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 poin
t.
“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.
It was evening when we started hearing voices. It was difficult to make out what was being said. I couldn’t even figure out which direction the voices came from. They came nearer, and then started to fade.
A sense of urgency jolted through me and I jumped up. Looking around didn’t help. Chewing on my lip, I closed my eyes and forced my thoughts away. We had to act, and move faster.
I tried to feel for the Path instead of reading it. The sensation was unfamiliar. Air around us started to feel heavy, but with frantic flares tossed out. I wasn't sure I read it correctly.
Vincent was standing in front of me when I opened my eyes.
“What do you know?” Vincent asked.
“Something’s wrong. Something happened.”
“We need more.”
“I'm not sure.” I kept my voice quiet, and turned around on the spot. I felt around for the passage of people. My focus slipped and the Path opened up once again. Through closed eyes, I fought the torrential flood of information and focused on the sensations.
It threw me off balance but I steadied myself against a tree.
“That way,” I said, pointing down the hill behind us. In the distance, there was a streak of vibrant, eager purple.
Pushing the Path away, I started jogging down the trail. I could hear Vincent keeping pace behind me. Time seemed to slow and it felt like it was taking forever to reach the spot that I had seen.
When I reached the spot, I felt around, trying hard not to open the Path. “There were people here not long ago. I looked in both directions the trail had run and I was locked with indecision.
“Which way?” Vincent asked. His steady voice was reassuring.
“That way.” Once again, we rushed off and it wasn’t long before we reached an overgrown trail. It may have been an animal trail at one time, but the way the grass was worn down, you could tell something large had been through.
I pounded down the trail, trying to be quiet, but the pressing of intensive need urged me faster. The trail ended at a well-worn and maintained park trail. We had to be a few miles away from the fairies at this point. I didn't pause to catch my breath or guess the direction; the air remembered the direction of those we were pursuing. Even though I couldn't see it, I could feel the purple pulsing through the area. Being a Reader had never worked in this way before, but it felt familiar and I trusted it.
Before long, I could make out voices ahead. Slowing down, I listened intently. It could be two people out walking; I didn't want to jump out at innocent people.
“Two months of this shit and we finally have something to show for it.” It was a male voice.
“We better get a good pay out for this,” came another male voice.
“This fucking fairy is going to get us richer than you can imagine,” the first guy replied.
I'd heard enough. I ran forward, not caring how much noise I made.
I rushed around a bend in the trail and spotted the two men who had been talking. One of them was carrying a box, the other an empty cage.
“Stop where you are!” My voice shook with anger. “Federal agents.”
The two men turned toward me, dressed in camouflage like hunters. One man was large and hairy with a large mole on his face. The other guy had narrow beady eyes and a nose that was much too long for his face. Mole was startled and Snake was pissed. Clinging to their possessions, they both took off running. Why didn't I have my gun out? There was not much I could do but run after them.
They ran down the trail, which was lucky for me. They were out-of-shape, so I was gaining. The bad news was I could no longer hear Vincent behind me. Where the hell did he go? It didn't matter. The men didn't run for long. They hesitated at a fork in the path and made a wrong turn. They followed the trail straight into a box canyon. There was only one way in and one way out, unless they were planning on climbing rock walls that quickly soared high. The entire area was less than half a football field in size, but there was no getting out unless they came back through me.
Both men turned to face me. In one hand, I held a tranq gun, in the other a can of Mace. It wasn't a lot, but it was enough for the out of shape men.
“Put the box and cage down and step away!” I yelled. Mole man put the box down, but Snake sneered at me.
“What's got your panties in a twist?” Snake's face was red from the exertion of running. His mouth turned down and his eyes were dark and menacing.
“Put the cage down and step away,” I repeated.
“The way I see it, it's two to one. Two men, one little woman,” said Snake.
“One woman federally trained to take your ass down,” I replied with hostility.
The man's sneer faded. It looked like he was thinking over my words and it looked like it took effort. He put down the cage and frowned. “It's just an empty cage,” Snake said, sulking. Then the man half grinned and took a step forward. I took a step forward, meeting his stupid grin with a hard glare.
I felt the hard metal of a gun pressed to the back of my head. I didn't move or drop my hard stare, but inside, my mind had gone blank.
“Drop your weapon,” came a deep voice from behind me. I didn't move, but the numb coldness of fear started spreading through my body. Then I heard the distinct sound of a hammer being drawn back. “Don't be stupid. Killing you won't bother me in the least.” I dropped my weapons, but made no other move. The Mole man looked nervous, but Snake looked pleased. Snake took a few steps closer.
Fear coursed through my body along with a surge of adrenaline. My mind kicked into gear and fought furiously to find some way to get out of this. Where the hell was my partner?
Chapter 8
The air became thick with dark excitement from Snake. He took another few steps closer.
“I am a federal agent.” With a gun to my head, my brain was having a hard time coming up with a plan. “Put your weapon down and step away.”
“I have no doubt you are a federal agent,” came the steely voice behind me. “But I do doubt your ability to do anything. Maybe it will be no surprise to others that you never make it home.”
Taking a few deep breaths, I called to the energy of the area. I tried to calm the situation. Since I was far from collected, it took extra effort. I was surprised at how far my influence ranged. Snake
became a little dazed and Mole seemed to relax.
The man behind me was calm to begin with, which was troubling. After a few moments, the gun moved from the back of my head. I'm sure it was pointed at me, but I sighed in relief that it was not pressed against my skull.
The relief was short lived. Hard metal crashed against the side of my head, slamming me into the ground.
Pain shot through me. My eyes blurred. I clutched at my head, but realizing I was prone, I knew I had to move. With some effort, I kept one hand pressed to my head, rolled over to my knees, and tried to get to my feet. My fingers clutched my head and started to feel slick. As I made it to my knees, a foot struck me across the ribs. I cried out as my body rolled over, putting me straight on my back. I couldn’t tell if it was tears or blood running down my face.
Snake's angry sneer came into view. “Shouldn't have tried to stop us. Stupid woman.” He started to bring his foot down on my stomach. Grabbing the foot, I softened the blow to my stomach, but not by much.
There was a commotion off to the side, but I kept my focus squarely on the man's foot in my hand. Using a burst of adrenaline, I twisted his foot, forcing him to fall back.
Still on the ground, I turned and caught my first look at the man who had held a gun to my head. He was well built, all muscle where the other two were flabby.
Unfortunately, he was standing, once again, with a gun to my head. However, he wasn’t looking at me.
“Enough!” The man with the gun grabbed my shirt collar and pulled me up. My stomach rolled and my vision blurred again. For the second time today, I had cold metal pressed against my head.
“Federal agents aren't supposed to be here.” The man's voice was deep and calm. “You, step back next to the rocks.”
The blurry shapes began to take form. The man with the gun had his attention focused on Vincent. I didn’t know where he had come from, but Vincent had the Mole on the ground. His knee dug into the man's back. Mole appeared to be unconscious. Vincent looked up at me. His eyes had turned almost completely black. Only a small band of white remained. It lasted only a few seconds before he looked away and walked slowly back to the rock bluffs.
AIR Series Box Set Page 16
