Succubus Ascendant: An Urban Fantasy (The Telepathic Clans Saga Book 4) Read Online Free PDF Page A

database shows seven Gifts, and not particularly strong ones. I think that’s why Corwin was reluctant to have Hugh inherit. He doesn’t think Hugh’s strong enough to protect the Clan, or to command the respect to lead it.”
    “Where did you get that sample?”
    “Hugh gave it to me. Remember, I started this project in the 1970s, and the tools and knowledge we had then were fairly primitive. Let’s see,” Callie said, clicking to another screen on the computer, “1984 is when this sample was catalogued. Why?”
    “Call up Finnian’s record,” Brenna said. Finnian was Hugh’s son and had tried to assassinate Brenna shortly after Corwin named her heir to O’Neill. Corwin had exiled him as a result of that attempt.
    “They’re identical,” Callie said, her brow furrowed. “Either Finnian’s a clone, or one of these isn’t accurate. A father and son wouldn’t be identical.”
    “Yeah. I haven’t seen Finnian since my Talent manifested,” Brenna said, pointing to the screen. “But I know that the Gifts I see when I look at Hugh are definitely different than what is listed there.”
    “It shows the Lindstrom Gift on these profiles. And these are the Gifts that everyone thinks Hugh has. He’s a Construct Artist,” Callie said.
    “His mother, Corwin’s wife, was from the Lindstrom Clan,” Brenna said. “The daughter of the Clan Chief. She could have embedded a nine-level construct for him. It’s a fairly common way for those with the O’Neill Gift to mask their abilities.”
    “She died around the time Hugh reached puberty,” Callie mused. “Hugh would have been tested at puberty, as we’ve always done with children. If you’re right, then he’s been masking his abilities all his life.”
    “If I’m wrong, it would be the first time,” Brenna said. “I wonder why Hugh’s doing that.”
    ~~~
    Brenna was working in her office in Washington when she received a call from Hugh O’Neill. “Brenna, Father’s dying and he’s asking for you.”
    “Right now?”
    “As soon as possible. I don’t think he’ll last out the night.”
    Brenna swore as she disconnected. The moment she’d dreaded had come, and no matter how many times she had run scenarios through her mind, she wasn’t sure what to do.
    Rebecca was draped across a chair next to the window, trying to decipher a book in Gaelic from Fergus O’Byrne’s library. “What’s up?”
    “That was Hugh. Corwin’s dying.”
    With a sigh, Rebecca said, “It never rains but it pours. I’ve been expecting this.”
    “In Ireland, it just rains all the time,” Brenna said.
    “True.”
    “Do you know where Rhiannon is?”
    “No. Why?”
    “Can you contact her?”
    “Probably. If I can use your Gift.” Rebecca was referring to Brenna’s Gift for Distance Communication. Rebecca had manifested a Lost Gift, inelegantly called the Soul Thief Gift. One of its elements was that she could use another telepath’s Gifts if she was in the person’s mind.
    Brenna opened her mind and invited her sister in. Rebecca found the Gift’s trigger and reached out through the bond she had with Rhiannon.
    *Rhiannon. Where are you?*
    *Rebecca? In Monaco. Where are you?*
    *In Washington. I need to come see you.*
    *How are you ... how can you reach this far?*
    *I’m using Brenna’s Gift. I’ll explain later. Are you alone? Can you visualize a landing spot? We need to teleport in.*
    A blank space of carpet was transmitted from Rhiannon into Brenna’s mind. A few seconds later, that spot, thousands of miles away, had two women standing on it.
    Rhiannon Kendrick stared at them with her mouth open. She was dressed in a black off-the-shoulder evening dress with silver trim, with her copper-colored hair in a French twist. Brenna thought that she’d never seen anyone look so beautiful and elegant.
    “That’s a beautiful dress,” Brenna said.
    “Thank you. And to what do I owe the honor of this unexpected visit?”
    “Are you on a case?