“Anything these guys do is like that for me,” Mariana murmured, “but I’m learning. It’s slow going. I’m just taking in bits and pieces and trying not to get too overwhelmed.”

  “That’s not a bad way to go,” Cara agreed.

  “It seems everything that goes on here is outside the norm, but they are sure good people. Yet Terk couldn’t get you to join in, hmm?”

  “At the time, I was helping a set of twins.”

  Mariana looked at her. “How old?” she asked hesitantly.

  “They were four,” she murmured.

  “And did they live?” she asked, as if she couldn’t help herself.

  At that, Cara smiled and nodded. “In this case, they certainly did.”

  “Well, thank God for that.” She stared at Cara in fascination. “That cannot be an easy job.”

  “No, and it’s not only not easy, it can be heart-wrenching. But, in that case, they lived, and the parents welcomed them back into this reality with open arms. They’re doing fine now.”

  “Even just your wording,” she murmured.

  She shrugged. “I don’t even know what to say about it anymore. The people I work with have to be vetted very carefully. It’s not the kind of work that I am comfortable sharing with a ton of people. I work with a few doctors, a few specialists, and people like Terk. Other than that, I don’t tell anybody what I do. So, being here, it’s both odd and refreshing. These abilities are accepted, and yet, at the same time, nobody really does what I do. So they don’t really understand how or what’s required.”

  “No, and I think some of them were wondering about that last night,” Mariana stated. “You know, when you think about it, a lot was asked of you.”

  “I don’t mind that. I want to help if I can. The problem comes in when I can’t actually do what they want.”

  “But you did contact Brody last night?” she asked hesitantly.

  “Well, more like I put out breadcrumbs for him to follow, if he gets a chance to contact me again.”

  “That’s something then,” Mariana noted, “and nobody can blame you. You tried. It’s just what it is.”

  “They will blame me,” she said quietly, “because I did know he was there, and I didn’t do anything about it.”

  “And why didn’t you?”

  She hesitated and then said, “Partly because I had no idea if he was a friend or an enemy. But mostly because I had my hands full just trying to save Rick.”

  “You didn’t tell them that.”

  “They weren’t ready to hear that,” she replied, “especially not Rick.”

  *

  Rick had been standing in the doorway, leaning against the doorjamb, watching, regretting how tired Cara appeared to be. Hearing the words dropping freely from her mouth to Mariana made him realize what they’d asked of her, but the last comment she had made really hit home. He stepped forward, making it look as if he’d just come in, but she stiffened, and he realized that, only because she was so tired, she hadn’t known he was here earlier.

  She didn’t even turn around when she asked, “Do you always listen in on conversations?”

  “I wasn’t trying to,” he said, “but you’re right. I should have let you know I was here.”

  She shrugged. “Maybe I did know.”

  “No, I suspect you wouldn’t have shared anything if you had,” he noted.

  She continued to eat without saying anything more. He walked closer, grabbed a coffee, and then sat down beside her, noting that at least she was eating freely and well.

  “I don’t know how many times I’m supposed to say I’m sorry,” he said, “but it’s definitely going to need at least a few more times.”

  She stared at him, but again she didn’t say anything.

  It was that reserved demeanor that got him. It was like she’d spent so much of her life alone and not expecting anything good out of people that, whenever he said something, it seemed to be a complete surprise to her. “I get that you’ve spent a lot of time alone, but you don’t have to stay that way.”

  She shrugged. “It’s probably best.”

  “I don’t think so.”

  “But then you don’t know anything,” she stated quickly.

  He wanted to get angry, and certainly a part of him felt this guilt and an overwhelming need to find a way to break through her reserve, but he also knew that to use any pressure would just make things way worse. “Did you manage to get ahold of him?”

  “Not necessarily,” she replied, her answer almost even more frustrating. “I left the door open and a series of breadcrumbs for him to follow, if he can.”

  He let his breath out slowly. “And I guess that’s the best that we can expect now.”

  “I can’t bring him back from wherever he was,” she explained. “When my energy replenishes, I will go see if there’s been any movement.”

  “Movement?” he asked.

  “On the pathway I left open,” she said.

  He nodded. “We’d appreciate you doing that.” He hated that he acted so formal, but it seemed like the only way to really make this happen. He looked over to see Mariana frowning at him. He raised both hands in frustration. “And now you’re looking at me like I’m doing everything wrong.”

  “No,” she said, “but she needs love and understanding right now, not more work.”

  “I get that, but I’m afraid there’s a limited amount of time.”

  “That’s because you’re coming from fear,” Cara replied. “Brody’s alive, and he’s well enough to struggle, trying to fight his way back. I can tell that much.”

  “Well, that’s something.” Rick really wanted to ask more, but he hesitated. Then, realizing that he really needed to just give her a chance to eat and to relax, he asked, “Did you manage to get any sleep?”

  “Not much, but that’s just the way it works sometimes.”

  He frowned at that. “Do you ever run out of energy doing what you’re doing?”

  She shrugged. “There are ways to regenerate energy, so it depends.”

  He wasn’t sure what to make of that answer, but he felt he could probe only so much. It was a relief when he heard someone coming, and Terk, Damon, Gage, and Wade walked in, each of them carrying boxes. When they saw Cara, an immediate welcome was on all their faces.

  “Glad to see you’re up.” Terk smiled. “How’s the head?”

  She gave him a droll look. “Still attached.”

  He stared at her, startled for a moment, and then he laughed. “Man. I keep forgetting about that sense of humor of yours.”

  Rick wasn’t sure he had even heard it. Her response to Terk had been off the cuff and instantaneous. Realizing that she had that sense of humor, and he just hadn’t been privy to it was telling, because why would he be? He’d been more of an aggressor and an enemy in her world than a friend. Again he felt the same regrets eating at him. She wasn’t being very forthcoming or giving him much in the way of options though.

  Damon looked at her and hesitated. She didn’t say anything. Then he frowned and spoke up. “It would be nice if you would volunteer information, so I don’t have to ask, because asking makes it feel like I’m opening myself up to bad news.”

  “He’s alive. He’s well enough to struggle. I left a path, … a series of breadcrumbs.”

  Rick’s, Damon’s, and Wade’s expressions all looked equally confused, but, when they caught sight of Terk, they seemed to be less so.

  “That’s probably the best thing you could do under the circumstances,” Terk stated, with a nod.

  “Somebody needs to explain that to me,” Damon stated, a little more forceful than necessary.

  Terk added, “She has given him a pathway. If he gets a chance to come out again, he should have no trouble finding it.”

  None of them appeared to be too certain of exactly what that meant, but, if Terk thought it was a good thing, they were all prepared to go with it. Obviously Damon wanted to ask more questions, but Terk waved him off.

  Cara finished eating calmly, and afterward she got up and looked over at Terk. “I’ll let you know.” Then she turned and left.

  Immediately the men turned to Terk. “She’ll let you know what?”

  “I presume,” he said carefully, “that she’s gone to take a look to see if Brody found the breadcrumbs.”

  At that, they all just froze. “And if he has?”

  “Then she may bring him in,” he noted, “but there is no guarantee that he’s found them yet.”

  “Brody is strong,” they all protested.

  “I know, but that has nothing to do with it.” Terk smiled at his team.

  Damon nodded. “I know. I’m just frustrated.”

  “We’re all frustrated, but you need to give Cara a little bit of space. What she’s doing is not easy, and she’s feeling horribly guilt ridden for not knowing Brody’s connection to our team, up until now.”

  “Well, it does seem odd that she would have turned away somebody coming to her,” Wade noted. “I really don’t know who she is as a person, but that just seems like an odd thing to do.”

  “That’s because you don’t realize how connected she is to me—or was, I guess,” Rick shared. “She didn’t mention that information, except to Mariana. I just overheard her saying something about she was still heavily connected to me, so she took note of who it was but didn’t dare attempt to let him in for fear of losing her hold on me or allowing the enemy in.”

  The men all pondered that for a moment.

  “Does that mean she can only help one at a time?” Wade asked.

  At that, Terk snorted. “How many can you help at that level at any time?” he asked. “She did a lot for Brody, in the sense that she tracked where he is and that she even got a name from him. Remember. Brody represents just one energy thread. Among so many more. We, as a team, are tied to one another. Closely. And we know how cluttered our minds can get with just a handful of us clamoring for attention. Consider how many more people could be talking to Cara, especially when you realize thousands upon thousands are trying to garner her attention, her help as a healer. Among all those souls calling out to her, she isolated this one tiny strand of energy, floating out in the ethers, because he represented a possible threat to Rick’s healing. The fact that she could even put a name to Brody’s energy was amazing.”

  They all immediately nodded. “I guess we’re being a little harsh on her because we so desperately want to know that Brody is okay.”

  “She says that he is okay,” Terk noted, “and I can also confirm that he’s alive.”

  “That’s huge,” Wade said, and they all relaxed slightly.

  “It is, but again we have to give her a little bit of time and also give Brody some time.”

  “I can’t imagine floating for as long as that,” Rick muttered.

  “I know, and he’s not the only one of us still out there,” Terk reminded them.

  “Are you thinking of asking her to help with Scott too?” Damon asked.

  “Well, if you’re going to,” Tasha said from the doorway, “you might want to do it soon because she mentioned something yesterday about having been contacted regarding another client.”

  At that, Terk turned and stared at Tasha. “Seriously?”

  She nodded. “And I didn’t pry. I was determined to try and make her feel better.”

  “I know. I didn’t say anything either.” Sophia came in behind Tasha. “We just let her do her thing and gave her back her laptop. She seemed to enjoy hanging out with us, while she checked her email.”

  “Then she left again, and we assumed it all was happening in her own personal world.”

  “Which would have been what?” Terk asked.

  “How do people normally contact her?” Sophia asked.

  “I don’t know,” Terk admitted. “I had a number for her, and I checked out her energy first, to see just what stage of life she was at, before I reached out.”

  At that, they turned and stared. He shrugged. “When she works with clients like that, it can involve anything.”

  “Right,” Wade murmured. “Hard to imagine the work she’s been doing.”

  “And freely,” Terk reminded them. “It takes an awful lot out of her—physically, emotionally, at a soul-deep level. She learns a lot, but she also gives a lot.”

  And, once again, Rick felt like he’d been given a slam to his heart. He looked back down the hallway where she had disappeared. “I wonder if I should go check on her.”

  “I’d wait a bit,” Terk suggested immediately. “If she’s gone looking for Brody, let’s not split her focus.”

  Rick nodded. “Good point, but I just feel like we’re running at cross-purposes.”

  “You are, with Cara,” Terk confirmed, “and, yes, you have to resolve that personal issue, but we as a team also have to be careful to do it in such a way that it doesn’t interfere with somebody else’s ability to return.”

  But just then, Cara walked back in again, her face calm and composed. She looked over at Terk. “He found my breadcrumbs, but he’s bouncing off someone else’s energy. A Scott. … If he’s one of yours, he’s in a similar boat to Brody.”

  Everybody froze, and then smiles burst forth. Terk’s grin split his face wide. “Now that’s excellent good news. Scott is one of ours. How did they both look?”

  “Brody is still a bit lost, shaken, and confused. Scott is in a maze and hurting. Not on a physical level.”

  At the term, Rick turned to her. “Is there anything you can do for him?” he asked, looking worried. “For both of them?”

  She studied him for a long moment. “I’m not sure that is part of what I should be doing.” She turned to look at Terk.

  “In what way?” he asked her.

  “Scott’s calling out for a woman.”

  The others all froze.

  “A woman?” Rick asked.

  “Yes, a woman. Somebody he knew. Somebody he cares about. He’s searching for her in the ethers. Before I contact him, you need to tell me more about her.”

  “Who is she?” the team asked, looking at each other, clearly bewildered.

  But Tasha stepped up. “Is he asking about Naira?” Tasha nodded, as she turned to look at Cara.

  “What’s the story, Tasha?” Cara asked.

  “At one time, she was the love of Scott’s life. But she ended up married to somebody else, and he headed off into the world as we know it,” Tasha replied. “But he has never forgotten her.”

  “Hmm,” Cara murmured. “I definitely got a feeling of that energy being there.”

  “They were very close,” Tasha added. “Her family caused some trouble between them, and it was enough that they split up over it. Yet I have no doubt that feelings still exist between them.”

  “If she turned around and married somebody else, the feelings must not have been all that strong,” Damon noted.

  “But I know that Scott still cared about her, and it’s possible that he’s still looking for her,” Tasha murmured.

  Cara frowned. “I’ll have to see where he’s at, when I go back in.”

  “So, will he be there, just waiting or something?” Rick asked. “Can you help him to, I don’t know, get back into his natural world somehow?”

  “The problem is, there are penalties and prices for some of that.” She studied Terk directly, not even bothering to look at Rick. “So Terk will have to make some decisions on that.”

  “Right.” Terk nodded. “I will take a look.”

  “Do that,” Cara replied, “and time is of the essence.”

  He winced. “I’ll talk to you in a bit then.” Terk put down his cup, got up, and walked out of the room.

  The others stared at her, but she ignored them.

  “I get that you have some abilities that most of us haven’t even heard of,” Rick admitted. “It would help us to understand if you would elaborate slightly. If you want to, that is.”

  She frowned at him. “I thought you guys were on board with everything Terk does.”

  “Nobody knows everything Terk does,” Rick stated. “Not even close.”

  “Ah.” She nodded. “That fits too.”

  “Fits what?”

  “The energy around you all,” she replied, speaking to the whole group. “You’re all very connected, but you’ve all been connected while still trying to give each other space. So you haven’t necessarily made all the connections between you, as other families would.”

  “Well, that’s because we’re not blood family,” Rick noted, “but I certainly consider these men my brothers.”

  She nodded. “And that much is evident, but always other relationships are involved in groups like this.”

  “You said there were signs of energy. So is there any chance that Naira is looking out for Scott?”

  “I think she probably is, yes,” Cara replied. “Though that doesn’t mean she’s free to be at the level he wants her at.”

  “Ouch,” Sophia murmured. “Makes you wonder about fate.”

  “Fate is not so much a real thing, as compared to the free will that we each enjoy,” Cara murmured, as she studied each of them slowly, one at a time. “You make decisions that affect everything that happens, and you learn from it. If you’re lucky, you get a chance—or even a second chance. Some people will always go through life, feeling like they’re isolated and separate from the rest of the world.” Her grin flashed.

  “For example, even in astrology, they say that Aquarians often feel like they don’t quite fit in and don’t quite belong to the family they’re born into. It doesn’t mean that they aren’t in the right place. It just means that they have more lessons to learn.”

  “Oh, wow,” Lorelei said in fascination. “I’ve always had an interest in astrology, but it always seemed like so much gobbledygook.”

  “Or just straight lies,” Wade added, studying Cara.

  Just then Terk stepped back in again. “I’ve contacted Naira and told her what happened.”

  “What happened?” Rick asked him.

  “About Scott getting hurt in the attack on our team. In each case, I’ve looked for somebody in your world to let them know about that and the state of the person attached to them. In Scott’s case, I never thought of her.” He looked over at Tasha, with a frown. “Guess I should have asked you earlier, about both Scott and Brody. But Brody doesn’t have anyone in his world for me to call. It would help a lot though.”