“Let me think. There was an abandoned temple on an island somewhere in the Pacific. I was told I had to stay awake all night in order to experience the paranormal effects. I remember a cave that was hot with energy. I didn’t sleep that night, either, because according to the legend, I would have slipped into a dream and never awakened. There was an old house in the UK that was supposed to be haunted, but it turned out an artifact infused with a lot of dangerous energy had been stashed in a Roman sarcophagus in the basement. I spent a few nights in a jungle drinking an interesting herbal tea. Didn’t sleep at all for a few days. Worst crash ever. And then there were the ruins of an alchemist’s library. Talk about weird dreams. Also, I think I remember an enlightening experience with some mushrooms, but it’s a bit vague—”

“Okay, I get the picture. That’s what you’ve been doing for the past five years? Studying paranormal legends and traditions around the world?”

“You could call it research. Sounds better than ‘drifting.’ ”

“And you financed your research trips by doing odd jobs for that small psychic investigation agency you mentioned? Jones and Jones?”

“Serious drifting costs money.”

“For what it’s worth, I don’t think you were born to hunt monsters,” she said.

“No? What should I be hunting?”

“It sounds like you’ve been searching for answers during the past five years. Maybe you should keep doing that. It might be your calling.”

“Are you speaking as an oracle?”

“No, as your partner.”

“Thanks for the advice, partner. I’ll think about it after we find Vortex.”

She groaned. “And just like that we’re back to Vortex.”

“And identifying your mother’s killer.”

“Okay, we’re both obsessed,” Olivia said.

“For now. What will you do after we’ve finished obsessing?”

“Go back to my day job as a private investigator. I like the work. Most of the time. Cases don’t always have happy endings, but they can deliver answers. I find that satisfying.”

“My turn to play therapist.” Harlan shifted a little in the seat. “Let’s see if we can analyze why you might be attracted to investigation work. You were raised in a small town infused with paranormal secrets and you possess the ability to read auras. There are unsolved mysteries in your past. You need some sense of resolution or closure, so you take on other people’s questions and try to get answers because doing so gives you a temporary—”

“Stop right there. I get it.”

“Are you really going to go to Vegas to sign up with that new psychic matchmaking agency you mentioned?”

“Maybe. What about you?”