Page 109 of Remnants
I touch my throat involuntarily, grimacing. “How…”
Fabian shrugs. “My anatomy’s a bit different. I’ve got a long tongue like a frog, and my throat can expand to consume anything.”
“That’s why my bud’s always eating. If he goes even an hour without food, he’ll get faint. He needs something in his stomach unless he’s asleep,” Silas adds. “My gift is the best in the Guild, though. Did you like the bunker? All me.”
Evie chimes in. “That wasn’tallyou, Si.”
He ignores her, pulling seeds from his pocket and spilling them on the table. “I control all plant-life. Trees, flowers, vines…and any properties the plant has too. Poison, sleep spores, medicinal stuff…the best, right?”
The others around the table make unconvinced sounds, and he frowns. “What? Come on! That’s master-class shit right there. I’d bet on me any day of the week!”
“If we’re betting, then my money’s on Jackson,” Evie comments, sweeping the center pile of cards in front of her and tossing a new card down.
Silas scowls, though it’s hard to say if it’s at her statement or his loss of the pile.
“I’d bet on Aiden,” Cassandra puts in her two cents.
Fabian opens a bag of chips. “Can’t exclude Kellan. He can outlast anyone.”
Gabriel nudges me. “Speak up, girl. You’re the strongest.”
“I wouldn’t consider it thebestgift, though.” I flick my gaze to Cassandra. “I wish I could heal others.”
She beams at the compliment.
“Well, I could certainly use your help on some jobs if you’re interested,” Evie tells me. “Especially cleanup work.”
Silas whips his head around. “Hey! I’m your partner on those!”
“Oh, uh, I’m not really sure how those work.”
Evie explains, “One of the offices downstairs searches for odd jobs that would be a good fit. They do research on the requestor, vetting them to be sure they’re safe, and we’ll get paid, then print the request and post it for any of us to pick. The Guild is technically a temp agency, so there’s a form on the website for requestors to directly submit requests as well. Especially repeat clients.”
“Does everyone here have gifts?”
“Most of the ones working in the offices don’t. They all know about us, though, because they’re either family, friends, or spouses who want to help.”
“I heard some jobs get pulled from the dark web,” Silas inserts conspiratorially.
Evie waves him off. “That was when Thorne was in charge.”
“Were you guys around when he was here?” I ask, curious what they thought of him.
“Just me and Fabian. Silas and Cassandra joined soon after Aidentook over.”
“Si was causing so much trouble that Aiden had to recruit him directly,” Cassandra narcs with a sly smile.
“Recruit him?”
“That’s another office downstairs. The staff scour the internet—social media, online articles, police reports”—she gestures to Silas, who rolls his eyes— “for signs of gifted people. The second tier of recruiters goes out to offer an opportunity at the Guild. It gives them a non-destructive purpose with their gift and a place to live in a community of others like us,” Evie answers.
“What happens if they accept? They get right in?”
She shakes her head. “Each recruiter has their own Guild business card with their name on it. They have to sign the back of it with the person’s name they’re inviting, and that has to be presented to the security desk on the first floor. That’s their ticket to an interview with Aiden or Cibrina. They work out if the Guild is a good fit for them, and then there’s a probationary period after that.”
“Oh! That’s what I’m in,” Gabe says, extending his cards to me again for another pick.
“Anyway,” she continues, “we do almost anything you can think of. Moving people is my specialty with Silas. I shrink the boxes and furniture, Silas moves them into a tub, and then we drive to their new home and do it all in reverse. Takes us less than an hour but we get paid by the job, not hourly.”
