Barry and Kyrian walked away.
My face started to swell. I sat down at the table opposite where Seth lay.
“I'll wait on the cleaners.” My voice sounded foreign, dull and listless. Had I really caused all this? Our one witness was dead on the floor because I got distracted.
“Listen,” I swallowed and took a deep breath, “about what happened in here. There are no excuses. I am so sorry I let this happen.”
“I have a feeling this would have happened to any of us.” Logan tried to look through the one-way mirror.
“Doesn't matter,” I said. “He got my gun and aimed it at you.”
“Even if he had shot, I would have taken him down before the drugs kicked in. He wouldn't have gotten to the other side of the table.” Logan ran a hand through his hair. “Never got the chance to stop him, though.”
“This doesn't look good for Kyrian,” I said.
“It doesn't,” Logan said. “She killed our only witness.”
I lowered my voice. “Lethal force seems out of character for her.”
“Unless she has something to cover up.”
I shifted in my seat and looked at Seth's lifeless body. “Do you think she's behind this?”
Logan shook his head. “It's suspicious, but we don't have any evidence. Let's keep our eyes on her.”
We heard noises down the hall and halted our conversation. I stood as someone pushed the door fully open. The cleaning crew had arrived.
“Let's get you upstairs,” Logan said.
I raised my eyebrow at him.
“Injury-induced altercation at work. We're off to see the doctor.”
I had seen the doctor way too much lately.
Rider found us soon after Dr. Yelton gave the order to go home and get some rest. I wasn't going to argue with that order.
***
Everyone was already up when I made it downstairs the next morning. Rider and Logan were in the kitchen.
Gran patted my cheek when I entered the kitchen, and then cupped her hand over mine. “It sounds like Vincent knew what he was doin'. You've gotta trust in that. I'm sure he'll be home soon.”
There was worry in her eyes. I tested the air around her as she left. Still blocked. Maybe tonight I could sit down with Gran and really explore what was going on with her. I could tell she was uncomfortable.
Rider gave me a worried look as I grabbed my coffee.
“That man hit you yesterday and you still have a bruise on your face. Should that still be there?” he asked.
My hand immediately went to my face. The bruise was an ugly purple. “It'll fade in time,” I said.
“But, why is it still there?” he asked.
“Humans are a bit more fragile than werewolves,” Logan said.
I frowned at him. I hated the idea of being called fragile.
“I'm amazed,” I said to the room at large, “that with all of the events of yesterday, there were not more people hurt, and no one seems to have seen anything.”
“So, yesterday seems to have caused some confusion and kept you all busy,” Rider said, “but caused very little damage over all.”
“But why?” I asked.
“Maybe if we start with what could open the portals, it would help us find out why,” Logan commented.
“Okay, so what opens a portal?” I started. “We know they happen naturally from time to time, when the energy builds up in an area, but that is obviously not the case here.”
“Witches can open a portal,” Logan added with a cowboy twang, “but there needs to be a lot of them working together to build up enough energy to open one.”
“In my world,” Rider said, “they are on lines of power. The lines are always strong enough to open a portal, but someone needs to guide that energy to one spot on the line to open it. It only takes about two or three people to open a line. One to open it and one or two to direct its energy, ensuring that it opens where we want it to open.”
Logan nodded thoughtfully. “In my world, it took one person to open it and direct it, but that person couldn't be the one walking through. The energy is stored in certain materials. We build up the energy reserves over time, so a portal can be ready to open when we want it to. The materials we use are attuned to certain worlds, so direction can't be changed. For instance, the cloudy blue crystal I used to come here wouldn't take me to Rider's world or the centaur world, only to here.”
“We've gathered information from natural portals. Our office portals use electricity to open when we need them to,” I said. “A computer can use that information to direct the portal. When I first started, they mentioned something about vibration resonance. I didn't really understand it all, but Hank told me it was kind of like dialing into a radio frequency, only using vibrations.”
“That's a lot of worlds that were dialed in today,” said Logan.
“But they seemed random,” I replied.
“Random would be easier than on purpose,” Logan added.
“But there was no power source, at least not that I could see. Well, downtown had electrical lines and transformers.” I mulled that over. “Most sites were away from everything though. Do we know if there was electricity near all the sites?”
“Not where the gremlins came in. We were lucky there wasn’t metal around,” Logan said.
“Can portals be opened remotely?” I asked.
Rider shrugged, but Logan thought the idea over. “Possibly, since there doesn't seem to have been a guide. A power source is missing. These portals were apparently random. Hank said the gremlins came from two different portals. Even the numbers seem to be random. Two in some areas, while only one in other areas.”
“But when two were close together, they came from the same place,” Rider added.
“Maybe something in the area is attuned to those worlds,” I suggested. “We can check the historical data to see if any other natural portals have popped up in those areas over the years.”
“Could explain the random locations,” Logan mused. “Possibly the energy as well. Let's say that a natural portal bridged this world to the gremlins in the past, somewhere around this location. The energy would have flared in the area and died away. Much like we saw on the screens this morning. It probably would have happened in both worlds, but what about the area in the middle?”
“You mean between the worlds?” I asked.
“Had a chance to talk to Vincent some about the area between the worlds. The company doesn't know much about it, but as a Walker, Vincent's been there. The way that he described it made it sound almost like Wonderland and Hell all rolled up and thrown into space. It wraps itself around other worlds and portals bore their way through it. The thing is, once a portal bores through it, the ends close and the tunnels sometimes remain,” Logan said.
“Vincent mentioned this?” I asked.
“Not in so many words. But with what he described and with what I know about portals, it might be possible. I wish he was here so we could get some more information,” Logan said.
I looked around the room, once again hoping to see Vincent walking around a corner.
“If I'm right, though,” Logan said, “it may only take a spark of energy to open the line.”
“That was a lot of sparks at once,” Rider said. “Who could do something like that?”
“Cassie here probably could, if she learned to control the Path in multiple areas at once. Vincent might be able to with his expertise. Other creatures could as well. Certain elementals, demons...” Logan's voice trailed away. I shivered at the thought of demons, but shoved the memories back down into the shadowy depths of my mind.
“Is there a way to control demons?” I asked. “Our prisoner seemed to know one.”
Rider spoke up, “You said it yourself yesterday, Cassie. You have to know their weakness.”
“Some demons have slipped into our world in the past,” Logan said. “If someone actually brought them here, and found a way to exert some control over them? Well, it's possib
le they could have opened random portals.”
I couldn't sit still any longer. I started washing out the coffee pot and cleaning the counters.
“Could one of those-- one of those things have blocked Gran?” I asked. My hand trembled as I scrubbed the counter down.
“Also possible, but someone local could have done that as well, maybe without even realizing it. She doesn't work for the company, but anyone inside the company would know that your Gran comes up with some pretty spectacular stuff,” Logan said.
I froze. “Someone inside the company?” I asked, tossing that idea around. “I don't like the sound of it, but you're right. Kyrian has acted a bit strange.”
“We don’t want to rule anyone out yet.” Logan snagged a cookie out of the jar. He didn't eat it, though. He turned it over and over in his hands and stared.
“Someone in the company could also have reason to get you out of the way, Cassie,” Logan said.
“Me? Why would anyone want to get rid of me?” I said.
“Must have something to do with your abilities. Someone has set up a chain of events that could have easily killed you several times,” Logan said.
“Gran’s the actual psychic,” I said.
“And now she’s blocked,” Logan said.
Rider let out a low growl, which I ignored.
“I've gotten to know Vincent a bit, and I don't think he started it. I think the one that sent him on your trail is the one behind this,” Logan said.
“He said it was his office. The West Coast branch of the agency,” I said.
“That's true, but I don't think they pulled your name out of a hat. I think someone would have had to suggest it. Maybe someone in house. Someone who knew you and knew of Margaret's abilities,” Logan said.
“We go back to who gains from yesterday's events,” Rider said.
“What could be gained from yesterday?” I asked.
Logan and Rider both shook their heads.
“Okay, let's try it this way. Rider, if you set up the events, why would you do it?” I asked.
Rider looked taken aback by the idea.
“I'm not saying I think you did it,” I added. “It’s a hypothetical. Role-playing, if you will. What would make you be willing to set up the portals? What could you gain from it?”
“If we were back in my world, I would say it was a clan strategy. It is not open warfare, but it could be a way to lower another clan's status, having to deal with confusion and possible hostility.” He shrugged. “Will this lower the status of the agency? Having hostiles at your doorsteps?”
“I guess it could look bad,” I said. “Maybe we need to get more information on the West Coast branch of the company. What about you, Logan?” I asked. “What would you get out of yesterday?”
“Could be a way to sneak something or someone in or out of this world. So much confusion. I think we should have Hank look into a few things.”
He grabbed the landline. “Hey, Hank, things calming down a bit?”
Logan asked Hank if all our boundaries were being watched and then invited Hank over after work to discuss the case.
Logan signed off and joined Rider at one of the stools at the counter.
“Hank's double checking everything. He'll keep us up to date. The dust is starting to settle.”
“Good, I think we should have him do a bit of data diving for us,” I said. Once again, Rider looked confused and I tried to explain how a computer gathers data, and how a person could go in and pull out data.
“Can we trust Hank?” Rider asked.
Now I was the one looking stumped. I never thought about if I should or should not trust Hank.
Logan didn’t meet anyone’s eye. “I think Cassie's the best judge of that.”
Closing my eyes, I searched through all of my memories of Hank. Once I located all the memories, I poked into the feelings and energy of each memory. Opening my eyes, I blinked a few times. That had taken longer than I thought it would.
“Hank's safe, I think.” I hated giving absolutes, but from what I knew of Hank, we could trust him. Logan nodded.
“Can you do that with all the employees?” Rider asked. “It may narrow down the list of who to trust and who not to trust.”
“I don't really know everyone that well, and there is always some bias. People who don't like me or Logan would probably throw up red flags to me, even if they're good people,” I said.
Logan nodded. “Best to save your energy. Concentrate on each person as we need them.”
He was right. The short burst of energy I had needed to contemplate Hank was more than I wanted to use right now. Yesterday's activities had worn me down.
“Maybe we could track down the creature responsible?” suggested Rider.
“I'm not sure where we would start,” I said.
“What about the creature who killed the troll and attacked you. Maybe we could track it down,” Rider suggested.
“Anything that could throw you against a wall and hold you there by force of will is definitely something to consider. It could have supplied the portals with enough energy to open,” Logan said.
I nodded glumly. “I copied what it did to me yesterday when we were fighting that vampire, I remembered what it did and I copied it. It didn't last as long, though.”
Logan nodded. “You copied it during the explosion and you saved lives.”
“Before I met that thing at the Sanctuary,” I said, “I'm pretty sure I've never done anything like that before.”
Gran's cat slunk into the room and hissed at me before walking out again. It only deepened my depression.
“What would we do if we caught the thing that attacked me at the sanctuary?” I asked.
“Is it different from what attacked you at the tunnel?” Logan asked lightly.
Rider and I both nodded and I shivered.
“Definitely,” I said.
“Well, if we catch it, maybe we could question it. If it opened the portals, it has to have some way to communicate,” Logan said.
“It can talk,” I said. They both looked at me and I shrugged. “Or at least mimic. Rider yelled my name and it repeated my name before flying off.”
“You never mentioned that before,” Logan said.
I shrugged again. “So much happened.”
“Did you hear it, Rider?” Logan asked. Rider shook his head. “What did it sound like, Cassie?”
“It was sort of a hissing voice.”
“You know I wouldn't ask if it weren't important,” Logan said, “but think back, put yourself back there. Tell me everything you can.” I looked at Logan and Rider then glanced around the rest of the room, reassuring myself that we were alone.
“Keep that cat away from me,” I mumbled. Then I closed my eyes and pulled myself into the past.
Chapter 25
Putting myself back to the attack in the Sanctuary was not as easy as pulling up thoughts of Hank. This memory was buried deeply in my mind. Forcing myself to talk as I went through the series of events wasn't painless either.
Ignoring the attack from Rider, I started with discovering the troll. Planting myself firmly in the past, I relived Rider running off and the feelings of fear when I realized I might be stepping on a dead troll. After that, I moved down the rock wall, escaping the dead body and the smell. The creature bloomed into my mind. This time, I recognized the recklessness of pulling my gun. It was a fleeting thought as I relived the moment. Once I slammed up against the wall, I attempted to step out of myself a bit and watch from the sidelines as the events played out. Being scared and weak was never something I liked to discuss, yet, here I was poring over every detail. It didn't work. Even though I couldn’t see it, my own Path sucked me back in. I relived the fear while doling out details.
There were things I noticed which had been lost on me before. The vague shape of the creature started coming forward. The voice was a high-pitched hissing. The wall of air holding me up dissipated, but it did so because the thi
ng took flight. I finished relaying the information with Rider showing up. When I opened my eyes, I realized I had been crying.
Rolling my eyes, I excused myself to the bathroom, cleaned off my face, and got myself under control. Exhaustion rolled in, despite all the coffee.
When I came back out the guys were discussing the details. Feeling no need to rush back into it, I called Gran to check on her. She was finished at the mall. She and Dee Dee had retreated to the ceramic shop. Gran was painting a new ceramic mug for Halloween. We chatted long enough for me to remember the world outside of work existed. When I hung up, I joined Logan and Rider. They were bent over my laptop.
I looked over Logan's shoulder and checked out the screen. “That looks like a pterodactyl,” I commented. “How did dinosaurs come up?”
“Not a pterodactyl, it's a sordis,” Logan commented.
“Okay, I give, what's a sordis?” I said, returning to my chair.
“The sordis on the Internet is a dinosaur, but in Latin it means filth or scum. It's a word that comes from folklore and it referenced evil spirits. The dinosaur sordis is fairly small, but take a look, Cassie. Look at the wings, the body, and the tail. This ancient bird was reminiscent of the 'evil spirit' in an area of West Virginia over one hundred years ago. I've never seen one before, but I think what attacked you might look like a big one of these.”
Raising one eyebrow at Logan, I looked over the small picture. A bone was on the ridge of the wing that went half way down. The wings were almost bat like, but looked furry. They were connected all the way down the length of the ancient bird, not just at joints at the top or on its back. I imagined those wings opening and closing. A chill shot through me. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath finding my center. Once I found it, I opened my eyes and handed the computer back to Logan.
“There are similarities,” I admitted. “Do you think we should look it up through the company's archives?”
Logan shook his head. “I don't want to leave any tracks. I think we should ask Hank to take a look.” We both glanced at the clock. “He should be over in about an hour. He's taking a long break with us, and then heading back into the office.”
A.I.R. Shattered Soul Page 20
