Living With the Dead (Otherworld 9)

Adele laughed. "That's Martha. Freaky, isn't she? Like a giant slug." Once she said that, Hope couldn't shake the image, as hard as she tried to see what lay in that crib as human. It was a woman with long, tangled white hair. She was limbless and eyeless, her body so white it blended with her diaper. She writhed from side to side, mouth opening, mewling.

"She's probably hungry." A flat statement, carrying no sense of obligation to do anything about it. "She's the most powerful of them. But we can only pick up her visions - she can't communicate. That's why Thom's the most valuable. Aren't you, sweetie?"

Hope looked from Adele, pinging air bubbles from the needle, to Thom, watching Adele with that intent stare.

" 'dele," he said, the guttural word carrying the same edge as one of Karl's warning growls.

"Everything's okay, sweetie. I'm just giving you one of your shots, to calm you down."

"No."

"Oh, I know you don't like them. They make you feel all fuzzy, don't they?" She paused, head cocking. "Hear that, Hope? Seems they finally found us."

Hope caught the faint clink of metal. Someone descending the ladder.

"Don't worry. They can't get in." She took a key from the tabletop, waved it and dropped it into her pocket. "Once the door is closed, no one gets in or out without that. Of course, to get out, we're also going to need to get past them."

Adele lifted the needle to check the dose.

"You're going to hold the seers hostage," Hope said.

"It doesn't matter who's coming down those steps - Cabal or kumpania - for either one, these guys are the most valuable things on the property."

She started toward Thom. Chaos buzzed from him, fear muted by uncertainty, sensing danger but seeing only someone he trusted.

" 'dele..." He grabbed the arms of his chair, rising.

"I don't think that's necessary," Hope said. "He seems fine."

"Bold moves, Hope. You have to be willing to make the bold moves." She stopped in front of her. "When you see the options, there's always one that seems like it's too much. It goes too far. That's the one you need to take."

Hope tried to pick up a stray chaos vibe, a thought, anything to confirm her fears. Adele only looked at her, mind blank, face expressionless. But Hope knew. She knew.

The door clicked. They both looked over. The knob turned one way, the other, then stopped. Adele began to circle around Hope. She stepped into Adele's path.

"He doesn't need that shot," Hope said. "He's calm, and I'll make sure he stays that way. You negotiate. Thom will be my responsibility."

Adele tried sidestepping. When Hope countered, Adele's lips tightened in annoyance. "I'm just going to give him a sedative, let him sleep this out."

"No, you're not. This isn't a bold move, Adele. It's craz - premature. We haven't even opened negotiations."

She hesitated. Reconsidering? After a moment, she sighed. "We have to enter from a strong position. Don't you see that? Start by proving we aren't making idle threats."

"But Thom - "

" - is the most valuable seer. A huge loss. Enter from that position, and we'll have them scrambling to save the other two."

She sidestepped again. Hope raised her gun.

Adele laughed. "You aren't going to use that. You need me."

"Not badly enough to let you kill anyone else."

She stepped past Hope. "I gave you a story. Stick with that."

Hope turned the gun on Adele. "Put the needle down."

"Relax, Thom." Adele laid her hand on his chest, pushing him back into his seat. "You're just going to take a nap, okay, sweetie?"