from the other.”
“I work alone,” Vincent said, enunciating every word except ‘I’. The air seemed to grow colder with each syllable. “I watch, I analyze, I deduce, and I kill.”
I could tell that he was looking for a reaction, so I gave him one.
“Not a people person. This is me being surprised.” I rolled my eyes. “Have you ever relocated one of the Lost? Do you have any experience working with fairies? Is there absolutely anything that you can do that is relevant here?”
His eyes narrowed a fraction, his jaw clenched, and every muscle I could see tensed. His body howled out his anger without making a sound.
The intensity of the animosity churned my stomach. The Path ripped open and a deluge of red, so deep that it was almost black, flooded over me. I stumbled back a step and fell. The real world was almost completely lost somewhere under Vincent’s fury.
Then it became less. The Path of the world returned. My fear lessened as the inundation slowed enough for me to force the Path closed.
Breathing heavily, I watched the colors of the world turn mute. With each blink I took, a ghost of sheer black covered everything.
It wasn’t supposed to be this way. What good would I be for AIR if my powers were out of control? I shouldn’t be worried about Vincent. He should be worried about me. I was the liability here.
“It is getting worse,” Vincent said from some distance away.
Depressed, I didn’t bother looking around. “Not worse.” I sighed, knowing that I needed to be fully honest. “But not better. And not as good as I tried to lead you and Logan to believe.”
The expansive woods spread out in front of me. There were fairies in there. Maybe pixies too, I should have checked. What use was I to any of the Lost as a Reader that couldn’t control the Path? The black overlay started to dissipate and the dullness of the forest colors faded to reveal a lush green wonderland.
I stood and turned my back on it. Vincent stood closer than I expected.
“I’ll fix this,” he said.
I nodded without meaning. “Yeah. For now, take this.” I handed over my phone. “The GPS will take you to the fairies.”
“You’re too unwell to continue?” His forehead was creased with uncertainty.
“I’m putting us at a disadvantage. I’ll meet you back at the car.” Trying to distance myself from the situation, I walked away.
“We’ll call another team in to take this,” Vincent said, matching my steps.
“There isn’t anyone else,” I sighed. “Go talk to the fairies.”
“We can’t work alone, remember?”
“You already work alone, you’ll be fine.”
Vincent brushed past me and blocked my way again. This time, he wasn’t looming. There was no anger. Maybe there was a bit of weariness, but that could have been my own reflected feelings.
He was making me think about it instead of letting me walk away. “You’re ma
king this difficult,” I said.
“We’re either going in together or leaving together.”
I shook my head.
He lowered his voice. “Do you really want to send me out to work with the fairies alone?” He didn’t sound menacing or malicious. It was an honest question.
“You’re not going to hurt a fairy. I know that.” It was the truth. Something inside of me knew with certainty that he wouldn’t harm an innocent fairy.
“How about being alone with the humans walking through the area?”
I hesitated, knowing I was on uncertain ground. I shifted gears, not wanting to answer that particular question. “I should have been honest up front and let you know what was wrong. I shouldn’t be in the field.”
“Do you think we didn’t know? That I didn’t know?”
“How could you? I didn’t even know it would be this bad.”
“We were with you in the kitchen yesterday. We knew it was worse than what you were telling us.”
I looked at him, not knowing what to say or do at this point.
Vincent took my hand and closed it around my phone. It was the first time he touched me since yesterday's incident. Where his hand held mine, warmth spread out and wound its way up my arm. Vincent looked at his hand holding both my hand and the phone. I wondered if he too felt the warmth.
After a few breaths, he pulled away and stepped back.
Vincent cleared his throat. “I’ll keep my emotions in check. There should be no issues.”
Indecision threatened to root me to the spot. In the end though, I thought he was right. If he kept his emotions in check, if we kept our emotions in check, I should be fine.
Turning, the woods spread out before me. There were fairies in there. It was past time to see what was going on.
We continued on a trail for a while before heading in a different direction, straight toward the fairies. Every now and again, we stopped to listen for others in the area. We didn't hear anything or see any signs of other people passing through. When we approached what looked like the fairy homestead, we carefully investigated the area for footprints before calling out to the fairies.
Fairy homesteads can vary greatly based on the area they live in. Sometimes, it's a group of trees growing close together. Other times, it's a rocky area with hidey holes. This area was a mixture. A gnarled old tree sat next to a tiny rock-bottomed creek. A large boulder sat next to the tree and a small rocky cliff was only a few feet away. To most visitors to the area, this was a pretty stretch of woods. The difference was in the air. It radiated a gentle, natural magic. The noises were a bit softer. The trees, bushes, and moss, seemed to pulse with life.
Once we deemed the area safe, we announced ourselves and waited for the Speaker to join us. Noise, like hundreds of irate bees began to move toward us. The Speaker appeared, but focusing on him was difficult. His agitation made him vibrate so fast he appeared as a blur.
Trying to take the lead, I talked to the Speaker directly, as I had seen Logan do half a dozen times. My existence seemed to be an affront to the fairies, though. The moment I started talking to the Speaker, he zipped toward me, and then away from me aggressively. Vincent stepped in to talk to the Speaker. The man calmed slightly and addressed everything directly to Vincent.
While they talked, I felt something drift down on the air and settle around my shoulders. Looking around, I saw a fairy flit around above me dropping a crushed mixture on me. I'm pretty sure it wasn't a welcoming present, but I hadn't started itching yet. As soon as the fairy was spotted, it hurried away after giving me a dirty look. As Vincent finished his conversation, I spotted another fairy throwing tiny rocks at me. The rocks were too heavy for the little creature, so they never actually hit me. It still seemed determined to try. Fairies usually didn't act like this around me, as long as I announced my intentions.
Then again, we were both strangers and they’ve had people around their homestead. The fairies led us to the site where the people were last spotted. The Speaker sent the rest of the fairies back to the tree and advised them to stay close to home and travel together if they left the homestead. Vincent asked the Speaker if all the fairies were accounted for. Several of them were away from the area, gathering up food for the winter. They were all accounted for this morning, and he assured us it was normal for them to travel around the area to gather food at this time of year.
The speaker led us away from the homestead where the humans had last been seen. The people had been pretty close to the homestead. There were obvious tracks in the leaves. I started touching the ground where the leaves had been kicked. Without the Path, I sensed an aura of excitement along with something darker. Vincent prowled around the area looking for clues.
While we combed over the area, I asked the fairy Speaker to check for signs that a fairy might notice, but that we, as humans, might overlook. Intent in my work, I had forgotten their aversion to me. He shook his fist and yelled for a bit before flitting around the area. Vincent watched us closely as the fairy zipped away. His face was blank, so I shrugged and continued to look around.
Being nervous about opening the Path got me nowhere. Vincent was heading up a hill, far enough away that he wouldn’t notice me or have an effect. Taking a few deep breaths, I opened myself. A storm of emotion raged through the area. Images flashed like lightning. My breath became rapid. I tried to sort through the chaos, but it was no use. There was too much. Retreating from the flurry of images wasn't easy. Closing my eyes, I tried to find my center, but I could see the Path as easily with my eyes closed. With some effort, I was able to push it away.
Leaning over, I tried to catch my breath. It felt like I'd been running. When I looked up, I saw that Vincent had moved further away, but watched closely. He didn't ask me if I spotted anything, so I didn't volunteer. It was too unsettling to see my gift so out of control.
The Speaker flitted to Vincent. Loud enough for me to hear, Vincent thanked him for searching. It wasn’t long before he was flying away again.
“He didn’t find anything,” Vincent said, careful to maintain some distance. “We’re not going to find anything this way either.”
“You have an idea?” I asked.
Vincent looked around the woods. We were almost in a bowl. Trees with thick monkey vines stretched up and away in all directions.
“The people have been spotted for a few days in a row in this area. They have kicked up leaves and left boot prints all over the place.”
“They seem to like this area,” I said.
“A possibility,” Vincent said. “I’m hoping they come this way this evening.”
“You want to wait for them?” I asked.
“Watch for them. Up there,” Vincent said, pointing to a low hill that had a pretty decent view of the area.
“That sounds like a good plan. I’ll call it in once we find our position.” I started to head in the direction of the hill, but Vincent stopped me.
“If we go straight up the hill, we’ll leave as large of a trail as they did,” Vincent said. “We go around.”
It took forty-five minutes to walk what could have taken us five minutes. I could see his point though. From our vantage point, we could see traces of people that had walked through the area below.
I called into Hank to let him know our position.
“Hank speaking.”
“Hey, Hank. Vincent and I are at the park. We’ve decided to stick around until tonight to see if anything turns up.”
“You’re where?” Hank asked.
“In Linn County. The Fairy homestead at the park.”
There was nothing but the sound of shifting paper from Hank’s end.
“Where Vincent and I were sent this morning.”
“Who’s order?” Hank barked.
“Kyrian.”
“Logan’s still in the Ozarks?” Hank sounded strained.
“I doubt he’s back yet.”
“Coordinates?”
I looked at my phone
and rattled off the numbers. “Everything okay, Hank?”
“I don’t have your log.”
I couldn’t tell if he was worried or mad. I was feeling both. Not being logged meant no one knew where you were. It was my understanding that when the operation was unlogged, you knew about it going in. This was a giant red flag for any agent, even for an agent as green as I was.
“You’ve got us logged now?” I asked.
“You’re logged.”
“Hank?” I wasn’t sure what was appropriate at this point.
“I’ll know what happened by the time you get back.”
“Thanks, Hank.” I turned off the phone.
Vincent’s stony face met my gaze.
“You heard?” I asked.
He gave a curt nod.
“Know what it means?” I asked.
Vincent’s gaze was steady on the landscape below. “Someone mixed up the paperwork.” His voice was expressionless, but the tightness of his eyes gave him away.
Two days ago, Logan mentioned a mix up of paperwork. That one almost left me dead.
The Path was shut, but I could sense the buildup of emotions surrounding us. “Why don’t you stretch your legs for a few minutes?” I suggested.
He looked at me and back to the forest floor below. “We should stay in position.”
“Of course we should,” I muttered.
I situated myself to remain hidden from anyone below us. Feeling more pressure being swung around, I glared at Vincent before going into stakeout mode.
“Huh,” Vincent took in the view from all directions. “Stay silent and still. I’m going to check over the rise.” Moving quickly and quietly, he walked down the opposite side of the hill.
He wasn’t gone long, but he was certainly calmer when he returned. We didn’t say anything, but got into position and waited.
The afternoon crept away in boredom. With Vincent lying not far away, I thought over how he listed his agent expertise. It was a pretty gloomy way of looking at your job. And yourself.
Knowing that sound could travel far in the woods didn’t make it any easier not to talk, but we remained silent and vigilant. Vincent was better at both. He took attentiveness to a level I had never seen.
A.I.R. Shattered Soul Page 7
