“Oh, Rafe.” When I looked over, Joss was sniffling. She reached over and squeezed my hand. “That’s so sweet. And sad. I’m sorry about your father. I’ve read a lot about him, and he seems like he was very cool.”
“Really was.” I looked out at the trees again. “I wish I knew what he would think of me working for Carruthers.”
“Maybe...” Joss started to speak and then shook her head.
“No, go on,” I prompted.
“Okay, well, maybe he would think it was a good idea, since he’s not here to help you develop your powers, teach you to use them productively. I know you have your grandparents, and they’re terrific and all, but think of everything you’ll learn with Carruthers. Your dad might tell you it was a good move.”
“Maybe.” I shrugged. “Unless you have a medium working at Carruthers, I guess we’ll never know.”
Joss tilted her head. “I don’t think so. Sometimes I think Zoe could do that, but she’s never said anything. Not enough for me to be sure, anyway.”
“Which one is Zoe?” We’d spent most of the drive talking about the other people who worked for Carruthers and what each one could do. My head was spinning, even though Joss assured me I wouldn’t have to remember everyone right away.
“Oh, I don’t think I mentioned Zoe. She’s kind of...well, she works with Carruthers, but not the same way the rest of us do. She’s sort of our therapist, I guess. She helps people accept and develop powers, helps some of the more out-of-control kids learn how to rein it in. We’ve had firestarters work with us, and Zoe had her work cut out for her there. Oh, and she also teaches us how to put up blocks and guards against other abilities. You know, so you don’t have to worry about someone hearing your thoughts or making you do something you don’t want to do.” She winked at me.
“Did she teach you to block powers? ‘Cause if she did, she’s good. I threw some of my best mojo at you, and you didn’t even lose one second of memory. That’s pretty impressive.”
Joss smiled. “I told you, it was easier to resist because I was prepared. I knew what you were going to do, and I had some strong guards up. But yeah, Zoe is awesome. She’s like this Wicca hippie-chick version of Oprah, I guess. Or Barbara Walters. You just want to tell her everything, and she smiles at you and doesn’t judge. I love her to bits. She made my life at Carruthers a possibility.”
Joss hugged another curve while I held my breath, and then she grinned. “We’re here!” She made a sharp left turn into a partially hidden driveway and careened down the narrow road. I was wondering where we were going to come out when we rounded a bend and the mansion came into sight.
I’d grown up in King, where the houses in our section of town were huge and very impressive. Gravis King, the famous carnival man who founded our town over a hundred and fifty years ago, had given each First Family—the original members of his carnie—land on which to build their houses. My grandparents’ home was large and sat on several acres of well-cultivated grounds. But even so, it was nothing compared to the antebellum house that loomed in front of me.
“Welcome to Harper Creek.” Jocelyn navigated the car around to the back, where I saw there was a small parking lot. Most of the cars were upscale or antiques. A beautiful Thunderbird in powder blue was parked off to the side, away from all the others.
“That’s Cathryn’s baby.” Joss saw the direction of my drooling gaze. “She is very protective of it, so don’t even think about asking her to drive it. And remember, if you don’t keep up a guard around her, she’ll know you want it, anyway.”
I gritted my teeth. Being around another mind-hearer was going to be a challenge. Tasmyn was the only one I’d ever known, and keeping up my blocks reminded me all too painfully of the last few months of high school.
“Come on, let’s get you inside.” Joss retrieved her briefcase from the backseat of the car and led me to a door almost hidden behind some shrubbery.
“Staff entrance.” She pointed at the door. “Visitors and clients use the front door, because it’s the most visually impressive. We mere workers use the kitchen entrance. But it’s all good.”
I followed her into the house. We were, in fact, in a narrow hallway that led to the kitchen. It seemed to be operational, and the few people working at the stoves and countertops looked up in surprise when we came in.
“Joss! Welcome home, stranger!” A large man with bushy gray hair and a wide grin enveloped her in a bear hug. “How was the Big Easy, hon? Did you eat at all the places I told you about? What was your favorite meal?”
“Henry, I did, and I missed you. Can we catch up later, though? I need to get Rafe in to talk with Cathryn. She’s waiting on us, and you know we don’t want to make her angry.” She winked, and Henry laughed.
“Of course, of course.” He turned to beam at me. “Rafe, is it? Pleasure to meet you. So happy you will be joining us. My name is Henry, and I’m the head chef here. My only mission at Carruthers is to make them all fat!” His laughter boomed again, and I couldn’t help smiling in response.
“Jocelyn! Is that you?” Heels clicked against the tile floor, and everyone quieted as a petite woman with the palest blonde hair I’d ever seen came into the kitchen. She was dressed in a gray suit and high-heeled black pumps, but even then, I don’t think she came up to my chest.
She’s a pocket sized boss, I thought, biting back a grin. And then she turned her icy blue eyes on me, and that and every other thought shriveled and died within me.
Shit, I forgot she could hear me. I threw up my guards and hoped for the best.
“Yes, Mr. Brooks, I can, in fact, hear you. Jocelyn, didn’t you remind our new friend to block his thoughts?”
Joss shrugged. I got the feeling Cathryn didn’t scare her. I couldn’t understand why.
“Yeah, I told him, but you know, when people meet Henry, every other thought just flies out of their heads. Don’t blame Rafe.” She turned to me, laying her hand on my shoulder.
“Cathryn, this is Rafe Brooks. Rafe, this is the boss-lady, Cathryn Whitmore.”
“Don’t call me that, Jocelyn. Rafe, it’s good to meet you. We’re all happy you’ve made the decision to join Carruthers. I’m looking forward to working with you. Why don’t you both come upstairs into my office?”
Without waiting to see if we were following, Cathryn spun on a heel and clicked down the hall to a small set of enclosed steps. Joss gave me a nudge, and I walked fast to catch up, concentrating on fortifying my mind guards so that nothing smart-assy inadvertently slipped out.
When we came to the top of the stairs, Cathryn paused and turned to me. “My office is at the end of this hallway. I’m almost always around, should you need me.”
“She means, she’s always here,” Joss muttered into my ear. “All. The. Time.”
“I can hear you, Jocelyn. Now over here is one of our meeting rooms. We also have several downstairs, but those are used mostly for clients. Up here is strictly for our own staff.”
She opened the door and gestured inside, so I stuck my head through the doorway, wondering why I had to see this room. My mouth dropped open when I realized someone was sitting at the table.
It was my friend from the battlefield. At first, I almost didn’t recognize her; the multi-colored hair that had been piled on her head only a few days ago was wild around her shoulders, and she sat with a variety of crystal orbs on the table in front of her.
“Who the hell are you?” I wheeled around to face Cathryn and Joss. “Is this another spy you had following me around New Orleans?” I shoved my fingers through my hair, my heart pounding. I had been played, I was sure of it. Gram was right. These people couldn’t be trusted.
“Oh, Raphael, sit down and stop being so dramatic.” The woman at the table spoke without lifting her eyes to me.
“What’s he talking about? What’s going on?” Joss glanced from me to Cathryn, confusion clear on her face. Whatever was happening, I didn’t think she was in on the secret.
“Zoe’s right, Rafe. Come in and sit down.” Cathryn moved around me and pulled out a chair. “You’re making more of this than there is.”
I sat down, glaring at the woman, who was apparently Zoe. I made the connection with the person Joss had described to me during our ride here, but no way this lady looked like a wise counselor. She resembled a sideshow freak more than anything.
“And my name is not Raphael,” I muttered. “It’s just Rafe.”
“It should be Raphael.” Zoe finally looked straight into my eyes, her smile beatific. “You have the face of an angel. Doesn’t he, Jocelyn?”
For once, Joss seemed to be almost speechless. She shrugged, took the chair next to me, and I thought I might have seen her blush.
“Rafe, I actually thought you would find it amusing to meet Zoe.” Cathryn leaned against the table, facing me. “No, she was not sent down to be a spy for us. She just happened to be in New Orleans with her husband, and believe it or not, running into you on the battlefield the other day really was a coincidence. Of course she knew you were in town, and she knew Jocelyn was there to recruit you. But she wasn’t following you.”
“Not a bit.” Zoe leaned across the table and rubbed my arm. “But when I saw you there, standing under that tree, I couldn’t resist having a little fun. I’m sorry if I startled you.”
Joss laughed. “Zoe, you’re evil,” she said, but her tone was full of affection. “And I don’t know why you didn’t tell me you were in town. I would have had dinner with you and Edgar.”
“Joss, darling, that’s why I didn’t call you. I wanted to keep my sexy husband all to myself.” She raised her eyebrows, and I felt just slightly queasy. She was cool and all, but I didn’t need to know—that.
Joss must have felt the same way, because she changed the subject. “I wish I had known you were in the city yesterday. I could’ve used you after that mess with Donald McCall.”
Zoe nodded, the smile fading from her pixie-like face. “Of course, if I had been there, I would have gone to you. But Edgar and I flew home Thursday night. You know he can’t miss Friday nights at the restaurant.”
“I brought us in here to debrief both of you about that meeting.” Cathryn took a seat across the table from me, her back straight and her face sober.
“What do we know, Cathryn?” Joss sat back in her chair and played with a ring on her finger.
“Not much, unfortunately. Harley did some careful digging this morning, but he didn’t really come up with anything substantial. Except for one interesting blank spot any time he asked someone about Chatham. Nobody he spoke to wanted to say anything about that company.”
“Are there other organizations like Carruthers, doing the same thing you do?”
I glanced from Cathryn to Joss. “Do you have competitors?”
Cathryn’s eyes flickered to me. “We don’t know, not for certain. We suspect there are, just because it makes sense. If my family was able to put together a company to harness special abilities, why couldn’t someone else? And there are a few groups we watch, that we think might be performing the same services.”
“So this chick from yesterday could have been from one of those companies?” Joss frowned.
“It’s a possibility. You told me you thought she recognized you—as having powers, I mean. If she did, that’s very disturbing.”
“Why?” I wasn’t sure I was following everything Cathryn said.
“Because it could compromise you both as operatives for Carruthers. It wouldn’t be easy to trace Jocelyn back to us; she’s been on our payroll for years, yes, but we do a damn good job of keeping that information buried. Harder still to make the connection to you, Rafe, but it may be possible. Unlikely, but possible. I don’t like that.”
“Maybe she didn’t know. She looked at us funny, kind of smiled like she did know something, but I was staring at her, first. So maybe it was that.”
“Maybe.” Cathryn looked unconvinced. “We did manage to find out who she was, by process of elimination. Her name’s Mallory Jones. No affiliation with any group or company, at least that we could see.” She spread her hands. “But as I said, that can be hidden.”
“Do you think she knew why Joss and I were there? Did she know we were going to be there?”
“We don’t think so. We hope not. She didn’t seem to be targeting you two, so that’s one big positive. Our thought is that she was there to take care of Donald, to make sure he didn’t ruin anything with this deal. Once she was inside, she may have sensed you, or maybe you’re right, Jocelyn, and she just noticed you looking at her.”
“It was crazy.” Joss’s voice dropped to a near-whisper. “The energy that went through me—through us—I thought I was going to pass out for a minute. I don’t know what she did or how she did it, but it was scary as hell.”
“I imagine it was.” Cathryn looked at me. “We don’t deal with anything like this ever, Rafe. At least we haven’t until now. I wanted to offer you my personal assurance. We’re not assassins. We don’t kill people, not for money or anything else. We don’t advocate violence at all, under any circumstances.” She bit her lip, the only sign of what I figured had to be a pretty serious worry. “I just wanted you to know that. You’ve taken a risk joining Carruthers, and we understand and appreciate that.”
“So you’re not sending me on a mission to take out this girl? This Mallory chick?” I shifted, pinning Cathryn down with my eyes.
“Absolutely not. You and Jocelyn can’t have any more to do with this job whatsoever, since you were in the room in New Orleans. Not that I think there’s a mission any more. With Donald gone, the way is open for Chatham to take over Wolpert exactly as they planned, with no concessions to be made. Nothing else we can do.”
My eyes met Joss’s, and although I couldn’t hear her thoughts, I was pretty sure they ran close to my own. I hated thinking that the people who killed Donald McCall were going to get away with it.
“So that brings us back to you, Rafe, and what comes next.” Cathryn smiled at Zoe, although the worry hadn’t disappeared. “Zoe, do you think you’re ready to take on another trainee?”
The older woman grinned and winked at me. “I’m sure he’ll give me a run for my money, but how could I resist? We’re going to have such fun, angel boy.”
“Wonderful.” Cathryn slapped her hand down the edge of the table, as if to punctuate that the decision had been made. “We have some paperwork for you to sign, Rafe, in my office. Do you mind doing it now? It’ll save time on Monday.”
“Sure.” I stood up at the same time she did, but Joss didn’t move. Something was making her uncomfortable, and I couldn’t read her well enough to know exactly what it was.
“Jocelyn, I’d appreciate it if you would write up a full report on your New Orleans trip. Send it to Harley and to me, please.”
She nodded. “I’ll work on it now, while everything’s fresh.”
Cathryn was heading toward the door when Joss spoke up again. “Cathryn, where is Rafe going to stay? Are you putting him up here at Harper Creek?”
“I’m not sure. It’s a possibility, but probably not a good idea at the moment, given some of the, ahhh, sensitive missions we’re involved in right now.” She heaved a sigh. “All of our staff housing is filled. I keep telling Harley and my father we need to invest in some more townhouses near the manor.”
“He could stay with me.” Joss was casual, but I saw Cathryn tense.
“Do you think that’s a good idea?” Her tone stayed even, despite the twitch in her cheek.
“Well, what else are you going to do? If the other houses are occupied, it’s either give him a room here or make him drive half an hour to a hotel.” She smiled, first at her boss and then at me. “And I have plenty of room.”
“I think that’s very generous of Joss to offer, Cathryn.” Zoe’s voice was even, and I could tell that she must have often played peacekeeper. “And they’re not children. You don’t have to be their house mother.”
Her heels clicked on the hardwood floor as she turned down the hallway, leaving me to bring up the rear. I glanced back at Joss, shrugged and followed.
***
“WHERE EXACTLY DO you live?”
Joss and I were finally leaving Harper Creek. The sun had dipped low in the sky, coloring the fields in the back of the mansion amber and gold, and I swallowed a yawn. Hours of paperwork with Cathryn had made me cross-eyed, and I really just wanted a drink and maybe a dark room.
“Not too far away. Carruthers keeps townhouses around for employees, as you probably figured out from what Cathryn said. Usually it’s just temporary, since most of our people don’t live nearby. But since I’m based here, I scored a permanent spot. I’ve been there since before I finished college.”
I opened the passenger door of the car—I wasn’t even going to fight her this time on driving—and climbed into the seat. “Where do the others live, if they’re not around here?”
She shrugged. “All around the world. Some of them have other jobs, and they just work for Carruthers on the side. But most are full-time, like me. And I know a few who do live locally, but they have their own permanent homes. It’s like any other company.”
“Hmm.” I leaned my head against the rest and closed my eyes. I was exhausted, but at the same time, a little worry niggled at the back of my mind. “So, Joss...do you really think this was a good idea? Me staying with you?”
She cast me a look and rolled her eyes as she pulled out onto the road. “Like you said to me last night, don’t make this a big deal. I have a two-bedroom townhouse, and there’s plenty of space. You don’t even have to know I’m there, if you don’t want to. I didn’t have some hidden agenda, Rafe.”
Undeniable Page 8