I didn't say anything and Chen waited. We had a stare down. Then finally she tilted her head and said, "You're not one to volunteer information, Caleb."

I shook my head. "No."

"Hmm..." she put her pen to her lips, obviously still doing the stupid writing thing. "Tell me, is that pulse from Ms. Tulle accurate?"

Kinda. "No, I don't 'jam my tongue down Jade's throat'."

Usually.

She arched her thin black brows and I sat there, listening to the pulse clock whir. "I will let this go this one time. As you know, it has been some time since the brawl ensued in the commons area last year. This is of a different nature. However, we do not want any unsettling trends to begin, do we?"

Like fighting and making out. Gotcha.

"I hear what you're saying, Ms. Chen." I heard but obeying may prove challenging.

"Good. I am pleased we've come to an understanding. I would hate to involve Jade's aunt or possibly your parents."

I hid the flinch with difficulty. My parents I may be able to manage but not Jade's aunt. She wasn't a fan of mine.

Or my zombies.

Chen stood and I did too. She maybe came up to my shoulder, she was a literal china doll. But I had never been one to be fooled by size. Chen was a powerful Null. This had been her first high school admin position. She had been in the same placebo group as Dave Smith. He got the AFTD and she got the shut-it-all-down juice.

She wasn't easily intimidated. Only a mundane could hurt her. None of us teens could.

I hesitated, wondering if I should tell her about what Sophie had said about the attacker.

She cocked an eyebrow again. "Do you have something you wish to say, Caleb?"

Nah, better keep her in the dark. What could she do anyway?

"No."

She gave me a hard stare, she knew I'd been holding back. "Fine, see if you can learn something from the latter half of AFTD."

I strolled out of the office without looking back or giving it a lot of thought.

I'd give it a lot of thought later.

Should've told her.

*

Jade searched, tearing through the bin. When everything was chucked out and in a messy heap by her feet she finally turned to Miss Tulle. She was on her shit list today but she had to talk to her sometime.

"Ah... Miss Tulle?" Jade asked, flicking a chunk of black hair over her shoulder.

Tulle looked at her from behind the desk, then dipped her head again to her pulse-reader, grading the latest assignments.

"What is it, Jade?"

Yes, definitely still on the list, Jade thought dismally.

"I can't find yesterday's sample."

Tulle didn't look up. "It's in there. Be thorough, look harder."

Jade put her hands on her hips, starting to get irritated. Was this all it took for Tulle to discount her? She did a little PDA with Caleb in the hall once in awhile and she got her panties all knotted up? She huffed.

"I did. All the samples are here," Jade indicated with her hand as Tulle finally gave the samples her attention.

A frown formed on Tulle's forehead. "Is that the one that had the DI?"

Jade nodded, swallowing. Yeah, that'd been the one alright.

Tulle came around the corner of the desk, gouging her hip and hissing in her breath. Jade came forward, concerned and Tulle put up a warding palm.

She walked to where the pile lay at Jade's feet. She searched each piece in turn, placing one after the other back in the bin and shuddering with the touch of a few.

"Should have worn gloves," she muttered more to herself than Jade.

When she finished, she straightened.

Tulle looked at Jade. "I keep these locked..." A troubled look came over her face. Finally, she looked at Jade, Tulle's eyes searching hers. "I know you wouldn't have taken that sample."

"No way, Miss Tulle." Jade said, suppressing the shiver with difficulty.

"Do you have a few minutes so we can talk?" Tulle asked.

"I do if you can excuse the tardy," Jade answered cautiously.

Tulle pursed her lips, realizing that she was asking Jade for something after she'd just hung her boyfriend out to dry at Chen's office.

"Yes," she answered shortly and Jade gave a small smile as she nodded.

The bell shrilled and the kids flowed out of the class.

Tulle sighed. "I was distracted by your boyfriend earlier..."

"Caleb," Jade clarified and Tulle shrugged.

"The AFTD."

Jade nodded. He was so much more than that. Just as she was way more than just an Empath. Jade didn't like how everyone was so easily identified as what they were rather than who.

"I phoned the police, against my better judgment. We have been using the clairvoyance samples without much trouble for the five years I've been teaching here. But recently, with the skill set of some Empaths becoming wide," she spread her arms apart as far as they could go and Jade laughed despite herself. "We need to turn in samples that have Death Intent."

"So...?" Jade was confused. "You did turn in the sample?"

She shook her head. "No, I pulsed them and they were going to drop by," she looked at her pulse, her eyes flashing up to Jade's, "momentarily, to pick it up."

"Let me get this straight. You pulsed the police about the sample with DI, then they said they'd come pick it up... at any moment. But it's now missing?"

Tulle nodded. "That about covers it. Oh, and one more thing."

Great, Jade thought, feeling the potential for blame swirling around her like foggy fingers looking for holes. "I gave your name as point of origin contact."

Jade nearly slapped her forehead. She totally didn't want to be involved with the police. Look what had happened with Caleb. He'd almost gotten killed.

So had she, her mind touching on John Smith and retreating like a finger burnt on a hot stove.

They heard a noise at the door, a soft rap on the jamb.

Turning, Jade watched Detective Raul Garcia and Bobbi Gale walk through the door as her shoulders slumped in defeat.

Wrecking the peace of the last year with their entrance.

CHAPTER 5

I walked up to Tulle's class, knowing that Jade had to suck hind tit the entire block because of our sexcapade in the hall. I felt kinda bad about that but what could I do? We'd have to hide our PDAs more masterfully.

I slowed my stride when I saw the broad back of Garcia, notebook in hand and Gale at his side.

I'd know them anywhere. Instead of feeling comforted by police presence I was completely trained to respond with the fear and flight response. Which loosely translated meant: get the hell out of Dodge, as Gramps would say. However much I wanted to follow that directive, one look at Jade's face made my stride pick up again and in a few moments I was inside the room.

Garcia turned just as I came in. Pretty aware for a mundane, I thought.

"Whoa! Caleb..." he clapped me on the back. "Haven't you grown?"

Just the kind of lame adult comment that made me want to judo-chop his throat. Instead, I plastered a fake smile on my face and said the obligatory, "I don't know," with a shrug.

Gale smiled behind her hand, she was catching the lameness clue square between the eyes. "Ah, I think he's taller than you now, Raul."

Garcia huffed and puffed, standing at attention like a rooster about to defend his coop.

Wow, seriously?

Jade interrupted, "I know how important it is for males to acknowledge each other's... manliness..." she began to trail off and Garcia gave her a good-natured glare. Jade spread her hands apart. "But, I thought maybe Caleb could be in on this too."

She was just a little snarky today. I like.

I could feel my brows jack down over my eyes and she gave me a barely there shake of her head, her hair sliding over her shoulders in a distracting way. I swallowed, completely thrown off my train of thought.

Garcia looked from one to the other of us and sighed. "I don't know if I'm up to the tag-teaming I may get from you two." He waggled a finger. "And I'm sure this is nothing, but Ms. Tulle did phone this in and we've responded to the threat... or possible threat."

I walked over to where Jade stood, nervously twisting the charm that was attached to her zipper on the fancy backpack I'd got her. The effort not to touch her wasn't pretty but Tulle's gaze glued to us helped me squelch it.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Well..." Gale began, "Jade was working with a clairvoyance sample yesterday and found DI impregnated in it."

That sounded... wrong. I viciously stuffed the urge to Laugh at Inappropriate Times and got the crooked mouth for my trouble. Tulle gave me an odd look and Jade's stare clearly said, cool it dumbass!

That seemed to always make things worse. Gale had a sense of my trouble and after a quick look, rushed on before I would begin to howl.

"Anyhow," she drew out the word, giving me The Look, "whenever a student at one of the high schools finds a DI, it's an automatic pulse to the police."

Okay, I gave. "What's DI?"

Jade said, "Death Intent."

I shrugged. "So?"

"It means the person that the garment belongs to will murder or has already done so."

A quiet fell over the room. Not even the pulse-clock could be heard.

Finally I asked, "So, you guys are here to pick up the sample?" I looked at Jade for confirmation because she had been looking for it. She'd promised.

Jade shook her head. "They were here to pick it up but now it's gone."

My brow furrowed. Garcia nodded his head and Tulle said, "I have my samples locked up each night..."

"Pulse secure?" Gale asked and Tulle nodded.

Garcia whistled. "That's pretty secure." He looked at her dubiously. "Are you sure that you secured the room first then..." his brows rose.

She nodded. "Oh yes, I would always secure. Always have. And," she looked at him like he was retarded, "I had to pulse it open this morning."

So, somebody broke into Tulle's secret stash of creeper samples, taking only the one Jade had gotten the full flesh crawl over and now it wasn't here.

I looked at Garcia. "Sounds like someone doesn't want the sample to be found."

Gale agreed, "Sounds like."

Effing great. Shades of the Graysheets. I didn't say it though. It was too implausible.

I looked again at Jade then back to the cops. She looked nervous. I didn't like this, I had a bad feeling.

I planted my hands on my hips, eyes narrowing. "What does this have to do with Jade?"

Garcia didn't quite meet my eyes. "We'll be needing her to identify the... ah, owner of the garment."

"No way!" I yelled. "You can't put her in danger like that!" What were they thinking the jag-ups?

Jade put her hand on my arm and Tulle tracked it like an eagle. "It's okay Caleb, I want to help them."

I shook my head. "Jade, no. This puts you on the highway to harm's way. This is some guy that goes to one of our high schools for cripes sake. It could be the AP guy..." Jade's head snapped up and I got then I wasn't supposed to be talking about that. Bullshit! These two needed to know. Jade's eyes were big with the No look. Huh. What the hell was going on here?

Gale stepped forward. "What are you saying, Caleb?" Jade's huge green eyes were round with worry in my peripheral vision. I shrugged, saying, "Nothing, I guess I had it mixed up." I caught Jade's shoulders relaxing.

Garcia's gaze narrowed on me, he had caught the hiding it scent and like a good blood hound he was going to track it until he found what he was looking for. He didn't press though.

For now.

After a lengthy pause he said, "Listen, if I can get your folks' pulse-consent, I will let you escort Miss LeClerc here..." Jade rolled her eyes like, seriously? He smiled and corrected to, "Jade." He gave me the look that told me it was the best he could do.

"What about your aunt?" I asked.

"I'm emancipated, remember?" Jade reminded me.

Right... nice.

Gale's expression was puzzled. "Why?"

Jade hesitated and I knew, just knew how much she liked to bring up dear old dad. "My dad," she answered softly, a slight blush tinting her cheeks. Why she was embarrassed about him was beyond me. He was King of All Dicks. And I knew who the princes were, yes indeedy. Several came springing to mind. Nice visual. Totally.

"Something funny, Mr. Hart?" Tulle asked.

I was really beginning to take a dislike to her.

"Nah, just thought of something funny, yet unrelated," I expounded in a moment of cleverness that jacked her face into the pissed off realm.