Psychic Storm: Ten Dangerously Sexy Tales of Psychic Witches, Vampires, Mediums, Empaths and Seers

by Deanna Chase

  His question was a relief. Kate wouldn’t lie to him if Jared asked her to describe all of the visions she had about him. Still, it would be an embarrassment if she had to divulge the frequency with which she had them.

  Typically, at least two or three of her visions each week would be about her new boyfriend. Only a few short days ago, Kate had a vision of the first time they met. It had been such a strange feeling to see herself in his memories. It felt like watching an old home movie and cringing over every little thing said and done. Kate understood her good fortune that Jared decided to give her a chance after their less than pleasant first meeting.

  “Why do you ask if I see inside your head?” Kate inquired after collecting her thoughts.

  “I get the sense that you’re unsure about my feelings towards you.” He stopped walking and turned to face her. Taking both of her hands in his, he gave them a gentle squeeze. “And I think if you knew my thoughts you wouldn’t feel that way.”

  It was such an unexpected compliment that she felt speechless for a moment. Mistakenly, Kate had thought he was going to give her the third degree over what past memories of his she had witnessed. Kate prayed that one day his honesty and self-assuredness would rub off on her and help her insecurities fade away. After a soft kiss on her cheek, he resumed their walk. Deliriously happy, Kate beamed at his back. Maybe even a snarky psychic could get her happily ever after.

  “I feel like an idiot!”

  “Stop complaining and try to get into it. It works, but we could try my other method if you’re interested…” Declan’s voice trailed off. She smacked his leg hard in reply.

  He had told her about his other method of tapping into his psychic energy. Declan claimed taking certain drugs would help relax the mind enough to get into another person’s memories. Since Kate belonged firmly in the “Just say no” camp, that wasn’t an option. She just hoped her mother hadn’t overheard before she headed outside to work in the garden.

  As it was, her mom had seemed guarded when she had introduced Declan to her. Her mother was up in arms when people came over and didn’t use a coaster. A boy who followed her daughter around with no discernable reason wasn’t exactly a welcome presence in her home.

  Declan and Kate sat cross-legged in her living room with the lighting low and a candle between them. The goal was to get her into a meditative state and let any visions from Max or his abductor flow freely to her. Her new psychic friend claimed that often he would even have visions in this state without the need to be asleep. It sounded like a lot of hokey bullshit to her, but a captive boy was enough motivation to try anything. Yet, an hour of meditation had done nothing except make her crave a nap.

  “Do you know why we have most of our visions while we’re sleeping?” Declan asked her softly. The more on edge she got, the gentler tone he used.

  “Not a clue,” she responded honestly.

  Declan made her feel like a bad student for being ignorant over their gifts. She blamed it on keeping her powers a secret for so long, but in all honesty she should’ve tried to learn more since the two years she found Matt Spencer. Her focus had been more on repressing her gifts during that period. Her time would’ve been better spent trying to hone her powers.

  Declan launched into his explanation, “Although we’re sleeping, our brain is still very active, especially when we enter the REM phase. I’ve read studies and they say that this period is almost like a heightened level of consciousness and the time when you’re likely to have the most vivid dreams. This is the time when we’re most likely to have a vision—especially since our minds have shut out anything else that may be going on.

  “Basically what you’re doing now is trying to shut everything else out. Keep your mind and body relaxed and simply breathe in and out. Don’t focus fully on Max or his kidnapper. Instead, concentrate on becoming an empty vessel and getting into a higher state of consciousness.”

  Kate decided to give it her best. Declan was very patient with her, even as her cynical side threatened to tell him there was no way this would actually help her get more control over her visions. Declan obviously had a couple of extra years of experience over her, so why shouldn’t she trust he knew what he was talking about?

  Letting her mind go quiet took longer than she expected. She kept hearing the noises from outdoors, Declan’s steady breathing next to her and her own heartbeat as she thought about Max alone with that crazy woman. To get rid of her thoughts, she tried to imagine them as bubbles floating away from her. She closed her eyes and just focused on taking long and cleansing breaths. In and out, in and out…

  “No, you’re lying! He can’t be gone!”

  She beat her fist against the chest of her ex-husband. She hated him at that minute more than it was possible to despise anyone else in this entire universe. He was the one to utter the words that would destroy her world and her already fragile hold on her sanity. They stood in the corridor of the hospital and she could care less about the uncomfortable stares being shot their way.

  “Ally, I’m so sorry. It was an accident, a horrible accident…” Lincoln moaned to her. He did not bother to conceal his pain. His blue eyes filled with unshed tears and his mouth twisted into an expression of extreme sorrow. Ally had no sympathy for him and only wished his suffering could be increased a thousand-fold. If a butcher knife had suddenly appeared in front of her, she would have no problem grabbing it and shoving it into his gut. The dream of watching him bleed out like a stuck pig would probably be the only thing that could ever bring her any sort of happiness for the rest of her lifetime.

  “This is your fault! He doesn’t know how to swim! Who brings a child to a party with a pool and doesn’t watch him? You’ll burn in hell for this, Lincoln,” she spat at him. Lincoln turned his back on her and started to march away from her. “Don’t you dare walk away from me, you son-of-a-bitch!”

  A nurse hurried over to her and attempted to diffuse the situation. The petite redhead rested her hand gently on Ally’s arm and spoke in a soothing voice. “Ms. Seldon, let me take you somewhere. We can go to a private room and have a doctor give you something to calm down.”

  Ally was having none of it. She welcomed the pain, relished it. A sedative would only make her numb to her hatred and need for retribution. The thought of Zachary lying dead in the hospital tore at her. She just saw her five-year-old boy alive and well this morning before his scheduled visit with Lincoln. With a quick kiss, he had bounded off to his father’s SUV with his favorite Thomas the Train firmly grasped in his hand. As they had driven off, Zachary waved from the window. She blew him a kiss which he caught in his hand. Ally had no idea that as they turned the corner, it would be the last moment she saw her son alive.

  Her beloved son was taken away from her too soon and she swore she would somehow find a way to be with him again…

  It was bewildering to come out of a vision in this way. The brief time inside of Ally’s brain had Kate’s heart racing and her head spinning. Kate recognized Ally immediately as the abductor from Max’s memories. It was disconcerting to expect to see the cold sterility of a hospital and instead be transported back to her living room with a candle burning and a boy she barely knew staring at her with concern. He went to reach for her, but seemed to think better of it and left his hand at his side.

  “It worked,” Kate whispered with reverence.

  It seemed impossible to believe that the meditative exercise actually offered her the opportunity to have a vision without being asleep. Her mind had traveled to another place while her body remained in the sanctity of her own living room. Although the vision didn’t let her know Max’s exact location, it did give her the name of the kidnapper. Along with information about her losing a son in a drowning, Kate was certain the police would now be able to locate Ally Seldon.

  Blowing out the candle, Kate hopped to her feet and opened the blinds to let more light into the room. Turning to Declan, she quickly relayed what she’d seen during the vision. Declan was p
leased with the results of his tutelage and encouraged her to keep practicing in order to have better control over when and where she had the visions.

  “What else can you do?” Kate asked. The success of the session made Kate imagine Declan as her wise sensei and she the eager pupil.

  Kate didn’t expect the psychic to look shifty after she posed the question. His brown eyes wouldn’t meet hers and his body language became closed off. His lack of reply made her nervous and she had a feeling the other shoe was about to drop. After a long moment, he opened his mouth to reply, but quickly shut it. As the silence echoed through the room, Kate noted the tightening in his jaw.

  Edging closer to him, she asked, “Declan, what’s going on? What are you keeping from me?”

  “Kate, I think we covered a lot today. I don’t think you’re ready to know everything just yet,” Declan said guiltily.

  “That isn’t for you to decide. Just spit it out already,” she commanded crossing her arms in front of her.

  “You probably won’t believe me, so it’s kind of pointless for me to mention it,” he said and shrugged. He was chewing on his bottom lip which led Kate to believe he was conflicted. A little pushing and prodding would urge him to reveal whatever secret he was keeping.

  If Declan didn’t want her to uncover the truth, he should’ve simply lied and said there was nothing more to show her. Now, Kate planned to relentlessly harass him until he finally confessed. She wasn’t the seventh grade champion debater for nothing.

  “Declan, you better tell me or else whatever you want from me, you’re definitely not getting.” She leaned against the chocolate armchair and tried to paint on a patient expression.

  “Kate, I never said I wanted anything from you…”

  Kate interrupted and shook her head. “Give me a break. You don’t go to all of the trouble to investigate someone if you simply want to show them some parlor tricks.”

  His resigned sigh told her she had won and she waited as he seemed to gather his nerve to speak. When he met her eyes again, they seemed to burn through her. It was as if he was trying to will her to believe whatever he was about to tell her. “I’ve had visions of the future.”

  “What are you talking about?” she sputtered. Jumping off of her perch on the armchair, she banged her knee into the coffee table. After a mumbled curse, she sank back into the chair and rubbed at the delicate skin.

  Declan waited for her to quiet. “It hasn’t happened often. But ever since I worked on strengthening my gifts, I’ve received these glimpses,” he revealed. “Kate, each vision came true,” he added solemnly.

  As he spoke, Kate tried to figure out this boy who stood before her. He was as contradictory as she was and it made it difficult to understand his motives. His muscular build and tattooed arms came across as a direct contrast to the Zen Master who sat on the floor across her earlier and lectured her on becoming an empty vessel. Why would he lie about seeing the future? What would he gain from it?

  The idea of seeing the future was as foreign a concept to her as people who ordered salads from McDonald’s. After her coma, Kate had accepted her visions would always be of something that happened in the past tense. It negated her of responsibility in a way. Since the events already took place, she was powerless to do anything to stop it. If she could see the future, this would be a complete game changer.

  “I know it’s hard to understand and sounds far-fetched. But I would imagine you have the potential to do the same thing.” He launched into a more detailed explanation without waiting for her to respond to his declaration. “I didn’t understand it was a prophecy the first time it happened. While I was sleeping, I saw a vision of my next door neighbor getting run down by a car while riding her bicycle. It happened a few days later and she was hospitalized for weeks from her injuries.”

  Kate rose from her chair with care and winced at the pain in her sore knee. Her hazel eyes met his and she replied decidedly, “I don’t believe it.”

  “Well, that’s a big surprise,” he said sarcastically and threw out his arms in frustration. Kate hoped he didn’t plan to punch anything—namely her.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “You’re so god damn stubborn! I’m trying to help you and you keep putting up this wall. If you don’t want to learn anything, then we’re done here.”

  It was odd to see him livid. Even when she held the pepper spray within inches of his face, Declan had remained cool and collected. He now paced in front of her like a caged tiger that needed only the slightest provocation to pounce. It would’ve been the perfect time for her mother to take a break from her gardening and interrupt them.

  “Fine. Then tell me another future vision,” she challenged.

  “Okay, you want to know? It was you and me…together,” he sneered.

  She shot out a bark of humorless laughter. “Is that some kind of lame psychic pick up line? Because sorry buddy, you’re cute and all, but why would something happen between us when I have a super hot boyfriend?”

  His eyes narrowed. “God, you’re the most annoying person I ever met.”

  Honestly, it was a relief to hear him say that. Hopefully, he would find her unappealing and get any romantic notions out of his head. Actually, his present expression looked like he was more prone to clobber her than have any desire to kiss her.

  Kate sighed. “Look, I’m going to call the police department in Blaine and give them the information from the vision. I think you were right about calling it a day,” she stated flatly. He didn’t answer and she decided to head upstairs to the privacy of her bedroom to put distance between them and make the call.

  Twenty minutes later as Kate headed back downstairs, she was surprised to hear Declan’s deep laugh carry across the room. She’d been certain he would’ve been long gone by now. It had taken her awhile to reach an available detective at the police department and provide the tip about Ally Seldon being the name of Max’s abductor. The officer she spoke to didn’t seem to put much merit into the description of her vision. This encouraged Kate to leave a message on Farrah’s cell phone. Farrah had a strong faith in psychic phenomenon and Kate knew she would ensure that the authorities would put in an effort to locate the woman from her vision.

  She was surprised to see Gage, Julie and her mom yukking it up with Declan. The boys were talking about football which she guessed came about when Declan saw Gage’s Giants jersey. Julie and her mom were discussing different punch recipes Julie could experiment with for her upcoming weekend party. The record scratch was almost audible as Kate walked into the kitchen.

  Julie broke the silence first. “Hey! Did you forget we were coming by to borrow those platters and the pitchers from your mom?”

  “I did,” she admitted. “Sorry I’ve had a lot going on this week.”

  “That’s okay,” Julie said. Kate didn’t miss Julie’s meaningful glance in Declan’s direction. “But you’re still able to come on Friday, right?”

  Julie and Gage had been planning a sort of back to school blowout at his house for a few weeks now. Since it was the couple’s senior year of college, they wanted it to be one of their last hoorays before real life decided to interrupt. Gage lived in a large house off campus with three other guys and a party ready basement. Kate had usually made up a lame excuse to get out of going, but since meeting Jared, she was attempting to stave off her fears of social awkwardness.

  “Of course. Jared will be able to make it too,” she said pointedly and purposely kept her eyes averted from Declan. “Let me know if you need help setting up anything.”

  Gage turned to Declan and she listened in horror as he nonchalantly said, “You should come too.”

  When Declan turned to her, she managed to keep her expression disinterested. As he turned back to Gage, she mouthed a panicked “No!” to Julie. Julie shrugged as if to say it was out of her hands now.

  “Sure, I’ll stop by,” Declan agreed and she felt nauseous at the thought of him in the same room a
s Jared.

  Why did he have to ruin a perfectly good psychic friendship with this nonsensical talk about them hooking up in the future? Her future vision was married to Jared, a picket fence and maybe seven or eight kids. She wouldn’t continue spending time with Declan if he threatened their happiness in anyway. No matter how much she wanted better control over her second sight.

  Chapter Eight

  Jared wasn’t able to make the party. Kate knew her disappointment was clear in her voice as they spoke briefly on the phone a couple of hours before she was set to head to Gage’s house. It wasn’t as if she blamed him for not being able to make it. His job as a detective didn’t always have regular hours and lately his cases had made their time alone scarce. Couldn’t the citizens of Franklin behave themselves so she could have time with her boyfriend?

  “You sound like you’re pouting. I really would make it if I could,” Jared said to her over the line as he drove to the station.

  “You’re just saying that now because you can’t make it. I’m sure even if you weren’t working, going to a party with a bunch of sweaty college kids in a basement that’s probably brimming with hepatitis doesn’t sound appealing,” she countered.

  “Working on a Friday night in a basement with a bunch of sweaty detectives isn’t exactly my idea of fun.”

  “Good point.”

  “Call me when you leave, so I know you’re getting home safely,” he said softly.

  Kate felt a little choked up at his words. She’d been looking forward to tonight for the sole reason of catching up with him. Their conversations had been short and far between over the last few days. Jared only knew that Kate had a vision about Max’s abductor and she hadn’t heard yet if the boy had been located.

  Farrah had called her briefly the night of the vision to confirm the woman’s name and discuss any other details Kate could recall. Ally’s mental instability had luckily awarded Kate the opportunity to see into her head. Kate had picked up the phone a dozen times over the past couple of days to call Max’s mother again, but didn’t want to bother the poor woman in case he wasn’t found. She assumed Farrah would call her if there was any news to report.