More importantly, it was pissing me off.
Yanking the door open, I glared at the man in front. "I've already spoken with two agents today, so you can leave now."
The man appeared unfazed. "I'm afraid we can't do that, Miss Heidrich." He was tall and I could see his muscles straining the material around his arms. If we had met on the street, I might have thought he was cute. On my doorstep, though? No way.
When I glanced behind him, I had to guess that his partner had to have someone make his suits. Why would one person need that much muscle?
The man in front stepped forward, invading my personal space, and I automatically took a step back. My temper flared when I realized what I had done. I couldn't let him push me around in my own apartment.
"You need to leave," I snapped.
"This will only take a moment," he said.
When he stepped forward again, I held my ground, but the man wasn't bothered. He pushed me aside, not aggressively, but calmly, and entered my apartment.
"You can't come in here!" My voice was high and I felt flush. Was this actually happening?
Pushing him back got me nowhere. I'm a pretty average-sized girl and there was no way I was going to make this man move an inch. The other man followed in as well. I'm pretty sure if he had closed the door behind him, I would have freaked out, but he left it open.
The larger man disappeared around the corner into the living room. The man doing the talking stayed with me, blocking my way so I couldn't follow.
"You can't come in here without my permission. Get out!" I yelled.
"We have reason to believe that you might have come into contact with someone we are looking for," the man said. "Your premises are being searched to ensure the person is not with you. We spoke with your landlord and received permission to enter."
I had thought I couldn't get any angrier. My landlord had given them permission? She was going to get a piece of mind. How could she agree to something like this? My hand shook when I took out my cell phone and it took me two times to get my password right.
"Please hold your calls," the man said.
"You can bite me," I muttered.
The man looked at me with an eyebrow raised and his lips twitched up.
I rolled my eyes and shook my head. It took me a minute to find the number on my phone. When I clicked to connect the call, the phone beeped and the message 'No signal,’ appeared on the screen.
"We'll be finished shortly," the man said.
In the staircase, I never get a signal in my building. In my apartment, however, it had never been an issue. Inwardly, I cursed myself for not hooking up my landline. That line would still work to call emergency services, but I didn't even have a phone to plug into the jack. I closed my eyes and took a few deep meditative breaths to calm down.
The Path was only a small stretch away. I'm not sure what it could do for me, but I decided to plunge in. When I opened my eyes again, there was a tapestry of twisting colors that wove around and through the man. His Path would have been pretty in a jumbled sort of way if someone were only looking. But for me, looking comes with reading, and those twisted colors made my skin crawl. A sickly green twirled around crimson purple, and it appeared to be bottling up the lighter and brighter colors. This man was dark and damaged. His baseline colors of gray and brown, showing his boredom and lethargy leaking out, may have been my saving grace.
The man's partner appeared from the living room again. One look at the dark knot that dominated the hulking man's Path and I took an involuntary step back. When he came close, I took another.
"Thank you for your time," the smaller man said. He nodded his head towards the door and the larger man left.
My breath was shaky when I let it out.
"We are looking for something important. If you notice anything out of the ordinary, please call this message service." He handed me a card.
"Yeah, right," I said. "I'll get right on that." Sarcasm came naturally to me, but one of these days, it was going to get me in trouble.
The man's Path rippled and the part of his Path that read as boredom evaporated, leaving a twisted, dark interest left in its wake. The only word I could put to it was punishment. The man's lips twitched again.
The urge to bolt was high, but I stood my ground. Although, if I were to back up further, I'd have to learn to burrow through walls, so I didn't have much choice.
Then he was gone without saying a word.
With the door open, I stood there, not knowing what to do. Had that actually happened?
Well, that was a stupid question, of course it had.
Was there anything I could do about it?
That was a more difficult question, but I wasn't completely out of options. After slamming the door, I locked it and put on the security chain. I was pretty sure that the little chain wouldn't have stopped either of the behemoths that had just entered, but it made me feel a little safer. Then I went to the living room to find a better phone signal.
Full bars. I frowned at my phone, frustrated that the little piece of electronics had let me down when I most needed it. Then I called my landlord.
"Ms. Konkie's office," a woman said.
"This is Cassie Heidrich, a tenant at Gateway Arms." The words had a bite to them. I was having a hard time reining in my frustrations. "I need to speak with Ms. Konkie immediately."
"If this is an emergency, please hang up and dial 911," the woman said.
"The emergency is that she gave someone permission to enter my apartment." A few of my words were a little screechy, but at that point, I didn't care.
"Someone came into your apartment?"
"She gave them permission to come in and look around."
"We haven't given anyone permission to enter an apartment," the woman said.
"They said they called the landlord."
"Ms. Konkie is out of the office this week. Her calls are routed here."
My heart began to beat faster and ice crawled up my arms. "They must have called her house or something."
"She's not available by phone at the moment. All calls are coming to the office." The woman sounded worried. "Do you need me to call anyone for you? Are they still there?"
"No, they’re gone." I wrapped my arm around my stomach tightly. "You're sure that no one reached her? Is it possible that someone else from the office gave permission?"
"We have to give the resident 24 hours’ notice minimum before allowing anyone to enter the apartment without a warrant."
"Oh," I said dully.
"Are you sure you don't want me to call anyone?"
"I'm sure. I know who I need to talk with."
"Okay, but I'm going to ask an officer to drive around the parking lot tonight."
"Yeah, okay. Thanks."
I hung up and fell onto the couch. They had come into my home. The bastards had come in, lied to me, and all of it for what? They were looking for Dwayne. They had to be. They didn't even ask if they could. Instead, they pushed in, did what they wanted, and then left.
Remembering the Paths the two had left, I shivered and clutched my arms tightly around myself. Fear had wrapped its cold fingers around me and wasn't letting go.
They couldn't get away with this. There was no one for me to call, but I did know where another agent would be this evening and he was going to hear about this.
Which reminded me of Gran. Crap! Would these guys go to her house too?
No way was that happening. I grabbed my purse and keys, and I ran downstairs. At the door, I poked my head out and looked for any government goons lurking around. Once I confirmed I was agent-free, I ran to my car and drove to Gran's as fast as I could to make sure I reached her house before Agent Seale.
***
My stress was riding high by the time I got to Gran's, but there were no trucks or cars parked at her house.
With my heart pounding, I ran into her house without bothering to knock. "Gran!" I called.
"We're in the kitchen,
" Gran responded.
Hearing her untroubled voice wasn't enough, so I hurried across the living room and into the kitchen where I found Gran and Dwayne at the kitchen table.
Dwayne had a piece of meat stuck to his face. I stopped dead and stared, at a loss for something to say.
"Everything okay, darlin'?" Gran asked.
"I...I'm not sure." What I was unsure of was if I should worry Gran about the men that had been in my apartment. "But I need to have a word with Agent Seale."
"You'll have your chance. He’ll be here soon. We'll take Dwayne into the backyard again. I'm beginnin’ to feel bad about that."
"Why is he wearing meat?" I asked.
"He still doesn't seem to understand the concept of food," Gran said.
"Has he eaten anything since he's been here?" I asked.
"Not that I can tell. He does appear to like water more than anyone I've ever seen."
"What have you tried feeding him?"
"The usual things."
"He's not a person. Human, I mean," I said, rushing to correct myself. "He's not human, so he may not eat human things."
"Rocks here don't eat, so I'm at a loss as to what to do."
"Maybe I can try to find something while we're out tonight."
A timer chimed and Dwayne made a soft grating noise.
"He does that anytime a buzzer goes off," Gran said. She took two pies out of the oven, filling the room with the scent of cooked sugar, apples, and cinnamon. "I'm not sure if he thinks the appliances are talkin' to him or what."
She still sounded tired, which instantly set off warning bells for me.
"Is everything okay?" I asked her.
"I'm all right," Gran said, looking perturbed. "I tried to get in touch with an old friend of mine today. Figured he'd be willin’ to give us a hand with this."
"He wouldn't help?"
"The number's no good anymore. Never thought I'd see the day where he'd move on without lettin’ me know how to reach him."
"Who is he?" I asked.
"Never mind that," Gran said. "I'll take Dwayne out to see if he minds playing the part of a rock."
Looking at Dwayne, Gran smiled warmly and persuaded him to go out back again.
From out the window, I watched Gran make motions and Dwayne fell in on himself. Within moments, he looked like a large rock on the ground. Sure, he was a beautiful stone, but there was nothing that indicated that he was a person.
Gran came back inside. "It's a good thing Rose came over today. I'm not sure we would have made it through this day without her."
"You know," I said, "you have some interesting friends."
Gran chuckled. "You've just peeked at the surface."
"I think I'd like to see further," I said. There was so much about Gran that I didn’t know. Having friends, not one, but at least two, that could help with this sort of thing sounded fascinating.
"Maybe one day," Gran said, looking more relaxed. "For now, would you mind getting’ the door? I'll get plates ready for us."
"Sure," I said.
"You looked flustered, and I don't want him feelin' attacked before we've had a chance to chat. Hold off on whatever it is you want to tell Agent Seale, but don't forget to take a closer look tonight. I'd like to get a good read on this fella before we decide if we should introduce Dwayne.”
Her words brought a touch of heat out. "Even if Agent Seale deserves it?"
"Even then. Go on now." Gran bustled around the kitchen.
Chapter 8
Resigned, I went to answer the door. Even knowing it was coming, I almost jumped when my hand reached the front door knob as someone knocked.
Agent Seale was there, grinning ear to ear.
"Come on in." My voice clearly conveyed that I was unhappy with him.
He didn't seem the least bit concerned, though.
"Thank you," Agent Seale said.
"We're through here," I said, leading him across the room.
"Your house smells divine," Agent Seale said as he entered the kitchen.
"Thank you," Gran said. "Sit on down here." Gran set two plates down and went back to get one for herself before joining us at the table. "Now, Agent Seale-"
"Please, call me Logan," he said.
Gran nodded. "And you can call us by our first names if you'd like as well. I'm sure you already know them."
"I apologize for all the intrusions," Logan said. His smile fell a small, but noticeable amount. "But I am glad we met."
"Have you been on this side long?" Gran asked.
The smile slipped further. "It's not often I meet a stranger that asks those kinds of questions."
Maybe I should have had Gran explain a few more things before Logan arrived, because I was already lost.
"Tell you what," Gran said, laying her southern accent on thicker. "Why don't you sit there and enjoy that pie of yours while I tell you a little about myself. Once I've finished, we can decide where we want to go to from there."
Logan nodded.
"What I’m gonna tell you is nothin’ that you can't find if you look for it," Gran said. "In fact, I'm surprised it isn't in one of your computers somewhere. If not, most anyone that knows me knows that I'm psychic."
"Gran!" I hissed, surprised that she'd come right out and say it.
She smiled and patted my hand. "Darlin', outside of the family, Logan is more likely than anyone to believe straight off."
"It's not in the computer, at least not that I know of, but I caught on earlier today," Logan said.
It took all I had not to let my mouth drop open.
"I'm not known to be subtle," Gran said.
This was true. Gran never cared if anyone thought her random predictions sounded loony.
"That sort of power tends to run in families," Logan said, turning to me.
"Don't look at me," I said. "Gran and Mom are the psychics. Not that you'd ever guess about my mom if you met her."
Logan's face spoke the question that must have been in his head.
"Cassie's talents are a little more rare," Gran said.
"Why are you so quick to believe?" I asked before Logan could inquire any further about me.
Logan took a bite of pie and hummed under his breath. The sound was enchanting. It was as though two different people were in harmony with each other.
"This is excellent pie," Logan said.
"Thank you," Gran said. "There's plenty more. Eat up. And no, I didn't tell her where you're from."
Frowning and feeling ignored, I closed my eyes for a moment. As though I had been building a muscle, the act of moving into the Path was easier.
The world around me turned into flowing movement. The Path shimmered and ran through the room as though water was gently streaming over everything.
"I'm still wondering how it is you know about me," Logan said.
Well, almost everything flowed. Logan was a blank slate. I'd never seen anything like it. The Path recognized him. It flowed around him and made space for his own Path, but where I should have seen the shifting colors that Logan was leaving behind, there was nothing.
"Oh, you know how it is," Gran waved her hand around dismissively. "Old friends and the like."
"Anyone I might know?" Logan asked.
"Well, since I don't know what you do and your intentions, I can't very well answer that," Gran said.
By glancing at Gran, I was able to assure myself that my reading was accurate, and there she was, shining with happy purples and gleaming yellows. She appeared to find this whole thing amusing. Streaks of grays, browns, and blacks wound through each other showing her worry and frustration. Maybe about not reaching her friend?
"My work is confidential, I'm afraid," Logan said. "There's not much I can say about it."
"But you work with people from other dimensions, right?" Gran asked.
Logan looked meaningfully at Gran. "Let's say, hypothetically, that I do. Would you have something to share with me?"
What was g
oing on? It was as if I was listening to coded messages. I understood the words, but when you put them together, they didn't make any sense.
"Nothin’ that springs to mind," Gran said.
Logan's head bobbed up and down. "Maybe a little more sharing first?"
"Perhaps. How do I know that anything we might say doesn't end up in your little machines somewhere?" Ripples of amusement fell off Gran's Path in waves.
I looked away, not wanting to pry too deeply into Gran's Path.
"You have my word," Logan said, "that anything about you and your family will stay off the record unless you tell me otherwise."
Like I believed that. Logan’s Path was hidden, and the men that had been sent to my house earlier had read like monsters.
"First, let me tell Cassie the only thing I really know about you," Gran said. "Why don't you let your ears out?"
Glancing at Logan's ears, I could see that they looked relatively normal, except they appeared to be thick around the top. He chuckled, and while I watched, his ears twitched. Folds of skin began to unfurl, and within moments, Logan's ears stretched back until they ended in sharp points. Near the ends, the skin was thin enough for the light to show through.
"Logan," Gran said to me, "is an elf. But you have to forget pretty much everything you've ever heard about elves."
Remembering my bad reaction with Dwayne, I realized my mouth had dropped open, so I closed it and nodded. "Okay." My voice was more hesitant than I would have liked, but the man had rolled up ears. Trying to make my voice even, I added, "an elf. I guess that explains Gran's ear comment earlier today."
Logan grinned and his smile was infectious. In a bemused way, I copied his smile, even though my eyes kept straying back to his ears. Gran wore a little smile of her own when she brought over more pie.
How could she not have told me there were elves? Or that Logan was an elf? How did she even know about this stuff?
"Are you here on your own?" Gran asked.
"I've got three kids, two boys and a girl, that came with me. I've been here steady for around fifty years or so," Logan said.
AIR Series Box Set Page 6