Blank Girl - (Book One)

Chapter 6 - Just an Animal Empath

Greg

"Dad, I think I found her." I opened video chat.

"That was quick. What is she?"

My father looked back at me through the screen. He was blonde and blue eyed, like me, but there was an angular austerity to him. He looked like he could have been a school master in a posh private school or a navy captain from the 1700's. His suit was crease-less and his tie, impeccably centered. 

Michael Castle was not a man you wanted to cross. He was known for dismantling people with a stare and cutting out hearts with his well-timed disdain. Okay, that's an exaggeration, but the truth is, my father is a powerful and, quite frankly, terrifying man.

"Animal Empath."

"That doesn't account for the strength of the signature that was reported. Are you certain?"

"I think so. I mean, I caught her talking to her dog. Seemed like they were having a real conversation and she avoided it when I asked."

"Think so? Seemed like? Did you attempt mental contact at all?"

"I did, but received no response. I assumed that she can only communicate with animals."

"That won't be much use. You said it was a dog?" I nodded at his question. "Mika tends not to play well with others, so that doesn't help us. Even if she did, another noisy, messy canine running about is hardly a step in the right direction."

He was talking about Mika Shultz, the leader of the "Wolf Pack", and a short-tempered, vicious little girl. She wouldn't even let her dogs have their own alpha. I doubt she would tolerate another human in her squad, especially not a girl as beautiful and mild as Cassie. No, Cassie was definitely not cut out for that life.

"It sounds like you've been hasty, and haven't considered all the possibilities. I honestly don't believe an Animal Empath can put out that much psychic energy. They operate on a much lower frequency. Are you sure she isn't a Shifter who just picked up an animal language?"

"I mean I guess she could be, but there's no way for me to force her to shift if she is. If I frighten her and she does have an active ability, it could be disastrous."

"Yes, let's not revisit the Redrock High School incident. Toby is settling in just fine by the way. He hasn't set anything on fire accidentally since his second day with us."

"He's a good guy, just emotional." I paused trying to think of a way to get the conversation back on track. Redrock High School was not my finest hour and every time my father brought it up, I cringed inside. "I was actually thinking, maybe there's more than one unknown here. I did sense an erratic telepathic field, but it's so faint. It's close, but I really just can't pinpoint it."

My dad paused. "Highly unlikely, psychics are rare and to find two unknowns in the same small town is improbable at best. The most sound explanation is that this girl is unstable and just pretending to talk to animals and you're looking for someone else entirely. So, rule her out as a possibility, one way or the other, and try to home in on that field you mentioned. It could be a dormant ability trying to assert itself."

"There's something else though." How do I phrase it so that I don't seem like a complete disgrace to my dad. Oh right, I got it. I'll just-

"I can hear you talking to yourself son, you're leaving yourself wide open. Line of sight with a Telepath is all we need, that includes video chat, you know that. If you forget your training, I'll send someone else to find the unknowns from now on."