Amaryllis

The strange talent snapped off abruptly.

Lucas reluctantly released the psychic link with Amaryllis. She looked at him with mute question in her eyes.

'He stopped focusing,' Lucas said. 'Shut down as though someone had thrown a switch.'

'He?'

'Yeah, I'm pretty sure there's only one person in this room who would be using that kind of talent.'

Amaryllis's fine mouth tightened into a disapproving line. 'Whoever it was, he burned out his prism.'

'You think so?'

'Yes, I do. He was too strong. They were obviously not properly matched by his focus agency. Obviously, he wasn't a Psynergy, Inc. client. We would never make a mistake of that sort.'

'Of course not,' Lucas murmured.

'That poor prism. Won't be able to work for at least a week, maybe longer. I understand the feeling of losing your ability to hold a focus is extremely unpleasant.'

'It's not painful, is it?'

'No. Not exactly. But most people who've been through it describe it as a sense of something missing. As if they've lost a part of themselves. They say it feels very unnatural. There is no excuse for that sort of mismatch between prism and talent.'

'Uh hub.' Lucas listened to the lecture with only a portion of his attention as he searched for Miranda in the crowd.

'You said you knew who the talent is?'

'What? Oh, yeah, I think so. I'm guessing that because of the sort of talent he was using and the power level he employed, it was probably--hold on a second.' Lucas broke off as Miranda Locking abruptly turned away from Merrick Beech and went down a darkened hall. 'There she goes. Wonder what she's up to now.'

'Who? Miss Locking?' Amaryllis followed his gaze. She frowned when she caught sight of Miranda. 'She looks very upset.'

'Maybe Beech isn't willing to pay her what she thinks Lodestar information is worth,' Lucas muttered. 'This whole thing has been a waste of time and money. I shouldn't have bothered to figure out why she was doing it. I should have just fired her and been done with it.'

'She's headed toward the corridor that leads to the ladies' room.' Amaryllis set down her glass. 'I've got an idea. I'm going to follow her.'

'What the hell do you think you're doing?'

'Miss Locking appears to be extremely anxious about something. I'm a prism, remember? That means I'm intuitive by nature.'

'I've always felt that the theory that prisms are naturally more intuitive than other people was a myth,' Lucas said dryly.

'Well, it's not. I'll follow Miss Locking into the restroom.'

'Why?'

'In her present condition she might want to talk to another woman.'

'You think she'll bare her soul to you? Forget it. That's the dumbest idea I've heard in a month.'

Amaryllis met his eyes. 'You want answers, don't you? I might be able to get them for you if I move quickly enough.'

'Damn it, I don't want you getting involved in this.'

'I already am involved. And I'm the only one who can follow Miss Locking into the restroom.' Amaryllis whirled about and hurried off through the throng.

'Just a damn minute. Come back here. I'm in charge of this fiasco.' Lucas realized that he was talking to himself. Never a good sign.

He swore silently as he watched Amaryllis make her way along the fringes of the crowd.

He had known it would be a mistake to work with a full-spectrum prism. Amaryllis was probably trying to prove how clever she was. Overcompensating for her lack of real talent, no doubt.

Typical prism. Headstrong, difficult, and unpredictable.

Unable to think of anything else to do, Lucas went after her.

Chapter 4

Amaryllis's hands were still trembling with reaction. She could not believe what had happened. She was a professional. True, she had only been working as a commercial prism for a few months, but she'd had years of experience in the academic world. She had a wall papered with degrees and certificates.

But she had been totally unprepared for the effects of the link with Lucas. Nothing in her experience had led her to anticipate such a shockingly intimate sensation.

The few seconds of disorientation and the accompanying sense of vulnerability that preceded the actual link had not disturbed her. She was accustomed to that feeling. Every prism experienced a moment of blind, groping awareness. It passed as soon as the psychic link between talent and prism took hold.

The focus link itself was a remarkably uncomplicated, emotionally neutral matter. It was as natural as using one's eyes or ears or taste buds. The only way it differed from any of the other human senses was that it required two minds in order to function in a reliable fashion.

But what she had experienced during those few moments when she had held the focus with Lucas could definitely not be described as uncomplicated or emotionally neutral. What she had felt was pure, scorching sexual desire.

It was impossible, Amaryllis thought as she wove a path through the crowded hall. Nothing in the exhaustive research and testing done on the nature of the connection between talents and prisms had ever indicated that a sense of sexual intimacy was involved. She herself had worked with countless talents in and out of the lab. She had never felt anything that could have been described as even mildly arousing.

It seemed to Amaryllis that she could still smell the smoke from the fires of searing desire that had been lit during the link with Lucas. Now that she was free of the psychic connection, the deep longing was receding. But she had an unpleasant suspicion that the aftereffects were going to last for several hours.

It had been a struggle to conceal her reaction from Lucas. She hoped he hadn't noticed just how stunned she had been. At least she had managed to hold the focus in a reasonably professional manner.

Amaryllis took comfort from the knowledge that she had done her job properly, even under such adverse circumstances.

She would think about the problem later, she told herself as she followed Miranda Locking from a discreet distance. There had to be a logical explanation for the phenomenon.

At the moment she had other problems. Her client wanted answers. She would try to get them for him. This kind of thing was not in her job description, but Amaryllis believed in going the extra mile, regardless of the task. She knew what it felt like to need answers.

Miranda Locking did not pause at the door of the restroom. She went straight past it, moving swiftly down the hall toward the shadowed regions of an office corridor. Her high-heeled evening shoes made a loud tapping on the hardwood floor.

Surprised, Amaryllis grabbed a fistful of fluttering scarves and quickened her pace. Miranda's blond hair gleamed briefly in the hallway light, and then she turned a corner and disappeared.

Amaryllis broke into a run. Scarves flying, she rounded the corner.

And collided with Miranda Locking and Merrick Beech.

'What the hell?' Beech, a soft-featured man with a noticeable paunch, grunted heavily. He stumbled back against the wall, lost his balance completely, and sat down hard.

Miranda shrieked as Amaryllis plowed into her. 'What do you think you're doing?' She staggered. Her high heels shot out from under her and she fell to the floor. Her large purse flew from her hand.

'Oomph.' Amaryllis landed on top of her in a tangle of wildly fluttering scarves. 'Sorry.'

'Get off me, you idiot.' Miranda struggled to a sitting position. 'Who are you, anyway?' Her eyes narrowed