Part 20 (1/2)

Taige started to shake. Her entire body trembled like a leaf, and a soft, keening moan escaped her lips. ”I don't know-d.a.m.n it, I don't know. Oh, s.h.i.+t. He's hurting her. d.a.m.n it, he's hurting her, and he loves it.”

Outside, they both heard the sound of a car approaching, moving fast down the gravel driveway. Taige flinched, jerked hard back into awareness, and she moved with Cullen to stare out the window as the beat-up, ancient station wagon came roaring up the lane.

Woodenly, she pul ed the phone from her belt and punched in a number. Jones answered, and Taige said, ”I'm going to need a team down here, Jones.” She didn't elaborate, and she didn't mess with giving directions or an address. Her phone was GPS enabled, and he'd track her via the phone. Details were a waste of time and energy at this point.

After that short, terse message, she disconnected and then tucked the phone back into the holder at her waist. ”It's not Leon,” she said softly, although she didn't recognize the car.

”Do we need to get the h.e.l.l out of here?”

Technically, they had no business being in this house. There was no physical proof inside these wal s, and there was no endangered child there, either. The answers that Taige had weren't the kind that could be presented to a jury or a judge. By all means, she was violating Leon Carson's rights, and if she had any sense, or a little less compa.s.sion, then they should definitely get the h.e.l.l out of Dodge.

But Taige didn't give a d.a.m.n about Leon's rights. She didn't give a d.a.m.n about technicalities, legalities, and the ins and outs of the justice system.

She cared about al the children who had died at her uncle's hands, and she cared about stopping him.

”No,” she murmured in response to Cullen's question. s.h.i.+vering, she folded her arms across her middle and then rubbed her palms up and down her upper arms, trying to warm herself. ”We came for answers. We'll leave when we have them.”

But it wouldn't take long.

Even from the distance, Taige could see the darkness that painted a dark, ugly void around the woman in the car. She stopped in front of the house and climbed out, paused to look at Cul en's big black truck, and then she looked back at the house. Taige felt the impact of her gaze from there, although a hundred feet easily separated them. Taige could feel him.

Leon had left a mark on this woman. She could feel it as clearly as she had when she looked into the paramedic's eyes earlier and realized who she was hunting. ”It's Penny Harding,” she said quietly. ”My uncle's a.s.sistant.”

Dragging in a deep breath, she closed her eyes and blocked the woman from her field of vision just long enough to ground herself. Leon had kept himself blocked from Taige, and she hadn't helped by keeping her own blocks in place, reinforcing them any time she came close to Leon. His hatred of her had been the initial reason she'd s.h.i.+elded against him, and over the years, her own dislike of him had added to the urge to keep him out.

But there had been no attempt on Leon's part to keep his emotions contained around Penny. And d.a.m.n, but he must spend a lot of time with this woman, because his psychic presence had al but eradicated Penny's personality. m.u.f.fled it, tamped it down, and kept it hidden under the force of his own.

It was a G.o.dsend.

Taige could follow a psychic imprint the same way a bloodhound could follow a scent.

If Leon kept his presence m.u.f.fled, there wouldn't be much of a trail for her to follow.

But Leon acted on instinct. His gift, strong as it probably was, was untrained. He probably didn't realize how much of himself he spilled into his home, onto people that spent a lot of time with him. He probably didn't realize that unless he kept himself s.h.i.+elded all the time, he was going to leak al over somebody like Penny, somebody who spent their days seeing to his needs and running his errands and buying his groceries.

Penny was like a homing beacon and a journal all wrapped into one.

At least for somebody like Taige, somebody who read a psychic imprint. When Penny entered the house, as she drew nearer to Taige, it was like she was working pieces of a puzzle into place, and by the time they met up in the hallway, Taige had the answers. It left a h.e.l.l of a lot more questions though.

Yes, Leon had another child.

Yes, he was someplace with the child right now.

But that was when the answers stopped and new questions began. Because it was a child Penny knew somehow, a child Penny had put into Leon's hands, knowing what he'd do.

She's got evil inside her, Leon. Bad, nasty evil. You need to purify her.

And as she said it, she'd stared at Leon with the blind devotion of a madwoman.

”Taige . . .” Penny gave Taige a puzzled look and glanced back the busted front door.

”Do you know what happened to the front door?”

”I did it. Where is my . . . uncle?” The word left a nasty taste in her mouth, just saying it. How could somebody that evil be her blood? It was sickening.

”He's out attending to the needs of his congregation,” Penny said. She frowned and c.o.c.ked her head, studying Taige's face. ”You busted the door down?”

”Actually, that was me,” Cullen said from over her shoulder. ”Where exactly is he attending these needs at?”

”I'm afraid that's the business of Reverend Carson and his flock . . . Mr. . . . ?”

Cullen just grunted in response, giving her no answer. ”Hmmm. You do know that you'll need to pay for the damage, Taige. Honestly, what would your mother think? A civilized person simply comes back when there is somebody home.”

”It's important, Penny.” Taige didn't bother arguing with Penny about her civility or lack thereof. The woman clearly considered Leon a saint, so her judgment was definitely skewed.

”I see. Well, no. Not exactly.” Penny's frowned deepened, and if her face dropped any more, she was going start resembling a hound dog, all mournful-eyed and sad-faced. ”I just don't understand what could be so important that you'd break down a door. Did he even know you were coming?” As she spoke, she headed down the hal into the kitchen, leaving Taige and Cul en to follow behind.

The kitchen was painted a cheerful yellow. The floor was bright blue, and the appliances so clean, they could have come straight off the showroom floor. Yet, like every other room in the house, it looked dark to Taige, like she was seeing it through a black veil.

Penny stood at a bright white breakfast bar, rifling through mail and sorting it. The woman was nervous; Taige could sense it, the acrid scent of fear and nerves. Even if she hadn't had the memory flash just a few minutes ago, she would have realized there was something weird going on with Penny.

”Where is he?” she asked quietly, moving up behind Penny.

Penny, in the process of shuffling through the mail, looked at Taige over her shoulder, a confused smile. ”I don't know, Taige. I'm his a.s.sistant, but he doesn't always feel the need to keep me informed of his daily schedule. The reverend is an important man. He doesn't answer to the likes of me.”

”Then he can answer to me,” Taige said, her voice flat. ”Where the h.e.l.l is he?”

Penny's mouth puckered up like Taige had just shoved a lemon into her face. ”You really do need G.o.d's good grace in your life, Taige. Speaking so, swearing, displaying an utter lack of humility and compa.s.sion.” She glanced at Cullen, and the look on her face probably wouldn't have been much different if she'd run into a john and his wh.o.r.e. ”And the company you keep.”

”Hmmm.” Taige didn't bother asking again. Instead, she reached out and grabbed Penny's wrist. Pus.h.i.+ng her way inside a person's mind left a bad taste in Taige's mouth.

She wasn't a mind reader, and she was d.a.m.n thankful of that. A person's thoughts were private, and they should remain that way.

Using her gift like this left her feeling dirty and upset, because it was wrong. It wasn't something she had to do much, thank G.o.d. Usually, she followed psychic imprints left in the environment. But while she couldn't read minds, she could read imprints; fresh imprints were even clearer than a person's thoughts, and what she picked up from Penny was as clear and detailed as a blueprint.

Narrowing her eyes, Taige stared at Penny's face.

”He's at your house.”

Penny gasped and jerked against Taige's hold, struggling to break free. ”At your house -with your granddaughter.”

Behind her, Cullen snarled, ”Son of a b.i.t.c.h.”

Sick, Taige let go of Penny's hand, and the woman folded her hands at her waist and gave Taige a pious smile. ”Really, Taige. What kind of a language is that? No good, G.o.d-fearing soul speaks that way.”

”No good, G.o.d-fearing soul lets a man like my uncle put his hands on a child,” Taige said, her gut churning.