by A. Blythe
“It’s one possibility.” Although I didn’t want to contemplate it. If someone ratted out my location, then we were all at risk.
“The best way to come out of hiding is to find the one who burned you and eliminate him,” Flynn said.
“Thanks for your genius insight,” I said. “Do you think I’ve been sitting on my thumbs for months doing nothing?”
“I think you’ve spent too much time getting tangled up in colony problems,” Flynn said. “You need to focus on your own issue.”
Reed frowned. “Flynn’s right. I hate to suggest it, but if we really want to get to the bottom of your burn notice, I think the best course of action is to get someone inside the Shadow Elite.”
“No one on the inside is going to crack,” I said. “The risk far outweighs any possible reward for them.” There were a few reasons I chose the Shadow Elite over PAN and most of them weren’t virtuous.
“You misunderstood,” Reed said. “I mean actually put someone on the inside.”
Farah nodded, warming to the idea. “It’s not the worst plan in the world.”
“Gee thanks,” Reed said with an easy smile.
“Is there anyone you can think of from the Academy who’d be willing and able to go dark?” Farah asked.
I ran through any potential contacts, which only took two seconds because there was no one. “I’m all in favor of being proactive, but asking someone to go undercover with the Shadow Elite is beyond a favor.”
“You don’t want someone in the field either,” Reed said. “It would have to be someone able to access information at headquarters.”
“Like your brother,” Mix said.
“Except it can’t be him,” Reed said. “PAN would never take him back afterward. His career would be over.”
“I’d never ask Greer,” I said. I had no interest in destroying any more lives.
“I’ll do it.”
I jerked my head sideways to glare at Flynn. “You’ll do what? Get yourself killed before your wedding? No thanks.” I didn’t need to contend with the ire of Tessa for the rest of my unnatural life.
Flynn inched closer to me, his expression somber. “They’ll take me, Alyse. I’ve been trading in information for years, ever since I left the Academy.”
Reed nodded. “He would be an ideal recruit.”
I studied Flynn, uneasy. “Seriously, Flynn. This could take time. Tessa isn’t going to postpone the wedding so you can do something for me.” Of all people.
His blue eyes twinkled. “I haven’t had good, old-fashioned fun since our Academy days. I’ll consider it a last hurrah before I’m committed to a life of Pottery Barn and Sunday farmers’ markets.”
“So putting yourself in lethal danger is your idea of a bachelor party?” I queried.
He winked. “You know me so well.”
“Flynn is the best option,” Mix said. “He’s not exactly known for his loyalty. No one would ever suspect he was helping you.”
Flynn jabbed a thumb in Mix’s direction. “What he said.”
I wasn’t convinced, although the idea of delaying the wedding in order to set aside the hideous dress I was meant to wear was awfully tempting.
“I think you should tell Tessa, though,” Flynn said quickly.
I waved my hands. “No, no. That’s all you, Flynn.” Tessa would murder me right here with one of her bendy yoga moves.
He arched an eyebrow. “I’m risking life and limb for you and you can’t do me this one small favor?”
“Flynn, I’m coming between Bridezilla and her wedding. Which one of us do you think is in more danger?”
Flynn pressed his lips together. “Good point.”
Farah cleared her throat, but it was too late.
“Bridezilla?”
I turned to look at Tessa. “It’s just an expression.”
Reed took the tray of drinks from her hands and set it on the table. “We were just discussing a possible assignment for Flynn.”
Tessa’s eyes narrowed, immediately suspicious. Smart girl. “What kind of assignment?”
So I told her.
“Are you out of your mind?” she seethed.
I cringed and waited for a beer bottle to go flying at his head. Why did I even entertain the idea? It was, like most things involving Flynn, a huge mistake.
“We’re getting married, Flynn,” she yelled. “If you want to call things off, you don’t have to pretend. Just be a man…or a Jann…and do it!” Tears welled in her doe-like eyes.
“I don’t want to call off anything,” he said. “I love you, Tessa.”
“But Alyse needs you,” she snapped. I didn’t miss the resentful look she shot in my direction. “What did she offer you? Because we don’t need money, Flynn.”
“No, we have plenty of everything. And Alyse didn’t offer me anything. I volunteered.”
She reached across the table and slapped his cheek. Hard.
“How could you? We’re engaged. How can you choose your ex-girlfriend over your future wife? What kind of message does that send to me?” Her expression crumpled and she began to sob in earnest.
Flynn climbed over me to escape the booth and take Tessa’s hand. “I’m not choosing her over you. It’s a temporary mission and I’ll be back to marry the most beautiful human in the world.”
Tessa wiped the tears from her eyes and raised her chin a fraction. “What makes you think I’ll wait?”
Flynn appeared momentarily startled. “Tessa, I’m not going off to war.”
“Sounds like the supernatural equivalent,” she shot back. “Knowing Alyse, it’s dangerous. You may never come back.”
“Tessa, I’m really sorry,” I said. “I had no intention of messing up your wedding plans.”
Her brown eyes blazed. “Is that so? It seems to me you’re always messing up my relationship with Flynn. I think that’s been your plan all along. You probably orchestrated this whole damsel-in-distress routine just to get him back.” She pressed her palms against his chest and pushed him away. “You know what? You two deserve each other.”
“Tessa…” he began.
“Save it, Flynn. The wedding is off.” She wrenched the engagement ring from her finger and hurled it at him. The diamond bounced off his chest and clattered to the sticky floor of the bar.
She ran toward the front door, bawling.
I winced and dared to look at Flynn. He stood perfectly still, staring down at the ring on the floor. As he reached down to pick it up, my eyes began to burn.
“What’s going on?” Reed asked. His own eyes were red and irritated.
Noise erupted from the bar area. One guy was on his knees, clutching his forehead and moaning. “It feels like a sledgehammer,” he cried.
“What the hell?” I heard a woman say from the booth behind me. “Why is everyone in the bar glowing and shit? Did someone slip drugs into my beer?”
Oh no.
I surveyed the bar area. Some people were coughing and rubbing their eyes.
“Flynn, I think something’s wrong with me.” Tessa stood in front of him, her expression confused.
He held her by the shoulders and examined her eyes. “What happened?”
“I was opening the door to leave when my eyes began to burn,” she said. “There was a weird smell, too.”
“A gas leak?” Mix queried.
“No,” I said, my shoulders tensing. It was much worse than a gas leak.
“Flynn,” Tessa said, staring at him. Her eyes were watering. “Why do you look like you have a green halo?”
He glanced at me. “The Sight?”
I nodded. Whatever chemicals had given James Pickney the Sight seemed to have spread to The Night Owl. Since most of the bar patrons were supernatural, though, only a few unsuspecting humans would be affected.
Angry voices swirled around us. A bar full of supernaturals and a handful of humans new to the Sight. Not ideal circumstances.
“Get Tessa out of here,” I ordered.
<
br /> Flynn grabbed her hand, but she shook him off. “I’m not going anywhere with you. I told you we’re done.” She paused to press her fingers to her temples. I sensed a massive headache for the afflicted humans.
Reed didn’t hesitate. The Protector in him leaped at the chance to protect a human. “I’ll take you home, Tessa.”
She stared at him as though she was seeing him for the first time. “Gosh, you’re very handsome. I never realized…”
Flynn scowled. “Just get her home safely, Halo Boy.”
As Reed began to guide her toward the front door, she turned back to yell at Flynn one last time for good measure. “And don’t think you’re coming home tonight. Or ever!”
The door closed behind them just in time.
Somewhere in the bar, glass crashed to the floor.
“Everybody stay calm,” Khalil yelled from behind the bar. Khalil never raised his voice. He was a Marid like me, and he was someone who generally rolled with the punches.
His plea was buried in shouts and screams. Two guys near the jukebox were gaping at a female Shaitan by the bar. Before the Sight, the two guys couldn’t see the colorful feathers that lined the Shaitan’s back. Five minutes ago she’d been a sexy woman at the bar that they were probably angling to hit on. Now she was a freak of nature.
“We should get out of here before things get out of control,” Mix said.
“Are you nuts?” Farah asked, her eyes shining. “This is epic.”
I disagreed. The Night Owl was a powder keg and the sudden onset of the Sight was a spark.
Fists began to fly and it was only a matter of time before a djinni or a mage lashed out. We couldn’t afford human casualties. It would draw too much human attention and Khalil would lose his business in a heartbeat.
I hurried down to Khalil and jumped onto the counter of the bar. Thanks to my cuffs, I had no aura so the newly Sighted humans wouldn’t fear me. Or that was the hope.
“Please calm down,” I yelled, cupping my hands. “Stop fighting.” No one seemed to hear me. They were too intent on protecting themselves from the perceived threats all around them.
Khalil summoned a megaphone and handed it to me. I tried again.
“Everyone stop and listen.”
The bar quieted. I heard the sound of a woman crying. She was staring at the horns on the Shaitan seated across from her. They’d probably been on a date and she didn’t realize he wasn’t human. To his credit, he seemed to be making an effort to comfort her, but she was too frightened to see past his horns.
“There seems to have been some kind of chemical exposure in the bar,” I continued. “If those of you who’ve been affected could please gather in the section of the bar near the restrooms, we’ll meet you there for treatment.”
There was no treatment, of course. Once that Third Eye opened, there was no closing it again, but I needed to keep the problem from escalating.
I jumped to the floor and Khalil placed a grateful hand on my shoulder. “What do you think happened?”
“It’s not the first incident,” I said. “The last one was in a park, but only one human was impacted.” I hesitated. “I wonder if your bar was targeted because whoever did this knows it’s frequented by supernaturals.”
Khalil’s brow furrowed. “They’re trying to out us?”
“I don’t know,” I said. I took out my phone and texted Detective Thompson. I needed her here to deal with the humans. They were going to want to talk to someone human and official, so she was our best bet.
Khalil drew a steadying breath. “Things could have gotten ugly quickly. I’m glad you were here.”
“You would’ve handled it,” I said. “I just figured it out faster because I knew about the prior incident.”
“What happened to the other guy?” he asked.
“He died,” I replied. “It was an accident, though. The Hinn was protecting herself.”
“If the Sight starts to spread,” Khalil said, “the likelihood of injury or death is going to explode. You know how humans deal with change.”
Not very well.
“I’m going to talk to the humans now,” I said. “I think you should clear the bar and fumigate. Whatever caused this, you don’t want remnants of it to linger.”
“No,” he said, his expression darkening. “I really don’t.”
As instructed, the humans were huddled together near the restrooms. Their eyes were red like Tessa’s and their skin appeared blotchy and irritated.
“Who are you?” the crying woman asked.
“My name is Alyse and I work with the police,” I said. Not a complete lie.
“Why are we hallucinating?” a man asked.
I pressed my lips together. Sometimes the truth was as difficult to give as it was to hear. “You’re not hallucinating, sir.”
Behind me, I heard Khalil asking patrons to leave the bar in an orderly fashion.
“That guy has a tail,” a man shouted.
I attempted to silence him. “If I can have your full attention, I have information to share with you that’s going to change your life.”
The small group stared at me like I possessed a tail, horns, and feathers.
“What’s going on?” a younger guy demanded.
“You have all been gifted with the Sight,” I said.
“What’s the Sight?” a young woman asked. Her arms were covered in tattoos of roses and vines.
“It allows you to see things in this world that you couldn’t see before.” I struggled for the right words. It wasn’t easy to explain to people with no experience. Thompson would be much better at this.
“Like the glowing?” the tattooed woman asked.
“Those are called auras.”
Farah came over and laid a hand on my arm. “Can I help?”
“She’s glowing yellow,” the younger man said, his voice shaking. “What does that mean?”
I glanced at Farah. “Your best bet is to go home. These people are going to need time to adjust. I’ll wait with them until Thompson arrives.”
“Are you sure you don’t want me to demonstrate?” I knew that she was asking whether I wanted her to shift into a fox.
“I think they would lose their minds,” I said. And not in a good way.
“Yeah, you’re probably right.”
“You and Mix go ahead,” I said. “I’ll be fine.”
“What about Flynn?” she asked.
I sighed. “He’s going to need a place to stay, at least for now.” Dear gods. Why me?
She nodded and returned to the booth.
“You said we could get treatment,” a man said. “What does that entail?”
“It entails standing here and being quiet until a member of law enforcement arrives,” I replied. “Would anyone like a drink of water?”
Several hands shot up.
“There’s a water fountain down this hall between the bathrooms,” I said. “Come straight back here when you’re done. I don’t want to repeat myself.” I would’ve made a terrible teacher. Zero patience.
I was relieved when Thompson burst through the front door in her PTF uniform. By then, the rest of the patrons had vacated the premises under Khalil’s watchful gaze. Now it was just Khalil, Flynn, the humans, and me. I wasn’t entirely sure why Flynn was lingering. He was probably afraid to go back to the apartment with Farah. I should’ve sent him home with Mix, although Mix’s pet pig took up half of his small apartment.
I intercepted Thompson before she reached the assembled humans.
“We have a James Pickney situation?” she asked.
I nodded. “These people are a little freaked out, so wear your kid gloves.”
Thompson bit back a smile. “I like that you’re telling me to wear my kid gloves.”
She was right. Usually I was the one who needed to be reminded of people’s fragile emotions.
“I’ll follow up with you tomorrow about what you saw and heard,” Thompson said. My cue to leave.
“Okay, but I’m afraid it won’t be helpful. And you should know that Tessa was here, but Reed took her home.”
Thompson’s eyes rounded. “So she has the Sight?”
“She does now.” In some ways, it might make Flynn’s life easier, assuming she decided to forgive him for volunteering for Shadow Elite duty.
“I’ll want to speak with her, too,” Thompson said.
“Good luck, Detective Thompson,” I said, patting her on the back.
As I headed for the door, Flynn swaggered over. “I don’t suppose you have room on the couch for the newest Shadow Elite recruit?”
“Come on, Flynn.”
We stepped into the warm night air. The humidity was in full force and the ends of my hair frizzed instantly. Tessa’s discarded engagement ring sparkled in the moonlight.
“You should put it away so you don’t lose it,” I said. “She’ll want it back.” Eventually.
“I still can’t believe it,” he said, keeping pace beside me.
“Did you think she would react any other way?”
His shoulders sagged. “Not really. Tessa’s pretty straightforward.”
So he knew this would be Tessa’s response, but he did it anyway.
“Flynn…” I hated to ask, but I had to know. “Are you sure your motivation is pure?”
He shot me a quizzical look. “What do you mean?”
“Are you sure you didn’t volunteer as part of some subconscious attempt to win me back?” I hesitated. “Because I’m not coming back to you. Ever.”
He gave me a sad smile. “I know that, my blue diamond. I’ve always known.”
“Then why?”
He stopped walking. “Because you’re someone who lives your life fully. Watching you scrape by without your powers has been…fun at times, but also painful for me. I want to see you come alive again.” Gently, he brushed his fingers along my hairline. “I want to see the complete Alyse Winters. The world needs her. Trust me, she is something to behold.”
They were the sweetest and most honest words Flynn had ever said to me.
I blew out a breath. “You know what, Flynn? I don’t want you to go. In fact, I don’t think anyone should go.”
He blinked. “Why not?”
“Because no one should be sacrificed for my sake. I’m not a special snowflake.”