Page 19 of Dark Shaman: Love Found
"So," Naomi said once everyone had full plates, "what exactly would 'taking over our case' involve?"
Carol set down her chopsticks, giving the young woman her full attention. "Support as you explore your abilities. Resources to live comfortably while you decide what comes next. Medical care if you need it. Think of us as facilitators."
"Facilitators of what?" Abigail's energy-reading abilities probably gave her insights into emotional states. Her gaze moved between Carol and Lokan with sharp intelligence.
"Your potential," Lokan said, his first real contribution to the group conversation. "The realization of the potential you might carry in your special genes."
"Our potential to live forever?" Sofia asked. "That's what Eleanor and Emmett said. Some of us might have genes that prevent aging."
"Might being the operative word," Eleanor interjected. "Nothing's guaranteed. But the possibility exists, and Carol and Lokan will help with the testing."
"What happens if we don't have these magic genes?" Spencer asked.
Carol wondered what their energy signatures looked like to him. "There is a special project that I started working on that some of you might be interested in. The rest of you can return to your civilian lives with our gratitude for your participation."
"We can't talk about the program," James said. "We can't goback to our old lives knowing what we know. We're in limbo."
"Why not?" Carol put her chopsticks down. "People retire from special forces and spy organizations and take the secrets they know to their graves. You can certainly return to normal lives, even with knowledge of various interesting things that you will have to keep to yourself." She smiled. "You can organize group meetings and talk about the olden days among yourselves."
"That's true," Mollie said. "What did you do before this? You have the vibe of a performer, an actress. You don't feel like a handler."
Laughing, Carol patted her curls and batted her eyelashes. "I've done many things, and they all required some acting talent, so you are right on the money."
Mollie's eyes widened. "You were a spy?"
"Among other things."
"What about you?" James asked Lokan.
"I was in...acquisitions."
Jeremy laughed. "Acquisitions. What did you acquire?"
"Whatever my employer needed," Lokan said.
The table fell silent as the paranormals recalculated their first impressions of them, recognizing them as kindred spirits. They'd all operated in the shadows and lived with secrets.
"How long are we going to stay here?" Andy asked.
"For as long as is needed," Carol said. "No need for dramatic changes until you're ready."
"If we're ready," Dylan corrected, and Carol wondered if his gift was on fire in this room full of half-truths and secrets.
"If," Carol agreed. "We need to do some testing, but no one is going to do anything that you don't agree to."
The word 'testing' had the entire group tense up, and Eleanor rushed to clarify.
"The testing process is safe. We've had multiple successful transitions with no casualties."
"Transitions?" Abigail caught the term immediately.
"Casualties?" James added.
"From normal to enhanced," Eleanor covered smoothly. "If you carry the dormant genes, they can be activated."
"How?" Spencer leaned forward, dinner forgotten.
This was the tricky part. Carol decided on limited honesty. "A biological catalyst. Think of it as jumpstarting a system that's been dormant."
