Page 39 of Dark Visions

“Would you care for some tea or coffee? Anything?” she asked.

“I’ll grab us some drinks,” said Adam. Dr. Brennan tried to speak casually about the weather until Adam returned, and the whole group focused directly on her.

“Alright then, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit? I mean, I love seeing you both, but now I suspect your friends are here for a reason as well.”

“Dr. Brennan, we need to address what happened with that girl.”

“Deborah, dear.”

“Yes, Deborah.” Aislinn could barely spit out the name, the vile taste of blood and vomit on every syllable. “But first, we’re here to ask you some questions.”

“Alright, dear, I’ll do my best. You know that.”

“Dr. Brennan,” said Adam.

“Angela, dear, I’m just Angela.”

“Angela,” he smiled, “you already know about the gifts that Aislinn and Kane possess, but it seems that Flip and I have our own set of gifts we’ve been able to keep hidden for a while.”

“Yes, child, I know,” she said, casually touching a small, wrinkled hand to the huge forearm of Flip. “The big adorable teddy bear has an incredibly rare gift. You can move things, can’t you, love?”

Flip stared at the older woman, unsure of what to say at first, but then gave a small nod and grin.

“It’s alright, dear. It’s a wonderful gift you’ve been given.” Her small hand continued to set on his forearm, the warmth comforting and reassuring to Flip. “You’ve saved many of your friends with your gift, some who didn’t appreciate it. But you’re loved, my dear, loved by all here.”

Flip looked around the table, his friends smiling at him. He nodded again, smiling down at the tiny little woman. A few flecks of her once strawberry-blonde hair were still visible through her gray, and Flip knew that she once would have been quite beautiful.

“And you, doctor, your gift is the most extraordinary, I believe,” she said, smiling at Adam. Aislinn looked at Kane and then Adam. Somehow, Dr. Brennan was able to pick up on the energy of all four at the table. “The ability to diagnose and heal is not one I’ve ever come across.”

She spoke the words casually as if she were discussing the weather.

“My sister came across it once. It was many years ago. An old woman on one of the outer islands of Scotland. The story was that she had been on the island for more than a hundred years curing people. It seemed impossible, of course, but when my sister arrived, she found a woman that looked to be in her eighties. She had a small cottage on the north end of the island and saw all the sick, both on the island as well as neighboring islands.”

“But she couldn’t be over one hundred,” said Aislinn in a questioning tone.

“Why not, child? Just because we’ve never encountered those that have lived that long, doesn’t mean there isn’t someone. The world is full of strange and unusual things. Things that we don’t understand. Things that boggle our minds. It doesn’t make them any less real.” Aislinn smiled at the other woman and nodded her head.

“Doctor, Angela, is it possible that Kane is a dream walker? I… we thought perhaps since he can follow me in my dreams, that perhaps…” Dr. Brennan shook her head.

“It’s unlikely,” she said calmly. “Dream walkers can travel into everyone’s dreams. It’s my understanding that you’ve only been able to see into Aislinn’s dreams, correct?” Kane nodded.

“I think you are more of a conduit for her, as we discussed before. You have a similar ability. Kane, you feel evil when you touch someone. You know whether it’s a great evil or a small evil, if there is such a thing. Aislinn doesn’t feel the evil. She sees it. When you’re together, you’re able to draw on one another’s gifts.”

“I see,” said Kane, frowning. “So, if we weren’t together?”

“If you weren’t together, your gifts would be overwhelming and perhaps even… Well, gifts such as yours have been known to drive men mad.”

Kane nodded again. There had been moments in his lifetime where he did indeed believe he was going mad, losing his sanity. Since meeting Aislinn, things seemed more in control, clearer.

“And you, my big friend,” she said, smiling up at Flip. “You’ve been fighting your gift for many years, haven’t you? Stop fighting it, child. It’s an extraordinary gift. One that can be used for good or evil. You have used it for good, and that says a great deal about your character. Stop. Fighting. It.”

“It’s hard,” said Flip quietly. “People find out, and they…”

“They leave? Well, then, what a wonderful way of identifying true friends,” she said, smiling. “And you, good doctor, you’ve done exactly what you should. Taking your gift to its fullest potential and helping others. It’s remarkable, truly.”

“Angela,” Aislinn interrupted, “is it possible that we are all better with our gifts when we’re around one another? We seem to have some sort of symmetry.”

“It is quite possible,” said Angela, “but not necessarily because you enhance one another. More because you accept one another. You are less concerned about revealing your gifts or discussing them.”

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