Page 18 of Professor and the Seer
He shrugged. “She thinks I might be able to help, seeing as how I’ve studied the arcane.”
“Can you?” Dina queried.
“Perhaps. Although these new abilities of hers aren’t something I’ve ever heard of. But I do know of someone who might be able to provide aid.”
“Will she be okay?” Enyo kept looking over her shoulder at her unconscious sister in his arms.
“There is nothing physically wrong. She’s just drained. Some rest should fix that.”
A rest that lasted a worrisome two days.
6
I woke in a bed. Not mine. Not the hotel room one either. The sheets cradling my body smelled fresh, as if they’d been dried outdoors. The ceiling’s plaster was uneven, the blanket covering me a thick quilt that I struggled to untangle myself from. My feet hit the floor, and I waited for the jolt that would show me the future of the tiles touching my soles. Nothing happened.
As a matter of fact, I heard and saw nothing at all. For a brief, wondrous moment, I thought I’d lost my power.
The door opened, bringing a waft of air redolent with cooking. “You’re awake! About time,” Dina exclaimed.
“Where am I? How long was I asleep?” Last I recalled… My mind suddenly went to that moment in Carillo’s bedroom. The things I’d seen in his mind. The depravity. The fear as he suddenly recognized his mortality. My anger that he thought he could be forgiven. My parting gift to the dying man.
I’d entangled him in a vision. Not his future, because there was nothing past death. But given what he’d done, in that moment, I’d thought it unfair he wouldn’t get punished, and so I’d cast upon him what should have been his just reward. Burning in Hell.
“What’s wrong?” Dina suddenly supported me as my knees gave out.
“I tortured that old man.”
“You mean the prick who tried to kidnap you.”
“I made him think he died and went to Hell for eternal torture.”
Dina barked with laughter. “Which was brilliant. And here I thought I was gifted with punishment.”
“This isn’t funny,” I muttered through gritted teeth. “What I did was cruel.”
“No crueler than him and probably less than he deserved.”
True, but still… “I don’t know how I did it,” I admitted on a whisper. “It just happened without me even trying.”
“Way to brag,” grumbled my sister.
“This isn’t funny, Dina. My power has changed.”
“We’re all stronger,” she agreed.
“Stronger isn’t good for me, though. I’m barely in control.” I shoved away from her, suddenly worried I’d accidentally hurt her.
“So you’ll learn.”
“Learn?” I barked. “Learn how? I could barely block out the noise before. Now it’s a tsunami. At the hotel, I somehow reflected what I could see of the future back onto the thugs who attacked me. With Carillo, I forced him into a nightmare.”
“Protecting yourself isn’t a bad thing.”
I stared at her. “Is that seriously your answer?
She rolled her shoulders. “What do you want me to say?”
“I want you to tell me we’ll find a way to make it stop.”