Meanwhile, back at the apartment, the siblings were diligently working to find out anything they could about the whereabouts of the kidnapped children. While Angel typed away on the laptop, Cassie lit candles and settled cross-legged in front of her altar.
It was the first time she had allowed anyone in the room while she meditated. She focused better in private but couldn't monitor the radios and tap into the ley lines simultaneously. Still, if her brother hadn't come around to believing in her abilities—thanks to Charlie—she likely would have moved the altar into the guest room to avoid having him ask her questions every few minutes. She got enough of that from her customers when explaining séances and meditation with the lines.
However, she wanted him to understand the basics. As she added some powder to a bowl, Cassie explained the concept of ley lines—energy that flowed throughout the Earth, allowing connections between those who could tap into it. For some, the links between the energy sources were potent, nearly physical, but for most, the energy was fleeting, and she admitted that connecting with them was rare.
Still, she kept at it because at times, she'd been successful, including getting a bead on one of Angel's first cases. In another instance, she swore she'd heard an actual voice, giving her an exact name and a sense of where the person was. When she'd Googled the name, it led Angel to a serial rapist's home. She hadn't heard the voice since, but it spurred her to practice as often as possible.
She knew other Wiccan sisters who could use the lines to connect with witches on a spiritual level and exchange information telepathically. She hoped to cultivate that ability within herself one day to help Angel find more children.
Wishing her luck, Angel opened several Firefox tabs and went to work, but it didn't take long to become extremely frustrated working online. As time dragged on, he grumbled under his breath while clicking on the keyboard. He called up search terms in one of the twenty-seven tabs that were slowing down the search engine. Police sites, FBI sites, Reddit, and a few local Wiccan servers suggested by Cassie failed to provide him with any leads on Bible or any of his possible associates.
Even a thorough search of Tor's dark web had yielded nothing. However, seeing some of the listed sites offering illegal sales of child exploitation material had caused him to slam the laptop shut and storm out of the room for a while.
Worried he could have an episode, Cassie quickly followed him. She observed as he paced behind the couch, pounded his fists into the cushions several times, and then grabbed a pillow to scream into.
With her arms folded, she waited for him to catch his breath. Speaking calmly, she asked, "You in control?"
Steadying himself, Angel nodded. "Yeah, sorry. It's just—" Sighing, he dropped the pillow. "We have no leads to speak of, and then I see those sites, and all I want to do is find those assholes and break their jaws." He shrugged. "I needed a moment to clear my head."
"I understand, Kevin. But we can't do anything about that at the moment. We need to stay on task."
Angel groused and tapped the back of the couch roughly. "I know."
Cassie needed her brother to refocus, so she huffed. "My couch deserves an apology."
Her quip worked as intended, and Angel let out a short laugh. "Next time I have to sleep on it, I'll cuddle the cushions close and whisper sweet nothings to them."
Cassie let out a derisive laugh and shook her head. "Yeah. You're fine. Come on. Charlie's out there doing her part, so we can't quit now. We may still find something useful."
Nodding in agreement, Angel followed her into the bedroom and resumed his spot at the desk, diving back into the internet. He closed a few tabs and tried a different approach. He might discover some connection by reviewing the records of local cases involving lost and found children.
Reviewing those already rescued—many of whom he'd saved himself—helped him feel a little better. The successes outweighed the failures and the ones he'd never had the chance to save. Angel pushed his emotions aside to stave off another episode. His eyes darted over the various texts and files he'd pulled up, trying to find any connection or lead. Launching Discord, he searched crime and mystery servers to see if he could find anything through them, but even those turned out to be dead ends.
Soon, hunger and an awareness of time made him realize how long they had been at this and that they had skipped lunch.
Looking over at Cassie, who sat as still as a statue with her eyes closed, Angel contemplated whether he should interrupt her. He had no idea how deep she was into her meditation, or if she was communing with anyone. However, the urge to vent was overwhelming. With a stretch and a jaw-cracking yawn, he leaned back in his chair and pretended to talk to himself. "Well, shit."
Cassie responded, her soft voice exhausted. "What's wrong, Kevin?"
He turned and lifted his arms in another stretch and let out a frustrated breath. "For all the knowledge that the net holds, I'm finding next to nothing about Bible. Google. Discord. Old Archives. None of them has given me anything. Have you had any success?"
"No. I was hoping to connect with my sisters worldwide, who might have heard or known of anyone affected by Bible, but all I've been getting are dim auras."
He eyed the altar. "How do you hear them?"
"Not in the conventional sense," Cassie explained. "It's a kind of mental link, but it takes a lot of concentration, the right incense, and time. I'm still not good at it, and whatever I get comes down to the luck of being on the right plane at the right time. I rarely tap into the ley lines, except for those two instances I told you about. If I were more powerful, I could read and listen to them like you read words in a book or listen to the radio. It would be perfectly clear. Only a handful of witches in recorded history have ever possessed such a gift."
Angel whistled. "I don't understand any of it, but to be fair, I don't fully understand Charlie either. Not completely, anyway, and I've seen her in action."
"But you have faith in her," Cassie observed.
"I do. Just as I have faith in you. I always did, even if I didn't believe in witchcraft."
Cassie smiled softly. "I know you did."
Looking over his shoulder, she offered, "Since I'm having no luck over here, do you want me to take over on the radios? I have contacts from my days in the Service that I could ask."
"Please. I need to grab us both a bite to eat and clear my head before meeting Amanda in an hour."
He glanced at the laptop. "But I was thinking. I have a gut feeling that Bible has connections high up in the FBI, and that's why we can't find anything online. It's getting erased."
"Your gut feelings tend to be right," Cassie murmured. "Shit! If that's the case, this is significantly more serious than anything we've faced. Are you going to bring this up with Amanda?"
"Yes. If she can get me into the system another way, maybe I can dig things up from inside."
"We need every advantage we can get."
Cassie untangled her legs, stood up, and stretched. "Okay, you go make the food, and I'll call some contacts."
He stood and stepped aside for her to settle into the chair. As she went to work, he headed to the kitchen and turned on the light. As he reached for the fridge, his earpiece buzzed. "Charlie to Angel. Do you copy? Over."
He smirked. Charlie's enthusiasm for using proper lingo amused him. Pressing the talk button on his radio, he answered, "Go ahead. Over."
Charlie explained her current status, having cleared the center of town and moving east. When she mentioned seeing Amanda and commented on her appearance, Angel tensed. He knew there was a tinge of jealousy lurking in Charlie, but he wasn't going to take the bait right now. He ignored it and stayed on point. Thankfully, she didn't follow it up and moved on to how their research had fared.
"We're encountering obstacles at every turn," he continued, explaining his concerns about why they were hitting so many dead ends, then requested an update on her position.
He listened and then offered her guidance on her next steps. After Charlie confirmed her plan, he urged caution and wished her good luck. Once she signed off, Angel closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. What he couldn't afford was for Charlie to feel threatened by Amanda. If she allowed jealousy to dictate her actions, she might reveal herself. The thought of anyone in the government discovering her existence terrified him.
Still, he trusted her to work independently in the search for the children and to make her own decisions. If she mentioned Amanda again, he would put that topic to rest once and for all. He was now committed to Charlie, and she had nothing to worry about.
Opening the fridge, he pulled out leftover jambalaya and scooped portions into bowls for himself and Cassie, heated the food in the microwave, and dropped hers off, announcing he'd head out after eating. Grateful for the food, she thanked him and went back to work, eating slowly as she read.
Back at the kitchen table, Angel slowly ate while scrolling through his phone, still searching for any leads on who the notorious Bible was and, more importantly, how to stop him once and for all.