Oracle Rising (13 page)

Juliett stared at him as he stood sentry over the petite woman. He was definitely a handsome man, and totally focused on Oracle.

“I’m in so much danger,” she began. “Today, I went out, and I saw what he did. He burned her house down with her in it. He’s crazy.”

Nate needed more.

If they were going to keep her safe, track the killer, and end this, he needed all the details.

She couldn’t hold anything back. This mission was going to be a mix of police work and psychic mumbo jumbo.

They had their work cut out for them.

“Start from the beginning,” Avalon said, almost reading Nate’s mind. They were connected, and she could pick up his thoughts relatively easy.

“Well, I was living not far from here—no more than maybe fifty miles. I went to work every day, I did my job, and I was happy being me.”

“You used your gift at work.”

She hesitated, obviously uncomfortable with the whole discussion.

“It’s okay,” Avalon stated. “You can be honest with us.”

“I guess I did.”

Avalon stopped her. “You’re ashamed of what you can do. You’ve had the gift your whole life, and it scares you. While you try to hide it, you sometimes can’t keep it back. It makes you emotional and tears your barriers down.”

Everything she said was true.

“I’m a freak.”

Avalon blinked, slipping into a trance.

Nate watched it happen.

Here came the fun. He knew how hard it was for Avalon not to take this little trip. Nate recalled when she first met him, and Luke. She’d done the same thing.

“Your mother knew what you could do. She exploited your talents, and since that day, you hate yourself. You hate everyone knowing what you are inside. A part of you thought you could hide it in your job, but it got out. It always got out.”

Juliett gasped. “Stop!”

No one knew any of that.

Her secret was hers to hide, and there was no way this woman could know it.

Avalon
‘stared’
at her—the pale blue void of any emotion. “You believe it’s why your father left. Your parents fought all the time, mostly over you.”

Juliett’s eyes filled with tears. “It’s true.”

Avalon blinked. “You can’t hide from who you are,” she offered. “I’ve tried. It didn't work. The only way to adjust to the gifts we have is to face them head on. You have to be you.”

“Why are you here?”

“To save you,” she admitted. “You reached out, I heard your call, and I’m going to make sure you’re safe. Nathaniel and Jagger will find this killer. We’re going to make sure that he doesn’t get you.”

“He’s going to strike again,” she whispered. “He’s so sick. When I try to sleep, I can feel him not far away. He’s doing horrible things to the women. I know he wants to kill me. I just don’t know why.”

Avalon knew. Psychics were drawn to others like them. If her gift called to his, there was no way he could fight the allure. He’d be curious.

He’d be envious.

He’d want her.

“This maniac,” Nate began, “I need to know all you can tell me about him. If we’re going to find and stop him, we have to hear everything.”

She nodded. “It started a while ago. I went to bed, I started dreaming, and it woke me up. At first, I thought it was just a bad dream. Then I realized I wasn’t sleeping, and I could still hear him. I could smell him.”

“Could you see him?” Nate asked.

“No. It was all through his eyes. I was hurting those women from his perspective. I saw his hands. He’s white. Does that help?”

Nate wanted to be sarcastic, but he managed to hold it in. A Caucasian killing women?

Yeah, that narrowed it down.

Avalon thought about it. “The reason you can’t see him is you’re connecting to his psychic ability. Had the victim been psychic, you would have seen it through her eyes.”

She gasped.

“Yes, be glad it’s him and not her.”

“How did he find me? I can’t know him, can I?”

Avalon pondered it. “You may have crossed paths with him. At some point, your aura and his may have touched. That’s why he can pick up on you. I can do the same with people I come in contact with.”

“You didn't come in contact with me, so how did you find me?” Juliett asked.

Avalon went to speak, but Nate covered it for her. “Most psychic levels are based on a scale of one to ten. You’re likely low on the range,” he said.

“She’s about a four,” Avalon offered. “Empaths don’t have the same gifts.”

“Then what are you?” Juliett asked.

Nate laughed. “She’s like a twenty five. There’s only one known Oracle, and she is it. Avalon was able to find you because her gift is off the scale.”

It made him proud.

That was his woman.

She was unique.

Avalon smiled. “We all have some psychic ability. Nate and Jagger use their ‘gut instinct’ which, believe it or not, is a psychic gift.”

“I see.”

She was glad Nate didn't tell Juliett too much more about her gift. Honestly, Avalon was changing every day, getting stronger. As she was growing, so were her abilities, especially when it came to Nathaniel, she was getting more astute. That’s how she knew he was ‘THE ONE’.

“So he knows who I am?” she asked, getting sick to her stomach.

“Not necessarily. He might have crossed your path on the street. On some deep level, we can all spot each other. It’s instinctual.”

“Great. That doesn’t make me feel better. I just want to be me. I’m a nurse. I just want to be there for people.”

She laughed.

“What’s so funny?”

“Just that I completely understand and can sympathize with your situation. I wish there were times where I was completely normal. Instead, I’m like this, but I have a really sexy boyfriend thanks to this gift. It’s not all bad. You have to find the silver lining in your cloud.”

Nate grinned.

He loved when she said ‘boyfriend’.

It was like heaven on her lips, but it wasn’t enough. Nate wanted so much more. He could only imagine how fiancé would sound, or even better…husband.

“This killer is crazy,” Juliett offered. “I’ve seen at least four women being killed. The last one was close to my home.”

Nate made a note to look for similar killings back in her old neighborhood.

“It is the same thing, over and over. He takes, assaults, and then he burns them. I have to watch them suffer, and I can’t do anything about it.”

“I understand,” she offered. “I once saw someone I love being tortured. It was horrible to live through that.” It was worse than horrible. Avalon had to watch Nate offer up his life to save hers. Wade Miller repeatedly broke his body, and she hated having to feel and see it happen.

Nate placed his hand on her shoulder, offering Avalon strength. “It’s okay, Avi. It’s over.”

She was glad.

“I hear them beg. I don’t know what I can do for them. It’s killing me.”

Yeah, speaking of which…they wanted to hear it all, so she wasn’t going to hold back.

“He talks to me.”

Avalon paid attention. “What does he say?”

“Mostly that I’m next.”

Nate didn't like the sound of that.

Juliett continued, “He’s trying to scare me, and I have to say…it’s working. Oracle, you have to help me.”

“It’s actually Avalon. That’s my first name. Oracle is more my work title. I’d really like for you to trust me enough and use it. I hope we can be friends.”

The woman stared at her. “Sure, Avalon, I’ll call you God if you help get me the hell out of here. I want to escape. You have to hide me someplace safe. You’re the FBI. Do something.”

Nate knew that wasn’t possible. First, they couldn’t use any FBI resources.

They were on their own.

Finally, if they were going to find this person, and he did indeed have some psychic skills, then he wasn’t going to stop no matter where they stashed her.

It looked like a head on confrontation to him.  

Avalon sadly shook her head. “The only problem with that is, that if we move you, he’ll follow. You’re the key. He wants you, so we have to say put.”

“Oh, God! I’m never going to get away from this killer. I’m going to be his victim. I can already tell. This is just my destiny, isn’t it?”

Avalon patted her hand. If she was psychically picking up on that, it was likely going to happen. Once the woman felt safe, they might have a shot at swaying fate.

It wasn’t going to be easy.

The only way for her to escape this was to step in and change the outcome.

Avalon knew the odds.

“We can do it,” Nate offered.

“Sure we can,” Avalon added.

“We’re going to have to stay here with you and find him before he gets to you,” Nate continued.

Juliett wanted to throw up.

Her life was in the hands of these three people.

She was so screwed.

Her fate depended on a blind woman, an ex-Marine, and some director whose priority was Oracle.

Great.

She was a dead woman.

“Are you sure you can’t call in the freaking cavalry? No offense, but you three might not be enough to slow him down. He’s really crazy.”

Avalon wasn’t insulted. She had faith in her skills, and the men surrounding her.

Only, she could tell Nate wasn’t feeling so magnanimous. Before she could stop him from speaking, he was already blurting out what was on his mind.

“Here’s a newsflash for you, Ms. Deveraux. We may seem like a small team, but we’re effective. Did you think you could scare him away with a Taser? If we didn't show up, what are the odds that you’d make it through the day?”

She swallowed.

He was absolutely right.

Alone, she had even less of a chance.

“Just being here will keep you safe. He’s not going to make a move on you when you’re with a bunch of people. We’ll flank you, all the while working on this case. It’ll buy you some time until we can find him.”

She opened her mouth and closed it.

“Say what’s on your mind, Juliett,” Avalon said. “You can be honest with us.”

She didn't hold back. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to sound like a total bitch. I’m just really scared. Everything I know is now upside down, inside out, and screwed up. I knew I had a gift, but it was always just for work. I kept it locked away.”

Avalon held her hand. “We’ll get through this. I promise. I won’t let anything happen to you, and the next time you sleep, I’ll make sure he’s not able to find you.”

“You can do that?”

“Yeah, the blind woman has a few tricks up her sleeve,” Nate stated.

Yeah, he still wasn’t happy.

Apology or not, the woman could kiss his ass. No one was insulting Avalon. Not on his watch.

Just as she was about to say something, Jagger returned. Avalon could hear his footsteps approaching. They weren’t hurried, but the normal gait.

She knew there was nothing to worry about.

“Well?” Nate asked when the young man popped into the room.

“We have nothing suspicious around the cabin. There are no footprints, no tire tracks, and no sign of someone lurking. Maybe it was your imagination, Ms. Deveraux.”

She knew it wasn’t.

Juliett trusted her gut.

She’d been on the run for a while, and she knew that feeling. Juliett wanted to bolt. The goose bumps and hair standing on the back of her neck were good indicators of what was happening around her.

“I believe her,” Avalon offered. “It’s different with us, Jagger. You go by that instinct out in the field, right?”

“Sure.”

“We have it too. It’s like a survival mechanism. Remember when I could warn you I was in danger, and then you’d move me?”

“Sure do.”

“It’s my fight or flight response. It’s heightened. Juliett has the same instinct, only she’s not sure what to do with it yet. No one’s ever taught her to use it or to block out a psychic attack.”

She was shaking.

“I need you to close your eyes, Juliett, and think.”

The woman hesitated.

“Trust me. I’ll teach you how to calm yourself.”

She did as Avalon asked.

“Now, are you seeing anything?”

“There’s just darkness. I see nothing but the inside of my eyelids. Are you sure this is going to work?”

Yeah, she was going to be a tough nut to crack, and Avalon knew it. Instead of getting angry, she stayed focused.

Avalon held her hand. “I need you to do everything I say. I want you to change the colors around you. That’s how you control your aura. Picture them morphing from black to red, red to yellow, and then to blue and green.”