Sierra folded her arms very tightly beneath her breasts. She did not take her eyes off the road.

“Carl thinks we’re all monsters,” she said.

“Only a real monster would run experiments on a helpless street person like Marge. I’ll call Victor and give him an update.”

CHAPTER 19

Victor Arganbright entered the Halcyon Manor hospital room first, making introductions with lightning speed.

“Lily, Chandler, this is Allegra Raines and her husband, Byron Raines. They are the parents of Sierra Raines, who is currently helping North locate the artifact that we need to try to reverse the damage to your aura, Chandler.”

Lily was sitting by the bed, holding Chandler’s hand while she read the newspaper to him in an effort to maintain some sense of normality. She put the paper aside and got to her feet.

“Thank you for coming all this way,” she said to Allegra. “We appreciate your kindness.”

Allegra smiled a wistful, understanding smile. “But you don’t think there’s much I can do to help. You may be right, but we won’t know until I try.”

Lily did not know quite what she had been expecting—a couple of aging neohippies who played at living a back-to-the-land, meditation-and-yoga lifestyle in an intentional community, perhaps.

At first glance, Allegra and Byron Raines fit the image she’d had in mind. Allegra wore her graying, shoulder-length hair in a casual twist at the back of her head. No makeup. Her dress was loose and flowy and definitely homemade. Clunky sandals and a small backpack completed the outfit.

Byron’s hair was a little too long and a little too shaggy. He wore easy-fitting denim trousers, a plaid flannel shirt and low, scuffed boots. A pair of old-fashioned round spectacles was perched on his forceful nose. He looked like a cross between an eccentric academic and a farmer.

“The doctors are afraid the damage to my husband’s aura is continuing,” Lily said. She squeezed Chandler’s hand. “We are willing to try anything.”

“Let me see what I can do,” Allegra said.

Lily felt energy rise in the atmosphere. Allegra moved to the other side of the bed and placed her fingertips on Chandler’s forehead.

She was silent for a long time. Lily knew she was viewing Chandler’s aura. She would no doubt sense the rising tide of panic that Chandler was working so hard to control.

And then Allegra began to sing. Softly at first and then with increasing power. Lily had anticipated a guitar and folk music. Maybe a soothing lullaby. Possibly a meditation chant or a religious hymn.

What she got was a full-throated coloratura soprano. The music resonated through the small space, filling it with power. The paranormal vibe shivered through the waves of energy, raising the hair on the back of Lily’s neck and thrilling her senses.

Lily realized she was receiving only the backwash of the song. Allegra’s focus was on Chandler. She kept her physical connection with him as she launched into a fierce aria that sent shock waves through the room.