Savage could feel the subtle power coming off of Libby Drake the moment she walked into the room. He had grown up with psychic talent, and there was no mistaking the energy. With Libby, that energy was so strong it could barely be contained. She was a woman it would be impossible to withhold secrets from. She would be stripping him raw in seconds, seeing inside him, straight to the monster, if he sat in the same room with her for very long.
He didn’t hesitate. This wasn’t about him. This was about Seychelle and finding a way to save her life. If Libby Drake saw that he needed to wield a whip to be aroused and she was disgusted by him, he would take that. The information she had was too important for him to be worried about what anyone thought of him. They stared at each other, each sizing the other up. She was very aware he knew she could see inside of him and didn’t care.
“Thank you for seeing me, Mrs. Derrick.” He was formal. Polite. He didn’t know how to be with her. He wasn’t a man used to moving in her circles. He stayed in the shadows and came out when someone needed to disappear.
“Please call me Libby. I much prefer that we’re not formal.” She flashed him a gentle but very real smile. “Blythe is my cousin, and it’s been very nice getting to know Czar and her family. I’m happy that I can finally start to meet some of Czar’s family.”
Savage wasn’t certain he was the best one of the Torpedo Ink members for her to start with, but he forced himself to meet her eyes and nod. “Czar’s got a lot of family members, but I’ve heard you do as well.”
Libby acknowledged the truth of his statement with a small smile. “Blythe told me your friend has a talent similar to mine and you’re looking for information on how best to help her.”
Savage nodded. “Seychelle is extraordinary. She isn’t a doctor, and she hasn’t had any medical training. Both of her parents had long-term illnesses: her mother, a form of blood cancer, and her father, heart disease. She didn’t even realize she was taking that on herself to prolong their lives. She doesn’t seem to be able to stop herself from doing it, and she’s wearing herself out. I don’t understand how it works, and I don’t know how to help her. I’m afraid I’m going to lose her.”
Tyson threaded his fingers through his wife’s, and she smiled up at him before once more turning her attention to Savage.
“My talent works much the same as yours. It’s a compulsion I can’t stop. If Seychelle is like I am, she can’t stop any more than I am able to or you can. I imagine yours started at a very young age. You’ve been shouldering the anger and rage for the others, as much as you could manage, for years, right? You can’t stop yourself now, even if you wanted to. It’s too ingrained in you. Whenever the people you love most are too close to their limit of pain with anger at betrayal or whatever, and you’re with them, you just take it on. That’s what happens with a healer’s gift. At least our kind of gift. Tyson has to keep me in check. My sisters did before him.”
“Wait.” Czar surged to his feet. “What the hell did you just say, Libby? Does she mean us? Torpedo Ink? What do you mean, Savage takes on our pain? What does she mean by that, Savage?” There was pure shock in his voice. On his face.
Blythe put a restraining hand on Czar’s wrist, but there was nothing that was going to stop him as he paced across the room, every step portraying hurt, guilt and bewilderment. “I need someone to tell me right now what that means.” He swung around to face Savage. “You’ve been shouldering that for me all this time and I didn’t know?”
Libby looked confused. Her eyes met Savage’s. “I’m so sorry. I thought everyone knew about your ability.”
“What ability? Apparently, the president of your club, your brother, doesn’t know about your ability, Savage,” Czar bit out. His incomprehension began to give way to temper, the one thing that allowed him to cover up his real feelings. “Maybe you want to enlighten me.”
“Not at this time,” Savage said calmly. “Right now, Libby is going to tell me what I can do to help Seychelle. After that, Czar, I’ll be happy to fill you in, if you really think it’s necessary.”
“Yeah, Savage. I really think it’s necessary.” Czar stood for a few moments staring out the window, and then he sank into the chair beside Blythe. She took his hand, her fingers sliding over his soothingly.