Kindred Spirit - Noah Harris Page 0,3

are you going to have me do?” he asked.

“As I said, most of our best work is done before everything goes to hell. To that end, we have people, individuals, duos, and small teams, who keep an eye on individuals and groups who could present a possible problem to the world at large. We would prefer to keep those people quiet and safe, and sometimes the best way to do that is to interfere before things get out of control.”

“I can see the logic in that,” Jacob said, still waiting.

“And sometimes we need to do both that and make sure we have the right person.”

“Which is the part where you tell me what you’re going to have me do,” Jacob guessed.

“How familiar are you with 2218?”

Jacob screwed up his features, thinking. “Uh, group of people who operate quietly and out of the public view. See things like the supernatural and psychics as abominations, either against God or against the natural order of things depending on the particular sect. And they aren’t shy about trying to eliminate those sorts of things, even if the person or entity in question isn’t a threat to anyone, even themselves.”

It was really a nice way of saying they were extreme fanatics who hunted down and killed anyone who might have some sort of power outside the normal. Despite their name being an overt biblical reference, they took in people from all beliefs. 2218 was pretty high on the watchlist of the DDI, as they were prone to being just as dangerous as a pissed off or psychotic psychic. Their methods varied from brutal bombing to quiet murders in the middle of the night that left local law enforcement believing it was a robbery gone wrong.

“And occasional excellent indicators of a potential problem,” Harrison finished for him.

“Not my field of expertise,” Jacob admitted. “I know enough to keep an eye out when we’re in the field, but I haven’t dealt with them personally.”

“They’ve been growing in influence in the Midwest, despite our best efforts. We happen to have a long suspected individual out there that we’re worried about, at least if our intel on the movements of 2218 is correct.”

“Suspected individual?”

“Levi Boaz. He’s been on our radar since he was a boy. Still, we’ve never been able to prove that he’s anything but a rather unlucky individual. Intel suggests, strongly I might add, that he is, in fact, a medium. And if 2218 is moving into the region where he’s currently living, that places him in immediate danger. You know how these sorts of groups are about mediums.”

Jacob nodded grimly. People who could see and speak to the dead weren’t typically on the list of psychics he dealt with as a member of a strike team. Yet they were usually one of the first to die when a religiously-motivated anti-psychic group moved in on someone. Apparently, communing with the dead was particularly reprehensible to their sensibilities, and they weren’t shy about often brutally murdering them, and he doubted 2218 was an exception.

“So, I’m being put on protection detail,” Jacob said.

Harrison slid the tablet across the desk toward him. “You’re to keep an eye on him. Both to keep him safe in case 2218 move in on him and to see if you can confirm any mediumship in him.”

Jacob squinted, picking up the tablet and looking over the lines of text. “I’m not trained in that sort of thing.”

“Not as an undercover agent, no. But as I said, you’re adaptable, which is precisely what we need in this sort of endeavor. And it’ll take you out of that suit of yours, so you don’t look like a federal agent. You’ll look more like...well, someone rough but at least normal.”

He wasn’t sure if that was supposed to be a compliment or not. “Well, that, and I’m not exactly trained in recognizing mediums.”

“In my time here at the DDI, I’ve found mediums to be one of the trickier psychics to recognize. I’ve also learned that those who are hard to peg as mediums are usually either the weakest in power or the strongest.”

“That’s...vague.”

“Welcome to dealing with mediums. Their power is either so weak that even they are barely aware of it or so strong, they can hide it easily. We suspect Levi is in the latter category. There’s been too many coincidences in his life for us to ignore.”

Jacob looked up. “This isn’t an option for me, is it?”

“No,” she said easily. “It’s an order.”

“Watch him. Keep him safe.”

“You’ll