Seven Psychics

by J. C. Diem

  I caught Walker smirking at me from the corner of my eye and cut her off as she opened her mouth. “Don’t even say it,” I warned her.

  “What?” she said innocently. “I was just going to mention that some of us have never had…routine before.”

  Everyone knew she was talking about my lack of experience in the bedroom. Garrett’s eyes flicked to mine in the rearview mirror. Did I have the word ‘innocent’ plastered on my forehead or something? “So I’ve never had sex,” I said grumpily. “We all start out as virgins, you know.”

  Reece almost spoke, but clamped his lips shut at my forbidding glare. Flynn’s shoulders shook in near silent laughter. No one dared to say anything after that. It was probably for the best considering I had a gun hidden beneath my jacket and I was all too willing to use it.

  ₪₪₪

  Chapter Fourteen

  Eventually, the silence became oppressive and Kala was the first to break it. “What do we know about the latest attack?” Her tawny eyes were still sparkling with mischief, but she was making an effort to be professional.

  “A man was arrested an hour ago while trying to steal alcohol from a liquor store,” Garrett advised. He was driving at high speed, dodging in and out of traffic and making my heart leap into my throat after a few particularly close calls. It almost seemed like he was deliberately trying to scare me. If so, it was working.

  To distract myself from possible impending dismemberment by car crash, I remembered something that Mark had told me about Greed’s last victim. She’d had a neural breakdown that had resulted in death after being taken to hospital. If this man had been arrested without fulfilling his command, he’d also shortly be dead.

  “Lots of people hold up liquor stores,” Walker said. “What makes you think the robbery is due to compulsion?”

  “Because he only stole a very specific and expensive brand of whiskey,” Garrett replied. “He had a shopping trolley full of bottles and he was transferring them to his car when the cops turned up to arrest him.”

  “The trail will be three hours old by the time we get there,” Flynn said. “Greed’s probably already gone back underground by now.”

  “Or she could be casing for a new victim,” Walker countered. “The psychics are unpredictable and they’re prone to having psychotic breaks. Look at what happened to Gluttony.”

  He’d sat there in the middle of the carnage, watching it all happen and smiling the whole time. He’d enjoyed every moment of it right up until I’d put a bullet through his heart. I’d wiped the smug, satisfied smile off his face, but the damage had already been done and dozens of people had died in a truly horrific way.

  At least Greed only seemed to focus on one person at a time rather than on multiple victims. I could only imagine the confusion if an entire mall full of people all decided they needed to hoard particular items all at once.

  As expected, the liquor store was roped off with crime scene tape. Police officers were still taking witness statements as we arrived. Onlookers were once again crowded around the barriers. Their fascination with death was ghoulish.

  Reece parked across the road and powered his window down. A constant stream of traffic was slowly driving by with the occupants gawping at the crime scene. That didn’t stop the agents from being able to pick up information.

  “The victim died a few minutes ago,” Kala said to me after listening into the conversation between two cops. I could see their lips moving, but I had no possibility of being able to hear them. “He slipped into a coma and the doctors were unable to revive him.”

  If they performed a brain scan, they’d see severe damage resulting from the hypnotic suggestion that he’d failed to uphold. The doctors would be unable to explain the neural breakdown, but we knew what had caused it. Greed was out there somewhere, watching the chaos that she’d caused.

  As if thinking about her somehow captured her attention, I felt a momentary flicker of a foreign mind. It was gone before I could tell where it had come from. “She’s here,” I said. “I just felt her in my head.”

  They didn’t need to ask me who I was talking about. Garrett turned to face me and pointed at the bulge beneath my jacket. “Leave your gun in the car. It’s too dangerous to bring it with you.”

  I was frankly surprised that they’d be taking me with them and I didn’t protest at his order. I removed my holster and stashed it in my backpack. The SUV was equipped with state of the art locks that would make it very hard to break into. It also had bullet proof glass that couldn’t be smashed easily.

  My weapons should be safe enough, but I wasn’t particularly happy about being unarmed. I reassured myself that one of the agents would be by my side to protect me and that I would be in little danger. Yet a flicker of unease wormed its way inside me anyway. They might be able to push me out of the way of flying projectiles, but they wouldn’t be able to stop me from catching on fire.

  We exited from the SUV and inserted our earbuds. “Lexi, you’re with me,” Garrett ordered. “Walker, Bailey, spread out and search for the target. Keep me updated every ten minutes.”

  Instead of making the snide comments that I’d expected, they simply nodded and walked away. This was the first time I’d seen Reece in charge and he was serious and focused. He seemed older than twenty and so far out of my league that it would be impossible for him to ever be able to see me as his equal.

  Staying close to Garrett, it was fascinating to watch him track the target. His eyes roamed the faces in the crowd as we crossed the street to take a closer look at the liquor store. His nostrils flared and he turned in a circle. “I’ve got something,” he said, alerting the others that he’d picked up a trail that was invisible to me.

  He moved at a quick walk away from the store and I trotted to keep up with him. His impatient glances backwards spoke volumes. I was slowing him down and he resented having me tagging along.

  We walked for an hour before Reece stopped and turned in a frustrated circle. “I’ve lost her,” he said, irritation apparent in his tone and body language.

  Walker and Bailey trotted into view moments later. Kala took a deep breath through her nose and Flynn gasped in a lungful of air. “We’ve got her scent now,” he said. “We should search the area and see if we can pick up the trail again.”

  “I vote we eat first,” Kala said. It was around dinner time and none of us wanted to continue to search on an empty stomach.

  “Fine,” Garrett said. “Stay here while I get the SUV.”

  He jogged away, leaving me in the care of his fellow agents. The sun was about to sink below the horizon and their pupils had enlarged to counteract the lack of light. A streetlight caught Kala’s eyes, momentarily making them shine before she blinked and the effect was shattered.

  Flynn seemed calm and relaxed standing next to Kala’s boundless energy. He didn’t fidget while we waited, but stood motionless and patient as a rock. Walker could be still when she was focused on the shooting range, but she was usually restless when she had nothing to occupy her mind. They were very different in both looks and temperament and yet they got along well. Kala and Reece, on the other hand, tended to snap at each other almost as if they were true siblings.

  A few minutes later, Garrett returned in the SUV. We piled inside and he drove to a nearby fast food restaurant. The car quickly filled with the smell of greasy fries and overdone burgers, but we scoffed the meal down as if it was the finest fare that we’d ever eaten.

  After our hasty dinner, we returned to the area where Reece had lost Greed’s trail and split up once more. Being a minor, I obviously couldn’t be trusted to be alone and Garrett insisted that I stay close to his side. We roamed the streets for hours without seeing any sign of our quarry.

  Towards dawn, a voice roused me from the near trance that I’d slipped into. It was far past my bedtime and all I wanted to do was curl up and sleep. We’d walked all night and my legs and feet were sore. Reece was showing no signs of discomfort and he was as aler
t as ever when Kala spoke.

  “I’ve found her,” she said with a hint of excitement.

  “Where are you?” Garrett asked. Our search had been methodical and he’d driven the SUV from one block to the next, leaving it parked while we searched on foot. We’d almost circled back to the vehicle now and hurried towards it.

  “I’m ten blocks to your north,” she replied.

  “We’ll be right there.” Garrett didn’t need to instruct Bailey to join us. He’d been listening in as well and would no doubt already be on his way to our new location.

  We pulled up near a building that looked like it had been condemned a long time ago. Most of the windows had been smashed by vandals and had since been boarded up. From the size and institutional design of the structure, it had probably been a school. One wing had been destroyed in a fire, but there were still plenty of places left for someone to use as a hiding spot.

  Observing the dilapidated, dingy gray building in the weak dawn light, I quailed at the thought of entering it. I hoped ghosts weren’t real, because if I’d ever seen a building that looked like it might be haunted, it was this one. The others didn’t share my fear and exchanged excited glances. None of them showed any signs of the tiredness that I felt.

  “Let’s do this,” Flynn said with an eager smile and started towards the overgrown path that would take us to the back of the property.

  ₪₪₪

  Chapter Fifteen

  It didn’t take us long to find an entry point at the back of the school. The boards on one of the windows had been pried off and lay discarded in the overgrown bushes that ringed the building. It looked to me like they’d only recently been removed.

  Wading into the shrubbery first, Reece made a stirrup with his hands and Flynn stepped into it first. He boosted Bailey inside and the slender agent slithered through the window without a sound. Kala was next through the opening. Reece motioned me forward and lifted me up high enough to grab the windowsill. Flynn and Kala dragged me through before I could attempt to haul myself inside. Garrett didn’t need any help. He jumped up, caught the sill and climbed inside just as quickly and quietly as the other two had.

  Filthy brown linoleum covered the floors. It was peeling in some places and missing entirely in others. The walls and ceiling had once been cream and were now stained with mold, dirt and graffiti. Walker wrinkled her nose at the musty smell that came from everywhere at once. I was pretty sure something had died in the building sometime in the not too distant past. The rotting corpse of an animal was somewhere nearby, waiting for the unwary to smear their feet with its noisome juices.

  Using hand signals, Garrett instructed Flynn and Kala to split up and to begin searching the school. Walker took the stairs up to the second level and Bailey quietly made his way down the hallway to our right. Reece motioned for me to remain with him and we headed towards the left.

  We passed doors that either stood wide open or were missing entirely. I glanced inside each room curiously. Most were empty of furniture, but some showed signs that the homeless occasionally bedded down here. Flattened cardboard boxes and tattered blankets had been left behind as makeshift beds. A forty-four gallon metal drum had been placed in the center of one of the rooms. It didn’t smell as if a fire had been lit recently, which I was thankful for considering Greed’s secondary psychic talent.

  Although the building was quiet, I sensed that we weren’t alone. The telepath was somewhere in this confusing warren of rooms and she knew we were here. I wondered why she didn’t just unleash her mental powers on us. As far as she knew, we were just four ordinary people, not agents who could withstand her abilities. Ok, three members of our group were agents. I was just a rookie who was along for the ride. Without my weapons, I was more of a liability than an asset. I had no hand to hand combat skills and, unlike my companions, I couldn’t kill anyone with my bare hands.

  Finished searching the lower floor, we met Flynn back at the hallway where we’d entered the school.

  “Kala,” Reece whispered, “it’s clear down here.”

  “I’ve got nothing up here so far,” she whispered back. “I’ve finished searching the west side of the building and I’m about to search the east side.”

  “Wait for us. We’ll be there in a second.”

  We trooped quietly up the stairs and I did my best to avoid the broken glass that littered the stairwell. We emerged into a hallway that was identical to the one below it to find Walker waiting for us. She was tense and alert and gave me a quick, reassuring smile. The others might be enjoying the hunt, but I was terrified. I hated to be defenseless almost as much as I despised having to depend on someone else to keep me safe. I almost wished I’d stayed in the SUV, but Reece wouldn’t have allowed me to remain behind alone.

  “She’s here somewhere,” Bailey whispered. “Her scent is everywhere.”

  “Why hasn’t she tried to control us or set us on fire?” I asked just as quietly.

  A flicker of worry crossed Garrett’s face. “I don’t know.” He was torn for a moment before making his decision. “Kala, Flynn, find her and take her down. I’ll stay here with Alexis.”

  I could see that the decision to remain behind cost him in his tensed shoulders and heavy frown. Walker patted his arm in sympathy then she and Bailey moved down the hall to search the rooms.

  We waited in an anxious silence that seemed to grow heavier by the minute. I sensed someone behind me a second before an arm snaked around my throat and cut off my air. Reece whirled around at my pained gasp. Seeing me in the grip of the person we were supposed to be hunting, fury contorted his face. His fingers curled into claws and he took a step forward.

  “Stay right where you are,” Greed ordered. A couple of inches taller than me, she pulled me back against her soft, pudgy body until I was off balance. I managed a glance at her face before she pinned me against her. In her mid-forties, her dark brown hair was shot through with gray streaks. Deep lines of discontent had been carved in her forehead and around her mouth. Her dark brown eyes were just as insane as Gluttony’s had been, maybe even more so, if that was possible.

  “Let her go,” Garrett said in a low, menacing tone.

  “You don’t give the orders here, boy!” she spat. “You do what I say or the girl dies!”

  It was a corny line straight out of a movie and I snorted an involuntary laugh. That angered Greed and her arm clamped around my throat even tighter. “You think this is funny, girl?”

  My hands were digging into the soft flesh of her arm, trying to pull it away so I could get some air. “I think you’re the one who is going to die,” I choked out.

  “You think these creatures are smart enough to kill me?” she said with a nasty laugh. “They might be strong and fast, but they can’t control minds like I can.”

  I saw a flicker of movement out of the corner of my eye and deliberately stumbled in the opposite direction. Kala flitted past, circling around behind us before Greed could spot her. Losing her balance for a second, the telepath tightened her hold even more. Black spots were now dancing in front of my eyes from lack of air and I was afraid I was about to pass out.

  “It’s time for me to show these monsters who is more powerful,” she said and unleashed her power. Greed released me and I stumbled away and went down to my knees. “Go and seek that which you find most precious to you,” the psychic intoned. The compulsion to find and collect as many guns as I could find washed through me, but it was distant and easy to ignore. I was more concerned with getting air into my deprived lungs. The pain seemed to assist me in battling against her command.

  While the telepath had been occupied, Kala and Flynn had snuck up behind her. Now that I was in the clear, all three agents struck. Reece leaped forward to clamp his hands around her throat while the other two grabbed her by the arms.

  “You can’t do this!” Greed gargled and I felt a different type of power begin to gather. Warm air stirred around me and it suddenly became hard to breathe for a ver
y different reason. The temperature rapidly increased and my clothes started to smoke.

  Through watering eyes, I saw Garrett’s face harden and he nodded at the other two agents. Guessing what was about to happen, I closed my eyes and heard tearing sounds that were followed by a sickeningly wet splatter. Against my better judgment, I opened my eyes a crack when I heard several thuds. Greed’s body had fallen to the floor only a few feet away from me. Blood gushed from the stumps where her arms and head used to be. While her arms were lying on the floor beside her, her head was still missing.

  Kala toed the body with her boot and looked at her fellow agents, abashed. “I’m kind of glad Mark isn’t here to see this.”

  “He would not be happy,” Flynn agreed.

  I rolled my eyes upwards to see Garrett holding onto Greed’s head by her matted hair. He tossed it onto the body and it bounced off and landed on the floor right in front of me. “The target has been eliminated,” he said. “That’s all that matters.” He reached into his pocket, probably for his cell phone so he could take a photo of the body.

  I wasn’t sure if it was his cold tone, the dismembered corpse, or my narrow escape from being flash fried that sent me over the edge. My stomach rebelled and I lurched to my feet and stumbled over to the closest window to throw up. Thankfully, this window hadn’t been boarded over. Wisps of smoke continued to rise from my jacket and jeans as I heaved noisily and embarrassingly.

  A hand touched my back and I shuddered, forcing myself not to shy away. The hand was too small to belong to one of the guys, so it had to be Kala comforting me as I vomited until my stomach was empty. How could someone who was usually so warm and friendly also be a cold blooded killer? It was a confusing contradiction.