No Peace for the Damned by Megan Powell Page B

know.
    “Magnolia,” he said. I sat straighter. “You said that your family’s power was used at Batalkis’s home. Something more than just their physical strength. Can you show us how to defend against what you felt?”
    I nodded and shoved the last of my bagel in my mouth. I brushed away the crumbs from my shirt and quickly tried to piece together a good exercise to start with.
    That’s when I lost them.
Crap
.
    All around the room, minds went numb. Hadn’t they gotten used to me yet? I mean, seriously, a brush of my hands over my chest shouldn’t send them all dumb and loopy anymore. I glanced at Heather and Cordele. Both women gave me arched looks. Then Marie. Her eyes were just as glassy and unfocused as the men’s.
    Well. That certainly added another level of hostility to the petty anger she continued to throw my way.
    “Hey!” I yelled. “Snap out of it!”
    Cordele swung back from her seat and whacked Shane on the side of the head. “Ow!”
    “Well, it worked on Chang.” She shrugged then flashed a smug grin. Everyone blinked themselves back to normal.
    “You all know how fast I can move, how easy it is for me to incapacitate you. So when the time comes, remember, distance is best. If you
are
forced to fight hand-to-hand with one of them,remember the basics: they’re all about speed and strength. Especially my brothers. Both have martial arts training but they didn’t take it seriously. There’s no thought in their fight—just quick brute force. And trust me, that can be enough.”
    I fidgeted with my drink.
    “There’s nothing you can really do about the telekinesis other than know that some of them have it. The main worry is their telepathy. Uncle Max is the superior power, obviously, but all of them can get in your mind to some degree. Only Uncle Max can rip out your thoughts in a mindsweep, but the others can mess with your senses, make you see things that aren’t really there.”
    “What do you mean, make us see things?” asked Cordele.
    “They can make things appear. Like they can put a wall in front of you, or make you think there are people yelling at you. It’s all very real to the people who see it.”
    “Then how do we tell what’s real and what’s not?” Jon asked.
    I looked at my glass and turned it in my hand again. “I’m not positive because they were never able to do it to me, but I think there’s a way to block the illusion if you know it’s coming.”
    “Is that something we can practice?” Theo asked.
    “Sure,” I said, an unfamiliar purr suddenly dropping my voice. “Wanna have a go?”
    Shane’s mouth went slack. Charles shifted in his seat. Theo fought back a grin.
    Holy shit—did I just say that?
    “Sure,” Theo said. “Where do you want to do it? In here OK, or you looking for something more…comfortable?”
    My face burned. Jon coughed loudly and shot Theo a look. I tightened the grip on my glass and took another drink.
Focus
. But God, it took all my effort not to get up and cross the room to him right now.
    “There’s always some sort of stirring when energy is used. It may be very subtle, but it’s always there. Like at Batalkis’s house. The power actually hung in the air and brushed against us.”
    “But only you could feel that,” Charles said, impatience heavy in his voice.
    “Yeah, but if you knew what it felt like then maybe you could feel it too.” Everyone sat forward in their seats. Not a ringing endorsement, but I’d take it.
    “I’m going to change something in the room,” I said, very businesslike. “But I want you all to close your eyes so you can’t see it.”
    Thirteen smiled to himself. “Excellent,” he murmured.
    “Close your eyes and let me know if you feel anything different.”
    When all their eyes shut—Marie being the last to comply, of course—I conjured a crystal chandelier onto the ceiling. A beautiful antique, it had gold leafing intertwined with crystals in three descending layers. It was just like