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just keep killing anyone he thought was a threat to me until he got caught, or was there some other agenda that we couldn't see yet? Either way, we needed to stop him. Any plans made by the assassin could not be beneficial for me. There was always the possibility that he would become offended by my lack of gratitude and turn against me. And he would never get appreciation from me. Despite removing my father as a threat, I could not bring myself to feel grateful. At least… no, gratitude to this monster was out of the question; I wouldn't allow myself to be thankful. That would make me no better than him. But it was nice to not have to worry about my father ever coming back into my life.
    The buzzer for the pizza was going off, and I pulled my thoughts away from Kindred to go get it out of the oven. As I cut the pizza I strained my powers to sense the footsteps outside. My attempt at relaxation once again disappeared into a cloud of paranoia. Or was it? Is it still paranoia if I really did have a killer practically stalking me? Either way, being paranoid could possibly save my life.
    Once I finished eating, I headed out, figuring I could save the phone call and just talk to Alice in person. I would drive myself crazy if I stayed in the house by myself all day. The phone rang as the door swung shut and locked. I hesitated before figuring that by the time I'd get back in the house I would have missed the call anyway, so I shrugged and walked the block to the bus stop. After pacing around the bench for a couple minutes and drawing stares from a couple other people waiting for the bus, I decided to walk. It wouldn't take much longer than taking the bus, since I could take a more direct route, and I needed the extra security of being able to watch my back. In a bus I could be followed. On foot it would be more difficult. Most of Mason's goons knew about my abilities, but none of them had figured out a way to follow me without my knowledge. Since being blindsided the previous fall, I'd been more careful about always putting some energy into watching the steps and echoes behind me.
    I didn't ever want to get caught off guard again. Especially since many of those who might follow me could also know that using electricity on me would cut off my ability to access my power. At least temporarily. It was painful, and something I definitely did not want to go through again. So I used the extra energy necessary to prevent it. As I concentrated, I felt a slight tingling in my head. When I shook my head to clear it, I noticed that I was nowhere near the police station. Instead I was in a warehouse. When I looked around in shock, I figured out that it was the warehouse Mason had held me in the first time he'd abducted me. I continued looking around with a frown, wondering how I'd ended up there, and why.
    "Is anyone here?" I called, feeling slightly foolish. I would notice movement, but if someone was just watching, I might never know they were there. "Hello?" There was no answer, but I couldn't shake the feeling I was being watched. I studied the warehouse critically, trying to see if there was anything different about it since last time I'd been there. Was it just my subconscious telling me I needed to resolve my issues with what had started here? Or was something else at play? I wasn't sure, but I was beginning to lean toward the latter which was making me feel very uncomfortable.
    A feeling that was proven more valid when I saw the white envelope attached to the door of the storage cage in the corner of the room.
     

SIXTEEN
    Kindred
     
    Sneaking into a police station to get at a prisoner proved to be less of a challenge than I had anticipated; it was too easy to make people believe I wasn't even there. The only person who saw me was my victim. He'd seen me and fell apart immediately. Obviously my reputation was alive and well within Mason's ranks, and his reaction made me smile. It was good to be appreciated. I'd been in a good mood; my