Chapter 33: Obscurity of Vision

Paramedics arrived in what I considered record time. I was sure they were a special squad sent by House Isaacs. I watched them check Randal over and then prep him for transport. I walked up to him. I was feeling torn. Torn between what he had done to my family and the fact that he was my grandfather. I wanted to talk to him, to know him better, but from the chaos I had seen in his mind before the clarity of how my parents had died, I wasn't sure if he would or even could talk coherently. Still, there was one thing I had to do. I may not have been able to help put his mind back in order, but I could still help my family. I needed his memories of where they were.

Just before the paramedics put Randal into the ambulance, I reached out and grazed his hand again. His memories were still jumbled but I caught glimpses of a house and a number. There were also images of my family. They were doing things to one another, trying to fulfill all the desires they had tried to get me to do to them. There was even a glimpse of my father, a look of anger and pain on his face, but I couldn't tell what he was doing or what was happening to him.

Andrea caught my move and looked at me. "Any luck?"

"Possibly. I saw a house and a number. Not a street or anything though." I told her the number and she headed for her cruiser.

The rest of the search party had gathered at a distance. I spotted Yvonne, Chloe and Savannah and headed toward them. After what I had seen from Randal, I needed comforting. His emotions were of self-loathing, probably amplified by his own ability. Honestly, that made sense. He felt guilty for the death of his son, my father, and his ability to amplify things, emotions included, had caused him to lose his grasp on reality. The only real cure would be for Randal to forgive himself. It wasn't his fault his son had died; he had done what he could to protect him.

I went to my girls. Their thoughts were questions of what had happened, who the man was, and if I had learned where my family were. My only response was, "Hold me."

Without question, all three gathered in and group hugged with me in the center. Their touch comforted me, made me feel stronger and encouraged me. I knew where my family was. Most were in Texas, some were here with me, but others were in trouble. I needed to rescue the latter, and I would need the support of those with me. I needed their assurance that whatever I had to do to save my family it would not affect how they saw me. I might have to do something drastic, but not knowing what was happening to them, I didn't know what I would face. It's always a good idea to expect the worst, but hope for the best. Well, my level of hope was quite low. It was there, but only the tiniest star in the vast blackness of the sky.

Officer Colburn returned a little while later. I was feeling better and had answered the girls' questions. Her news was irritating but not bad. "House Isaacs will be seeing to his ... er, your grandfather's care. My contact at House Vaughan has verified that Randal is the only member with such a mark, but the House claims that he's been missing for the last seventeen years."