Adrian waited for Zimmer to close the door. “He’s gotta go,” he said. “And soon. He knows way too much about the girl.”

  “He’s our only doctor,” Richard said.

  Adrian shrugged. “We can’t forget our end game here, Dick. Think long-term. She’s going to be able to read his mind eventually.”

  “And yours,” Richard said.

  “Let me worry about that. We want her well and truly on our side and in command of her powers. But I fucked up. Sloppy. Been dealing with idiots too long. Most people’s motivations are pretty simple. That shit we tried to pull ... bringing Carl in to scare her.” Adrian shook his head. “Hell I figured she’d jump into my arms.”

  “Clara did,” Richard said.

  “Yeah. Yeah, she sure did,” Adrian said. “But I didn’t count on paranoid super-genius ice queen and psycho bitch. I mean, who could have seen that coming? So we’re going to have to do this the doc’s way.”

  Richard grunted.

  “Pay attention,” Adrian said. “You’re the key to all of this. When all’s said and done, you’ll be the only person in town who can lie to her and get away with it. I know some tricks to bury the shit we’ve already done so deep in my mind that I’ve all but forgotten it myself.”

  “I sure hope so, boss,” Richard said.

  “Me, too. But we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. The fact of the matter is, the best way to convince this kid we give a shit is to start giving a shit. From this point forward, your mission in life is to make her feel safe and loved. Get it in your head that she’s your sister, or your daughter, or whatever it takes. We can’t let her have her power until we’re sure she’s on our side, which means you are going to be with her around the clock for at least a month. It won’t matter if she can read your mind or not, if you have a hostile attitude, she’ll sense it.”

  Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

  “A month? I can’t take another minute around that bitch. She bit me.”

  “Find some common ground. It’s not like you’re not getting anything out of this. I wonder what it would be like to have a powerful mentalist who worships the ground you walk on? Who thinks of you as her brother. Who loves you so much she’d lay her life down for you. And all you have to do to get it is be nice to her for a few weeks.”

  Richard’s eyes glazed over. “Hmm. Okay, I see where you’re going with this.”

  Adrian smiled. Ahhh, Richard. Slow but reliable. “Good. I need you a hundred percent on board, you’re going to play a different role than you’re used to. I hope you’ve been enjoying all those novels you read. You’re going to have a chance to apply some of it.”

  Richard eyed him. “What do you mean?”

  “You’re the only person she won’t be able to read. So I’m going to have to leave things up to you.

  “What things?”

  “Jesus, Richard. Loose ends.”

  “What …” Richard’s forehead scrunched up. “Oh, you mean …”

  “Yeah. Her friends. We can’t do anything to them. If we do anything to them and she finds out, we’re fucked. So I’m telling you in the strongest possible terms, deal with her friends, and be sure that there’s nothing for her to be angry about later.”

  “Oh. Oh!” Richard said. “No problem, boss. Sorry. I’ll … deal with it.”

  “Great. Wonderful. Don’t say another word to me about it. Ever. And bring her up to the bedroom, Zimmer’s probably got it ready by now.”

  He could see the wheels turning in Richard’s head as he left.

  Probably best if I avoid him for a couple of days, he thought. He pictured Clara as he willed himself to forget the conversation he’d just had.

  There was another issue, though. Richard was only powerful as long as he had a patron. He’d chosen Adrian and stuck with him. But if Adrian let Richard get too close to Teri without forming a bond himself, what wouldn’t she do for him? He needed Richard—at least for now—and by the time he didn’t need him, it would be too late.

  I’ll have to be close to her, too, Adrian thought. We’ll be a family of three.