Free Full Moonster [BUREAU 13 Book Three] by Nick Pollotta

we been asleep?
    "So what happened?” I asked, reclining in the front seat.
    "I set off some sleep gas grenades,” she explained.
    "That explains the lovely cat litter flavor in my mouth."
    "Hey, I don't make'em. I just use'em."
    Abruptly, Mindy sat up. “Oh, it was a gas grenade,” she said, chewing her tongue. “Ick. What a taste. I'll start some tea.” The martial artist immediately moved towards the tiny kitchenette in the rear of the van.
    Sounding like a foghorn on steroids, Father Donaher gave a yawn that threatened to implode the windows and blinked consciousness into his face. “What the ... ah, of course. Anesthesia gas."
    "Tea?” Mindy offered, busy with the kettle.
    "Please, lass. Thank you."
    Stretching his arms to the ceiling, George really put the stress test on his Army shirt, and for a moment you could see the hard muscle underneath his fat. His jacket was laying on the floor and our pet lizard Amigo was half inside one of the pockets munching loudly on what sounded like cookies or bones.
    "Geez, Jess,” George said, rubbing his temples. “You could have asked me for the K47L cans. No need to steal ‘em."
    "Sorry,” my wife sang out from behind the wheel. “There was no time."
    Damnation! Had everybody figured this out but me?
    Groaning softly, Katrina wobbled erect and ran fingers through her long blonde hair in a crude abolution. “Sleep gas,” she rumbled, tucking a partially exposed breast back into her red top. “Bleh."
    And right on cue, Raul groaned into life. “Oh god, I hate knockout gas,” he moaned, massaging his temples. “What's the chance of getting a beer?"
    "Ed?” Mindy asked, glancing my way.
    After a moment's hesitation, I nodded yes. Mages had a tendency to drink heavily so we had to monitor them. On the other hand, absolutely nothing cleared the biochemical crude from your mouth like a frothy cold brew. Except, perhaps, another cold frothy beer.
    All by itself, the door to our small refrigerator opened and a six pack of Bud started to float out.
    "One each,” I clarified.
    Two beers broke free from the levitating pack and wafted over to Raul and Katrina. Now that's what I call a light beer. The wizards formally clinked containers and drank from the closed cans. I was unimpressed, having seen the Invisible Straw trick before. It was how we sneaked outside food into a movie theatre.
    After serving George and Donaher, Mindy passed a couple of steaming ceramic mugs to us, and I held the wheel for a moment while Jess added mint and lemon. I took mine straight.
    "Okay,” I said after a preliminary sip. “Report. How did we get into the van?"
    Keeping one hand on the steering wheel, Jessica lifted a plain copper bracelet into view. “I used this magic bracelet taken from Raul to teleport us here, and drove away as fast as possible."
    Wiping the moisture off his hand, Raul accepted the bracelet, and slid it back on his wrist. The copper band was drained at present, but the Recharge spell was a minor matter. Raul could do such things in his sleep and often did. Which explained why nobody ever bothered the wizard during nap time.
    "Why the improvisational retreat?” Father Donaher asked, placing aside his empty mug.
    Shifting gear, my wife maneuvered around an 18-wheeler full of livestock. Thank God for air conditioning.
    "Had to,” she explained, as we accelerated past the portable barn. “We were being systematically hit with a mind-probe by an enemy psychic. God knows what information they got already."
    "Was it a pro, an expert telepath?” George asked frowning. None of us trusted mentalists, after seeing what Jess used to be able to do with the bad guys. Chilling stuff.
    Glancing sideways, Jess gave a grim nod. “Somebody so good, you guys didn't even know that it was happening."
    "Then how did you?” Mindy asked bluntly.
    Here Jessica faltered, her face pinching tight as if a door had just slammed shut. “I...” she started, then tried again. “I used to do it