Eye of the Falcon (Psychic Visions #12)(60)

As an alarm, having the birds around was a hell of a dynamic system. He looked through the binoculars, the night glasses giving a nongreen hue to the men on this side of the fence. But it looked like two deputies and two unidentified men in a large pickup. The same damn man they’d been tracking appeared on the other side of the fence. Dylan had finally gotten the big man’s name. Eagle Saunders.

The owner walked over to the gate. He appeared to know the men in the truck. When the deputies came up to the gate to talk to Eagle, he didn’t give an inch. Dylan watched his body language, clearly understanding that this Eagle didn’t have much respect for law enforcement. Dylan could understand that. He didn’t either. He operated in the shadows.

Law enforcement was for people who walked in the light. People in the dark never needed them. And people in the light believed that law enforcement could protect them. They didn’t realize how much those who lived in the dark didn’t give a shit about the law.

The deputies were an irritant more than anything else. Dylan watched with interest as the conversation continued. Then the deputies got into their vehicle and took off. Eagle turned to the driver of the truck, opened the gate, and waited until the truck passed through. Dylan thought he caught a glimpse of somebody else in the house.

But the truck drove past just then. He watched as Eagle closed the gate and locked it. Then Dylan looked up and saw the sky turn dark.

With the flapping of wings, it was almost impossible to see anything. He swore he could hear somebody. But the sound was too far away. Just when he thought he saw someone on the porch, the men moved into his view. He swore out loud. “Almost as if Mother Nature herself was protecting somebody.”

But he couldn’t go home if he didn’t have proof she was here. At this point, he was almost ready to storm the house, and, if she was there, good. They could take her. And, if she wasn’t there, just kill everybody anyway so they could move on.

But this was his best shot. Dylan and the boys had heard rumors. Rumors that locals had been unwilling to confirm. And bribery only went so far. Somebody in town had mentioned X-ray equipment, and another had mentioned a doctor. But none of that confirmed Issa was here. This was a long way for her to have traveled in her condition. Unless somebody actually drove her this far and dropped her on the road. … That would be some kind of an asshole move.

Being one of the guys who had slowly sliced and tortured her young body, he wasn’t any better. In fact, he was much worse.

The poison of evil inside was taking over who he was. He’d always been able to hold himself tall against the nasty evilness of his boss. Yet Dylan had done the man’s bidding. But that had been okay because that had been his job, and he’d believed in the cause. Everything in his world easily fit into his black-and-white rulebook.

When you kidnapped a young woman and did the things to her they had … He’d crossed into the zone of winter darkness where he’d known he’d done wrong but was too frozen to stop himself.

And there was no forgiveness for that. Plus she was family, which just made it that much more horrific. She was the innocent one.

Still Dylan had one of the new guys the boss had hired to watch over the place. If the kid was smart, he’d sit on her and leave the raptor center alone. Dylan respected the birds, but he doubted the new kid would.





Chapter 19





Issa heard the men’s shocked exclamation behind her. She understood their confusion. For the first time in twenty years she felt … normal. As if she’d thrown off a restrictive costume and was back to herself. She didn’t want to go back inside. But, with the most recent gunshot attack, she was compelled to. Inside she walked straight to the nearest window and opened it. Instantly several birds flew in. She laughed like a child. She held out her arms, and a small songbird landed on her fingers. She crooned gently to it as she stroked the beautiful feathers along its back.

“It’s late, little one. Why are you not tucked away safe for the night?”

It hadn’t escaped her that many of the raptors flying around would’ve taken the songbird as a tiny morsel for its breakfast. The bird chirped, walked up her arm, and settled against her neck. Issa closed her eyes and rejoiced. A call came from another bird flying above her. She opened her eyes to see what appeared to be a mourning dove. She raised an eyebrow and held up a hand. He landed on the back of her wrist. She brought it down so she could look at it closer. At the same time, the songbird stroked her soft cheeks.

“Aren’t you special, little one,” she murmured. The mourning dove walked back and forth along her forearm. Not upset or agitated. Looking to get comfortable. He walked up her sleeve to her other shoulder and sat there.

“This is all fine and dandy, guys, but the rides will be over very soon.”

The mourning dove trilled in her ear.

She smiled, gently stroking its soft gray feathers.

The eagle she’d been holding outside walked into the room and stood on the back of the couch. Huge and majestic, his golden gaze stared at her. Unflinching, he felt secure. She’d never seen anything like it. She walked over to sit beside him.

The little songbird remained nestled against her neck. It was so tiny. The eagle continued to stare at her, his wings folded back, but the fascination in his gaze was reflected in her own, she knew. This was such a magical moment. She gently stroked the long head and chest, his beautiful dark and yellow feathers a wonderful attraction in the room. But he wasn’t alone.