Page 110 of It takes a Psychic

“No,” Leona shouted. “Stop.”

But it was clear Burt had no intention of stopping. His trajectory and his crazed determination combined with the raw power of his heavily muscled body should have ensured that he slammed into Oliver. And he would have if Oliver hadn’t sidestepped him.

Burt scrambled to a halt and circled around his target, preparing for another charge.

“We don’t have time for this,” Oliver said quietly. “We’ve got dinner with Leona’s parents tonight. My first time. I need to make a good impression. You know how it is.”

Leona sensed lightning-hot energy crackling in the atmosphere. With it came a thrill of stark panic so overwhelming it left her unable to move. She could barely breathe. In that moment she could not have run or even screamed if her life had depended on it.

She knew she was only getting the backwash of the terrifying currents that struck Burt. He stared at Oliver, horror shattering his entranced aura.

“Monster,”he rasped.

Leona was suddenly stricken with a panic unlike anything she had ever known.

She was locked inside a transparent coffin that was being slowly propelled into a furnace of blazing blue fire…

In the next instant Burt collapsed, unconscious, next to Melody Palantine.

Oliver looked at Leona. It was clear he was braced for her reaction.

She broke free of the dreamscape, damp with perspiration. Relief descended on her with such force it was all she could do to remain on her feet. She planted one hand against the nearest quartz wall.

“Okay,” she said, drawing a deep breath. “That’s one hell of a talent you have, Rancourt. Do you have any idea what Burt just saw?”

“He saw what I wanted him to see: his worst nightmare.”

She frowned, trying to process that. “But what, exactly, did he see?”

“I don’t know. Everyone has their own nightmares. I just rez them. I don’t see them.”

“That explains it, then.”

“You saw a nightmare, too, didn’t you? I tried to focus on Burt but you were not that far away, and the energy down here is so strong and so unpredictable—”

“It’s all right, Oliver.” She took her hand off the wall and rezzed up a shaky smile. “I can handle a bad dream. Griffin women can take care of themselves.”

Some of his tension eased. “Yeah, I can see that. I know you’ve been through a lot, but the Guild and the FBPI will be here at any minute. We need a good story to explain three unconscious people, one that doesn’t involve us being scary monster talents.”

“Right. But first I want my pendant back. Molly can retune it.”

She crossed the room to where Melody lay sprawled on the floor, reached into the pocket of the woman’s jacket, and retrieved the yellow crystal.

She slipped it over her neck and looked at Oliver.

“Now we can work on our story.”

Chapter Fifty

Leona unlocked the door ofher apartment and led the way inside. “I’ve been meaning to ask, how did you find me so quickly today? Palantine flatlined my nav amber and my yellow crystal.”

“I found Roxy first,” Oliver said, following her into the small foyer, “thanks to that ridiculous fascinator. She was just waking up from the effects of the drug Palantine used on the two of you.”

“Right.” Leona smiled at Roxy, who bailed off her shoulder, landed on the floor, and fluttered toward the kitchen. “Molly tuned the blue crystal butterfly in the fascinator. She gave it a nav code primarily because she was afraid the hat might get lost, but also because I spend a lot of time in the Underworld and you can never have too much nav amber and crystals.”

“Evidently it never occurred to Palantine that anyone would bother to tune a fascinator. Roxy led me straight to you.”

Roxy bounced up onto a dining counter stool and then up to the counter. She chortled.

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