Sighing, I started to say something fairly unfriendly about Kyrian’s complete lack of understanding, but Logan interrupted and started to lead me away. “We’ll make sure it’s in the report,” he said over his shoulder.
“She’s clueless,” I muttered to Logan as we went to our desks.
“True, but I doubt she’d appreciate hearing about it from you.”
We had an office we could use, but we mostly worked on the main floor. Logan wanted to be around other people, not stuffed in a corner. I started reading the information in the files. Before clearing the second page, I rubbed my forehead, trying to relieve the building pressure. Everything ever written down about Essy’s tribe was in front of me. Tons of information needed to be waded through.
Our job was usually simple. Set people up in their new homes, relocate, and make sure the Lost maintained their secrecy. We settled squabbles, helped them find suitable jobs, and made sure everyone found their way in their new world.
This was murder. This was way over my head.
Logan interrupted my reading with a fresh cup of coffee. “You should be scanning instead of reading.”
“If I scan, I might miss something.”
Logan sat on the edge of my desk. “Have you seen any new information?”
“Nothing.” I sighed, seeing Logan’s point.
“At this time in the investigation, it’s better to talk to people than read about it. If we wait around to read about it, we’re behind.”
“Where do we start?”
“All the information is getting funneled through Hank. I started with him while you read.”
Hank is our handler and he reigns over the computer in the central hub of offices. He works with three teams of field agents.
“The field team found the bullet and Clancy has brought it in. He’s the only one that might have something new at this point,” Logan said. “We’ll follow up with him next.”
Clancy’s face was tense with concentration when we entered the office. His face was sweating. We waited.
Clancy let out a breath. “Your staring isn’t helping.”
I immediately looked elsewhere.
Logan smiled. Some of Clancy’s tension fell away.
I’m not immune to Logan’s contagious smile, but I ached with tiredness that wouldn’t allow the corners of my mouth to turn up.
“How’s it going?” I asked.
Clancy adjusted his tie and stared at the bullet casing. “It’s been handled too many times. Like someone passed it around to a bunch of people so we can’t get a fix on any one of them.”
Logan raised an eyebrow. “On purpose?”
Clancy shook his head. “No, no, that’s just the outcome of what they did.”
“Maybe you should get some rest, and try again in the morning,” I suggested.
“Maybe,” Clancy said. “I’ll send a field report to your printer now. That’ll give you all I know.”
“Then, I guess we’ll mosey along,” Logan said, and tipped an imaginary hat.
Our printer was back in our actual office, so I headed in that direction while Logan went back to the central office. Was I doing everything that I could? I sat at my desk, which had more dust than I expected, and the printer sprang to life. I thought through each step I had taken so far in the case, while pages spit themselves out. I was pretty sure we killed three trees a day by having the confidentiality disclaimers and protocols printed repeatedly. Our system and protocols seriously needed updating.
Someone knocked on the office door.
“Come in,” I said while tossing the confidentiality clause pages to the side.
“Cassie?” asked the man who entered.
“Hi,” I said. “Are you working on Essy’s case?”
The man had dark hair, which looked like it had been cut short a few months ago and in bad need of a trim. He closed the door behind him and smiled at me.
“Not exactly, I’m Vincent, from the Pacific North-West office.” He held his hand out for me to shake it.
I clasped his hand and almost immediately began to feel a tug, not physically, but a pull on the energy surrounding me. I started to yank my hand back, but Vincent clamped down in a vice-like grip.
“Hey!” I started. Vincent no longer smiled. He didn’t look mean, but wore a look of stony indifference.
“Fiend, you will no longer be parading around in this world. There is no use struggling.”
I began struggling like hell. His grip prevented me from wrenching my hand away, so instead, I kicked out, catching him in the knee. I felt my energy being drained away, forming a whirlpool with Vincent at the center. I used my free hand to reach for his face in an attempt to inflict maximum damage. He batted my hand away with ease. I tried again to pull away.
“What are you doing?” I yelled. Instead of pushing away, I launched myself at Vincent. He was caught off guard and I smashed him up against the wall. With my free hand, I tried to punch him. I made contact, but not hard enough to break his grip. I felt weak all over. I tried to knee him in the groin, but he sidestepped me. I kicked out again, but there was no force behind my kick. Panic set in and I struggled, trying everything to get away from him.
“Fiends are not allowed in the world. You will do no murder here.”
Chapter 4
“What the hell are you talk—” I fell to my knees before I could finish the sentence. I tried desperately to alter the flow of the power rushing away from me. Trying to open the path, I thought I could counteract Vincent, but it didn’t open and I felt myself being emptied away. Thoughts flitted through my head. Who was going to take care of Gran? Logan needed me. I was not finished yet!
The man started lowering me to the ground. The struggles were futile, but I tried to pull back. I was spinning in a vortex with him at the center, all of me, not just my strength. I fell away. My eyesight began to dim. After failing to raise my arms in one last attempt of defense, I looked straight into Vincent’s eyes.
He looked back and his indifference snapped. His eyes widened in surprise, and then his face filled with anguish as I stared up at him. His mouth opened in a yell, but I couldn’t hear. Who would have guessed that I would meet my murderer today? Closing my eyes, I fell into darkness.
***
Someone talked, but I wasn’t cognizant enough to make it out. My own breath was the only noise I could make sense of. Dragging my eyes open was a challenge. They were only open for a few moments before a blinding light forced me to close them again.
Once the light disappeared, an incessant chatter of words filtered in. My eyes opened with less effort the next time. I was propped up in a bed with Dr. Yelton standing over me. He was calm, but working quickly.
Once I was able to focus on his words, I realized he was bombarding me with questions.
“Can you tell me your name?” He paused. “Do you know where you are? Can you hear me?”
I tried to answer the last question but the words came out wrong.
“Can you understand me?” he asked.
I think I nodded. I started to feel different parts of my body in detached ways. Again, his little flashlight glared into my face. I tried to push myself back, but my arms might just as well not been attached to my brain. They moved, but not in the directions that I wanted. Panic welled up. My breathing increased as I tried to get my limbs to work.
Dr. Yelton tested my reflexes, while a blood pressure cuff tried to murder my arm. “Stay calm. We’re told that the effects are temporary. Do you know what happened?” he asked.
I processed the question and thought hard. I remembered going to the printer.
Vincent, my office— the handshake! Everything fell back into place. I looked around the room, worried about what I might find. The doctor and I were alone.
“He’s in custody.”
Gibberish popped out of my mouth when I tried to speak. The doctor winced.
A nurse came into the room. “Test results are ready, Doctor.”
I took a few deep breaths, concentrating once again on the sound the air made while inhaling and exhaling.
“Cassie,” I said. Finally, things were starting to flow again. I focused on my fingers, getting each one to bend and flex. Bit by bit, I began regaining control of my body.
“Tell me what happened,” he said.
I told him my story while he nodded at the computer screen. My sentences were choppy at first, but strong by the end. It was a short story.
“You’ve had a run in with a Walker,” the doctor said. “Scans look good. There doesn’t appear to be any internal damage. Let’s check your reflexes again.”
He poked and prodded and my body started to respond.
“The Walker, Vincent Pironis, said the effects would be short-lived.”
“Where is he? How did he get in here?” I asked.
“They took him into custody. He’ll probably be in the first floor cells.”
“He’s waiting in the interrogation room.” Logan strode into the room. “What’s the prognosis, Doc?”
Dr. Yelton gave a questioning look. Even at AIR, the patient doctor relationship meant something. Maybe not as much as it should, but the doctor wouldn’t say anything in front of my partner without my permission. I nodded my approval.
“She’s recovering. As Mr. Pironis indicated, all damage was temporary.”
“How did he get in here?” I asked Logan.
“Barry’s reviewing with security now. Damned Walker, he could have gotten in from anywhere. It’s what they do best.”
“What is a Walker?”
“They’re accursed. Portals connect two dimensions by cutting through the between areas, but Walkers can slip in and out of about anywhere because they can slip between dimensions.” He paused. “Are you okay?” He momentarily lost the cowboy twang which let me know he was genuinely worried.
“I’m doing better,” I said.
Logan gave me a long look and nodded.
“It never actually hurt,” I said. “I was tired, but even that was almost gone now. What exactly happened?”
“I’m going to find out,” Logan said. “We’ve let him sit for a while.”
“I’m going with you.” I leaned forward on the bed. My body responded, but slower than I expected.
“We need to go over a few things first,” Dr. Yelton said.
I shook my head and each word became more forceful than the previous. “This guy came in here and almost killed me. I’m going down to see him.”
“You were unconscious not that long ago. That’s never a good sign.”
“Neither is someone trying to kill you,” I said. “I need to know what happened.”
Dr. Yelton stared at me a few moments while clicking his pen. “We don’t know what side effects might occur. And we only have Mr. Pironis’s word to take for what actually happened.” He clicked his pen a few more times and looked at the chart. “Your lab results are all normal. Even so, I’m putting you on restricted duty for three days.”
My mouth automatically opened to argue.
“Three days, Miss Heidrich. We have no idea what the full effects will be.”
I kept my mouth shut in case he tried to make me stay longer. He told me to keep an eye out for anything abnormal.
Logan impatiently shifted from foot to foot. He started walking the moment my feet hit the ground. I would never say it aloud, but I was thankful that it was a slow walk.
“You’re not going inside the room with him,” Logan said. “You’re going to watch only.”
“But, what if—” I started.
Logan shook his head. “No, you’re watching only. Barry will be going into the interrogation room with me.”
“The Director interrogating?”
“He’s one of the best, but he wants me to take lead on this. No reading the Path either. You look like you’re about to fall over as it is, so let’s not add to it. We’ve got this guy. He’ll talk.”
My stomach twisted with anxiety as we made our way downstairs. I went into the viewing room, and Logan and Barry went into the room where Vincent waited.
Vincent sat at the table. His hands were cuffed and his face could have been a stone carving. He stared straight ahead, not even looking around when others came into the room.
“I trust that she is okay?” Vincent asked. Even his voice held no emotion.
“What makes you think that?” Logan asked.
“You are calm,” Vincent said.
“You exceeded my calm threshold the moment I heard you were here,” Logan said. “How did you get in here?”
“Through the front gates,” Vincent said.
Barry shifted in his chair, but allowed Logan to continue.
“Now, how did you get in those gates?” Logan asked.
“I put in my ID card and had my retinas scanned. Same as any other agent,” Vincent said.
“You’re trying to say you’re an agent?” Logan asked.
“From the North-Western branch,” Vincent said.
“Why come here? Why attack another agent?” Logan asked.
The first sign of life flitted across Vincent’s face as he minutely flinched.
“I was told that the Mid-West branch of AIR had been infiltrated by a fiend,” Vincent said.
“Who told you we had a demon here?” Barry asked.
“The orders came from my supervisor at the North-Western office,” Vincent said.
“You were told by AIR that a fiend was here in the office? Why were we not informed?” Barry asked.
“If one fiend had entered, why not two?” Vincent asked.
“So you were here to check things out?” Logan prompted.
“I was sent here to dispose of a fiend.” Vincent’s voice was steady and void of feeling. “Cassandra was in my file, named as said fiend, so I started to dispose of her. First, I took her energy, and then started with her essence.” He paused and looked away. “It was then that I realized that she was not a fiend.”
Cold tendrils wrapped around me. He pulled my essence? I had no idea what that meant, but it didn’t sound good.
“The process of starting to pull essence and stopping again? I’ve never heard of it happening before. It shouldn’t be possible. I couldn’t tell you how relieved I was that I was able to stop, and return her essence.” He looked back at Logan.
“What does pulling her essence mean exactly?” Logan asked.
“Once I pulled all of her energy, I tapped into what makes her, her. Her essence. It’s referred to in different ways, psyche, soul, essence. It’s all the same.”
“You pulled her soul out?” Logan asked. Fury swept across his face.
“No, I pulled part of her soul out.” Vincent looked at the mirror. He looked at me. “I put it back. It’s all there.”
“That’s it then. You pulled part of her soul out and then pushed it back in?”
“As she’s probably experienced, there might be some side effects. It could take a while for things to resettle.” Vincent faced the mirror, looking very uncomfortable. “Her soul is all there, but it is not whole. It’s broken.”
Broken? I wasn’t sure how to take this news.
Logan slammed his fist on the table. Vincent went back to staring straight ahead. All signs of discomfort left and his face was an unreadable blank mask once more.
“She’s broken now. Tell us how to fix her!” Logan yelled.
I had felt abnormal when I woke up, but now? There was something different. I could feel something was off. I wasn’t in pain and there wasn’t a mark on me, but something wasn’t quite right.
The smallest hint of a frown appeared then retreated from Vincent’s face. “This has never happened before. I will talk to other Walkers, but I’m not sure how to fix this.”
“You’re not talking to anyone.” Logan leaned back in his seat. “You attacke
d an AIR agent. We’re tossing you into a hole somewhere.”
Logan’s words didn’t faze Vincent. “I was sent here to dispose of a fiend, not a woman. My instructions were explicit. I was doing my job.”
“Why did you stick around after the job?” Logan asked. “I bet you could side-step your way out of this world right now.”
“I could at any time, but I will not leave until I’ve made this right,” Vincent said.
Logan started to speak, but the Director broke in. “We’re going to talk to your superiors to work on confirmation. At this time, you are to remain confined.”
Logan looked angry, but left the interrogation room. Barry followed behind. As soon as they left the room, Vincent’s face turned toward the glass. He didn’t say anything; he only watched what must have been his own reflection.
I jumped when the door to the room opened, and Logan and Barry walked in.
“I didn’t know the company employed Walkers,” Logan said.
Barry raised an eyebrow at Logan. “I’ll find out what the other office knows about this incident and we’ll proceed from there. We’ll have him transferred to a cell shortly.”
“A cell’s not going to hold him,” Logan said.
“If he’s an agent, he’ll stick to his cell,” Barry said.
When Barry left the room, I turned to watch Vincent again.
“You’re looking better, but not one hundred percent,” Logan said. “Back to normal?”
Telling Logan should have been easy, but when I went to say I felt a bit off, it came out as, “I think so.”
The word broken kept coming to mind over and over again.
“Why would anyone want to kill you? Have you ticked anyone off? I’m with you most the time, and I haven’t noticed anything out of the ordinary.”
“Could it be I was mistaken for someone else?” I meant it as a throw away comment.
“Mistaken for someone else? You’re the only red headed female in the office. You’re one of only a handful of women.” Logan thought for a bit, and then latched onto my train of thought. “Could be that whoever sent out the warning got the wrong person. That could be it. It’s possible that we have a fiend running round. Someone noticed or sensed the fiend and went outside our office to get it taken care of.” Logan seemed pretty happy to link those thoughts together.
AIR Series Box Set Page 12
