Tethered (A BirthRight Novel) (25 page)

“We
all
do the ‘eye thing’, but I didn’t think you saw me. I never took my eyes off you.” Dhelia sounds shocked he fooled her.

Hunter smiles, triumph glinting in his eyes. “Let’s just say, I have
impeccable
peripheral vision.”

“What did you figure out next, dear?”

He turns to me, looking down at the ground for a second. “Well, Chloe was a tad more difficult. I had my suspicions on the second day when I saw her outside on the bench at the hospital. But it wasn’t until a few days later when I saw her sleeping in Sam’s room that I knew for sure.” He locks eyes with me. “You ‘see’ things. I get the feeling it’s both past and future things, but I’d say
mostly
future. You talked in your sleep about ‘masked strangers’, but I still have no clue what it means. When I’ve been around you and you’ve seen something, your body language isn’t always consistent. The one thing that
is
, though, is how you stiffen up...as if you’re preparing yourself for pain.” He pauses, unease spreading his taut mouth.

“The night Ash and Aidan came to town and we were all sitting here talking, I noticed you doing it. Then you asked me to go to the store for you. I figured it must have been something you needed to tell your family right away. Then when I came back and things were so intense with Michael, I figured you must have seen him coming. And then there was
last
night, of course. You
really
freaked me out, you know. I knew you were seeing something by your closed eyes and body language, but the way you thrashed like you were in pain scared me.” He puts his hand on my knee while searching my eyes.

I look away, his hand automatically retreating.

“I
was
in pain, but not the way you think. I was seeing and feeling things through Mr. Russo. Something horrible happened to him and I felt it all.” I shiver at the memory.

“I’m so sorry you had to find out about me that way. I
swear
I was planning to tell you. I needed to be sure the case was closed first, and then I was going to tell you
everything
.”

His eyes appear glassy. Are they filling up with tears? God, I can’t take seeing him this way again. And I can’t let him get to me right now.

I look away, desperate to avoid his eyes.

He takes the hint, focusing his attention back on the family.

“There’s something else about Chloe, but I haven’t been able to put my finger on it. It’s the same for you, Aurora. I feel power in you, but I can’t tell exactly what it is. As far as Morgan, Ash, and Aidan go, I’ve never been around you when you’ve used your power, but I know it’s there. There’s a strong energy that radiates from you.”

“Wait a minute,” Aunt Morgan interrupts. “What aren’t you telling us, Hunter? How do you
feel
these things?”

Hunter clears his throat. “I have a few more secrets I suppose.” I feel his eyes on me, but I don’t look. “I’m able to ‘read’ people, but not in the same way any of you can. If someone uses magic around me, I know what it is right away. Other people can take a little longer, but I read it on them eventually...which is why I’m on the unit I am at the FBI. Once they figured out I could read people, they found the perfect place for me. Granted, they don’t realize the extent of my ability, but they know it’s a quality few possess.” He looks at me for a reaction, but I have none. At this point—nothing surprises me.

“Well, that’s very interesting indeed.” Aunt Morgan nods. Then she gets up from her seat, walking around the table to where Hunter sits. She places her hand on his shoulder then closes her eyes.

What on earth is she doing?

Hunter’s face lights up with excitement. A few seconds later, Aunt Morgan opens her eyes, pulling her hand away.

“I had no idea you were a reader. Yours is different though. You can see where I’ve been...what I’ve done. That’s
awesome
!” His face glows with anticipation.

How is that even possible?

Shouldn’t he be running for the hills by now?

“Well, this one is new to me. I only found out a few days ago I could do it. It also works on objects. I can touch anything and tell you whatever you want to know about it,” Aunt Morgan reveals with a joyous voice.

“Oh, really? We sure could use someone with your abilities on our team at the bureau. Imagine the murders we could solve if you could read the evidence.” Hunter sounds like a little boy who just got his first video game.

“You’re
right
. You know, I
never
thought about it that way. Well, maybe we can talk about it some other time,” Aunt Morgan says, glancing at the spectators.

“Wait a minute. You said ‘this one’ is new to you. Does that mean you have another power?” Hunter asks, a curious twinkle lighting up his eyes.

Aunt Morgan shrugs, modesty written across her rosy cheeks. “Yes, I do. But I haven’t used it for more than twenty-one years.” She takes a deep breath. “It’s Mind Control.”

Hunter’s eyes widen. No doubt from the same surprise I’m experiencing. “Mind control? If you’ll forgive me for asking, why didn’t you use your power on the Russo’s then? Couldn’t you have forced them to accept the family and not be afraid?” His brows scrunch together.

“Of course I
could
have, but there are two reasons why I didn’t. The first is because of the whole ‘
personal gain’
rule, which we take very seriously. The second is because I wanted them to accept us on their own.” She picks at the label on her water bottle. “Sure, there’s a lot we could have done to change the outcome—but at the time—I guess I didn’t want to. After I received the letter I
thought
was from Michael, I didn’t care anymore. Thinking he no longer loved me broke my heart. I gave up on
everything
. Perhaps the path would have been a different one, if not for that.” She shrugs again.

“Letter?” Hunter asks.

“Oh, that’s right. You don’t know about that. Long story short, Mr. Russo wrote letters to break up Michael and me, which is why Michael didn’t know about the boys.” She rubs her hands while staring at her sons.

“I suppose I can understand that.” Hunter sounds somewhat embarrassed.

“Now that I’ve answered
your
question, don’t you think it’s time to share what I saw when I touched you?” Aunt Morgan eyes Hunter like an impatient mother.

“Yes, yes. I was planning to tell them at the
end
, but I guess now works, too.”

“You have
another
secret?” Are you kidding me? My god, I don’t think I can take anything else today.

“Well, it’s not really
another
secret, but it’s the reason
why
I’m able to read people. It’s something very different from the powers you all have, so I hope it doesn’t freak anyone out.” With timid hands, he touches my arm with his fingertips. “I’m still me, Chloe, so please remember that.”

What’s
that
supposed to mean?

Hunter gets up. He takes a few steps back, giving himself room for something. But what? As we wait to see what he’s up to, a strange crackling sound comes from his direction.

What the…!

Right before our eyes, he contorts and thrashes all over the place. I’ve never seen anything like it.

Then he stops.

I look around the room at my family, mouths gaping open in shock just like mine.

How in the hell did he just do that?

I turn my head back to Hunter, but the overwhelming sight makes me dizzy—like I’m going to faint.

I’m looking at
myself,
standing not more than ten feet in front of me. What the hell was that?

“That was so clutch! I can’t believe you’re a Shape-shifter!” Ash squeals with excitement.

“I
knew
there was a reason I liked you. That is
truly
awesome, dude.” Aidan shrieks.

But I’m numb.

I see myself, but I know it’s Hunter. I never imagined Shape-shifters truly existed. How is this even possible?

“So what else can you turn into?” Dru asks, like a little boy seeing his favorite super hero.

“Yeah, what about animals? Can you turn into a rabbit or a wolf?” Dhelia bubbles over with anticipation.

Before Hunter speaks, he returns to his normal shape. “I can pretty much turn into
anything.
As long as I can visualize it, I can turn into it.”

“Well, Mr. Payne, it would seem we aren’t the
only
ones with a secret to keep. I would assume the FBI doesn’t know about
that
special gift?” Gram asks, her mocking tone makes us chuckle.

Hunter laughs. “Um, no. You would be right. I don’t think they would see it quite the same way you do. Even though it’s been more than useful in my undercover work, I wouldn’t want to freak them out. Actually, the only other people who know about it are my family. That’s it. I’ve never shared it with
anyone
.
Ever!
”

Oh, that’s such a load of bull. “Then why are you now?” I ask, with just a hint of disdain in my voice.

“Because it’s only fair, Chloe. Plus, I want you and your family to trust me. By sharing
my
secret, we’re all on a level playing field.”

“We appreciate your honesty, Hunter. I’m sure I speak for
most
of the family when I say...it’s wonderful. Now it makes so much sense why we were so drawn to you from the second we met you. We’re kindred spirits.” Gram smiles, adoration consuming her feminine features.

Hunter puts his hands in his pockets. “To tell you the truth, I don’t usually come across people like us. Sure, I’ve seen people who have stolen or
borrowed
power, but not those who were born with it like we were. It’s truly special.”

“Well, now you know why you can’t figure out what my gift is. I don’t have an active or passive power, per se. My natural gift is with mother earth. I’ve always known the exact ingredients to use for spells and potions. Some Witches need years of research on herbs and the elements to understand what they can do. I was
born
with the knowledge and have successfully used it over the years.” Gram stands before him, proud of who she is. “I can also sort of ‘read’ and ‘sway’ people, but it’s more influence than ability.”

“So that just leaves us with Ash and Aidan. I get the feeling there’s something truly unique about them, but I can’t put my finger on it. When I’m around Ash, I think about Magicians for some reason. With Aidan, I get these images in my head of him being in a thousand different places—different moments in time. Does that
mean
anything?”

Gram lifts her hands to her cheeks. “Yes, it does, actually. You see a Magician with Ash because he’s a Conjurer. Only, he doesn’t need any sort of gimmick to make things appear. And Aidan is a Teleporter, which explains why you see him in so many places. As far as the different moments in time, perhaps time-travel is part of it. It would make sense. We’ve recently learned a
lot
of new information about our gifts. So, we have a lot of experimenting to do.” Gram rubs her hands together, most likely contemplating the vast possibilities before us.

“Really, Gram? Do you
really
think I might be able to time-travel?” I’ve never seen Aidan so anxious.

“Hunter hasn’t been wrong about anything so far, so I’d say it’s worth looking into, dear.” Gram winks his way.

“Aren’t you kids forgetting one
very
important gift we just found out about? From the night that nosey son-of-a-bitch across the street spied through the windows?” Pap speaks up for the first time since Hunter arrived.

Gram squeezes Pap’s arm as she remembers. “Oh, that’s right. Okay, everyone sit back down so I can tell Hunter what
really
happened that night.”

We obey.

But before she begins, she jumps off her chair and opens the fridge. “Does anyone need a drink?”

“Sure, I’d love some lemonade if you have it.” Hunter says.

“Yeah, me too, Gram.” I swallow, brutally aware of my cotton mouth.

Anyone else?” She sits the pitcher on the table. “Okay. I won’t bore you with
all
the details. But the night we brought Samuel back from the hospital, I decided I wanted to try a spell or two, on the off chance there might be something we could do to bring him out of his coma.

“The first spell didn’t do anything, so I remembered something I’d heard a long time ago about our ancestors. Apparently, most of our Wiccan descendants are buried on this land...and it turns out their unused powers have just been sitting around waiting for us to call upon them.”

Hunter’s eyes widen in surprise.