Orchid by Jayne Castle Read Free Book Online Page B

the glittering crystal prism she had projected on the psychic plane.
    â€œClass six, I believe your certification papers said,” she murmured very politely.
    There was a short, tense pause.
    â€œYou don’t appear to be having any trouble dealing with my talent,” Rafe pointed out dryly. “That makes you something more than a full-spectrum. A lot more. In fact, now that I’ve had a chance to focus at this level with you, I can see that there’s something different about the kind of prism you project. What is it?”
    Orchid was suddenly grateful for the enveloping darkness. It made it impossible for Rafe to see her blush. At least, she amended, thinking of his para-heightened senses, she hoped it made it impossible for him to notice the heat she felt in her cheeks.
    â€œI’m an ice-prism,” she mumbled. Until tonight there had been no reason to demonstrate the full range of her abilities to Rafe.
    â€œA what?”
    â€œAn ice-prism.”
    There was another short silence. “I’ve heard of those. Never met one.”
    â€œThere aren’t very many of us around.”
    â€œIs it true what they say about ice-prisms?” Hesounded genuinely curious. “Can you really manipulate the prisms you project?”
    â€œMr. Stonebraker, do you have any immediate plans to get us out of here or are we going to hang around chatting all night?”
    â€œSure.” An unexpected note of amusement laced his voice. “But you’ve got to admit that this is rather ironic. A couple of psychic vampires meeting in the dark. Just like something out of a novel. One of yours, perhaps?”
    It was uncomfortably similar to a scene in her latest book,
Dark Desires
, but she had no intention of telling him that.
    Out on the metaphysical plane, the raw chaos of energy pulsed through the prism, emerging in sharply controlled, brilliant bands of power. Orchid knew that, so long as she channeled the energy for him, Rafe could use it the way he used any of his other senses.
    Strat-talent energy waves looked different from other kinds of paranormal power. The colors were deeper, stronger, less transparent. They vibrated on slightly different wavelengths, augmenting ancient hunting instincts and heightening senses that had long been lost to mankind. That was why the experts considered them more primitive in an evolutionary sense.
    Rafe’s psychic energy was fierce and powerful but it was clean, even at this level of intensity. It was not tainted with the muddy hues of evil and incipient madness that had shaded Calvin Hyde’s talent.
    She watched, enthralled as the energy surged across the metaphysical plane. It was exhilarating to focus at the highest ranges of her own power. This was what she had been born to do, she thought. It was akin to breaking into a run after walking all of her life.
    She knew that she was not the only one savoring the experience. She could feel Rafe’s exultant satisfaction. It occurred to her that he had probably seldom, if ever, had a chance to focus at this level for any extended period of time.
    â€œFive hells.” He sounded slightly dazed. “This is good. This is incredible.”
    She smiled to herself. The urge to show off overwhelmed common sense. She was an ice-prism, after all. One who rarely got to exercise the full range of her unique abilities.
    You think this is good?
she thought.
Watch this.
    She studied the nuances of Rafe’s strat-talent, noting the rhythms of the waves, the subtle differences in hues, the texture of his surging power.
    Using the exquisite control she wielded over her own psychic energy, she made minute adjustments in the focus. A gentle alteration here, a slight sharpening of power there…
    The prism glittered as she went to work on its myriad crystal facets. When she was finished the metaphysical construct was so brilliantly clear that it seemed to glow with the light of an inner sun.
    She heard