Penumbra (Spook Squad 3)

She glanced back to Karl. “What exactly did your uncle say about the walker pairing?”

Karl sipped his coffee, as if considering the question. Though it was more likely he was considering how to phrase his reply without upsetting anyone, she decided.

“He said it was destiny. That, in much the same manner as a shapechanger, they pair for life. They share thoughts, and to a lesser extent, powers—and even when apart, they know what the other is feeling or doing.”

“Two halves of a whole,” Gabriel murmured. But he wasn’t looking at her, wasn’t looking at anyone. His gaze was withdrawn, internal. He was seeing—remembering—things to which none of them were privy.

And yet his words sent a chill through her. Joe had said that exact same thing more than once. And he certainly hadn’t been referring to Gabriel and her.

“So simply because Gabriel can see me when I fade into shadow, you’re presuming he’s my…what did you call it? Base?”

Karl nodded. “That, plus the fact that you’ve formed a connection, despite Gabriel’s efforts to stop it.”

“A connection that is entirely one-sided, I assure you.” Which was not exactly true, but, damn it, she couldn’t help fighting the finality of Karl’s words. Life had thrown some pretty shitty things at her lately, but being stuck with a man who really didn’t want her in his life had to be one of the worst.

And it didn’t matter a damn just how much she was attracted to him. Being forced together would destroy any chance she had of changing his mind.

“Since your abilities are still in their growth stage, perhaps that is to be expected,” O’Hearn said.

But her abilities weren’t in their growth stage—not if what she was now seeing in the dreams were to be believed. “Or it could be taken as a sign that you are way off course.”

“Maybe. But when you add the fact that Gabriel shares your pain when you’ve been injured, I think it’s pretty conclusive.” O’Hearn hesitated, her gray gaze eagle sharp. “You might be interested to know that, now that we’ve noted your fading, you’ve become solid.”

“A subconscious reaction rather than conscious,” Finley murmured. “Interesting.”

Sam glanced down—not that the lower half of her body looked any different now than it had a few minutes ago, when she’d apparently become one with the darkness. She met O’Hearn’s gaze again. “If I do have walker genes that are beginning to assert themselves, then there’s another possibility. Base-wise, I mean.”

O’Hearn frowned. “What?”

Sam glanced at Gabriel. There was a sudden stillness about him that spoke of…not shock, not anger, but a weird mix that was both. Suddenly she wished she’d never spoken. Hell, she didn’t even know who Joe was. He could be a mortal enemy of everyone in this room. She could be, for all she knew. She swallowed to ease the sudden dryness in her throat.

“I mean that I’m in telepathic contact with another man. I have been for months.” Years. “He seems to know an awful lot about me, and he’s said more than once that we’re two halves of a whole.”

Gabriel didn’t move, didn’t physically react. But his gaze burned into hers, and his tension washed through her mind. Tension, and something else—something she couldn’t define.

“Who is this man?” His voice was soft, as devoid of emotion as his face.

It was a shame she couldn’t say the same about the link they seemed to have developed. She rubbed her arms. “I don’t know. He tells me his name is Joe Black, but it’s an alias. There’s no information on record for a Joe Black matching his description.”

“Then you’ve met him?”

She hesitated. “I had coffee with him. He’s a shapechanger. His other form is a crow.”

“I see.”

She had a horrible feeling that crows had just made his hit list, which made no sense. Surely he should be happy that there was a possibility that he wasn’t her base. That there was someone else who might fill that role. He didn’t want ties of any kind—not with his twin and certainly not with her.

O’Hearn cleared her throat softly. “You’ve never mentioned this before.”

She shrugged. “I never thought it was important before.”

The doctor glanced at Karl. “This puts an interesting spin on things. Did the journals mention anything else about the pairings?”

Karl shook his head. “Regretfully, no. As I said, the mention of the pairing was little more than a side note.”

“Well, we certainly need to find out more about Mr. Black.”

“Leave that to me,” Gabriel said, his voice a monotone.