Eye of the Falcon (Psychic Visions #12)(87)

“Do you want the jewelry only, or do you want the people who stole it caught?” Eagle asked.

“Okay, twenty-four hours and I’ll touch base again. But this is fascinating,” the appraiser said. “It’s a well-known unsolved case, so recovering anything will be big news.”

“Did other items go missing at the same time?”

“I think smaller pieces of jewelry and gold coins as well as a bunch of artwork,” he said. “It was assumed everything had been moved through England and dispersed into private collections around the world from there.”

Eagle agreed. But he didn’t want to give away too much information. After he hung up, he grabbed a notebook and started jotting down information. He texted Charlie for his brother’s contact information. It was important to bring in law enforcement at this point. But he’d rather have someone he trusted to deal with. This was a hell of a puzzle that still didn’t explain why Issa had been initially kidnapped. After all she was just six at the time this all went down. And her only part of her family’s smuggling operation was to be one of its three lookouts, not counting Hadrid. Without finding her mother’s boxes, Issa wouldn’t know as much as she did now.

So what would the kidnappers want from Issa? And that was the part that really needed to be solved. She had to be safe while they figured this out and caught the kidnappers.

The only thing that was important to him was Issa.

*

Stefan woke gently. For that he was grateful. So often he was jerked from his sleep by a vision, by a need, by his own disturbed thoughts. But this time he woke to see the sun peeking over the hills on the far side, sending a warm golden ray across his window.

He smiled and settled deeper into the covers. If he didn’t have to get up right now, there was no way he would. He’d lost a lot of sleep lately. Plus he was feeding the birds energy, helping them to find food and travel, definitely leaving him more sleep-deprived and low on energy. There had to be an easier way. He couldn’t see the owl; he only knew it was there. And so was Roash. But something odd was going on between them.

He got a vision of Roash directing a mouse toward Humbug. He didn’t know if Humbug was sick or too injured, but he refused to eat it. Roash cried, his call haunting and pained.

And Humbug’s small chirps were almost the antithesis of what they should be. But he managed to fly a little farther. Roash kept close, helping Humbug, urging him. But every step, every take off, every landing required energy.

Stefan and Tabitha were both pouring love and healing energy into the two birds. Stefan could read Issa’s energy pouring into them as well. Yet it was different looking—an unconscious connection she’d set up to function as needed but then didn’t need to be active in the process. Stefan was completely blindsided by the fact that this owl occupied his mind and his energy. And in Issa’s ability to take care of these animals on a spirit level that he’d never seen before.

But it was Humbug himself that blew Stefan away.

He still couldn’t quite believe it. As he lay here, he heard a soft, gentle, almost cooing sound against his cheek. He stilled and waited. A soft feather brushed his cheek, followed by a small rustle on his shoulder.

And then the sensation was gone. He lay here for a long moment, a sappy smile on his face, wondering what his role in all of this was. And then it hit him. Maybe he wasn’t just here to find the bad guys. Maybe he wasn’t just here to save his friends. Maybe it was a reaffirmation that all animals deserved to live.

And that he had friends, way more than he knew, in way more species than he’d ever thought. It was an incredible lesson brought about by an unexpected source.

“Thanks, Humbug.” He smiled, closed his eyes, and whispered, “If that’s what this is all about, I’m good with that.”

And he fell back asleep.





Chapter 27





A hand gently shook Issa awake. She bolted upright, clutching the blankets to her chest. She stared, blinking sleepily at Eagle leaning over her. His voice was low, urging, “Get up and get dressed. Now.”

She didn’t ask any questions. Her brain was slow to react, but her body was moving. She didn’t know if Hawk had been here, if that was him shutting the door on his way out. But she threw on clothes, packed as fast as she could. She ran to the bathroom, used the facilities, brushed her teeth, and took a drink. She returned to find the hotel room empty, wondering if she’d dreamed it all and should have stayed in bed.

Just then the door opened. Eagle saw her, gave her an approving nod, and said, “Come on. Let’s go.” He grabbed the bags and ushered her ahead of him. Just as she was about to go out the door, he whispered, “Be silent.”

Hawk was on the far side of the hall, waiting. She ran lightly toward him as Eagle brought up the rear. The stairs that led down to the pub also led back the other way to the outside. They quickly slipped out into the night. And she realized that, although the sky was light, the sun had yet to rise.

The men loaded the bags into the car. She slipped into the back seat. Hawk didn’t turn the engine on, just pushed in the clutch, and the vehicle rolled down the slight hill on the road. When they were about to hit the main road, he turned the engine over, put the car in gear, released the clutch as he gave it gas, and the car surged forward. And yet they drove without lights. She sat still, figuring out what had happened.