Wynter’s POV
I walked back downstairs to hear Bo’s client talking to Kenzi about being a father. He seemed nervous and extra fire-startery. He sat on the couch, and Kenzi ran around the room putting out the fires.
“Can I ask why you came to, Bo?” I asked the man.
“She’s unaligned. My people can’t know that I let a human steal my treasure.”
“There must be a Fae willing to do a job and keep quiet, so why come here?”
“He knows something about your parents,” Kenzi spoke up after putting out yet another green flame with a fire extinguisher.
“What do you know about our birth parents?”
“I’m only gonna tell you what I told your sister. One night about twenty-eight years ago, I was in my woods minding my own business. All of a sudden, there’s this woman crashing through the brush. She was carrying two babies, and one of them had a birthmark on her left foot right above the heel. The second had swirling blue and grey eyes, much like yours,” he said.
“Was she our mother?”
“I’m not gonna tell you any more than that.”
I gently reached out and touched his arm.
I was running through the forest. My arms felt heavy, yet I couldn’t put down what was in them for fear he would find them. I stumbled and tripped. A set of arms caught me before I could hit the ground. He was the same man who sat before me only a few pounds lighter.
“Where’re ya going?” he asked.
“I have to keep running,” I said, but it didn’t feel like my voice. The man looked at what was in my arms, and he opened his mouth. “I’m a midwife,” I explained. He shut his mouth. “Please, you must let me pass. He will kill them if he gets the chance, please!” I pleaded. He let me be on my way, and I continued running.
I was pulled out of the vision, and I retreated back to my room. I took out my sketch pad and began to draw. My mind wasn’t in control of my hand as the images poured out of me. I continued to draw even after I heard the front door lock. Once my mind and body were back as one, I hung the drawings up on the wall and left my room.
When I got downstairs I took note of the empty house. Since the house was quiet I took the opportunity to clean up. I was picking up some of the weapons when I got another vision. This time, it was of Kenzi. She was holding something bloody. The image was still blurred out, but it was tall enough to be a person. From what I could tell, Kenzi’s intention was to come back to the house. As the vision ended, I called Dyson and told him to get over here.
My suspicions were correct as Kenzi came waltzing through the door holding a bloody Bo. She got out her phone to call Dyson, but I told them that I already did. Dyson walked in not a minute later and the two of them walked upstairs. I practically ran to my room and attempted to figure out a soundproofing spell. Thankfully, Emera had given me one, so I placed it around my room. I called out to Kenzi and she joined me, but not before asking if one could be placed in her room. I promised to do that first thing tomorrow morning.
The next morning, I got up early and spelled Kenzi’s room before changing into my uniform. Thankfully, there was more material than my last uniform. I walked into the bathroom at the same time as Dyson. It was very awkward. He slowly walked out of the bathroom, and I quickly used it.
After I finished, I walked downstairs to find Kenzi eating on the island. I walked over, poured myself a crappy cup of coffee, and added too much sugar and a dash of cream. Once I knew that I couldn’t taste the bitterness, I took a small sip. Bo came down the stairs just dressed in a kimono, and Kenzi started talking about their night last night. I dumped out my coffee and quickly walked out the door. I started walking towards the nearest bus stop when a black car pulled up next to me.
“Can I help you?” I asked Dyson.
The window rolled down revealing his tired face. “Can I give you a lift?”
“Go home, catch up on your sleep, and get some food.”
“What?”
“Consider it a routine. Do it after you heal Bo. It will help keep her from draining you dry. But thanks for the offer.” I continued walking to the bus stop, but the car kept following me.
A few blocks from the bus stop, the black car pulled over and parked. Dyson got out of the car before standing in front of me, effectively stopping me in my tracks.
“At least let me give you a lift,” he said reaching out and resting his hand on my forearm.
I nodded my head and let him lead me to the passenger seat. Like a true gentleman, he held the door open for me and shut it once I was safely inside. I told Dyson the name of the restaurant, and he drove away. We didn’t speak, but it didn’t feel uncomfortable. I could feel his eyes on me from time to time, but I kept my gaze on the passing city. Dyson pulled up in front of the diner. I don’t know how he knew where I was going, and I didn’t ask. I muttered a quiet ‘thanks’ before exiting the car.
Working at this diner wasn’t much different than working at ‘Granny’s.’ My boss, Clara, was a nice woman. She was strict and had decent expectations, but she was very impressed with my skills. Thankfully, I didn’t have any rowdy customers today. The tips weren’t enough to live on, but money is something I would never have to worry about. My gift allowed me to play the market and very rarely lose money. Sometimes, I would put a little in bad stock just so no one got suspicious. But I digress.
A few hours later, I was done with my first shift of the week. I had tomorrow off, but I would need to come in the following day for more training. It was a quiet walk home. The bus dropped me off a few blocks from the Shack. Of course to not have anyone worry, I walked in the opposite direction then doubled back after the bus was out of sight.
When I walked in the door, I saw Kenzi hula-hooping in the living room.
“No, don’t cancel the card yet,” she said, her back facing me. “But, meanwhile, if there’s any purchasing, can you maybe alert me? Thanks so much.”
“What’s going on?” I asked sitting on the back of the couch.
“A case Bo and I are working on. A girl’s gone missing from campus and her mom wants our help.”
“That’s really sweet.”
“Hey chica,” Bo said from behind me.
“Yo,” Kenzi said.
“What’s the word?”
“Well, I’m starting to think there may be more to this missing person’s case.”
“Oh yeah, why’s that?”
“Got her mom’s permission to check her financials, and Gina’s not just ignoring her mom. No action on her debit or credit, ditto on her data, and cell phone plans since Monday.”
“No shopping, no texting, no talking in 48 hours.”
“Which makes her either dead or over 40.”
“For her mother’s sake, I’d hope for something in between,” I said.
Bo grabbed a brown paper bag and set it in front of Kenzi. “What’s all that shit?” Kenzi asked.
“Going undercover at Gina’s school. Dyson got me in as campus security,” Bo said.
“Me too?”
“Sort of.”
Kenzi dug in the bag and pulled out a pink polo shirt. “Wait, what kind of security guard wears pink… oh no.” The two of them seemed to be having a mental conversation, so I let it drop.
“We might need your help on this one,” Bo said, looking at me.
“Me?” I asked, pointing to myself. “What can I do?”