Banshee Hunt by Greg Curtis Page B

Find your place. And for a while it seemed you were adjusting. But now I'm not so sure.”
     
    “You learnt the rules. But I think only enough to learn how to push them to their limits. To break them when you thought you could get away with it. You learnt how to bury your pain instead of dealing with it. And now I think the problem far from resolving, is growing worse. When you see someone with a gift you no longer see a person. You see a threat. Or someone completely alien. And while you cover it up, it’s clear that that includes your colleagues. You are suspicious of them – suspicious of anyone with a gift. You won't even trust the equipment you've been given because it has magic.”
     
    “Actually it's because it's not reliable.”
     
    “You've refused point blank to be properly assessed.” The German carried on, unbothered by James' objection.
     
    “I don't have magic!” How many times did he have to keep saying that James wondered? The thought that he might have something more than just an immunity was a nightmare for him. Why didn't the German understand that? But the German still refused to understand that as he continued with his list of James' many failings.
     
    “The last three times you came to see me you were strongly advised to accept counselling. You said you'd take it. You never showed up. Couples therapy with your ex-wife was recommended. You refused even though you're co-parents to a daughter who needs both her mother and father. You were asked on many occasions to speak with your own parents. To spend some time with them. You said you would and never did.”
     
    “I did!” James interrupted, trying to defend himself. “It just didn't work out well.” Which was an understatement. He couldn't listen to his mother crying ever again, and his father had swiftly given up speaking to him at all. It had been a disaster.
     
    “Once! You tried exactly once and gave up.” The German didn't seem impressed.
     
    “It was a nightmare!” It had been worse than that. A conversation with more painful silences than words.
     
    “But it would have gotten better. If you had only been willing to try.” The German had said that to him before. “You were told in clear terms that you had to make an effort to socialise with your co-workers. But despite promising that you would, you never did that either.”
     
    “I did try.” And he had – a little.
     
    “Not very hard.” The German fixed him with an accusing stare. “Need I continue?”
     
    James shook his head. There was no point.
     
    “Mr. Henderson you show all the hallmarks of a man slowly but surely driving off the reservation and becoming a recluse. A hermit fleeing from the world. And I see no sign at all that you recognise your issues or are trying to deal with them. Given the nature of your work that strikes me as dangerous and it needs to be dealt with.”
     
    Dangerous? Needed to be dealt with? That sounded serious to James. It sounded as though he was planning on doing something more than just making the usual recommendations. It didn’t sound like something James would like. “I'll –.”
     
    “Don't even bother Mr. Henderson.” The German held up his hand to stop James speaking. “I wouldn't believe a word that came out of your mouth.”
     
    “The time has come for more drastic action. And that starts with a partner.”
     
    “A partner! That's –.”
     
    “That's my recommendation. You carry weapons. You go into dangerous situations. People's lives are entrusted to you. And if things go wrong as sooner or later they will, there could be deaths. Yours. Your colleagues’. Those you hunt. Their victims’. You all deserve better. You deserve a hunter at the top of his game.”
     
    “I am –.” James tried to defend himself again but was cut off once more.
     
    “No. You are competent. You can do your job well. But the risks you take are not the signs of someone thinking rationally about the situation. And that