Home > The Dragon's Psychic(8)

The Dragon's Psychic(8)
Author: Linzi Baxter

Before Kirin had time to reply, the warlock vanished. Kirin let out a sigh, got back on his motorcycle, and sent his brother a text about the visitor he’d encountered. It was time to find the young girl’s house, which was ten miles outside of town. The cool air felt good as he sped down the highway toward his next target. Kirin cut the engine early when he noticed a light on inside the house.

Maybe his payday would come quickly, and he could make it to his brother’s birthday. But the idea of doing this mission for money left a bad taste in his mouth.

 

 

5

 

 

Talia

 

 

They sat silently for over an hour. In fact, it was probably longer, since they’d both dozed off. Talia leaned forward, cracked the closet door, and peeked out. She could see the knife on the floor. Talia shivered at the sight of the caked-on blood. When they arrived at Alida’s house, Talia had immediately dropped the knife. An overwhelming urge to sleep had overtaken her before Alida pulled her into the closet. The vision from earlier, along with whatever Alida had done, drained what energy she had. She couldn’t chance touching the knife again.

Alida tugged at her shirt. When Talia sat back down, Alida snuggled in close to her. Talia was certain that if she started to touch things in the closet, the drained feeling would only get worse. At a young age, she’d learned to wear gloves, except for when she worked for the council. In the middle of summer, people stared, but she’d learned to ignore the looks. When she went to school, kids made fun of her. One day, she couldn’t stand the teasing, and she didn’t wear her gloves. That morning, when she handed her teacher an assignment, her hand brushed his, and the vision that appeared still haunted her. He had broken his wife’s arm that morning for not having the coffee started. The cops didn’t believe her when she ran to the station to report him. Until the council called, she’d never tried to help anyone again. Humans didn’t understand when she couldn’t explain how she knew something.

She reached into her back pocket, pulled out a pair of cloth gloves, and slipped them over her hands. Talia had used all her energy earlier and couldn’t chance another vision. She needed to stay alert. There was no doubt in her mind that it was only a matter of time before the council sent one of their men after them. Over the years, she’d seen the mercenaries the council called. They radiated danger, and the only thing they cared about was the money for each person they brought in. Talia had never heard of them caring about anything else.

“What do you think will happen next?” Alida whispered.

Talia took a deep breath. She wanted to lie and tell the girl everything would be okay, but Talia felt deep down that things would get worse. “Well, my guess is they will have someone look for us.”

“Like who?” Alida squeezed her arms around Talia.

“They generally hire mercenaries. Do you know what a mercenary is?”

Alida shook her head.

“Someone who only cares about money and will do any job for it.” Talia shrugged like it was no big deal, but she was afraid. Those out for money wouldn’t care about the truth. Mercenaries would never believe she’d simply touched the girl and then disappeared, and even if they did believe it, they wouldn’t care. Mercenaries only wanted one thing: payday. Talia feared the council would send Kirin after them. Everyone in the supernatural world knew him as someone who captured anyone the council sent him after. She had seen him in passing. If he weren’t so hot, she would hate his guts. He drove a slick black motorcycle, and his hair was always tousled from the breeze. His gold eyes captured her every time. She knew he had no clue who she was, but when Talia saw him, she wanted to wrap her legs around his waist.

Talia banished the daydream to concentrate on the little girl in front of her. “Do you know how we got here?”

“Yes. I can transport, but sometimes I move backward or forward in time.”

“Did your mom and dad know?”

The little girl tightened her hold on Talia’s waist. “Yes. Mommy always told me to keep it a secret. Mommy normally gave me a pill every morning that helped me not transport. But I didn’t get my pill, so now my magic works.”

Talia understood why her mother didn’t want anyone to know about her daughter’s ability. The council would use the girl’s ability for their gain. Transporting in time could be dangerous. She needed to make sure to grab the medicine and figure out where Alida’s parents had it made. Nobody could ever find out about the girl’s ability.

“Alida, tell nobody you can move back and forth in time. They will think you can transport, but they don’t need to know you can move through time.”

“Okay,” she murmured.

“Stay here. I’m going to check this out.” Talia was still worried they might be at the wrong point in time.

Even though the little girl nodded, her eyes started to fill with tears. Talia wanted to pull the girl into her arms and promise her everything would be okay. But instead of giving the girl a hug and wiping the tears away, Talia exited the closet and pulled out her phone. She had a missed call from her neighbor, Ms. Bethlow, who needed her to pick something up from the store. The date flashed, and she let out a breath. They hadn’t moved through time.

Talia wandered around Alida’s room, trying to understand who would come after the family. The girl’s room was the key to her heart. The twin-bed frame was pink, and there was a pink netting over the bed. The wall behind the bed was a painted picture of the princess from Mario Brothers. Talia left the girl’s room and entered the first door to the right, moving into another bedroom, this one clean and neat with a light-blue bedspread. It looked like a guest room. The next room was a bathroom, so Talia continued down the hall to the last bedroom.

When she opened the door to the master bedroom, her heart hurt. The left wall was covered in family pictures. The three looked so happy, and in the ones that showed Alida looking at her parents, her face was lit up. Even though Talia couldn’t get a good vision of the parents’ death, she knew Alida couldn’t have done it. The master bedroom was tidy. On the dresser sat a jewelry box full of gold necklaces and expensive rings. There was no sign that someone had burglarized the place. She sighed. Of course, that would have been too easy. Talia closed the door and headed downstairs.

The main floor was a different story. Blood covered the walls, so much of it everywhere. The copper scent made Talia choke, and she had to cover her mouth so she could breathe. On a closer look, she saw blood spattering the ceiling. There was no way a little girl could do this much to an adult. Talia reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone to take pictures. If she couldn’t get a good vision, she would need to get evidence to prove the girl innocent.

She wasn’t even touching objects, and the emotions were washing over her. Fear. Anguish. Rage. The attack had taken place in the kitchen at the back of the house. An infomercial for a purse played on the living room television. Talia followed the trail of blood to the back kitchen, where she saw two voids in the blood on the floor. The council had removed the bodies when they came for the girl. Hadn’t anyone looked at the scene? She was rather glad Alida hadn’t transported them to the middle of her parents being murdered. If that had happened, she and the girl might both be dead by now.

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