“But I don’t want to read people,” Allie protested.
Miss Amelia looked at her as if she had just declared breathing passé. “Why ever not? Dear Gods child next you’ll say you don’t want to look at people you’re talking to since that might give you visual clues about how they feel!”
Allie frowned, “Of course not, but anyone can do that.”
The old woman sighed. “Of course they can’t or at least not equally well. You’ve been born with an ability that gives you extra insight, its foolishness to the point of insanity not to use it. If you had exceptionally good hearing would you stuff your ears with cotton so that you were on the same level as everyone else?”
“Well, no, of course not…” Allie mumbled, frowning harder.
“Of course not,” Miss Amelia echoed. “So why cripple your innate empathic ability just because not everyone else has it?”
Allie shook her head wordlessly and Miss Amelia continued. “So, shielding. You cannot use a wall or solid structure, because your own mind will poke holes in it to reach what you subconsciously seek. You cannot use the colors as the elves do because you will find it too imprecise. Instead you must learn to visualize something like a heavy screen; something that is strong enough to protect and filter out other people’s magics and dangerous influences, but will leave tiny openings for the emotional energy to enter.”
“How do I do that?” Allie asked, intrigued despite herself.
“My friend once said that for him most magic was heavy like a physical presence, but emotions were light as smoke. Perhaps you will find the same is true for you,” Miss Amelia said, shrugging her thin shoulders.
Allie nodded slightly, taking a moment to test this idea. She could sense the energy around her, the magic woven into this house over decades of living by its occupants. Now that she had some frame of reference she could understand what Miss Amelia was saying; the energy did feel heavy like mist or fog in the air, something solid that could be touched and manipulated. She turned her attention to the old woman and felt her emotions, curiosity and a dull excitement, rising off of her like thin tendrils of smoke, something that was barely different in substance than the air around it. Carefully Allie visualized her shields but not as the usual solid wall surrounding her, instead she pictured herself covered by a heavy white mosquito netting like energy. This new shield was finely woven and offered only tiny openings for energy; it took her several minutes of experimentation to find the exact right sizing that kept out the spells of the house but let in that fine smoke of emotions. After she had anchored these new shields she found that she could still sense what the other woman was feeling, although not as an overwhelming distracting presence but rather as a simple awareness of them. At the same time while she was aware of the ambient spells she was insulated from them.
For the first time in the months since she had fully opened herself to her gift and short circuited her abilities – or perhaps she realized more accurately awakened her abilities – she had full, stable shields back. She heaved a sigh of relief, feeling an enormous weight lifting.
Miss Amelia smiled liked a cat with a bowl of cream, “And now, tell me a story.”
************************
Jerry paced the confines of the spare bedroom that was his home for now, feeling restless. He was staying with another member of the group, Ken, who worked for the town maintenance department and made more money driving the town trucks, and keeping them running, then Jerry had in all his years at the gas station. The house was expensive and in a part of town Jerry had barely ever driven through before. The room looked like it had been decorated by an old woman, full of lace and quilts, and he’d bet money that Ken’s mom had picked it all out. There were even framed quilts on the walls.
Sometimes, to break up the mind numbing boredom he’d walk around the room touching everything. The heavy wooden bedframe was smooth as silk. The sheets were softer than any he’d ever felt in his life, softer even than the ones at that nice motel his mom had taken them to hide in after she’d finally left his dad. Even the stitching on the quilts was soft to the touch. He’d lay down on the floor and run his hands over the hardwood to the edge of the heavy throw rug next to the bed, working his fingers through the fibers. Soft, everything was so soft in here. Sometimes it comforted him and he could spend hours just touching everything.
Other times though all the softness reminded him of his girls and that didn’t comfort him, it made him remember her, the special girl he’d kept. She should have been his forever, she was perfect…but the Elven Guard had come and taken her away. And then he’d remember that this fine expensive house wasn’t his, that he was just staying here because he had to. And that made him angry, because he wanted all these things to be his, and he wanted that girl back, and he wanted his freedom. And then he’d sit and rock and hit the side of his head with his hand until everything faded. Or until he couldn’t bare it anymore and he had to sneak out and find a new girl….
That last girl, the brownie, she’d been nice enough but the whole experience wasn’t any good. He hadn’t been able to really enjoy it, and she’d ruined it at the end by fighting back, by scaring him. He frowned as he walked, remembering the cold fear clenching in his gut as he’d run through the little park after she’d tried to use magic on him. These Fairy things they don’t know their place, he thought restlessly. She should never have dared do that. She should have realized how powerful and terrifying I am. She should have been afraid of me, been begging me not to hurt her. Stupid defiant slut. The more he thought about it the more the residual fear was replaced by anger. Damn that bitch and damn the Elven Guard. They ruined everything. They all ruined everything. This is exactly why we have to do the ritual, why the worlds have to be separated again. So their corruption is gone and we’ll be free…
He walked, and started to fantasize about the next girl. He’d be sure the next one was perfect. Soon. Very soon.
***************************
After leaving Miss Amelia’s house Allie found Sam and Jess both waiting for her on the sidewalk. The two men were eyeing each other in tense silence and Allie sighed slightly, some of her good mood fading.
“Alright guys,” she said. “I have functional shields again. Do we want to go the site now?”
To her annoyance they both reached out with their respective magics and tested her shields. Sam looked surprised; Jess looked pleased.
“You’re a quick study,” Sam said thoughtfully.
“I do my best,” Allie said, shrugging. “Now, can we go check out the location of the last murder?”
Jess still looked hesitant, but Sam smiled eagerly. “Yes, why wait until tomorrow? I’m looking forward to seeing how you do what you do.”
“Don’t get your hopes up,” she warned him. “I don’t think you’ll be able to duplicate it no matter how much you study what I do.”
“You don’t think I’m skilled enough?” Sam scoffed.
“Not at all – I don’t doubt you’re quite skilled. But this is an innate gift not a learned skill, so…I just don’t think it’s something you can imitate,” Allie said, automatically trying to soothe the mage’s ruffled feathers. Jess sniffed disdainfully, unconcerned by Sam’s ego.
“Well, we shall see,” Sam replied, regaining his usual nonchalant cheer.
“Are you certain you are ready to do this?” Jess asked quietly in Elvish, earning a frown from Sam.
Allie nodded, then mentally added “I am sure. These shields are good, and I think now I won’t be totally overwhelmed by the emotional traces.”
She could feel his reluctance, still as strong as if she were unshielded. Clearly their spell-bond meant that she was connected to him on a level too deep to shield out, something she would have to keep in mind. But while she could clearly sense Sam’s emotions – excitement, impatience, and a touch of envy – she wasn’t feeling them with him, only sensing them as an outside presence. There was no overwhelming pressure, no echo of hi
s feelings within Allie. It was a huge improvement and she felt relief to know that she wouldn’t be at the mercy of whatever other people were feeling anymore. Well, except Jess who still seemed to influence her as strongly as ever.
“If you insist on doing this,” Jess said, “then let us proceed.”
Sam grinned broadly, gesturing at the hearse where it sat in all its macabre glory. “If we want to go together in one car, I’d be happy to drive.”
Jess gave him a look that would have withered most other people, “Absolutely not.”
Sam, undaunted, turned to Allie. “What about you? You want a ride? We can talk ritual murder on the way over.”
Allie’s lips twitched into a smile but she managed not to laugh. She didn’t want to encourage Sam when she could feel Jess growing angrier with each thing the mage said. “Sam, we’ll meet you at the scene, okay?”
“Suit yourself,” Sam said, sighing melodramatically. “No one ever seems to appreciate my car. Clearly a lack of good taste.”
Swinging his cane Sam walked over to the hearse, whistling cheerfully. Jess continued to glare at him, even as Allie grabbed his hand and tugged him over to his own vehicle. One of the really annoying things about elves which Sam was clearly underestimating was their ability to hold a grudge, particularly against non-elves. Once an elf decided they really didn’t like you, changing their mind became impossible, and elves were capable of some truly obnoxious behavior around people they didn’t like. Allie could only think of a handful of situations that had gone against this general rule and they usually involved exceptional circumstances. At the rate Sam was antagonizing Jessilaen the Elven Guard commander was going to hate Sam’s entire line down to his great-grandchildren, on principle.
“Come on Jess,” Allie coaxed. “Why don’t we drive to my store and I can drop my car off there, then I’ll ride with you to the scene and home after. If you can give me a ride in to work tomorrow that is.”
“Of course my love,” Jess said, his emotions lightening as his attention finally shifted. “Perhaps when we are home later we can watch another movie. I am becoming quite fond of those movies Jason likes.”
“That series of horror movies about the possessed doll?” Allie smiled relaxing into his energy. She normally didn’t like horror movies at all, but she had to admit the ones Jason had picked out lately were less about gore and more along the lines of psychological thrillers. They still weren’t her favorites, but it was entertaining to listen to Jason, Bleidd, and Jess argue over the details of the plots of the films.
“Yes,” Jess said as he opened the door of the Guard vehicle, standing for a moment to finish what he was saying before getting into the car. “I think we are on the third one now and I would like to see if they will find a way to finally end the threat. It is quite a fascinating story.”
Allie giggled as she got into her own car and clipped her seatbelt. Leave it to an elf to discuss a cheap horror movie like it was fine art, she thought, careful to keep her mind closed to his.
Despite everything that was going on with the marriage contract and her difficulty adjusting to sharing her living space with someone, she was glad that she had Jess with her. She was slowly accepting that she did need him in her life, not only as a romantic partner but as a friend. Over the years she had gotten used to never really letting anyone in, but Jess had challenged her from the beginning, pushing to get her to open up to him and share her own emotions. Now that she was finally doing that it was surprising how much she enjoyed feeling like she could depend on him. Instead of worrying about needing him too much she found herself looking forward to being able to count on him to be there for her. It was still a strange new feeling but one that she liked.
Less than half an hour later her car was sitting in the lot of Between The Worlds and she and Jess were together in the Guard vehicle pulling up to the park were the assaults had happened. Jess parked in an open spot by the curb. Getting out Allie looked but there was no sign of Sam’s distinctive hearse anywhere. Catching Jess’s eye she shrugged and inclined her head towards the dirt path leading into the park.
Jess frowned slightly but moved ahead of her, leading the way in. Allie followed, nervously reinforcing her new shields to be absolutely sure they would hold once they got to the crime scene. She could feel it coming, like a storm in the air, a taste of ozone to her empathy, sharp and unpleasant. She could have easily led Jess to it, but she was relieved to realize that although she could sense the stain of fear, pain, despair, and death just as easily as before there was no overwhelming tidal wave of emotions pulling her into a trance state. She had no problem keeping herself separate from the feelings while still following them, by choice this time. It was such a relief she almost wanted to laugh. Instead she carefully described the experience to Jess, hoping that he would also be reassured.
“That is good,” Jess said. “But let us not relax our guard until we are inspecting the scene itself. That will be the true test.”
He glanced back at her, his eyes flicking down to her waist and sighed. “Allie you should wear your badge here, since this is an official investigation.”
Allie blushed and fumbled the badge out of her pocket. She had been so worried about how she would react to the emotions at the scene she had completely forgotten about the badge. Damn she thought maybe I should just staple it to my waist.
To her surprise she heard Jess’s amused voice in her mind, responding to what she had intended to be a private thought. “I’d rather you did not, I quite like your waist as it is. And I imagine stapling anything to your body would be very painful.”
Her lips twitched into an almost-smile even as she worried about how easily she slipped and projected her thoughts to him now. She was going to have to be more careful about that. “True, true, but I’m always forgetting to wear it when I should.”
“Do not worry my love, I will always be here to remind you,” he thought back, pleased at the idea even as he thought it. She may have misgivings about the speed and permanence of their relationship but Jess clearly delighted in both. Walking behind him, certain that he couldn’t see her she shook her head, caught between exasperation and amusement.
This time she carefully blocked her thoughts from him. How can he be so certain so quickly about everything with us as a couple? We barely know each other, really and yet he has always been so utterly sure that he loves me and we belong together. And yet, when she tried to imagine her life without him she couldn’t; all that happened was a horrible sinking feeling in her stomach and a rush of anxiety. Is that how he knows? Is that what love really is? The inability to imagine life without that person in it? Somehow he has become as essential to me as my own life, I just can’t even begin to think of life without him in it.
She pushed the thoughts away as they broke through a small cluster of trees into a clearing and found Sam standing patiently. Even if he hadn’t been there waiting though she would have known this was the place. The energy here reminded her of walking into an area where a skunk had sprayed; the lingering emotions were like an acidic stink in the air, burning the back of her throat. Her nose wrinkled, despite the lack of a physical smell, and she unconsciously gravitated towards a place at the edge of the clearing where the grass was trampled down. There was a faint copper-tang smell of blood here.
“That’s where the man died,” Sam said, confirming what Allie had already guessed.
Turning she saw that both men were watching her closely. Jess’s expression was guarded; Sam’s was eager. Allie looked back at the ground. “The feelings here are strange. Not like the other locations. I think…Standish was afraid and also…there’s something like regret here. I don’t think he wanted to kill this guy.”
“You think he gutted him by accident?” Sam said, his eyebrows arching up in a perfectly manicured expression of disbelief.
“Yes, that’s what it feels like,” Allie said frowning. Sam looked thoughtful and peered at her more closely as she moved around the o
pen space. At the far end of the small clearing was another area of emotional disturbance, although outwardly there was little sign to indicate this place was of any importance. But Allie could feel the familiar emotional trace of Standish, thankfully fully outside of her own energy now, its pulse of lust-joy-anger blending with frustration and fear. She tilted her head to the side trying to consciously filter out the victim’s feelings and focus only on Standish. It was harder than she’d expected and she struggled with it. Finally, still unsure, she said, “This one was different for him. Maybe because she fought back? I’m not sure, it’s hard to separate her anger from his. But he was definitely frustrated and afraid this time which he wasn’t before.”
“Could be because his normal process wasn’t followed through,” Sam said slowly. “If he’s a real serial killer – not just a ritual murderer – then he’d need to complete his entire personal ritual or he wouldn’t get his fix.”
“His fix?” Jess said, frowning at the unfamiliar expression.
“It means he wouldn’t get the emotional rush out of the experience he needed. It’s what motivates him to do what he’s doing,” Allie explained, grateful to all the books she’d read on the topic of serial killers during the long hours at the store. At the time it had just been a way to pass the boring hours when business was slow, and later she’d justified it by saying it let her recommend books to customers; she’d never expected her reading to be useful in any practical way.
“Ah,” Jess said. “So then if he has not gotten his ‘fix’ he will be seeking it still, yes?”
Sam flinched. “Shit. You know I’d hoped maybe almost getting caught would drive him further into hiding, which might be bad for us in catching him but would at least slow the body count…but I think you’re right. I think he’ll kill again, and soon.”
Into the Twilight: a Between the Worlds Novel Page 16