Celeste Files: Unlocked Read Online Free

blanket for, or another?”
    Celeste closed her eyes and searched for that familiar tug and pull, but came up blank. “I don’t feel or see anything,” she said, disappointed. After yesterday, she’d been too afraid to touch the blanket, but her fears had been for nothing. Maybe she had imagined the whole thing.
    Olivia’s tear-streaked face filled her mind. No, something had happened in her kitchen. But why now?
    Maxine set the blanket next to her, then took both of Celeste’s hands. “Would you mind if I…traveled into your past?”
    Could she do that? Curious, but open-minded, Celeste nodded.
    “Good.” Maxine closed her eyes. “Give me a moment.”
    Celeste stared at the woman’s face, at her high cheekbones and finely-arched brows, and wondered if she’d ever had any work done.
    “I can assure you I’ve had no plastic surgery. But I appreciate the compliment.”
    Celeste’s cheeks grew warm.
    “For someone who has spent her entire life wanting to be accepted and believed, you’re very cynical.” Maxine drew in a sharp breath and wrinkled her forehead. “Dear Lord. I…oh, Celeste.” When she squeezed her eyes, a single tear rolled down her cheek. “I’m so sorry for your loss. Your mother…meant the world to you.”
    Celeste didn’t know what the hell was happening, but wanted Maxine out of her head. She tugged her hand away, but the older woman tightened her grip.
    Maxine’s face twisted in agony. Her breathing came in quick, harsh pants. “I…my God. What you experienced…” Her face relaxed. “Pain, guilt, pleasure, fear…ah, blessed love,” she said with a smile. “Your daughter…I’m in love with her, too. She’s special.” She opened her eyes. “Just like you.”
    “You think she has the gift?” From the moment Celeste had found out she was pregnant, she’d worried and wondered if the child she carried would inherit the psychic gene that had been passed down for generations. A part of her had hoped Olivia would know the beauty of being able to peel back the layers and see the world as it was meant. The other part of her understood all too well that there were some layers—malevolent, horrifying—that should remain hidden, and she didn’t want her daughter to know or experience the terror she had.
    “Open your mind and you’ll find your answer.” Maxine gave her hand another squeeze. “What you saw in Wisconsin—how much do you remember?”
    “None of it. I would slip into a trance and become the murder victim. My husband—we weren’t married at the time—had the unfortunate experience of being the one to watch me go through the trances.”
    “Did he tell you about them?”
    “Eventually. He recorded one.” The memory of the utter terror in her voice made her shudder. “It wasn’t good.”
    “No, it wasn’t.”
    “You saw?” Celeste asked, unsure what to believe. So the woman had a single gnome in the middle of a herd of unicorns. Ian had probably mentioned that she had a gnome collection that could rival Maxine’s unicorns. Ian could have also told her about the trances and about Wisconsin. She’d definitely call and ask him once she left. Was she skeptical? Hell, yes. Over the years she’d met plenty of opportunists claiming to be clairvoyant. They would use tricks and make statements that might seem personal, yet could be applied to dozens of people. They might say something like, “I sense someone has recently made you angry.” Or, “You lost a loved one who you admired.” A vague statement to make the customer believe the psychic had a sixth sense, when in reality they were being duped out of their money by a con artist. And that’s exactly what Maxine could be doing now, except Maxine wasn’t expecting payment. Now that she thought about it, she had no idea why the woman was helping her.
    “I did,” Maxine said, releasing her hand. “And I can understand why you’ve suppressed the side of your brain that allows so few of us to see