"About what?"
"Whatever. I'm bored."
I resisted the urge to pitch the book and shoved it back on the shelf. "Well, you can always turn yourself into a werewolf. That seems to be the common cure for ennui around here."
He settled farther back on the bed. "No kidding. Can you believe that? Sondra, of all people. Not that I can't imagine a human wanting to be something else, but she must have a few screws loose to do it like that. It's bound to happen, though. All the exposure. Inferiority complexes are inevitable."
"Inferiority complexes?"
"Sure." He caught my expression and rolled his eyes. "Oh, please. Don't tell me you're one of those who thinks humans and supernaturals are equal. We have all the advantages of being human plus more. That makes us superior. So now you get these humans who, after a lifetime of thinking they're at the top of the evolutionary ladder, realize they aren't. Worse yet, they discover they could be something better. They can't become half-demons, of course. But when humans see what the other races can do, they'll want it. That's the rotten core of this whole plan. No matter how high-minded their motives, they'll all eventually want a piece. The other day-"
He stopped, glanced at the one-way glass as if checking for eavesdroppers, then vanished for a second and reappeared. "The other day, I walked into Larry's office, and you know what he was doing? Practicing a spell. Now, he says he was conducting scientific research, but you know that's a pile of horseshit. Sondra is only the beginning.""So what are you going to do about it?"
"Do?" His eyes widened. "If the human race is intent on destroying itself, that's its problem. So long as they pay me big bucks to help, I'm a happy guy."
"Nice attitude."
"Honest attitude. So tell me-"
The door clicked and he stopped. When it whooshed open, two guards walked in, led by an older uniformed man with a grizzled crew cut and piercing blue eyes.
"Reese," he growled at Xavier. "What are you doing here?"
"Just keeping our inmates happy. The female ones at least. Elena, this is Tucker. He prefers Colonel Tucker, but his military discharge was a bit iffy. Borderline court-martial and all that."
"Reese-" Tucker started, then stopped, pulled himself upright, and turned to me. "You're wanted upstairs, miss. Doctor Carmichael asked for you."
"Is Ms. Bauer okay?" I asked.
"Doctor Carmichael asked us to bring you up."
"Never expect a direct answer from ex-military," Xavier said. He hopped from the bed. "I'll take you upstairs."
"We don't need your help, Reese," Tucker said, but Xavier had already hustled me out the door.
As I passed Ruth's cell, I noticed it was empty.
"Is Ruth okay?" I asked.
"No one told you?" Xavier said. "I heard you made a suggestion to Sondra before she flipped out."
"Suggestion? Oh, right. For Ruth to visit with Savannah. They let her?"
"Better yet. Come take a look."
Xavier headed down the row of cells.
CRISES
"Doctor Carmichael wants her upstairs now," Tucker said.
Xavier kept walking, so I followed. I glanced in each cell as we passed. Armen Haig sat at his table reading a National Geographic. Leah napped in bed. The Vodoun priest's cell was empty. Had Matasumi "removed" him from the program? I shivered at the thought, yet another reminder of what happened when captives outlived their usefulness.
When we came to Savannah's cell, Xavier reached for the door handle.
"Don't you dare," Tucker hissed, striding toward us.
"Relax, old man. You'll give yourself a heart attack."
"I'm in better shape than you'll ever be, boy. You're not taking this… young lady into that cell."
"Why? Afraid of what'll happen? Four supernatural beings in one place. Imagine the incredible concentration of psychic energy," Xavier said in a passable imitation of Matasumi.
Xavier pushed open the door. Savannah and Ruth sat at the table, heads bent together as Ruth drew imaginary lines on the tabletop. As the door opened, they jerked apart.
"Oh, it's just you," Savannah said as Xavier stepped inside. "What's the matter? Can't zap through walls anymore? That'd be a shame, losing your one and only power."
"Isn't she a sweetheart?" Xavier said, looking back at me as Ruth shushed Savannah.
Ignoring the older woman, Savannah stood and craned her neck to see behind Xavier.
"Who's with you?" she asked.
"A guest," Xavier said. "But if you're not going to be nice-"
Savannah dodged past him and looked up at me. She smiled. "You're the new one, the werewolf."
"Her name's Elena, dear," Ruth said. "It's not polite-"
"A werewolf. Now that's a real power," Savannah said, shooting a look at Xavier.
"Come in, Elena," Ruth said. When I did, she embraced me. "How are you, dear?"
"Surviving."
"I heard the most awful thing about that poor Miss Bauer-"
"So what happens when you change into a wolf?" Savannah asked. "Does it hurt? Is it gross? I saw this movie once, about werewolves, and the muzzle came right through this guy's mouth and ripped his head-"
"Savannah!" Ruth said.
"It's okay," I said, smiling. "But we don't have much time. They're taking me upstairs." I glanced at Ruth. "Is everything going well?"
Ruth looked at Savannah. A beam of pride penetrated her exasperation.
"Very well," Ruth said.
"Tucker's getting restless," Xavier said. "We should go."
"Bring her back sometime," Savannah said, returning to her seat. "I'm out of Mars bars, too."
"And remind me what should compel me to do you these favors?" Xavier said. "Your boundless charm?"
Savannah gave a mock sigh, eyes twinkling with a cunning that was half-child, half-woman. "Fine. Get me some candy bars and I'll play Monopoly with you. Since you get so bo-o-o-red."
"I don't think that's such a good idea, dear," Ruth whispered.
"It's okay," Savannah said. "He's a really shi-crappy player. We can both beat him."
There was still something I needed to say to Ruth, but I had no idea how to do it without Xavier overhearing. I didn't dare ask to speak to Ruth in private. Even if I could, where would we find privacy in a glass cube?
"You're having trouble contacting Paige," Ruth said.
I jumped and glanced over at Xavier. He was still bantering with Savannah.
"He can't hear me," Ruth said. "Don't answer aloud, though. The spell only works for me. Just nod."
I nodded.
Ruth sighed. "I was afraid of that. I spoke to her yesterday, but when I tried this morning, I couldn't contact either you or her. Perhaps it's because I'm concentrating too much of my energy on the child. I had no idea how powerful Savannah would be. Her mother had great potential, but she never lived up to it. Too undisciplined. Too inclined toward… darker things. With the proper training, this one could be-" She stopped. "But that's witch business. I won't bore you with it. Just please make sure you get her to Paige. After what I'm doing, Savannah must not be left on her own. As for renewing contact, try to relax, dear. It will come. If my energy returns, I'll communicate with Paige myself and get a message to you."
"-poker?" Savannah was asking me.
"Hmmm?" I said.
"Do you play poker," she said. "Xavier says he won't play because we need a fourth person, but I think he's just scared he'll get beat by a girl.""Good night, Savannah," Xavier said, ushering me out of the cell.
"Not the dark Mars bars," Savannah called after him. "They give me zits."
Xavier chuckled and pulled the door shut. Tucker still stood in the hall, arms crossed.
"So?" Xavier asked him. "See any unidentified flying objects? Did the walls come crumbling down?"
Tucker only glared. Xavier grinned and led me toward the exit.
"You don't believe that psychic energy explanation?" I asked as we walked. "What do you think it is? A poltergeist?"
"Pol-?" he started, then his lip curled. "Leah."
"She seems to think-"
"I know what she thinks." Xavier opened the security door. "Her poltergeist theory."
"There you are! "a voice called.
I looked to see Carmichael bearing down on us.
"You," she said to Xavier. "I should have guessed. I asked for Elena over twenty minutes ago."
"If it was an emergency, you'd have come yourself," Xavier said.
"It's an emergency now." She waved him off. "Go make yourself useful for once. Maybe you can help-"
Xavier vanished. Carmichael sighed and shook her head, then grabbed my elbow and propelled me to the elevator. As we headed down the corridor to the infirmary, I caught a few snatches of conversation from behind a closed door. Soundproofing muffled the voices nearly to the point of obscurity, even for me. One sounded like Matasumi. The other was unfamiliar, male with undertones of a lilting accent.
"Vampires?" the unfamiliar voice said. "Who gave him permission to capture a vampire?"
"No one needs to give him permission," Matasumi said, his voice a near-whisper, though nobody except a werewolf could possibly hear through the soundproofed walls. "With Sondra incapacitated, he's starting to throw his weight around. He wants you to tell us where we can find a vampire."