Page 18 of Iona's Christmas
“We don’t do shit. You will have a seat while we try to locate the children. We ain’t circus animals, and we need privacy,” I replied, and Myers sat instantly on a sofa. I walked over and took the bag. I called out ten names and ordered them to come with me as I headed into the hallway that led to church.
“Take one bear to the basement, see if Cécile can get a read on it,” I said to Kosmic as soon as we were out of sight.
Kosmic grabbed the little boy’s teddy and, hiding it, walked towards the basement. I heard him call out to Myers as he walked through the rec room.
“Get comfortable, this may take a while.”
“I don’t care, not as long as I get a lead,” Myers called back.
“Church for all of you, bar Oracle. Do you want my office?” I asked.
“Yeah. And I need you there, too.”
“Not a problem. Come on, brother,” I replied.
Oracle looked nervous as he took the pink bear from the packaging. The scent of blood drifted into the air, and I winced. It was soaked with it, but Oracle managed to find a couple of patches that hadn’t been polluted.
“She really loved this bear. I can hear her mom calling her Lissy,” Oracle said after several minutes. His eyes were closed, and his face was scrunched up as he concentrated. Momentsticked past, and I saw pain etch into his expression. But he didn’t speak again. Oracle’s nose began to bleed, and I knocked the bear from his grip.
Oracle collapsed onto my desk, his head in his hands. I handed him tissues to mop the blood dripping steadily from his nose.
“All I could hear was screams,” he said.
“Head to church and stay there. I do not want Myers knowing which of us tried this. Send Blister in. He might pick something up,” I ordered.
Oracle nodded and staggered to his feet. On seeing how weak he was, I slung my arm around him and helped him into church.
“Lay him down and make him comfortable. I don’t want Myers knowing which of us has the ability he needs. Blister, Oracle, couldn’t get much, could you try?”
“Sure, but I tend to see the past,” Blister said.
My phone rang, and I held up a hand as I answered it.
“Cecile has a lock on them. They’re alive but hungry, but the dad’s mental state is deteriorating quickly,” Kosmic announced. “I recorded everything and am sending to you.” My mobile pinged, and I guessed that was Kosmic’s text.
“Write this information down,” I said to Vogue, who nodded. She grabbed a pen and paper and got ready.
I pressed play on the voice message and hit pause every few words. It was imperative Vogue got the wording correct. One wrong word could send the police elsewhere and get the kids murdered. Once we’d transcribed it, I played it back twice, and Griffin and Anubis checked it. Then, I left everyone in church and headed out to Myers.
“Here, this is where the children are. They’re alive,” I said, and tension left Myers’ shoulders.
“The asshole hasn’t killed them?” he demanded.
“No, but he’s close,” I replied.
Myers held my gaze, and he nodded. “Thank you, Warden.”
“I’d say you’re welcome, but you know that would be a lie. Save those kids, Myers, and we’re good.”
“I will try, but even with a description, I’ve got to lock the location down,” Myers said. He rose to his feet and turned away.
“There’s a lot of woods to cover,” I murmured.
“Yeah, but I’ll pull men, and we’ll narrow in,” Myers stated. “This will help a lot.”
“Or you could take us,” I suggested.
“If I do that, people would ask why,” Myers replied, shaking his head.