Page 56 of The Pansy Paradox
What if she’s been wrong all this time? What if, Ophelia wonders, it’s Pansy.
The Sight unclenches its fist around her mind, because there are only so many scenes she’s allowed to see in The Last Days of Henry Darnelle, a highlight reel, if you will. But as the images swirl before her, Ophelia vows to try anything, to do all she can. If this truly is the last time she’ll witness these events, then there’s nothing to lose.
She’ll be back. And God help the man who put her here in the first place.
Ophelia will fight him every step of the way.
Chapter 25
Pansy
King’s End, Minnesota
Tuesday, July 11
Agent Darnelle—or, rather, Henry—hasn’t responded. His expression is remote, and perhaps he’s back there at the cemetery, reliving those moments.
And I am so, so sorry.
“I don’t know why it showed me that,” I say. “The Sight can be cruel”—certainly, in this instance, it is—“but it often has a reason, too.”
“Yes.” His sigh is heavy. “I know.”
The scene will linger now, like a memory, one I won’t forget anytime soon. I hear the hiss of insidious gossip, feel the patter of rain against my cheeks, the sting from the Screamers. I want to ask why everyone there was so inept, so blindsided by the attack. Well, everyone except Henry. Before I can, he speaks.
“My sister, Ophelia.”
“What?”
“You asked who I know with the Sight.”
“She’s on some sort of research sabbatical, right?” I’m curious about what she’s doing, and if it involves the Sight. I suspect it does. When he raises an eyebrow, I add, “When you came to town, I maybe took a look at your profile.”
This earns me a half-smile. “I’d expect no less.” But his expression is far too grim, his French toast grows cold on his plate, and his eyes hold the look of a man who has endured far too much in too short a time.
“What happened?” I ask, and then immediately follow with, “You don’t have to tell?—”
“Ophelia’s talent is extraordinary. She’s had the entire workup done. Her Sight is one of the strongest in decades, maybe a century.” He holds up a hand, although I’m not about to interrupt. “Present company excepted. Although, I don’t suppose yours has been measured.”
That it has not.
“She was collaborating with R&D, enhancing the tests for the Sight, creating additional, advanced training?—”
“Already deployed?” I ask.
“Yes, in part. I may have also woven a few of Ophelia’s personal training routines into your exam, out of curiosity. I take it you noticed.”
Oh, that I did. “I probably missed a few, what with the Screamers and all.”
“I want to apologize for that, for not being on my guard, and I want to apologize for provoking you this morning and triggering an attack?—”
“You didn’t provoke an attack?—”
“I know the Sight is all about self-preservation, and I was being a bully?—”
“You were upset, but I wasn’t afraid of you. I told you. It’s been a couple of years, and I’ve been fighting this off for a while. I honestly think it was my mother’s condolence card that did it.”
“Which would still make this all my fault.”
