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“Thank you,” he said, his voice a degree or two above freezing.“I’m an instructor, remember? I like to lay things out in a logical manner.”
“I wasn’t trying to insult you.”
“Yes, you were. Never mind. Load the damn memory card.”
“Right.”
She set her phone down on the table so that they could both view the screen and set about the task of importing the data from the memory card.
“There’s only one item on here,” she said, excitement spiking. “It must be the list. This won’t take long.”
A photo appeared. It was a picture of a piece of paper. But there was no list of names. Instead there were a website address and a handwritten note.
Talia March, if you find this it means they grabbed me. I think they will keep me alive for a while, but in the end they will kill me. I know too much. Please look for me. No one else will. I have listened to all of the episodes of the Lost Night Files. I know what you can do. Find me and you’ll find the list.
Luke groaned. “I hate it when informants decide to go all cryptic and mysterious.”
“When you run a podcast likeThe Lost Night Filesyou get contacted by the cryptic, mysterious type a lot,” Talia said. “Most of the tipsters are frauds. Some are straight-up delusional. But once in a while you get the real thing.”
Luke studied the note. “I think Phoebe Hatch is for real.”
“So do I.” Talia took the necklace out of her pocket. The transparent stone was warm in her palm. She could feel the faint buzz of energy that told her it had been worn by someone for a very longtime—years, probably. “This was important to Phoebe. Apparently she’s a fan of the podcast, so she knows that we often discuss the properties of crystals. She is aware that I might be able to use this stone to find her.”
Luke studied her for a long moment, his gaze speculative. “Do you really believe that crystals have some paranormal properties?”
She slipped the necklace over her head and gave him her brightest screw-you smile. “Yep.”
“I was afraid you were going to say that.”
“Says the man who is searching for a list of people believed to possess psychic abilities because he has every reason to suspect that he’s on said list.”
“Fair point.”
“There’s no sense fighting it, Rand. You and I are stuck with each other until we figure out what happened to Phoebe Hatch and the list that has our names on it.”
“I usually work alone.”
“Not anymore.” She glanced at the screen of her phone. “We need to check out this website.”
“On that we are in total agreement.”
He was already on his phone entering the website address. She did the same on her own phone. When the results came up she knew she was not the only one who was bewildered.
“What the hell?” Luke said. “ ‘Discover the Unplugged Experience. Leave the stress of modern life behind and join us on Night Island for a three-day retreat that will change your life. Come walk the garden labyrinth. You will learn to use the deep, insightful secrets of the Venner Meditation System to achieve inner balance.’ Well, shit.”
“You are not keen on achieving inner balance?” Talia said.
“This is a brochure advertising a retreat for people who areburned out,” Luke growled. “What does that have to do with Hatch and the list?”
Talia tightened her grip on the crystal. Energy shivered in the stone.
“Everything,” she said quietly.
Luke’s jaw hardened and his eyes were grim but this time he did not argue.
She went back to her phone. “According to the website, ‘Night Island is a privately owned island in the San Juans. It is under the control of the nonprofit Wynford Institute for the Study of Medicinal Botany. The Institute sponsors the Unplugged Experience. Access is allowed only to registered guests, and there are no more than ten at any given time.’ ”
“How do you make money on an operation that takes only ten customers at a time?” Luke asked.
