do whatever you wanted. He seems like a nice man."
"Yes, doesn't he?" I rubbed my chin, trying to decide on the wisest course.
"I know you're almost a member of the Court of Divine Blood and all, but you still have to live in this world, and here it's illegal as all get out to kidnap someone." Sarah had a familiar pugnacious expression on her face. I just broadened my grin.
"I hate it when you do that," she told my grin.
I sighed and decided it wasn't fair to involve her in something so potentially dangerous. "You're right. It annoys me to admit it, but you are right, Sarah. What I'm about to do is very illegal, and I think that it probably would be best if you weren't involved. I know it's asking a lot, but would you mind leaving me the car? I don't think I can get another one at short notice, and I'm sure there are taxis that can take you back to Newton Poppleford."
"Oh, no, you're not getting away with that crap," she said, taking a firm grip on the steering wheel. "We're in this together, if you recall."
"Our original plans did not call for kidnapping," I pointed out.
"No, but I'm your friend. A friend's place is at your side when you commit felonies. Oooh! Look! Milo! How do we get him into the car?"
My lips thinned as I watched Milo leave his house, walking around the front to the other side, where I assumed a detached garage sat. "We don't."
"I think he's going to get his car. Are we following him?" Sarah asked, her hand on the ignition key.
"No. Duck!"
I doubled over in the passenger seat, having seen a white car emerge from the area behind Milo's house. Sarah hunkered down as well, waiting until the sound of the car passing us had faded.
"All right, now I'm confused...Where are you going?" she asked as I got out of the car.
"To get our victim." My heart was racing as I approached the door to Milo's house, my palms suddenly damp with sweat. "I hope I do this right."
"Do what?"
"I'm going to Taser Milo's wife Carol."
Chapter 21
"You're going to what?" Sarah grabbed my arm as I was about to knock at the door. "Are you crazy? Oh, what am I saying? You don't even have a Taser..."
"No, but I do have a handy little skill that allows me to control lightning."
Her eyes widened. "You're going to strike Carol Lee with lightning? That could kill her!"
"Not if I can control it properly." I took a deep breath, pushing aside the doubting thoughts, focusing on what I needed to do. "A Taser is a device which uses a high-voltage pulse of electricity to momentarily shock its target, thereby disrupting the neurotransmitters, and effectively overloading the nervous system. Carol will be temporarily immobilized, but not permanently harmed."
Overhead, my little cloud formed. I spread my hands about six inches apart, mentally envisioning a concentrated electrical charge pulled from the surroundings. My fingers began to tingle, the sensation spreading up my arms, reminding me of the time I'd touched a low-voltage electrical fence. Sarah watched with open-mouthed horror as a small blue ball of light formed between my hands. The tingling intensified as the ball shrunk into a small blue orb between my palms.
"Knock on the door," I told Sarah, my attention focused on holding the charge where I wanted it.
"Portia - "
"Please, Sarah. I don't know what will happen if I stop focusing on this."
"I hope to god you know what you're doing," she said, shaking her head, but knocking on the door.
It took about sixty seconds, but the door finally opened up a few inches, with Carol Lee's white, expressionless face visible. "What do you want?" she asked.
"The truth," I told her, flinging the electrical charge directly at her. Her eyes widened for a moment before the charge zapped her, knocking her backward a few feet.
"I knew it! You've killed her!" Sarah pronounced as I pushed open the door and knelt down by Carol's supine figure. My hands were shaking as I checked her pulse.
"No, she's alive. Her pulse is a bit rocky, but fine." Carol's eyes were open, unblinking, and flat. "Go get the car. We'll get her into it and restrained before she comes out of this."
Sarah stood above me, her hands on her hips, a warning note clearly evident in her voice. "Portia, I never thought the day would come when I'd find you, the most passive of