“Yeah, I know.” It was something he had expected, small towns being infamous for the speed at which knowledge spread.

“How could a killer like that hide what he is? How could he be walking around looking normal like the rest of us?”

Finn regarded her steadily. “You know as well as I do that human monsters hide in plain sight. They always have. It’s the Talents you’re thinking about, isn’t it?”

“Well, they should help. Shouldn’t they? The whole reason Bishop created the Special Crimes Unit was to have agents able to investigate using senses most people don’t have. Senses, Talents, like we have. Like a lot of people in this valley have. So why aren’t they helping us?”

“Aylia Blackwood’s Talent at least told us something was happening.”

“A warning that doesn’t seem to have done much good. She hasn’t had another vision, right?”

“Not so far. It takes a lot out of her to try, but she keeps doing it. Michael’s worried about her.”

Nellie frowned. “Her husband? I haven’t met him, right? He wouldn’t have been at the meeting of the elders last month.”

“No. But he’s supportive of Aylia and respects Talents. He owns that electronics store on the other end of Main Street.”

Nellie half nodded. “So Aylia had that one vision, the one that scared the hell out of her. And us. And none of the rest of us has sensed anything helpful.”

He eyed her. “Have you tried?”

“I talked to Tia,” she reminded him, not quite defensively. “To ask them to search, and then again to search specifically for Simon.”

“Talking to the crows isn’t the only thing you can do.”

“It’s the only thing useful right now.”

“How do you know that?”

Nellie looked at her gloved hand, fingers toying with the stem of her wineglass. “Calling down a storm would hardly help,” she said. “Even if I could.”

He didn’t argue about whether she could; they both knew the answer to that despite her words. Conversationally, he said, “Sooner or later you’re going to have to accept all your Talents. And use them.”

She made her voice light with an effort that showed. “Give me a break. I’m still getting used to them myself.”

“You mean openly having them.”

“Whatever. I just . . . what happened with Duncan was driven by extreme need; you know that. What he would have done to Bethany was—” The little girl who would have been Duncan’s final victim was safe and well now, the trauma of her abduction softened with a Talent Nellie had not even known she possessed. She shook her head. “I couldn’t let him kill her.”

“I know.”

“And you know I’d help Simon if I could. But nothing I can do is going to find him. I have tried. To open up. To listen. All I get is some kind of static. And a pounding headache.”

It didn’t surprise Finn; the same thing had happened to him. And, from all he could gather, to most of the members of Bishop’s team. He frowned slightly. “Funny thing, that. There’s been energy in the valley a long time, enough so that many of us could sense it, but as far as I know it’s never interfered with our ability to use our Talents. Not like this.”