Chapter 21
I put on sunscreen three times, but I still came away from the river a little bit sunburned.
Not bad—not as bad as it could have been—and I was thankful I’d kept the windbreaker on despite the fact I got a little too hot at one point.
It saved my arms from sunburn too. What really annoyed me was that baiting Joey out into the open hadn’t worked.
We hadn’t even seen any members of his mob.
Our plan had been a total bust and I wasn’t happy about it.
I was half dead coming back to the cattle ranch, but we’d done everything we could for the river area inside city limits. There would surely be ghosts wandering up and down the whole riverbank, which we’d tackle as we saw them, but for now? Riverbank was done.
I was so thankful I could cry. At least I wouldn’t need to walk my legs off anymore outside. I’d take whatever win I could.
I dragged my sore, tired ass into the building to find someone had once again made dinner. Bless them. It smelled amazing, though I couldn’t identify it by scent. Anything I didn’t have to make was perfect.
My apprentice sat at the table, her craft project spread out on the far end.
Seiji was right there with her, working knots into the cord.
He was such an interesting man. Honestly, if you put him in a suit, he’d look like your average white-collar worker.
Then you strapped swords on him and he looked like a ninja in search of a lord to serve.
Now, in jeans and a shirt, making a necklace, I could buy that he was some sort of new age bohemian who skated by in life.
Was he a chameleon?
But his eyes could apparently see a lot, something I’d been uncertain of myself.
I’d seen something interesting in Gwyn’s aura but wasn’t at all sure what it might be.
I’d figured I’d sit on it until we got home, as Jon surely could tell me.
Nothing got past his eyes. But apparently waiting wasn’t necessary, as we had the answer already. A Psychic Energy Reader, huh?
Wow, she was going to be a lethal combination.
Seiji glanced up as I approached. “Ah, welcome back. Where’s the rest of our river crew?”
“They stopped for gas and beer before coming back. We all voted for beer.”
“But you succeeded?”
“As much as we could today, anyway. Joey, the asshole, never showed up. But we’ll discuss how to deal with him later. So, uh, I have questions?”
Gwyn popped up with a necklace in both hands, and she immediately came in close enough to put it over my head. “If your first question is Where’s my necklace?, I did yours first.”
“Aww, thank you, Gwyn.” Apprentices were the best. She even put it on for me, which was sweet of her. The feel of it was interesting. I could sort of sense the vibration, the energy of the amulet, but couldn’t see a damn thing. It wasn’t spectral energy, after all.
“You’re welcome. Don’t worry, Brandon, I got yours too.
” Gwyn deviated back to the table to seize a necklace with two pendants on it before lifting on her tiptoes to put it on Brandon.
He still had to bend in half, but he smiled the whole time, clearly pleased.
“I just doubled up the necklace so it has one fastener.”
Apparently, Lachlan’s teasing about taking no chances with Brandon being possessed wasn’t entirely in jest. I was with him, though.
The only other person I absolutely did not want possessed was Eli, and she could defeat something before it wiggled its way into her skin.
Well, or Quinn, but Eli would go apeshit on anyone who tried to possess her husband, so same difference.
Brandon straightened and picked up the necklace to get a better look. “This is awesome. So, uh, elephant in the room—I thought I understood what you do, Seiji, but I clearly didn’t ask the right questions. I didn’t expect you to craft necklaces, for instance.”
“I think I only gave you a broad stroke outline of my limitations.” Seiji sat back, hands stilling for a moment as he focused on us.
“In essence, I am a psychic energy manipulator. I can, of course, see energy in all forms, even spectral, but I can also cut, destroy, redirect, or even rebuild energy patterns. It is why I can reverse vortexes, dismantle portals, and destroy energy lockers.”
I pursed my lips in a low whistle. It sounded crazy what he could do, but if you thought about it, really thought about it, this man had the ability to shut off portals to another dimension. Like, I’m sorry, what? This man was like a walking demigod. I wasn’t sure who was more OP, him or Jon.
“Brandon, I assume you said something to Mack?”
“I did,” he confirmed in his deep voice.
“About her being a Psychic Energy Reader?” I indicated Gwyn with a wave of my hand. “Yes, he did. I knew something was up but couldn’t pinpoint it. I thought to wait until Jon could look at her. That’s an incredible skill to have, Gwyn.”
“Seiji’s explained some of what I can do with it,” Gwyn conveyed, nearly bouncing.
She was so different from the child I’d first met—a little girl running scared who was desperate for any helping hand. Now she glowed with hopes and dreams, and I loved seeing it.
I’d support her in all her dreams, one hundred percent. “So what all can you do? Wait, let me shower and eat something, then you can go into depth.”
“Okay! Oh, we made Swedish meatballs with egg noodles.”
“Sounds lovely.” And like something I could eat.
I took a shower and felt better for it. Came back out to find Brandon had beaten me to the kitchen and was already loading up a plate. Everyone else had arrived, too, and were either eating or going for showers themselves. I hadn’t beaten them here by much.
I filled up a plate, snagged a beer, then relaxed into my meal. Ah, this was good. Seiji and Gwyn were apparently good cooks and I appreciated their efforts.
Seiji moved to sit across from me, hands free this time, so he was either done making amulets or taking a break.
“Mack, I have tested her to the extent which I am able. She is quite strong in energy reading. Her eyes need some training, but she has the ability.”
My mouth was full, so I nodded to show I was listening and following. Not sure where he was going with this, though.
“She will never be a chaos magician. She doesn’t have the right combination of skills for it.” Seiji lifted a staying hand. “That said, she can use her eyes to good effect. The lockers, for instance, she can undo once trained.”
I stopped chewing, trying not to gape at the man, but my eyes were in danger of falling out. I beg your fucking pardon?!
“Most of what I do is because I can read the energy. I know what element, what force, to apply for the best effect.” Seiji pointed to the teenager sitting on the couch not five feet away, happily explaining her amulet to an interested Hannah.
“She can do the same. She’ll need more tools, more time, but she can do it. ”
I hastily swallowed to blurt out, “If she was fully trained and on a case just like this one, how much could she do?”
“Hmm…I think everything but that dark creature in the mines. And whatever it’s done to create its lair in the depths.
But she could tackle the rest. It would take her longer, as I said, as she’d need to use more tools to manage.
But it’s feasible. To be precise, she can see energy, and with the right tools, she can destroy, redirect, and rebuild energy patterns.
She won’t be able to handle things like portals or vortexes, as she’s not powerful enough to deal with them.
But she can put up barriers against them, buy time for a true chaos magician to come in.
With the right prep and time, she can handle small stone lockers as well. ”
“Fuck,” I breathed almost reverently. I had no idea my apprentice could become a badass like this.
“Mack, do you know a single Energy Reader?”
“Not like you mean, no. I know a Reader, my brother-in-law, but that’s not the same, right?”
“Hmm, it’s a different type of energy they’re reading. He’s reading life energy, a different subset.” Seiji frowned. “I am sure you can find someone through the agency, but…this sits ill with me.”
My tingling spidey sense said if I spoke the right words, I might be able to keep Seiji. I didn’t know him well, but I had this feeling he’d be an awesome friend. I just had to make some friendly overtures.
“Can you train her?” I batted hopeful eyes.
“Rather, may I?” He glanced longingly over his shoulder. “I am a relative stranger to you, I understand why you might hesitate. Still, the potential I see in her… It feels a travesty to not train her.”
“Seiji, honestly, I’m totally in the dark on how to train her talent.
So if you’re willing to teach her, I think you’re the best fit.
” I could see him hesitating, and it was a bit much to demand this of someone I’d known for a day.
“In truth, she’s my first apprentice. I’m floundering a bit on how to properly train her. I’d be so relieved if you helped me.”
His hesitation faded, replaced with a smile. “I think you’re doing fine, Mack. She’s picking things up quickly, from what I’ve seen, and she had all sorts of stories about you while we were shopping.”
For some reason, his words made me shy, almost embarrassed. “Um, well, thanks. That’s good to hear.”
His tension eased and his expression smoothed out. “I will try and train her while we work here, and if all goes well, then we can discuss how to manage lessons after we separate. How’s that?”
“I think you’ve thought of a great way to handle it.”
“Let us do so. I will bring her mostly with me unless I am going into the mines. The beast down there is not something she should be around until fully trained.”
“Yeah, good call.” Now… “What is the beast in the mines?”
“I do not know.” Seiji made a face, mouth puckered up in distaste. “I wish I did. I am not sure how to combat it, or how we might safely go in after it. Lachlan says hunting for it will be pure barry, whatever that means.”
“Oh. Oh, that’s not good.” I winced and started looking around for Davina. Ah, there she was, in the kitchen behind me. “Davina, correct me if wrong, but doesn’t pure barry mean something epically fun?”
“Aye, that’ll do.” She came closer with a plate of steaming food and plonked herself at the head of the table, joining us. “Why?”
“Lachlan said hunting down the beast in the mines would be pure barry.”
Davina stopped mid-spear of her fork and groaned, head dropping dramatically. “Shite.”
She said that single word like lord deliver us, which basically told me all I needed to know. I knew Lachlan to be an adrenaline junkie; his form of addiction just came with hunting down spookems most normal people would flinch from. Or, you know, run from.
Lachlan clearly overheard some part of this as he sauntered by with a beer in his hand. “What’s this about barry?”
“Beastie in the mines,” Davina clarified while giving her cousin a patented I-knew-he-was-stupid look only family could deliver. “You think it’ll be barry to go in after it.”
“Oh, aye, pure barry.” He looked wistful. “Dark mines that haven’t seen the light of day, ever, a beastie we can’t put name to, intersecting mines with no map and no knowledge of the layout—oh, aye, that’s pure barry.”
Sounded like a fucking nightmare to me, but that was why he was the monster hunter and not me. “So…when do you want to start the hunt?”
“We must do so soon.” Seiji glanced at Lachlan. “I cannot recommend releasing the locker until the beast is subdued.”
Lachlan looked back with open delight.
Now, that said—“Seiji, where’d you grow up?”
“Eh? Uh…” He blinked, visibly switching mental tracks. “New Hampshire, why?”
“Now, I’m from the Deep South, and down where I’m from, the phrase I wouldn’t recommend it means it’s suicidal or close enough. Is that what you’re saying?”
“In essence, you could interpret it that way?” Seiji made a wry face, nose wrinkled up. “Part of the reason why the beast is still in the mines is because it’s trapped there with everything else. But if I release the locker, it’ll release it, too. I do not wish to chase it around this desert.”
“Oh. Yeah, no.” That just sounded like a nightmare. It sent shivers up my spine just contemplating the possibility.
Lachlan sobered. “I say we tackle the beastie tomorrow, Seiji. If we can’t track the beastie or feel like we can’t defeat it, we need to know now. Either call in another expert to help us, or just leave the ghost town alone until another team can come in.”
It was the most sensible thing I’d heard from him today.
Then his shit-eating grin curled his mouth up again. “It’ll make for a fun workday tomorrow, for sure.”
Incorrigible, this man.
Davina sighed. “I guess I’m going with you lot tomorrow.”
“I’d appreciate the backup.” Seiji looked thoughtful. “The idea of calling in another expert to handle this appeals, but I do not even know who to call.”
That was the trick, wasn’t it? I mean, we’d been in a similar situation in the Highlands, which was how I’d met Lachlan. But we’d already paused and waited on an expert. How many experts did it take to handle Black Rock?
Too many. Was too many a valid answer? I thought so.
But this brought up another question. “I feel bad about leaving all the ghosts trapped in the ghost town if you can’t defeat the monster. Would we try to get them out, at least?”
“We can try.” Seiji didn’t look sold on this possibility. “We might run out of time, if you have to hunt down each ghost and hand-carry them through.”
“That’s my main fear,” I admitted on a long, tired sigh. “We’re spending so much time here as it is.”
“Let’s not borrow trouble,” Davina advised. “If we can kill the beastie, then we’ll be in grand shape.”
“True,” I said. “I guess tomorrow will tell?”
“If we can track it down.” Seiji shrugged and pulled his phone out of his pocket. “I will at least attempt to get video of this thing, something to show colleagues. I’d feel better knowing what it is.”
There was a reason for the saying hard to combat the unknown. I just hoped a Scottish Highlander could handle an American monster, because lordy, I did not like the sound of plan B.