Page 20 of Dark Gambit: The Play

"What do you mean?" Julian smiled with fake innocence.

She rolled her eyes. "I might be just a linguist, but I'm not stupid. You are well organized and well-funded, and you have more compellers than I ever thought could exist."

The doctor gave her a condescending look. "You shouldn't be surprised to find paranormally talented people in a place that runs specially curated retreats for them."

"So that's it? You are an organization of paranormals?"

Julian nodded. "It's difficult to be a paranormal among normals. The founders of our organization decided to create a community for us."

"Do you have a paranormal talent?"

Julian nodded. "I'm an empath. I feel what others around me feel, which can be very useful for a doctor, but it's also a curse. That's why I can't work in a hospital. The anguish is too much for me to bear."

"I can imagine. So where do you work?"

He smiled, this time genuinely. "I work in a halfway house for semi-rehabilitated victims of trafficking. When they are well enough to venture into the outside world, we provide a safe place for them while they get acclimated, and once they are ready to fly, we help them live independently. But they are always welcome to return and enjoy the cocoon of safety again."

"Aren't you affected by their misery? They probably carry horrible emotional and physical scars."

"They do, but they are happy about having a new lease on life, they form friendships with each other that help them heal, and they are full of optimism for the future. We try to make it a wonderful experience for them, a real safe house, and they pay us back with love and appreciation. It's very fulfilling."

"I bet. What about them?" She pointed at the two guards. "What are their talents? Or are they just hired muscle?"

Next to her, Marcel shook his head, but he didn't say a thing.

Had she insulted his buddies? He'd said that he was friends with the people in security.

"What's your talent, Eigen?" Julian asked.

"I can turn into a meat popsicle." The guy snorted a laugh.

"Seriously, dude."

"Seriously. I can lower the temperature of my body so I appear to be dead."

That was a useful talent for a soldier, but she still wasn't sure that he wasn't pulling her leg. "What about the other one?"

"I can sing you to sleep."

She crossed her arms over her chest. "Prove it."

"I can't. If I start singing, Eigen is going to fall asleep at the wheel, and we will crash."

"You are both full of shit. No one at the retreat mentioned talents like that." She turned to Marcel. "What about you? Do you have a talent?"

His lips twitched with a suppressed smile. "I can also put you to sleep by telling you about my workday."

"Very funny. What if I find computer engineering fascinating?"

His eyes sparkled. "I would be delighted to tell you about the latest program I wrote."

She slapped his arm. "I'm not in the mood for jokes. If you don't want to tell me, just say so."

"I'll tell you later."

"So you really do have a paranormal talent?"

"I do." He turned to the window. "Just look at this house. It's spectacular."