Cassie sat in the passenger seat of his car too preoccupied to lean back and enjoy listening to the powerful V6 wind out on the long, sparsely populated highway and watch the lights of Tampa's nighttime sky fly past her window in a neon blur. Drew had offered to drive saying he knew where he was going. That was good, had she been behind the wheel she would have crashed for all the attention she would have given the road in front of her.
Cassie's conscious mind was currently tying itself in knots over the implications of what she'd done with, and to, this man beside her. In twenty-four hours he had gone from stranger to lover and abruptly back to stranger again. And now here she was readying to enter the lion's den with only him beside her, not at all convinced she could count on him if things got ugly. She considered giving back his ring. At least he would be protected if not helpful.
What if his brother was there? The image of herself face first on the ground popped into mind. On top of all that twirled her apprehension over facing Drew when she took his brother into custody. For the first time, Cassie considered walking away from Veritas and her family. If she couldn't perform the duties expected of her, maybe it was time to face the fact that she wasn't Veritas material. All too soon the growling of the engine quieted to a low purr drawing Cassie's mind back to the task at hand.
"It's that one, on the right." Drew pointed his chin at a low brick building, its whitewashed peeling expanse of stucco over concrete. The expanse was punctuated every few feet by a different generic storefront worn and weathered to the point of gray exhaustion. A narrow strip of parched grass out front separated the building from the cracked sidewalk. They obviously didn't hold many church picnics here.
The neglected building was on the corner surrounded by several others just like it, all of them crying out for a facelift and general cleanup. Drew drove past the structure to pull into the lot behind it, Cassie cast him a questioning glance.
"It's darker around back." He drove into a space up against the building and shut the car off. Their field of illumination immediately reduced itself by half. They had to rely on the nearly nonexistent glow of the sole inadequate halogen perched on a pole in the center of the lot. "I'm assuming you don't have a key."
"I don't need one." Cassie snapped sharply. Her nerves were strung tight.
The darkness emanating from the chest height windows had her working to slow her speeding heart and rapid respiration. On the plus side, it was likely that no one inside meant an easy in and out provided she didn't mess up. Taking a few moments to steady her nerves so she didn't lose control and burn the place down, Cassie considered the details involved in breaking into a building.
There weren't any posted security signs although she had to assume Pritchard had a service, or at least the mall as a whole employed one. Her newfound magickal competency gave her limitless choices for entry strategies, all of them alone. Right now, as much as she was trying to affect an air of confidence, Cassie would have given just about anything to have one of her partners there with her to make sure she didn't forget something and alert the entire local police force. As it was, she planned on going in alone and leaving Drew in the car. He would only serve to complicate things in the state he was in, and the state he put her in.
Cassie was looking out the windshield when she felt him stir beside her and held out a hand to stay him. Both of his hands came off the steering wheel, held up in mock surrender. She had her wish, he would stay behind.
"Keep an eye out for me?" She meant to say us, no matter. The stone face she could see out of the corner of her eye probably didn't hear her anyway. With a sigh Cassie got out of the car.
Putting her mind back to the pressing task of her first solo breaking and entering attempt, Cassie opened herself up to sense for magick while she surveyed the vicinity. The mundane lot backed up on a cinder block retaining wall responsible for holding back a steep natural area with some sparse scrub brush and a few scraggly looking palms. The trees were planted in a pseudo artistic swirl in the hopes of dressing the area up yet they only served to make its air of abandonment even more resonant. Revealing their neglect with drooping yellow and brown fronds they cried out for the water they deserved.
Sympathetic, Cassie reached out and tapped into the warm swirling place in her body where she felt her tie to her mother's element. There was a relatively high water table here. It required only a minor amount of draw from her to bring it to the surface and direct the liquid toward the roots of the dehydrated trees. Releasing the energy she no longer needed, she felt empty without the comforting tingle of magick. That it had so seamlessly welcomed her once she'd cleared its path into her system moved Cassie. Alone again, Cassie opened her eyes to see the other visible signs of disuse.
Scattered about the ground below the trees was evidence that this place was long forgotten. The white cardboard of a fast food wrapper and paper bag lay in a half crushed heap holding dirt and old rainwater, the bright waxy packaging nearly glowing in the dark against the light sucking soil and dead Bermuda grass in which they sat. Whether they'd blown in or been discarded by a passing patron didn't matter. Either way, the overall vibe was easy to interpret, even for a novice.
This church was not well attended nor well regarded by the community. No proper sign hung on the awning advertising itself to the populace. There was only a small hand colored white posterboard placard in the window that decried this to be the "Ray of Light" Church. Terry Pritchard was listed as the "Spiritual Guide" instead of declaring an ordination. The whole thing seemed to be a slapped together afterthought in the hopes of lending credibility to a farce.
Coming to the door, Cassie paused and held out both hands palms down toward the sidewalk under her feet. Reaching this time for the cool black soil below, Cassie caught a whiff of dank earth, closed her eyes to gather herself, and pulled. The skin on her arms tingled and she felt the flesh on the back of her neck prickle in the night chilled air. Opening her eyes, she raised one palm and held it roughly a foot from the glass and metal door. Focusing her thoughts on the lock cylinder, she let one quick pulse of energy arc from her hand to the aluminum handle. A click and the lock spun, a thin tendril of smoke curled up from the key hole and Cassie reached out to pull the door open. She took a firm hold of the handle, expecting some amount of resistance. There was none.
She opened the door, ears straining for sounds of an alarm system assuming they had one. Sure enough, they did. Two "whoops" shrieked in the deafening quiet and Cassie scanned the front walls, willing her eyes to adjust faster. The red light marking the control panel guided her partial night vision to her goal. Another pulse of controlled energy silenced its call with a pop. Without a backward glance at her backup, she continued inside.
The sounds of her light leather soled footsteps were loud on the paper thin carpet. Worn and rumpled, it was barely enough to cover what sounded like a wooden stage not an office floor. Cassie was glad to be alone, there would be no sneaking around in here. Her palm tingled as she carefully guided the energy to the surface, turning the flat of her hand a glowing golden brown. Frustratingly, it was only a tiny flame at first. Frowning, Cassie stared at it and "fed" it, concentrating more of the energy zinging through her body into a unified direction. The shift in its current making her skin tighten into tiny goose bumps under her thin clothing.
The flame grew into a small ball. Holding it out, she let the light shine outward, illuminating several feet in front of her and no more. Anything more powerful was risky and not just for fear of discovery, but also because good luck since reconfiguring her magick didn't necessarily mean it was all going to go as planned. She didn't want to have to explain extensive damage or blow herself up. Small was better for now.
Able to see properly, Cassie began her search. The "church" was really an office with a terribly ordinary looking entry leading straight into a front office area where Cassie could make out what had to be a receptionist's desk nearest her and a few more behind it. She stopped at the front desk first. Light orb held out, Cassie followed its glow and began opening drawers one handed.
There were no dead bodies or signs that read, "Cult leader on a power hungry binge works here." It was all terribly ordinary. By the lack of any personalization she was guessing no one actually filled the role or chair on a regular basis. There was a package of post it notes still in the plastic, two pens and a pencil in a black plastic holder on the fake wooden desk. Its surface was obscured only by a large blotter calendar, perfectly clean. That, in and of itself, spoke volumes. No blotter calendar in the history of offices could remain clean for more than five minutes if someone was within ten feet of it. All those blank squares just screamed out to be doodled on. Everyone knew that.
Moving on, she came to three more desks in a row on the left hand wall, all in the same pristine state of disuse. Cassie didn't waste her time. She turned to follow the curve of the back wall, in keeping with the rule of mazes, and not miss any hallways or doors. It led her past an alcove with a fountain, the restrooms which received only a cursory glance and eventually spilled into the copy room slash kitchen.
Here were actual signs of life. A half consumed carton of soymilk was in the door of the fridge, an open ketchup and one blue cooler bag sat forgotten on the top shelf of the dated biscuit colored appliance.
On a round table in the middle of the room were a few colored pencils and a stack of blank copy paper mussed up where someone had been working on a project or sign of some sort. Upon closer inspection all the pages were blank. Next was the copy machine, which had a recycle bin beside it. Cassie took the liberty of pilfering through it.
Cassie had been inside for a few minutes when Drew saw headlights slowing along the front side of the building with a turn signal flashing. Cursing softly, he shook his head wondering why he'd delayed. He should have been gone by now. He was going to leave when Cassie had gone in and he'd waited, figuring he would give her a minute to get further inside before starting the car. His hand had been on the key ready to start and then, when the alarm had gone off, he knew he couldn't.
Like it or not she was relying on him as her backup. It was wrong to leave her exposed like that and he couldn't make himself do it. In his mind's eye he could see Pritchard standing over Cassie, clutching her chest in agony, and he knew he couldn't abandon her. Shuddering at the image, he cursed again and convinced himself he was staying only long enough to make sure she was free from danger. Drew was debating whether she'd caught the alarm in time when he saw the lights. Instinct from years when they had nothing and resorted to some minor theft jobs to eat kicked in and Drew hopped out of the car to make a dash to the far side of the building. There he took up a position where he could observe unnoticed. He'd parked right in front of the door in case they needed the headlights but in hindsight it hadn't been the best choice.
The car that pulled in was not from a security company. The doors of the black sedan, too high priced to be a fleet vehicle, remained unmarred by loud logos and the roof held no light bar. The black Lexus parked right next to the Z and two women got out.
It was hard to see much in the mix of shadow and light. All he could make out was that the women were roughly the same height, about five and a half feet, and the driver was about fifty pounds overweight while the passenger was a waif unfamiliar with the sun. From what he knew of Pritchard's cult, it consisted entirely of women. The driver would have to be one of the wealthy older members he fleeced to finance his enterprise and the younger was one of the barely legals he kept around for other reasons. It was these young ones he'd sent to Carter's to curry favor with Drew, and he'd first confused Cassie for. He didn't know what the girls saw in the guy, but they were willing to do anything for him. It made Drew sick.
With his newly restored clarity of mind, on top of the whole magick thing, he wondered for the first time if Pritchard's control over his women went beyond your run of the mill brainwashing. A little magick could cement the women's loyalty far better than a little manipulation.
The older of the two women peered in the windows of the Z, Drew holding his breath until she moved away. Exhaling in relief apparently prematurely, he forced himself to bite his tongue a second later when she leaned over the front end, swung her hand up and metal glinted in the low light. A hissing sound reached him over the hum of passing traffic and Drew swore under his breath. She wasn't done. Around she came to slash his other front tire before folding and replacing the knife in her purse. Drew made a promise to Pritchard that he would beat exactly that dollar amount out of his hide.
Finished maiming the car, the abuser grasped the church's door handle and signaled to the waif standing by at the front of the sedan. Slack faced, she followed the older woman who handily enough fished a small flashlight out of her purse before they went inside, the door closing softly behind them.
"Damn it." Drew cursed aloud. "He had to send MacGuyver?" What else did she have in that bag? The air leaving his tires was taking his escape plan with it. Thinking a cab could meet him on the street, his hand slipped into his pocket then halted as soon as his fingers touched the screen. That lady had been handy with a knife and now she was between Cassie and the door. His brother might be at his condo right now or at the club waiting for him, and he was stuck here. Torn, Drew paced, roughing his hair.
What was he thinking? Brandon needed him, he should be on his way. Let Cassie sort this out. She had magick. If she was able to defend herself against Terry Pritchard, certainly she could take care of one middle aged woman with a knife and a half-baked lightweight. He had to find Brandon before they did.
Cassie and her ilk were not going to be lenient on Brandon if they found him first. Drew told himself no one else mattered, that it was still the Carter brothers against the world. In his mind he saw her face as she hovered over him in the elevator, she hadn't left him when he'd been helpless. And he saw the look of her as she lay entwined with him, her dark features relaxed and unguarded. She didn't deserve to be abandoned.
"Damn it, damn it, damn it." One last double handed hair yank that left him looking half mad and he took off at a jog down the sidewalk, following the faint glow of light inside.
Cassie read the sheet she'd pulled off the top of the recycling twice before folding and pocketing it. The crackling page obscured the sounds of footsteps at first but after she'd smoothed it in her jeans pocket, she could hear them clearly. Two sets, both of which were too light and stealthy to be Drew. Grimacing, Cassie closed her hand and snuffed her light as she trotted across the room to tuck herself behind where the wall jogged back to make a doorway for a storage closet. It was barely enough to provide her cover, she would be hidden from a cursory glance only. Anything more was impossible given the simple, open floor plan of the room. When the intruders entered, all they had to do was turn to the side and they would see her. Cassie forced her breathing to steady and waited.
The flashlight's beam peeled back the shadows, gradually growing more visible and allowing Cassie to track their progress. They followed the back wall, echoing Cassie's movements perfectly. She knew at least one of her pursuers was a woman when a light voice whispered.
"Mary, should we call the police?" The fact that she whispered didn't hide the slur. Was she drunk? "What if it's more of those men from up north?"
"Hush Caroline. Mr. Terry says he doesn't want the police here, we can handle this." The other woman had a voice that probably boomed when she wasn't working to keep it down. As it was, it was a stage whisper at best and anyone in the office would have been able to hear it.
The light preceded their echoing steps on the poorly insulated wooden floor and when it turned into the copy room, it was like someone flicked a switch. Reflecting on the white and gray faux marble floor and bouncing off the white painted cinderblock walls it was bright as day in there. Cassie's position was exposed before they took two steps in.
"Who are you?" Mary demanded, no longer bothering to keep her voice down now that her prey was sighted. Cassie had guessed right, a Sea Captain would have been proud to have her lungs. "Caroline, take the light." Head swiveling to catch sight of any more intruders, Mary approached.
The young woman, Caroline she was guessing, was slothlike in her movements. Whether it was drugs or alcohol Cassie couldn't tell, either way she was out of it. Cassie had already figured Mary to be the greater threat given her sobriety and greater bulk, and that was before she heard the click of metal on metal. Her eyes jumped to Mary's hand seeing the four inch blade protruding from the ka-bar's graphite base. It appeared not all of Pritchard's women were helpless widows or empty headed fools. This one could manage just fine on her own.
Cassie held her hands out peacefully. As far as she knew, these two were regulars even if they were working for a witch. By law, magick was a last resort to be used against them only in the most dire of situations and so far this didn't qualify. That and Cassie didn't want to hurt someone unintentionally. Grandmother's warning that her soul would suffer in Veritas' employ came back to her. She shook it off. It wouldn't come to that if she handled things right. Making her body relax and her voice steady Cassie hoped to keep things cool. "Look, I don't want any trouble. I didn't take anything yet, see?" Passing herself off as a common thief seemed like the right choice.
Mary was no fool. She grinned coldly and tipped her head back toward the door. "That's your car out front, right?"
Her accent held no hint of the South. Mary was a transplant, although that was true for half of Florida; New York or Jersey sounded closer to her point of origin. "Anyone who can afford that car is not robbing a church with nothing in it unless they're a junkie." She took a step. "You're no junkie. Now tell me why you're here."
Training to be an Investigator in the field had included handling an attacker with a weapon, but training for it and actually facing a woman with a knife and a steady hand were two different things.
Cassie sidestepped, angling out into the open box of a room giving herself some space to maneuver. Mary lowered her knife hand to Cassie's stomach level and she took a step. Caroline slouched in place, content to hold the light while the other two faced off.
Drew watched the women square off, waiting. If he jumped in now he might only make things worse. He was losing faith in Cassie's ability to talk Mary down although she probably had a spell or whatever to disarm her opponent. The waif was no threat, she looked like she was ready to tip over any second. She earned only a few sideways glances.
Cassie thought fast, trying out a new angle that might put the knife wielding Pritchard-ite at ease so that she could disarm her without getting disemboweled. "Listen, my sister disappeared after talking to this Pritchard guy. I heard he runs this place and I'm just trying to find out if she's with him."
"Why didn't you come around asking about her during normal business hours?"
"Things didn't go well at home when she left, I didn't want to spook her if she saw me."
"What's your sister's name?" The knife didn't budge.
Wavering her voice enough to incite sympathy, Cassie looked hopeful. "Becky, Becky Stordahl." Her hand went out palm down and she began to pull, preparing for the worst.
"I've never heard of her."
"I don't understand. We assumed she was coming here when she left." Her face fell she looked every bit the dejected sister. Drew had to admire Cassie's nerves; she wasn't easily rattled.
Mary's shoulders straightened, she eased out of her crouch and Drew breathed easier. The woman was buying Cassie's story. He exhaled and started to back away. He could leave Cassie now. She could manage her way out of this.
"She's one of them." The waif's thin reedy voice screeched, frantic. "I see it in her."
At the first shriek Mary's knife shot up and the tension level in the room shot to nuclear. "What? That's not possible!" The anxiety he heard brought Drew rushing back. Nervous and armed would not end well for Cassie. Once again, he made ready to jump in.
Caroline remained where she was, flashlight still held aloft. Above the beam of light her eyes had gone enormous and black in the shadows. She raised one hand to point. "The girl's like Mr. Terry, she has the light of the divine in her."
For a moment, Cassie was hopeful thinking this Seer's vision had given her a free pass comparing her to their leader. Eyes flicking back and forth between the two she waited.
"Remember what Mr. Terry said," Caroline reanimated building up steam, "beware false prophets. They don't share their strength and love with us like Mr. Terry. They are demons lying in wait to lead us astray." She waved the flashlight at Cassie. "We must destroy them."
Apparently Mary agreed and, in an instant, she sprang. Cassie's nerves were tight and she was ready when Mary leaped, sidestepping at the last minute. Mary stopped herself and spun with her prey. They circled and Mary feinted at her, leaving no doubt the weapon was not purely for show.
Drew could see that her attacks were not intended to wound, they were meant to kill. He could not hold himself back any longer. Seeng a use for what Cassie and her partners had said was his skill, Drew walked into the room planning to cool Pritchard's two women down.
"Hey ladies, what's going on here?" He made a conscious effort to will them calm, aiming one of his best crowd cooling smiles at them.
Mary brought herself up short and twisted toward the newcomer. The knife went down to her side, hidden behind her leg. Cassie kept her eyes on it. Caroline turned around and aimed the light at Drew. Squinting, he held up a hand to block the blinding beam.
"He's one of them too!" She shrieked. "Send them both back to Hell!"
Lips tight, Mary stepped back to face both Cassie and Drew. "Come on Demons! I'm ready for you." She hissed and lunged.
Cassie put her hands up defensively and blocked the blade from catching her face, feeling it slice into her forearm instead. She sucked in through her teeth as her other palm struck Mary's attacking arm and pushed it aside allowing Cassie to step in and follow up with a palm heel to the nose.
Reeling backward, Mary held the knife up in one hand while her other flew to staunch the flow of blood pouring from her face. She blinked and shook her head, blinded by the automatic tears blurring her vision.
While Drew looked on, assessing the severity of the wound from the thin stream of blood running down Cassie's forearm the beam from the flashlight tilted, making the room appear to shift with it and an ear piercing, banshee cry rent the air.
Caroline had moved, her speed a shock after her previous slugging about. The long willowy girl landed on Drew and clawed at his face. He threw up his arms instinctively to fend her off, feeling her nails dig into his arms and neck.
Working in the club Drew did well to avoid most fights. That didn't mean it was always one hundred percent effective. Carter's was relatively peaceful under his influence although sometimes he would be a little late and find himself wading into the mix, which is where most of Drew's doctoring skills came from. As any club security or owner will attest, one of the biggest challenges for male bouncers is stopping a woman's attack without actually striking her. Fortunately Drew had some experience in that realm.
Fast so that he could knock her off balance, Drew jumped sideways and ducked at the same time. Predictably, the banshee riding his back teetered and he took advantage, spinning the other direction before she righted herself. As she came loose, scrambling to keep her hold, Drew reached out and caught her as she slid down where he clamped his arms down over her, efficiently trapping her. Frustrated, she shrieked again.
Flinching at the ear splitting sound, Drew shifted to keep her contained under one arm and put the other hand over her mouth, cupping her chin to keep her from biting. He'd learned that lesson the hard way in his first few weeks at Carter's and gotten six stitches for his oversight. "Cassie, behind you."
Dropping and spinning, Cassie swept a leg out and tripped Mary who went down like a stone with a dull thud. Regaining her feet, she put a hand over her bleeding arm and stepped into the light to better examine it.
"Is it bad?" He gave Caroline a firm jostle to stop her wiggling.
Cassie was twisting her arm to inspect her wound on the underside by the elbow. "I don't think so, it's hard to tell in this light. Hold on." She scooped up the flashlight and ducked back into the little alcove where she'd hidden earlier. Rustling sounds ensued and she emerged with a roll of packing tape, holding it high in victory.
Kneeling down to the prone form, Cassie picked up the knife from where it had fallen beside its owner and wiped it on her pants, closing and pocketing it. She took the pulse of the woman and set about taping her hands and feet, keeping her on her side to prevent her from choking on her own blood, before rising and pointing at the barely subdued Caroline. All she caught of the Seer's face were her eyes, glaring at her over Drew's hand, covering nearly the entire lower half of her face. "Can you hold her still?"
"I think I can manage it."
A few more spins of tape and Caroline was restrained.
Using the flashlight held like a torch Cassie was able to look in her eyes. Seeing they were bloodshot and her pupils were pinpricks Cassie exhaled harshly. "She's drugged out of her mind. She's no use to us like this." Disgusted, she tore off a final slap of tape and clapped it over her mouth. Drew laid his charge down beside Mary, who was breathing shallowly on her side. Wiping her arm on the underside of her shirt, Cassie put one more strip of tape over her cut and looked around to be sure she wasn't leaving anything behind.
Drew watched her methodical handling of the situation and considered what he knew of this woman. She was capable of handling herself, that was for sure. He found the knowledge oddly comforting. And yet her detachment chilled him. It spoke to a side of the compassionate woman he wasn't sure he wanted to know.
Glancing up, Cassie caught him staring at her, a curious expression on his face. "What?" Her expression was blank.
He shook his head. "You don't seem upset by any of this."
Cassie held out a hand, waving it at the bodies on the floor, thankful for the sake of her soul that they were both still breathing, and rolled her eyes. "This is my job. I may not have been too quick to pick up the one part." She avoided mentioning magick in front of the still conscious Caroline watching them from the ground. "But I've gotten used to," her eyes lingered on Mary's barely moving form, "the rest of it." She rubbed the smooth band of tape on her arm, embarrassed at the warm feeling enveloping her at his coming to her aid when he had seen these two coming in. "We should go." She mumbled and brushed past him, ready to leave this place.
Turning around to see if he was following, Cassie caught him staring after her. That he was working through something in his head was obvious. She had to assume he was discomfited by the discovery that her job was not always clean. At least he was speaking to her again, for now. That was sure to end soon.
The awkward silences that had dominated their dynamic since she'd removed his amulet had been filled with her mental war, the back and forth of telling herself she'd been reckless in her dalliance with a client while the hopeful voices told her how to justify it to her superiors.
On their way out, Drew's eyes caught a glimpse of yellow atop the refrigerator out of Cassie's sightline.
"Let me see the flashlight." He held out his hand to her retreating form as he diverted to investigate in the fading light. The glow turned his way and he felt its weight in his hand.
The yellow legal pad had been tossed carelessly up there as someone retrieved their lunch most likely, and had been forgotten. The pages of scribbled notes made no sense to either of them but what did catch their eyes was that Swainsboro was written beside the name Toohey. Drew liberated the pad, tucking it under his arm, and after a brief sweep revealed nothing more, they made their way back up the stairs.
"What's in Swainsboro do you suppose and who's Toohey?" Drew asked as they retraced their steps, failing to notice the fact that Cassie did not answer.
Emerging from the building, Cassie saw the tires on the Z and sighed. "When were you going to tell me about this?" Her hand fell back, slapping her thigh in exasperation.
Drew's nerves were taut and he bridled at her condescending tone. "Sorry there wasn't really a chance to talk about my car repair issues, I was busy saving your neck."
Cassie spared him a cutting glance, pulled her phone from her pocket and dialed. "Agent Porter calling in with a situation. I need a car towed." Stepping out, she peered around the building's corner to see the street sign and reported it. Phone slid back into her pocket, Cassie gave Drew a quick look only to catch him eyeing her curiously. She found his scrutiny unnerving.
"Come on, I saw a gas station not far from here. We can call a cab to meet us there. We don't want anything else tying you to this place. It wouldn't be safe." She moved off leaving him no choice but to follow, needing to be in control.
Drew jogged up, catching her as she turned the corner and hit the sidewalk heading back the direction from which they'd come. "What do you mean it wouldn't be safe for me? What about you? Don't you think Pritchard's already curious about you after what happened in the club?" It went against the grain for her to be trying to take care of him. He had his pride.
Staring straight ahead Cassie watched the oncoming traffic for overtly curious onlookers, familiar faces, or law enforcement. Her training was much the same as any other officer in the regular ranks except hers included the use of magick and the apprehension of magick users. Being aware of her surroundings was key to being good at her job.
"They won't find me, I don't really exist." She sensed his hesitation at her foreboding declaration. "If you went looking for any of us outside of Veritas channels you would never find us. That's how Veritas keeps its agents and our families safe." She sneaked a look at him and saw him concentrating on traffic as well, his expression troubled.