Free Among the Shrouded by Amalie Jahn Page B

sheets of paper.
    “Patrick is excited to hear about your twin sisters.  We think they sound very promising and we would love to add them to our list of prospective students.”
    “That’s wonderful!” she exclaimed.  “Thank you both so much for presenting all of us with this opportunity.  I truly appreciate it.”
    She filled out a set of forms for each of her sisters and returned them to Henry and Patrick who were saying goodbye to the guests as they made their way out the door.
    “Thank you again.  I look forward to hearing from you soon,” she said as she handed the papers to Patrick.
    Henry leaned in so his face was only inches from hers and whispered in her ear.  “I can assure you we will be in contact.  In fact, you may want to begin packing.”
    As she rode the metro back home, she couldn’t stop smiling.  She settled into the uncomfortable plastic seat and allowed herself to relax for the first time in weeks.  It occurred to her that every piece of the puzzle was coming together for her family and she was amazed by the fantastic opportunity her gift had provided.  Sadly, as the train clattered along, doubt crept in and she considered the one obstacle she would still need to overcome - her father.  For a moment, she worried he would forbid her to participate in the program.  And then, as quickly as it had come, she pushed the thought aside, trusting her abilities would not bring her so close to a solution only to allow her father to stand in her way.  She spent the remainder of the ride home concentrating on one thought… convincing her father to allow her to go to the United States.
     

 
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER
    12
     
    MIA

     
     
     
    “Hey , Mia?” Pete said, as he peeked his head into her office.
    “Yeah,” she replied , looking up from her computer screen.
    “That guy you asked about?  He’s here.”
    “Oh.  Oh good.  Okay.  Thanks, Pete.  How many lineups is he doing?”
    “Just two.”
    “About how long until he’s done?”
    “Fifteen, twenty minutes tops.”
    “Thanks.”
    “No problem.  You gonna tell m e what all this is about?” he asked.
    “Probably not,” she grinned.
    Pete disappear ed back down the hallway and she tried to complete the report for the missing person she was filing.  However, the news of Thomas Pritchett’s arrival had officially derailed any progress she was going to make on it for the rest of the morning.  She logged off the precinct’s server and closed her laptop.  At the doorway of her office, she paused, checking in both directions for her father.  Since her revelation about the new commissioner, their conversations had become strained and she had taken to avoiding him whenever possible.  There was no sign of him so she made a beeline for the lineup room.
    As she took her spot behind the one-way glass, she peered into the adjacent room at the line of women before her.  It was unusual to see a group of women and the guilty party was immediately visible to her.  Of the six women in the lineup, only one was shrouded in a veil of darkness.  The others, although dim, were bathed in light.  Each of the eye witnesses that were brought in to choose the culprit from the lineup did so quickly and correctly.  When the witnesses were finished, the row of women in the lineup was quickly replaced by a row of men.  Her eyes were immediately drawn to the man in the center of the row.  The one without an aura.  Like every other time she had seen him, Thomas continued to defy her perceptive abilities.
    Mia watched him carefully.  She knew he could not see her behind the one-way glass and she used the opportunity to study his behaviors.  She tried to determine what type of aura he would have if there were one for her to see by studying the movement of his hands, the tightness in the muscles of his face, and the look in his eyes.  He carried himself completely differently from the man beside him, whose aura was heavy with darkness.