A/N: Yay, another chapter! Let's see, nope, still poor, don't own the CSI's.
"Magik typically is channeled through the hands. Beginners will use spoken words to help them focus the energy. Basically, it's mind over matter." Verity stood ten feet away from a wooden target and flung her hand at it. A ball of ice struck the target and covered it in a sheet of ice. Kai pointed a finger at the ice and a tendril of fire curled from her hand to melt the ice. Nick stared in amazement. Verity glanced over and grinned.
"Breathe Tex. It helps." She teased. Nick looked over at her. Verity had pulled her hair up into a messy bun with a red ribbon, and Nick imagined the ribbon pulling loose and her hair tumbling down. Focusing on the image, he grinned in triumph as the ribbon pulled loose and flew into his hand, letting her hair fall down. Kai nodded in satisfaction.
"Very impressive for a first try. You must have had a very active imagination as a child." She said.
"Yeah, I did. Mind over matter you said?" he asked, facing the target. He tried as hard as he could to light it on fire, but the wood remained unharmed. Kai frowned after a few moments. She flicked a finger and sent a small jar hurtling at Nick. In a second, he was focused on it, holding the object floating six inches from his face. Kai pressed a little harder, and with a furrow of his eyebrows, Nick flung the jar back at Kai. She barely had time to erect a shield.
"That was very impressive. Very few people can overpower my magik. I think I know what your powers are now." She said, moving to a wall of cupboards. Nick glanced over at Verity, who had dropped to the floor, her feet tucked underneath her. She looked up at him, and the barest flash of a darkened room smelling of brimstone crossed his vision. He shook his head and saw her violet eyes boring into his questioningly. He shook his head again, mouthing 'later' and returned his focus to Kai, who held several throwing knives. Without a word, she threw them at Nick. He stepped back in surprise, flicking his wrist to send them thudding to the floor, sticking in the carpeting.
"A little warning would be nice." He cried, and Verity laughed.
"She's proving a point, Nick. You're a telekinetic. If you had trained in childhood, you might have learned how to create fire or ice, but you still have a natural power to control real objects. With enough practice, you could stop bullets." She explained.
"Actually, Nick has enough latent power that he could do that already. With practice, he could channel that into healing wounds. You will have to be careful. It is very easy to slip into another's mind and find what ought be hidden. To do so is the same as if you forced yourself on a woman."
"You mean I can read minds?" he asked.
"I mean you can experience events through their eyes. It could be memories, dreams, nightmares, or even fantasies. Always be wary when traveling the corridors of the mind. It is easy to become confused and trapped." Kai's voice had taken on a melancholy tone and her face was overwhelmed with grief.
"Kai!" Verity snapped, breaking Kai's trance. The redhead shook herself and offered a weak smile.
"I have some issues to attend to. Why don't the two of you take the rest of the day and enjoy the city? I have several vehicles you are welcome to use." She said, heading out of the room, arms clasped around her middle. Nick watched her leave.
"Is she alright?" he asked. Verity stood and joined him, watching Kai's retreating form.
"She will be. Painful memories and all that." She replied. The pair stood in quiet contemplation for a moment. Suddenly, Verity poked Nick in the ribs again, deftly stealing her ribbon back and pulling it back around her hair.
"Hey!" he cried, flicking one finger at her hair, the ribbon unfurling again. This time, Nick pocketed it. Verity pulled a fake pout and Nick laughed.
"That won't work on me darlin'" he said, pressing a quick kiss to her cheek. She froze, surprise evident on her face, as Nick headed down the hallway. He was halfway to the kitchen when her brain caught up with her and she chased after him.
"The garage is that way, Tex." She pointed, and he followed her to the massive building set a short distance from the house.
"So, where are we going?" he asked.
"Since you haven't been here before, I will play tour guide. Just trust me." She replied, impulsively kissing his cheek. Nick watched her as she grabbed the keys for a convertible and slid into the driver's seat. Nick followed suit, settleing into the car, his cheek still tingling from her kiss.
CSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSICSI
The smell of jasmine filled the room, mixed with the sweet scent of Verity's skin. She lay on the large bed, the cover's thrown off the bed from her tossing and turning. Her white silk nightgown rode up over her lags and her hair was splayed over the pillow. Within the dream world, she was walking down a dark corridor. As much as she despised this dream, she knew she could not stop it from playing out. The scent of brimstone grew thicker as she advanced, almost choking her. The door at the end of the hall opened, and she screamed at the sight of the bodies coated in blood, and the realization that her arms were coated in it. She bolted upright in the bed, cold sweat trickling down her skin, her breath coming in gasps.
"Ver, it's alright. It was just a nightmare. You're safe. It can't hurt you." Nick's voice cut through the sound of her ragged breathing. After a moment, she calmed down and faced him, one strap of the nightgown sliding down her shoulder.
"I'm alright. Just a bad memory." She said, her voice choked with pain. Nick looked deep into her eyes and pulled her into his arms, her head resting against his broad chest. Her arms automatically wrapped around him and she nuzzled into him, breathing in the delicious scent of his body. Nick's hand ran gently through her hair, a soothing pattern that calmed her quickly.
"Everybody has bad dreams. About eight years ago, we had a case about a woman who used her dog to attack jogger's, then took their livers home and made them into protein shakes. I'm not making this up. For about a month afterwards, I dreamt that she escaped prison and cut my liver out, eating it right in front of me." He said. Verity laughed a little and sat back.
"About three years ago, I was investigating a haunted house in Wyoming. We thought it was simple poltergeists, and Andrew, another witch, said he would stay overnight to gather intel. It was three in the morning when I woke up. I could feel the dark magik coming from the house. I found them in the room at the end of a hall. It was a nest of demons. There was blood everywhere, and they were using the pieces of his body to.." she trailed off, and Nick tightened his grip on her shaking form.
"It's in the past. There is no way you could have known." He whispered.
"I went into a blind rage. I killed every thing there. It wasn't until later, when I was standing in the center of the room with blood all over me, that I realized what had really happened. Andrew had summoned them. He had carved the glyphs and used a cow to mark them in blood. I never even realized that he was a warlock. I should have seen it. I called Kai and she flew up to help me with the cleanup. The nightmares started shortly after I left." Verity pulled up to look Nick in the eye.
"How could I have not seen it? How could I have not realized that my own brother had turned so evil?" she asked, her voice breaking as the tears came. Nick pulled her back into his arms and let her cry.
"It's hard to accept that there isn't anything you could have done. It's even harder when it's somebody that you should be able to trust. When somebody who's supposed to protect you, or stand by you, turns out to be something else, it's a shock, and you start to ask yourself, can I really trust anybody? What you have to remember is there is always someone there to catch you when you fall." He said. Verity glanced up at him, her cheeks wet with tears. Nick reached up with a thumb and wiped away the tears from one cheek, and leaned down to press his lips to hers. The kiss was soft, tender and sweet. She kissed him back a little harder, her hand slipping up his chest. He broke away first and looked down at her.
"Kai wants me to stay in Vegas. With Vincent dead, we need new Watcher there. I'm inclined to accept." She whispered. Nick felt his heart jump at her words. Before he could answer, her cell phone trilled. Smiling slightly, she turned and answered it.
"Hello?"
"Miss Cale, this is Captain Jim Brass of the Las Vegas Police Department. Do you know a Reyslin Jones?" the man on the other end asked. Verity felt her blood run cold.
"Yes, he's a friend of a friend. What's wrong?" she asked.
"Your name and number were in his wallet as an emergency contact. Mr. Jones is in the hospital. He's been beaten pretty severely, and he is in a coma. Can you come in and talk to us?" Brass asked.
"I'm in New Orleans at the moment, but I will fly out as soon as I can. Thank you for calling me." Verity said, and hung up the phone.
"What's wrong?" Nick asked.
"Reyslin is in the hospital. He was attacked. I have to go back to Vegas." She said, leaping out of the bed and running down the hall, Nick hot on her trail. The pair burst into a sitting room where Kai sat with several well dressed individuals. Kai looked up at the pair, noting Verity's rumpled nightgown and Nick's pajama pants with a raised eyebrow.
"Reyslin's been attacked. I have to go back to Vegas." Verity said. Worry broke out on Kai's face.
"I'll get the jet ready. I have to stay here and deal with this treaty. Verity, I am giving you authority to speak for me while you are in Vegas. I know of very few things that could hurt Reyslin. You are Nevada's new Watcher, Verity. Nios has a few goodies for you. Be safe." She said, pressing a gentle kiss to Verity's forehead. A whisper of magik filtered through the room. Kai turned and focused on Nick.
"I would like you to accompany Verity. She will need your help, and you hers, I think." She said, and Nick nodded.
"I'll keep her safe. I promise." He said.
"I'll hold you to it. Remember, you'll have to walk a very thin line between our world and the world you have lived in all your life. Reyslin's attacker was most likely a magik, and you have to find him before the police do. Any creature that would try to hurt a griffon would easily breach the Veil. Time is of the essence."
A/N: Okay, I've got them heading back to Vegas! In the next few chapters, we get to see the two sides of the investigation and I will explain why a homicide cop called Verity about an assault. Trust the muse! Reviews make her happy, and me too!
