movies and TV that kind of talk meant they probably intended to kill her, tie off a loose end in whatever scheme they had running. Unless Kate could make herself seem valuable, they would have no reason to keep her around.
Mica drew a cell phone and started dialing one-handed while the other hand kept the gun trained on Kate.
Kate thought about something Gala had said. At the time, she was convinced it was a bunch of malarkey. She still thought so. But Mica and her people might go for it.
“I can help you find her,” Kate said.
Mica stopped dialing. “Oh, yeah? How come you haven’t already done it yourself?”
“I didn’t know about it before. But I met with a mystic. She said, as her mother, I had the power to find her.”
“A mortal mystic?” She scrunched up her face. “They typically aren’t very reliable, hate to say.”
“But it’s possible she’s right.”
“Yeah, it’s possible. Like I said, you got a bit of the stuff.” She shrugged. “You know how to work it?”
She was tempted to lie. Anything to buy some time. But that lie would crumble too easily to do much good. “I don’t. But one of your people probably does.”
“What do you know about my people?”
“How’d you find me?”
Mica clucked her tongue again. Her thumb tapped out the last digits to the number she had started dialing. Her gaze stayed locked on Kate as she placed the phone to her ear and waited for an answer. “I’m with the mom,” she said after a few seconds.
Kate strained to hear the voice on the other end of the line, but it was impossible.
“Mission’s a bust,” Mica said. “The girl and Lockman are in the wind. Mom doesn’t know diddly.”
Whatever answer came back made Mica wince.
“I know…I know… Look, I did what I was tasked. I can’t help it if the targets have domestic squabbles.”
She nodded at the response. Listened a few seconds longer. “She wants to help.”
Kate’s heart rate picked up, gathering that the conversation had turned to her fate.
So far, Mica had spent the conversation staring into middle space. Now her gaze turned to Kate. “She’s got it in her head some magic could do the trick, but she isn’t a caster. She’s one hundred percent civie.”
Another pause as Mica listened.
“You want me to bring her in then?”
Kate’s heart rate nearly doubled now. Her nerves made her feel like she might shake apart at any minute. Deep breaths helped some, but adrenaline had the best of her.
“Right,” Mica said. “She’s questiony. How much do we want to give her?” Pause. “That much, huh? You’re the boss.” She signed off with a curt “bye now” and returned her phone to her pocket.
Kate lifted her chin, raised her eyebrows. “Well?”
Mica lowered her gun. “Coach says he’d like you on the team.”
Sounded like good news, except for one glaring issue. “What kind of team?”
Mica walked over to the bed, leaned down so her face was in Kate’s. “The kind that always wins.” She rubbed her nose and sneezed. A blast of golden dust shot right into Kate’s eyes from Mica’s nostrils.
The whole world seemed to tilt. Kate’s stomach lurched as she felt herself falling backward. Before she hit the mattress, everything went black.
Chapter Ten
“There has to be a way.”
The doctor wiped his nose with the back of his sleeve then looked at his arm as if he had expected to leave a streak. Apparently satisfied by what he found, he sniffed and returned his attention to Lockman. “You’re talking about exorcism, more or less.”
Lockman hitched a shoulder. “Call it whatever you want. Can it be done?”
They stood at one of over twenty work-stations arranged throughout the Quonset hut designated The Lab. From tables holding bubbling, steaming, and glowing substances in glass beakers to a corner sectioned off in an airtight plastic bubble and housing various nonhuman cadavers in equally various phases of dissection, the structure housed
Mica drew a cell phone and started dialing one-handed while the other hand kept the gun trained on Kate.
Kate thought about something Gala had said. At the time, she was convinced it was a bunch of malarkey. She still thought so. But Mica and her people might go for it.
“I can help you find her,” Kate said.
Mica stopped dialing. “Oh, yeah? How come you haven’t already done it yourself?”
“I didn’t know about it before. But I met with a mystic. She said, as her mother, I had the power to find her.”
“A mortal mystic?” She scrunched up her face. “They typically aren’t very reliable, hate to say.”
“But it’s possible she’s right.”
“Yeah, it’s possible. Like I said, you got a bit of the stuff.” She shrugged. “You know how to work it?”
She was tempted to lie. Anything to buy some time. But that lie would crumble too easily to do much good. “I don’t. But one of your people probably does.”
“What do you know about my people?”
“How’d you find me?”
Mica clucked her tongue again. Her thumb tapped out the last digits to the number she had started dialing. Her gaze stayed locked on Kate as she placed the phone to her ear and waited for an answer. “I’m with the mom,” she said after a few seconds.
Kate strained to hear the voice on the other end of the line, but it was impossible.
“Mission’s a bust,” Mica said. “The girl and Lockman are in the wind. Mom doesn’t know diddly.”
Whatever answer came back made Mica wince.
“I know…I know… Look, I did what I was tasked. I can’t help it if the targets have domestic squabbles.”
She nodded at the response. Listened a few seconds longer. “She wants to help.”
Kate’s heart rate picked up, gathering that the conversation had turned to her fate.
So far, Mica had spent the conversation staring into middle space. Now her gaze turned to Kate. “She’s got it in her head some magic could do the trick, but she isn’t a caster. She’s one hundred percent civie.”
Another pause as Mica listened.
“You want me to bring her in then?”
Kate’s heart rate nearly doubled now. Her nerves made her feel like she might shake apart at any minute. Deep breaths helped some, but adrenaline had the best of her.
“Right,” Mica said. “She’s questiony. How much do we want to give her?” Pause. “That much, huh? You’re the boss.” She signed off with a curt “bye now” and returned her phone to her pocket.
Kate lifted her chin, raised her eyebrows. “Well?”
Mica lowered her gun. “Coach says he’d like you on the team.”
Sounded like good news, except for one glaring issue. “What kind of team?”
Mica walked over to the bed, leaned down so her face was in Kate’s. “The kind that always wins.” She rubbed her nose and sneezed. A blast of golden dust shot right into Kate’s eyes from Mica’s nostrils.
The whole world seemed to tilt. Kate’s stomach lurched as she felt herself falling backward. Before she hit the mattress, everything went black.
Chapter Ten
“There has to be a way.”
The doctor wiped his nose with the back of his sleeve then looked at his arm as if he had expected to leave a streak. Apparently satisfied by what he found, he sniffed and returned his attention to Lockman. “You’re talking about exorcism, more or less.”
Lockman hitched a shoulder. “Call it whatever you want. Can it be done?”
They stood at one of over twenty work-stations arranged throughout the Quonset hut designated The Lab. From tables holding bubbling, steaming, and glowing substances in glass beakers to a corner sectioned off in an airtight plastic bubble and housing various nonhuman cadavers in equally various phases of dissection, the structure housed
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