by M. J. Caan
“Or it may be easier to just show them,” said Jasmin, nodding towards the back corridor that led away from the guest suite.
Torie led everyone to her study and to the row of boxes that sat on her desk.
“You found some fancy boxes?” said Max.
Jasmin eyed the wolf as she walked over to the first box and flipped it open. She moved down the desk opening each in turn, watching as the group grew more and more disturbed with each reveal.
“That’s disgusting,” said Max. “And trust me, I’ve seen a lot of gross stuff…but who would keep something like this? And why doesn’t it stink to high hell? I didn’t smell this when I was at the mayor’s house.”
“Probably because these were warded with magic and it’s acting as some kind of mystical preservative. It probably blocked your physical senses.” said Torie.
“If these were acquired by magic, and it was the doing of the mayor, wouldn’t the spell protecting them have been broken when he was killed?” asked Elric.
“Normally, yes. But if he didn’t work the incantation alone…” said Jasmin.
“Tilda, his cousin,” said Torie. “That has to be the answer. That would mean that she is in Singing Falls somewhere.”
“This is, fascinating,” said Elion, moving closer to the boxes to get a clearer look at the contents.
“According to what I’ve found out, there are various reasons for sacrificial magic. It’s a very old art form, and almost always involved the invocation of dark deities. Even though the practitioners may sometimes pray to a being of light, asking for their favor, it almost always ended in something from the world of black spirits that answered them,” said Jasmin.
“True,” said Elion. “But there are other reasons to perform these rituals. It wasn’t always done to procure favor.”
“Do you know if these are from humans or animals?” asked Max.
“Or something other,” said Elion, half to himself and half aloud.
“No, we couldn’t tell,” said Jasmin, turning to Elion, “and what do you mean ‘other’?”
“This one,” he said, peering closely at the heart that was in the very first box Jasmin and Torie had opened. “This is extremely rare and unique I believe. The scent from it is almost intoxicating.”
“What scent? I can’t smell anything,” said Max.
“That’s because you’re a werewolf. Your senses are a fraction of mine,” replied the vampire.
Quickly, before they could stop him, he reached into the box, lifted the large heart to his mouth and bit into it as casually as if it were an apple.
He ignored the gasps of disgust that came from everyone around him and instead closed his eyes and concentrated on the feel of the chewy flesh his fangs had just penetrated. He placed the heart back into the box, black blood leaking from the two puncture sites he had inflicted.
“As I suspected,” he said, wiping his lips with the back of his hand. “That is a dragon’s heart.”
No one said a word, their minds spinning in all directions.
“Are…are you sure?” asked Torie.
“Quite sure. The tang of the blood is rapturous and unique.”
“Do I even want to know how you know what dragon blood tastes like?” asked Jasmin.
“Probably not. Would you like me to identify the rest of these?”
“Not now,” said Torie. She needed to digest what he had just told her.
“Okay, now things are just getting more and more weird,” said Jasmin. “On top of everything else, you find a baby dragon at your front door, and now we find out that a dragon was part of a black magic ritual? I would say it’s coincidence, but you know I don’t believe in those.”
Torie had to admit that this was too close to be a coincidence, as much as she may have hoped otherwise.
“So where does this leave us?” she questioned.
“Well, I know where that leaves me,” said Max. “I’m going to cancel the festival for this year. The mayor’s murder is one thing, but add the rest of this, and I’m not willing to risk any other members of the community getting killed until we can figure out what is going on.”
Before they could object, Fionna stormed into the room, her face red and her fists clenched.
“Fionna, what’s wrong, what happened?” asked Torie.
“I just checked in on Effie to see if she needed anything, and she told me that she was feeling a little hungry but that if I made her food, I needed to be sure and put on gloves. After all, she doesn’t want to catch anything that my kind may spread around.” She crossed her arms, staring at Torie. “Somehow, I don’t think she meant squirrel-shifter.”
Torie felt herself blush.
“You’re right. I told her about you and Glen in passing…I didn’t think anything at all about it.”
“Well, she obviously did.”
Jasmin looked over at Torie, the look in her eyes saying more than her words ever would.
“I know, I know…” said Torie. “She does have some bigoted beliefs. But I don’t think she means anything bad by it. She’s old and grew up here in the south. She is going to have certain…views on things.”
“I’m old and I grew up here in the south,” said Jasmin. “I’d never in a million years think such things about anyone. And neither do you, Torie, so why are you letting her get away with whatever crap she’s been saying?”
“I called her out on it; I explained why she shouldn’t say such things, but it obviously didn’t stick with her.”
“Well, you can get her some food,” said Fionna. “I’m not going back in there. Just wait till I tell Glen.”
Torie started to say something but was interrupted by the ringing of the doorbell accompanied by the alert coming from the computer monitor on her desk. She clicked a button and the security feed displayed the image of an older woman with a brown duffel bag standing on her porch.
“Hello, can I help you?” Torie said into the computer.
“Yes, my name is Hattie Stanor and I’m here to see my sister, Effie.”
18
“Ms. Stanor, it is so nice to meet you,” said Torie, extending her hand as she opened the door. “My name is Torie, we spoke on the phone.”
“Please, it’s Hattie. And thank you so much for calling me. For taking my sister in like this.”
Torie took her bag and ushered her into the great room.
“Hattie, these are my friends. Fionna, Jasmin, Elric, Max and Elion.”
“Well, it’s nice to meet you all. So many faces and names. You know I won’t be able to remember them all I’m afraid.”
Torie smiled. “No problem. There won’t be a quiz afterwards.”
Hattie frowned, not quite sure what Torie meant.
“It’s nothing. Just a bad joke. I wasn’t aware you would be able to get here so quickly.”
“Oh, I got on the very next flight out here as soon as I hung up from speaking with you.”
“Well, you must be exhausted. Can I get you something to eat or drink? Some water maybe?”
“No, I am fine. Can I please see Effie?”
“Absolutely, of course. Come on, she’s in the guest room down the hall.”
Torie led her, followed by Jasmin and Fionna, to the guest room. Elric and Max had decided to hang back so as not to intrude.
“Would you mind if I go and…examine the rest of your artifacts?” asked Elion.
“Knock yourself out,” Torie had whispered back to him.
At the door to Effie’s room, Torie knocked lightly before pushing it open. “Effie, I have a surprise for you.”
Torie entered the room with Hattie trailing close behind her.
“Effie?” said Hattie. “Oh, Effie, my sweet, sweet sister.”
Effie’s eyes lit up as she sat bolt upright in bed, throwing her arms wide for her sister to fall into her embrace.
“Hattie, is it really you?” asked Effie, rocking her sister in her arms.
Tears flowed from both w
omen as they embraced one another as tightly as they could. Finally, Hattie broke free long enough to grasp Effie by her face.
“Let me get a look at you, sister,” she said. “You look good. I see these women are taking good care of you.”
“Oh, they are so nice,” said Effie. “Torie is one of the women who found me and brought me here to rest. Did you meet her? She has a friend Jasmin that is just so funny, and her other friend Fionna is just the nicest girl. Even though she likes other women, she is still a nice person. I’m sad that such a nice person is going to go to hell.”
Torie heard Fionna huff as she turned her back and stormed down the hall.
Jasmin shook her head, staring at Torie.
“Now, Effie, we talked about that. We don’t judge,” said Hattie, embracing her once again.
“Oh, you’ve spent too much time out with all those hippies buying into that stuff,” said Effie. “But I am so happy you’re here. Are we going home now? Can we go back to my house? Oh, Hattie, do you know what happened to Terry? It’s awful. I’m all alone now.”
Hattie looked at Torie and Jasmin questioningly.
“Well, I think that’s something we need to discuss,” said Hattie. “What do you think?”
“Well, I was going to have my friend Glen come and check her out. She is the one that has helped to take care of her medical issues.”
“She’s the lady doctor that is involved with Fionna,” said Effie. “She’s nice but is also going to go to hell.”
“Hush with all that,” said Hattie. “What does this doctor friend of yours say?”
“She isn’t a doctor. She’s a nurse, but she is very good, and well qualified. If you’d like we can certainly reach out to a physician to check over her,” said Jasmin. Her words said one thing, but her tone told them that she would be just as happy not having Glen waste more of her time with the elder woman.
Torie gave her a look, and Jasmin merely shrugged in response.
“Oh no, that’s quite alright,” said Hattie. “She seems fine, and I can certainly look after her.”
“Um, okay, that’s fine,” said Torie, “but there are a couple of things I think we should discuss. But maybe in the other room?”
Effie spoke up. “If you’re going to tell her you’re a witch that’s not a big deal.”
Torie smiled. “Well, that’s good to know. But there are other things as well. We will be back soon. You just rest here for a bit.”
Hattie gave her sister’s hand a squeeze and leaned in to kiss her on the forehead. “I’ll be right back. Just give me a second.”
Together they left the room and headed back to the kitchen. “I apologize for my sister’s words. She means well but is pretty set in her ways.”
Jasmin didn’t say anything, instead moved to make some tea.
“Would you like some?” she said to Hattie.
“No, thank you. But I will have some water, if that’s okay?”
Torie went to the refrigerator and took out a bottle of water and offered it to her guest. This was the first time she had really focused on Hattie, and she was shocked to find that the woman looked nearly identical to her sister. Her skin was a deeper, dusky tan from years of being exposed to the weather. Fine lines etched into her features around her lips and eyes were especially noticeable due to the fact she wore no makeup. Her hair was long and brushed back; Torie could tell that at one point it had been a dark chestnut color, but now it was mostly gray. It reminded Torie of the streak in her own hair that she had tried so desperately to remove.
Torie admired the fact that she chose not to cover up the features that showed she had lived life and wasn’t ashamed of it. She had to be in her late sixties, but you would never have known it based on the way she moved as she hopped onto the bar chair and threw back her water.
“Hattie, how much do you know about what Effie’s son may have been up to?”
“Well, I’m sure whatever he was doing it was no good,” she replied disgustedly.
Torie exchanged glances with Jasmin, trying to decide how much to tell her.
“Are you aware that he had your mother locked in her bedroom? Basically restrained to her bed?” asked Jasmin.
Hattie started, nearly dropping her water bottle. “I knew he wouldn’t let her call me, but I had no idea he had taken things that far. Why would he do that?”
“We don’t know. We were hoping that maybe you could help shed some light on that,” continued Jasmin.
“Are you aware he was practicing black magic?” asked Torie.
Hattie had a look of disgust on her face. “No, but I’m not surprised. I’m sure that is what got him killed. Is that what you’re getting at?”
“What about your daughter? Do you know where she is?” asked Jasmin.
“Tilda? No, I haven’t seen her in almost a year. Do you think she had something to do with this?”
“It’s just that, Effie told us the two of them were inseparable. If she’s here in Singing Falls and was with Terry, she might know something,” said Torie.
“We aren’t saying she had anything to do with it, but if she was with him and knows something, she might be in danger as well. We are pretty sure your nephew was murdered.”
Hattie shook her head. A great sadness clouded her features as she looked at the two women.
“My daughter had a falling out with Terry about something. I don’t know what it was because she stopped speaking to me. But I’m sure she didn’t have anything to do with his death. She really is not a bad person, and neither is Terry. It’s just that when they are together, bad things tend to happen. That was why I moved so far away from Effie and took Tilda with me all those years ago when she was young. We thought, if we could just let them grow up apart, maybe, just maybe, they would turn out to be the good people we knew they could be. But I see that isn’t the case.”
A single tear rolled down her cheek, and Torie quickly moved to get her a tissue. Hattie dabbed at her eyes, fighting to control the flood of tears that Torie sensed she was only seconds away from.
“Hattie, do you have a recent picture of your daughter? Or maybe even a personal effect of hers? We need to speak with her, and to do that we need to find her.”
Hattie thought for a moment. “Well, I do keep a picture of her with me at all times. It’s in my bag. But something personal? I’m not sure I have anything like that.”
Torie went into the great room and retrieved her duffel bag, sitting it on the island in front of her.
Hattie dug around in it, pulling out a myriad of items—two bags of hard candies, Chapstick, a couple of pill bottles—before she removed a small wallet-sized purse. She opened it and took out a small picture of a smiling woman with red hair and hazel eyes.
“Here, this is Tilda,” she said, handing the picture over to Torie. As she leaned across the island, something sparkled in the light streaming through the windows.
“Hattie, that is a lovely ring you’re wearing around your neck,” said Jasmin.
“Oh this,” she said, reaching for the gold chain from which a silver ring with a topaz rhinestone dangled. “I forget about it sometimes. It was Tilda’s. I wear it to try and keep her close to me even when she isn’t around.” Her eyes went wide at her words. “Do you think this would work for your personal artifact?”
Jasmin smiled, looking at Torie. “I think that will work just fine. May we borrow it?”
Tilda nodded and slipped the necklace over her head, handing it over to them.
“Are you going to cast some kind of witch spell on it to find my Tilda?” she asked.
Jasmin seemed nervous about the question but answered her truthfully.
“Something like that. This will certainly help us.”
Just then, Elric and Elion walked into the room with Max trailing behind them, head down, scribbling in his notepad.
“I think we found out what we needed from the—” Elric started, but caught himself when he saw Hattie sitting there, “
—the items you were able to procure.”
“Are they local?” asked Jasmin, fixing him with a stare.
“Absolutely,” said Elric. “Except for that first big ticket item, the rest are almost definitely local and belong to certain citizens of Singing Falls.”
“Also, with the exception of the one, they were all procured recently,” added Max.
“Okay, well that is good to know,” said Jasmin. “I guess that means our collector is still in the area, and I think Torie and I can pay them a call soon.”
Elric turned to face Torie. “I’ll go change and will accompany you.”
“No, that’s okay,” said Torie. “I appreciate the concern, but this is something that Jasmin and I need to do. Why don’t you stay here and see to our guests? Or, better yet, I left a list in my study of items I need for Fionna’s party. Maybe you can go pick those up.”
Elric wrinkled his nose and gave her a questioning look. Torie jerked her head towards the patio door, and both of them stepped outside.
“Look, I appreciate you wanting to do this, really I do, but I’m not helpless. My magic is stronger than ever and whatever is going on here definitely requires magic. I’ll feel better knowing you are here watching over Effie and Hattie. Whatever else is going on, it seems to revolve around their children. One has already been murdered and it looks like the other is elbows deep in that killing. Someone needs to stay with them, and I don’t fully trust Elion to do that. He’s always wanting to bite stuff, and I don’t like the way he looks at Effie.”
“I don’t like it…but fine. I will do as you ask.”
She gave him a quick kiss and turned to go back inside.
They closed the door behind them, just as Fionna came tearing into the room, chasing after Leo. The dragon roared as it scampered full speed at Hattie. Before it could reach her, Elion, moving faster than their eyes could follow, scooped him up and cradled him in a grip that the young dragon had no chance of escaping.
“Oh my,” said Hattie, eyes focused on the dragon. “What an interesting cat that is. Wherever did you get one with such markings?”
No one said anything as they all looked from Hattie to the dragon and back to Hattie again.
