“Twitchell shot him, didn’t he?” Owen said. “And left the body in the shower in Alice’s room.”
“Twitchell thought another body connected to her would reinforce the idea that she was so dangerous she had to be committed.”
“Afterward, he searched Voyle’s apartment and murdered the fortune-teller.”
“She knew too much about Voyle,” Rose said. “About everything.”
Alice shut down her talent. “I’ve heard enough.”
“So have I,” Owen said. “The FBPI can listen to the rest.”
Rose’s face went slack. Gasping, she turned away, got the door open, and staggered into the shadows of the hotel.
The door slammed shut behind her.
Sebastian recovered first. He fluffed up and chortled, eager to get on the road.
Owen rezzed the safety on the mag-rez that he had been about to fire through the pocket of the jacket. He looked at Alice.
“Nice work,” he said. “Definitely simpler your way. Guns always complicate things.”
She looked at him. Her eyes burned. “I hate using my talent at full rez like that.”
“I understand,” he said. “You just unlocked the psychic door to Rose’s worst nightmares, didn’t you?”
“Yes. And I didn’t help her rewrite the script.”
“I see. Well, to answer your question, the reason everyone assumes you need physical contact to trigger someone’s nightmares is because you never bother to correct that impression.”
“To be fair, I do have more control if I have physical contact.” She narrowed her eyes. “How long have you known?”
He opened the car door for her. “I was pretty sure that you were a strong talent from the start of the case. Look at all the evidence I had. You had managed to escape from a high-security para-psych hospital and leave friends behind in the process. You hid out in Illusion Town for several months and established a new life with a circle of interesting friends and clients. There was not a long list of unexplained deaths—just one dead husband.”
“I see.”
“All in all, the data did not indicate that you were unstable or fragile. Itdidmake it clear that you were an innocent high-rez talent endowed with a very strong aura. I fell in love with your profile before I ever met you in person.”
“How many times do I have to explain that I am not an innocent…What? What’s this about falling in love—?”
He closed the car door and raced around to the driver’s side.
“Later,” he said as he got behind the wheel. He stomped hard on the accelerator. “We really need to leave. Now.”
“Fine by me, but why the sudden rush?”
“Got a feeling.”
“I was afraid you were going to say that.”
Sebastian chortled approval and dug his claws into the back of the front seat.
“Vinnie the Broker will probably bill me for the damage to the upholstery caused by dust bunny claws,” Owen said.
“I’ll pay you back,” Alice said.
“Don’t worry about it,” he said automatically.
“I said, I’ll pay you back.” She paused. “I love you, too, but you probably know that.”
