"What, specifically, are you asking for, Detective?" Neville Champlain, a thin, fussy man, continuously rubbed his hands together as he talked.

Detective Jack Lawson leaned forward in the chair, "You have a young lady here with a," he paused, searching for the right word; "a special talent. I am told that she has demonstrated a remarkable ability for reading people. We need that talent right now."

Champlain was shaking his head. " That is impossible. We take the children's privacy very seriously here."

"But not that seriously. You have already published a half dozen papers on what these kids are doing."

"Well, yes. I think it is important that our colleagues understand what we are doing here at ERPA Research Labs. As Director, my responsibility is to make sure that the phenomena that we study here are presented in the most scientific way possible."

""We are willing to pay a consulting fee," Detective Lawson dropped a check on the desk. "Just put me in touch with the kid's parents."

~~~

"Ok, Charly, as I explained to your Mom, you won't have any contact with these suspects. You can see them but they can't see you. One of these guys has placed a bomb somewhere but he is hiding among the rest. Some of the others are probably bad guys, too, but just not as bad. Can you tell us which guy we should concentrate on?"

"That guy. Number four. Most of the others are scared but his aura is just black."

"Thank you, Charly. This officer will take you to the cafeteria while I take care of some business. Then we'll get some lunch."

Charly looked around for a table. A woman sitting in a booth against the back wall caught her attention. She walked over and asked if she could share the table. Distracted, the woman was about to say no but then looked up and saw Charly. She nodded yes. Then she lowered her head and stared at the table.

Charly sat and watched her for a moment. She could feel an angry black cloud around the woman's head. The back edge of the cloud was edged in red. The woman had been weeping but now her face was hard. She kept one hand in her lap, below the table.

"You don't want to do this." Charly told the distraught woman.

"That man, he murdered my husband." She waved her free hand towards the courtroom just down the hall. "And now they are talking about setting him free."

"Grandmother, do you have grandchildren? Charly asked.

The woman nodded.

"They mourn for their grandfather. How will they feel if you are taken too? "

The woman brought both hands to her face and wept. Then she patted Charly's arm, slid out of the booth, and left. Charly remained where she was until Detective Lawson showed up.

"You hungry, kid?

"Starving. But first you better take care of that." She indicated across the booth.

Lawson stepped to the other side of the booth and removed a small black pistol from the bench seat.

"It's not needed anymore," Charly told the detective.