Oracle Seeing (The Phoenix Files Book 2) (9 page)

Nate looked at Avalon.

Shit!

She couldn’t do that either.

“My heart was never hers. Then when I was finally able to come to grips with it, this happened. The woman who was so interested in marrying me took one look at the monster I’d become, and she bolted. This, this, isn’t an easy thing to deal with.”

“It wouldn’t bother me,” Avalon offered. “Maybe it bothers you so much that you’re giving off that
‘keep away’
vibe. You should chill. Girls dig pirates, right, Maura?”

She laughed. “Oddly, yes, yes, we do. If they have a parrot, even better,” she teased.

Even Luke stared at her.

He might be joining his partner in losing his mind. It was all fun and games when Avalon was checking out the guy, but when Maura did it, he was going to shit a brick.

“I think I’ve met people crazier than my ancestors. I didn’t think it was possible, but here we are…”

“Let’s focus,” growled Nate.

The man got the hint.

They let him continue.

“My mother had the gift. She didn’t use it. She refused. It still took her out. It still drove her mad.”

“It won’t drive you mad,” Avalon offered. “They didn’t know how to control it. I can help you. Once you can keep it in check, you can keep it separate from your life.”

“What life? I’ll never have one. This is a curse, and I’m destroyed. I scare children when I leave the manor. I’m a prisoner here.”

Avalon felt the darkness.

It was creeping up in him.

“Close your eyes and focus on your aura. I want you to force it to go from red and orange to cool blue.”

He did what she said.

Why?

He didn’t know.

Maybe she could help him. What did he have to lose at this point? His sanity and Graymoor were the only two things he had left.

As soon as he did what she said, the calm came.

The voices got quieter.

“It’s like tuning a radio,” she offered. “If you let the crappy stations in, they’ll mess with your mind and you’re stuck singing the same song over and over. You have to find the easy listening music and that quiets the demons.”

He smiled at her analogy. “Thank you, Avalon. You’re amazing.”

Yeah, Nate was aware.

As in she was his amazing…

“It’s my pleasure. I’m so glad I can help you out. This is what I’ve always wanted to do.”

“You said you worked for the government. What did you do?”

Maura cut in. “Classified.”

He laughed. “Yeah, because I’ll be running out and telling the world.”

Avalon trusted him.

He was a good person.

“I helped the last few Presidents of the United States navigate a few tricky situations.”

They all stared at her.

He laughed. “This has to be your biggest challenge.”

“Getting Nate to stop scowling at me is my biggest challenge. The rest is cake.”

Nate closed his mouth.

Damn it!

He wasn’t sure he liked how she could now see him.

When she yawned, the team knew she needed to rest. Maura especially wanted to get her somewhere private. There was a test in her bag, and she needed Avalon to pee on the stick.

“We should get to a hotel.”

“Where’s a good one?” Nate asked. “We could drive back to the home base.”

“Why don’t you stay here?” Lucian asked.

He wasn’t sure why he offered.

Then again, he was.

Having Avalon there had given him an iota of peace. For that, he’d let them have the damn house.

“We can’t…”

Avalon cut Nate off. “I’d love to stay here. Maybe you can let me wander around too. There are spirits here who are trying to communicate. I can feel them. I might be able to help them get free.”

“Have at it. I’ll show you upstairs,” he offered.

Avalon held out her hand, and he took it.

As they walked out of the room, Maura threw her hand over Nate’s mouth the second he opened it.

“Don’t do it,” she warned. “You will regret it the second it comes out, and we don’t need this kind of drama. Think about the job and put your ego away. She’s handling the situation. Lucian is a tough nut, and she’s all but cracked it. Don’t make her job harder.”

His eyes said it all.

When he mumbled something, she moved her hand.

“That’s my fiancée. I think I’m entitled to ask them not to hold hands. It’s hard to think about work when the woman who’s angry at me, for who knows what reason, is off with some other psychic man sharing private thoughts.”

It sounded worse when he said it out loud.

Jesus!

It was a million times worse now.

Shit!

“You are really bad at reactions, Nate. The second you say a word to her, you’re going to blow it out of proportion. Avalon is working. She’s got a lot on her mind. Cut her a break.”

That made him suspicious.

That was the same line Avalon had handed him earlier on their way there.

Now he knew something was going on. If there was someone on the team that Avalon would talk to, it would be Maura. She was a mother hen, but she was also the only other woman.

He played it cool.

“You’re right. Let’s get the gear and get settled in. It’s been a long day, and tomorrow is going to be a mess.”

“Good. Stay calm,” she warned.

Yeah, tonight was going to be a mess as soon as he got Avalon back to their room. He was going to be far from calm.

“Great. Let’s go.”

They headed outside. On the way out, they saw Lucian escorting Avalon up the grand staircase.

“I’m going to blow,” Nate muttered to his partner.

Luke didn’t doubt it in the least.

For his partner, it wasn’t if, but when, and they could see it coming.

Nate was a ticking time bomb.

And Avalon was the already lit fuse.

When he went off, the blowback was going to be a bitch. There was no doubt about that.

Upstairs, Lucian pointed at some rooms, and then he remembered she was blind. “Sorry! It’s habit. I don’t get many visitors, so I don’t spend much time talking either. I never noticed it before now.”

“That’s okay, Lucian. I can see them. I’m using your eye. You’d be amazed how many times people forget I’m blind. I spend a lot of time reading auras to get a clue.”

He could only imagine.

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.”

“How do you deal with it?”

“Being a freak?” she asked, seeing his thoughts in his head. It was clear he was struggling with who and what he’d become. Part of getting him to heal was helping him change his focus. There was a woman out there for him.

She was meant to be his. That’s why this all happened. He just didn’t realize it yet. This all lead to that one moment in time, where he would finally have peace.

Love.

Calm.

Life
.

“Yeah.”

“I see it as a gift. When you stop looking at the curse, it changes your perspective. My mother and grandmother abused me. They treated me as if I was nothing to them. I was locked in a room, barely fed, and the family’s dirty secret.”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up,” he said, feeling horrible. That had to have been a nightmare for her. He’d at least had love at one time.

“Why are you sorry? Because of all that, I found the love of my life, I got my freedom, and I’ve been able to help others like me. Because of that pain, I have this. It’s worth it. This is my fairytale, and I plan on making the most of it.”

“It had to be hard,” he offered.

“Oh, it was. My father tried to kill me, and Nate nearly died to save me. On that day, when he nearly succumbed to the torture, I realized that I was valuable—to him.”

Lucian knew he’d never have that. Despite what she said, he’d never have a woman who would see the real him. At one time, there’d been hope, but it died that day.

It would never come back.

Who would love him?

He was a monster.

He was a beast.

Avalon heard his thoughts. Instead of speaking, she did something to bend fate. She whispered one word through his mind.

‘Bishop.’

It was planted.

She would be his light. If he really thought he was a beast, she would bring the beauty to his story. It was only a matter of time. What was meant to be would save him, but he’d need to be open for it.

“Which room is mine?” she asked.

He pushed open a door. “This one, if you like it. Your team will be surrounding you. Your room and Nate’s are side by side.”

“We’ll share a room. He’s my fiancée. We’re getting married.”

“Then why are you avoiding him?” Lucian asked.

Well, this sucked.

Apparently, he could read her too.

“Stress.”

“I think it’s more. You feel scared. If you’d like to talk, I at least owe you that, Avalon. We freaks have to stick together.”

She didn’t want to talk to anyone but Nate. She needed to see him smile. She wanted to curl into his body and feel safe. The longer she waited, the worse it would be.

She was pretty sure she was pregnant.

Again, she was feeling sick. Then again, it could be how angry Nate felt. Maybe she was picking up his vibes, and the stress of the whole situation.

Well, she could hope.

“I appreciate that, Lucian, but let’s worry about your situation. Mine will be fine.”

For now…

He let it go.

“I’ll help them get your things from your vehicle. In case I forget to say something when this is all over, Avalon, thank you for helping me through this. I’ll never be able to express my gratitude.”

She patted his hand. “It’s my pleasure.”

When Lucian left, she started scanning the voices. There was one that she had to find, and soon.

The name Bishop was familiar.

She’d heard it before.

And now she knew where.

The woman had her own gift.

Bishop was in the static, and she was going to find her.

Chapter Four

When Nate got upstairs, Luke not far behind him, he dropped his and Avalon’s things in the room that Lucian had assigned them. Honestly, he was a little shocked to see that the man didn’t pick a room for Avalon beside his own, so she could be closer.

After all, he had the power in his own home.

Instead, Lucian directed them to where his room was, across the house and on the other side, in case they should need him.

That gave Nate a little peace of mind. Maybe he was freaking out for no reason whatsoever. After all, he was stressed about the situation. It might be all in his mind.

As they headed into the room, Avalon was nowhere to be found.

Her shoes were off, her purse was there, but she was gone. Immediately, the fear came back. That was completely unlike her. Normally, she’d be waiting for him.

They did everything together.

Her new behaviors really freaked him out.

“Stay calm,” Luke ordered.

“I feel like I’m losing her. She’s hiding something, Luke. I don’t know what the hell I’ve done.”

Luke couldn’t even begin to help him out. When it came to women, he was clueless. Just because he was married didn’t mean that he understood them.

They were a mystery to him too. All Luke really knew was that he loved Maura, she smelled really amazing, and when they came together, it was like an explosion.

What happened in
‘Woman-Land’
, other than that, was not something he was privy too. Being the only two babes on their team, the ladies kept it close to the cuff—and probably for good reasons. The men tended to be a little over the edge.

Here was the proof.

As Nate paced back and forth, Luke knew that he should probably try to calm his friend down.

Wasn’t that part of the
‘bro-code’
?

“I’m sure you’re being paranoid,” he said. “If something was going on, you’d know for sure. We don’t keep secrets on the team.”

Nate gave him the look.

Before he could argue, they he heard it.

Both Feds were still wearing their earbuds, and Avalon was mic’d up. The second the men heard her voice, they both stopped moving.

“Maura, can we talk? Did you get it? I’m scared.”

Then there was static as the buds went offline.

Nate’s blood pressure shot right up.

Well shit!

“See? I’m not being paranoid. Something is going on, and I’m going to get to the bottom of it.”

Luke purposely got in his way, blocking the door. He lowered his voice in a last-ditch effort to slow the runaway Nate train.

He knew the derailment would be ugly—it always was.

“Before you do something stupid, let me talk to Maura and get some information. You tend to fly off the handle when it comes to Avalon. You’re going to do something so irrational that you’re going to regret it.”

They’d seen it happen before.

Nate was bad with staying calm. It was the opposite of his normal nature. The man was ice—unless it had something to do with Avalon or her safety. Then he was a berg breaking off and floating down the damn river to his own demise.

“Let me through, Luke. I don’t want to create a scene, but I’m going to get to the bottom of this.”

He moved right, and when Luke did the same, he moved around him. He was in the hall and headed toward Maura’s room before his partner could stop him.

He didn’t knock.

Instead, he threw the door open.

“Where is she?”

“Uh, could you knock?” Maura asked, pulling her t-shirt over her head. “I was getting dressed.”

He didn’t care.

“Where is Avalon?”

“Nate,” Luke said, grabbing his arm.

“I know something is going on. I can feel it. Then I just heard her over the com. If she’s afraid, why am I not being told? I’m running this. This is my team. She’s my responsibility.”

“It’s our team, Nathaniel,” Avalon said, coming out of the bathroom.

“Go back in, Avi. I’ll kick his ass, and we’ll finish our conversation in private,” Maura suggested.

“No, you won’t,” Nate said, moving toward his fiancée.

He was furious.

No, he was three days past that.

His team, well, the women, were up to something, and it ended here.

Maura moved to stand in front of Avalon. It was a very protective stance, and Luke knew what was going to happen. He’d seen his wife brace for a fight a few times. With her, she didn’t pull punches. If his best friend kept moving toward her, he was screwed.

“Nate,” he warned.

It went unheeded.

Here came that derailment. Luke had been right.

When his partner went to push past Maura, she spun him, put him in a headlock, and then flipped him over her shoulder until he slammed into the floor.

The thud was super loud, as was the shocked sound coming from Avalon.

“Nathaniel!” she gasped, rushing to his side. She dropped to her knees and touched his face to see if he was all right.

“You’re leaving me, aren’t you?” he asked, his eyes filling with tears. “You’ve stopped loving me.”

Luke grabbed his wife’s arm. “Come on, GI Jane. You’re going to hurt someone someday. They need their privacy.”

“I’m not leaving her. He was angry.”

“Maura, go,” Avalon said, wiping Nate’s wet cheeks. “I’m safe.”

When the door closed, Avalon focused on his aura. It was ice cold. He was hurt and devastated.

“Nathaniel.”

“What did I do? I’ve tried to be the best fiancé I could be. I’ve given you space, I didn’t push the wedding, and I’ve loved you with all I have. Why are you leaving me? Why are you scared? If you hate me, I’ll set you free, Avalon. I love you too much to let you suffer. I didn’t save you to cage you. I saved you to love you until my last days on this Earth.”

Her eyes filled with tears.

She hated that she’d made him a mess over this. He was stressed. She could feel his heart beneath her hand. It was thumping wildly.

Nate was ready to break.

“I can tell I’ve already lost you. We came here, and you’re fawning over another man. You’re holding his hand, you’re turning from me, and I don’t know how to stop it. This is my worst nightmare. I’ve lost my heart. I’ve lost the only woman I’ve ever loved.”

“Oh, Nathaniel, I’m so damn sorry. You have this all wrong. Lucian is work. My interaction with him isn’t personal. He needs help to heal. He’s so close to breaking that my intent was to guide him onto the path until she could get here.”

He was confused.

“Who is she?”

“The woman he’s meant to be with.”

“Avalon.”

He wanted to weep.

“It’s not me, silly. I’m meant to be with you. He’s waiting for Bishop.”

He stared at her.

Again, there was that name.

“Really?”

She nodded. “He’s supposed to be with her. She’s going to heal him, and she’s the other part of this puzzle. Without her, we can’t solve this. We need his gift, plus hers, and mine.”

He was confused.

“She has a gift?”

“Yes, but not like ours. Her gift is what she’s going to do for him. His gift is what he’ll do to help us find the killer, and my gift is going to keep us all on track with the goal in mind.”

He listened to her.

After their last case, he had learned to trust her ability to figure out how a case needed to be run. Plus, when they didn’t listen, a man nearly died.

They didn’t want to go there again. When it came to the people involved in an assignment, they let Avalon focus on that.

“Then why are you afraid? Why are you telling me that you don’t want to get married?”

“Wait! I never said I didn’t want to get married. I just don’t know when we
should
get married.”

He sat up. “I need the truth, Avi. I’d never keep anything from you.”

“You can’t keep things from me.”

Yeah, he was aware.

“That’s more of a reason why I shouldn’t have to have this fear. If you love me, you’ll let me in.”

“Oh, Nathaniel, I’ve never loved anyone more. When I wake up, I think only of you. When I go to sleep beside you, I’m thinking about our future and how lucky I am.”

“You won’t let me touch you.”

She understood it. He was relating their relationship to the lack of sex they’d been having as of late. Well, she had a damn good reason for it.

“I’m sick.”

Those two words nearly made him throw up. His biggest fear was losing her, and Avalon being sick…

Jesus.

“What kind of sick? Do you need a doctor? Do you need a kidney? You can have mine. Hell! You can have my damn heart, Avi. I’d die and give you anything you needed to survive. That’s how much I love you.”

She handed him the bag behind her back.

He opened it.

Inside was a pregnancy test.

He stared at it, and then he stared at her.

“Wait. You’re sick-sick, as in morning sickness sick not dying sick?”

She laughed. “Was that really a sentence? Can you use the same word five times, and it’s really okay?”

“
AVALON
! Now is not the time to screw with me. I’m having a stroke. You just handed me a pregnancy test and my mind is racing!”

She ran her fingers down his cheek. “Oh, Nathaniel, and this is why I love you. You jumped to conclusions,
AGAIN
. You mean well and have a giant heart. How could I ever fall out of love with you? You make me so happy.”

He was focused on the test.

“Were you going to tell me?”

“I went to Maura for help. If I had a stomach bug, I didn’t want you freaking out and taking me to a surgeon. I figured with this issue, it was better to err on the side of caution. She got me the test.”

“And are you?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t pee on it, and Lucian’s not here for me to use his eyes. I can’t see it even if I did. Maura was going to help me, and then I was going to tell you.”

Well, at least that made sense.

Nothing else that day had.

In that moment, he was sure he was going to have that stroke. His mind was racing, as was his heart, and Nate didn’t know what to think.

If Avalon was pregnant…

Jesus.

If this didn’t kill him, nothing would. Only he didn’t have the luxury of being freaked out. He knew she was afraid, and that meant taking over and leading.

He took control.

“So we need to take the test. We’ll go from there, and figure the rest out as we go.”

She held his hands and felt a million times better. Nate’s aura was changing, and he was back in control. For this, she could let him lead.

He’d keep her safe.

Nathaniel would take care of her like he always did.

“Can we do it back at our room? Maura is outside, and she’s still likely to kick your ass.”

“Yeah, about that…that’s so not right. I can’t hit her, but she can beat on me? We have to change that rule.”

“Try it, and I’ll kill you,” she shouted from outside the door.

Avalon laughed. “Our room?”

“Yes!” He helped her up, and then scooped her up in his arms. He was so damn happy. Even if she wasn’t pregnant, she didn’t stop loving him.

This was a bump in the relationship road.

They could navigate this.

Outside, he stopped in front of Maura. “Thank you for taking care of her. I know why you did it, and I accept that.”

The stern look disappeared. “I love Avalon. She’s like my sister. I’m sorry I kicked your sorry FBI ass. I’m embarrassed for you.”

Luke pinched her.

“I mean, I’m sorry I hurt you and put my hands on you. I shouldn’t have done it.”

Luke laughed.

Nate kissed her on the cheek. They were family.

Hell!

She was his brother-in-law’s sister. He couldn’t stay mad. After all, he had other things to worry about.

Avalon was pregnant.

In the field working.

And in danger.

Holy shit!

It was his fear trifecta.

“Can we go? I really have to pee,” Avalon said, resting her head on Nate’s shoulder.

He carried her into their room and locked the door. “Okay, let’s take a test.”

He opened the box and with very nervous fingers, he pulled out the stuff.

There was a cup.

A stick.

And about six pages in instructions.