Page 26 of The Thief

“In the time before you lost your memory, do you recall friends or people you did business with?”

“Not specifically.”

“Your pupils changed,” he remarked.

I averted my eyes, not willing to discuss every detail of my life from before. What I knew about Vampires was that they were highly perceptive. Not only was their hearing incredibly sensitive, but they perceived changes in blood vessels and capillaries that signaled if a person was flustered or embarrassed.

Atticus scooted forward. “In order to help you, I need the facts. We can speak privately if that would make you comfortable.”

“That wouldn’t make me comfortable,” Bear said, putting his foot down.

Atticus flicked his gaze up. “Irrelevant. I can’t confirm anything without knowing the facts. She could have suffered a trauma or brain injury. Without facts, I can’t provide the confirmation you summoned me for. This isn’t personal, I assure you.”

“I’m not leaving,” he fired back.

I sighed. They’re going to find out eventually. Just spit it out. “I was a thief.”

Bear turned his head, and I felt his scrutinizing gaze like a burn on my skin.

Still staring at my lap, I continued. “When I first moved up north, I had enough money to rent a place for a spell, but if I didn’t get a job, I’d be out on the streets. Without work experience or connections, I wound up in a café that didn’t pay well. I was siphoning just enough money that the manager didn’t notice. We had regulars, and after a while I learned their routines. Where they lived, how much money they had, when they took vacations, how often they went out to eat—I paid attention. Back then, most people didn’t have locks on their doors, so I’d sneak into their houses when they weren’t home and steal valuables they wouldn’t miss right away. Then early one evening, I noticed a mansion without the lights on. There were dogs. But…” I rubbed my temple.

“Nothing after that?” he inquired. “When did your memories begin again?”

“Um, it was… two years ago. Maybe a little more. My first memory was walking down the street, and it was confusing because everything had changed from what it once was. One minute everyone’s driving big cars and wearing hats. And the next they’re talking on phones and riding electric scooters. It’s hard to describe. I can tell you all about the latest technology, but I don’t have any memory of when it happened. I can sing all the songs, but I don’t remember when I first heard them. Now I know what it feels like to be a Relic. They have all that special knowledge they’re born with even though it was their ancestors who learned it all.”

“When your memories began again, were you in the same city as before?”

“Come to think of it, I was in New York City. But it’s not that far from Cognito.”

“May I charm you?”

Startled, I flicked my gaze up.

“Why is that necessary?” Bear asked.

Atticus kept his black eyes focused on the floor. “It enables the subconscious to be unhindered from conscious thoughts. You can stop me if you think my questions are inappropriate.”

“Mercy?” Bear gently touched my back. “You don’t have to do this. We can leave.”

“I need to know.” Then I turned a sharp eye toward Atticus. He might be a friend to Tak, but he was a stranger to me. “Just don’t go poking around in there for other stuff. My Packmaster wouldn’t appreciate it.”

Atticus’s lips twitched. “It’ll feel invasive at first, but I gave your Packmaster my word to be thorough.” He rose from his seat, then knelt in front of me. “Look into my eyes.”

My stomach knotted into a tiny ball of barbed wire. When I dared to look into his black eyes, it felt like I was sliding into his thoughts. I couldn’t look away, and when he spoke, his power guided me like a truth serum.

He held my gaze, pulling me deeper under his spell. “Before your memory loss, did you commit robberies with a partner?”

“No.”

“What is the last memory you have? The exact moment.”

“Running in the dark. Someone chasing me. He’s moving fast.”

“A Vampire?”

“I don’t know.” I was aware of a sharp pain, but being under his spell worked as a nerve block.

“Do you sense pain in this moment?” he inquired.

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