by Terri Reid
His finally pressed 9-1-1 and waited for dispatch to answer.
“9-1-1, what’s your emergency?”
“There’s a fire at the Willoughby Store out on Highway P. Please send the fire department and an ambulance,” he said, praying that there would be no need to it. “Please hurry!”
“Can I get your…” the operator was cut off when Donovan hung up his phone.
He glanced at the clock, it was 4:45, the time Cat was locking things up and putting away the cash drawer. He closed his eyes and pictured her in his mind. “Cat, get out of there,” he called, trying to send his message telepathically. “Cat, seek shelter. Cat, hide! Now!”
Chapter Thirteen
Once he’d been able to calm Gabriella’s coughing spasm, Joseph had slipped out of the room, avoiding Helga, and said his goodbyes to his grandfather before jogging back to his vehicle. With his vehicle stopped at the end of the road, he rolled down the window and listened for any traffic on the highway before him. Hearing none, he crept forward, around the copse of trees and then onto the grass-covered drive that was barely discernable to the shoulder of the road. No one was around, so he quickly pulled onto the highway and headed back to Whitewater.
He was two miles east of the junction of County Roads A and P when he heard the call about a fire at the Willoughby Store come over the radio. His heart dropped and he immediately pictured Hazel in the midst of fire and flames. Pulling over to the side of the road, he picked up the discarded ticket and punched in the phone number listed next to her name.
“Hello?” her voice seemed clear and slightly confused.
Joseph pulled back out of the road as he replied. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” she replied. “Why?”
“The fire, at your store,” he said. “Is everything okay?”
“There is no fire at the…”
Joseph could hear the explosion in the background. “Hazel!” he yelled into the phone. “Hazel, answer me!”
The phone went dead. Joseph turned on his sirens and accelerated, driving past farm houses and fields at full-speed. He could hear the fire trucks in the distance and wondered who reported the fire before it already began. Obviously, someone involved in setting the fire.
He switched on the radio and called dispatch.
“This is Chief Norwalk, who called in the 911 on the Willoughby fire?” he asked.
“I’ll have to check on that,” the dispatcher replied. “Can I call you back?”
“Yeah,” he said. “Call me as soon as you know.”
He could see plumes of smoke in the distance when he turned up Highway P and swore under his breath. The flames were already visible above the tree line. He hoped there would be something left of the store by the time the fire department arrived.
Chapter Fourteen
Hazel dropped her phone when she heard the blast and immediately turned toward the store, concentrating her inner vision on her sister, Cat. ““Bacainn!” she cried out, creating a barrier between her sister and any projectiles caused by the explosion. Then she took off running toward the store.
The rest of the family poured out the house, running towards the store. Agnes felt a little relief when she saw there were no cars in the parking lot, but that relief was short-lived when she saw the flames burst through the roof of the store.
Hazel rushed past them, only glancing over her shoulder for a moment. “Where’s Henry?” she yelled.
“He went to town,” Rowan shouted back, trying to catch up with her sister.
“Call him and have him come home,” Hazel replied. “We might need both of you!”
Then she darted ahead and ran to the front door, ripping it open with a wave of her hand.
“Cat!” she screamed at the top of her lungs.
“In here,” Cat cried out. “I’m in the office and thanks to your damn spell, I can’t move.”
Hazel inhaled a shuddering breath and then moved forward, pushing the debris and fire to the side as she hurried to the back of the store. “Sorry,” she called out, once she could speak. “That was the first thing that came to mind.”
She opened the door with another wave of her hand, and found her sister crouched beneath the metal desk. “How did you know?” she asked, removing the spell and allowing her sister to climb out of her hiding place.
“I heard someone calling for me to seek shelter,” she said. “I wasn’t sure what was supposed to happen, so I locked the front door, ran back to the office and hid under my desk.”
“Well, whoever called you, I’m grateful,” Hazel said, stepping back and letting Cat see what was left of her store. “They probably saved your life.”
“Cat! Hazel!” Agnes called from the front door. “Are you okay?”
“We’re fine, Mom,” Hazel called back. “Just assessing the damage.”
Then Hazel turned back to Cat. “So, we have a choice here,” she said.
“Okay,” Cat said, her stomach sinking as she looked around. “Give me my options.”
“We let the fire department arrive and hack the hell out of the rest of the store, and then have them do an investigation on who caused this mess,” Hazel began.
“And option two?” Cat asked.
“I clean things up, tell them it was a false alarm, and we find out who did this ourselves.”
Cat looked around the room again. “It’s going to take a lot out of you to fix this,” she said.
Hazel shrugged. “So, I’ll get some bath salts, herb tea, and do a facial in the bath tonight,” she said. “I’ll get over it.”
Cat put her arms around her sister and gave her a hug. “Thank you,” she said.
“Well, thanks for not being dead,” Hazel replied, her voice cracking. “You scared the hell out of me.”
“If it’s any comfort, I scared the hell out of me too,” Cat said.
Hazel nodded. “Okay, it’s a little comfort, but not much,” she said with a tight smile. “Now, let’s get this cleaned up before the fire trucks arrive.”
Chapter Fifteen
Joseph was two miles away from the Willoughby Store when he noticed a strange cloud appear in the sky. It was dark and thick and rolled forward, enveloping the tops of the trees and blocking any smoke or flames.
“What the…” he exclaimed, staring at the clouds that moved in a circular motion around the area.
He wondered if it could be the remnants of a chemical explosion. He knew the Willoughbys also created herbal mixtures in another building on the farm. Could that building have been affected by the explosion? Did they have an LP tank outside the store? Could that have exploded too?
Once again, the vision of Hazel’s body, torn and bleeding, entered his mind. He saw her laying in the rubble of the store, burnt and broken. He could feel rage surge through his system, whoever did this to her would pay. Whether through the laws of the land, or the laws of the Wulffolk, they would pay. But now, his only goal was to make sure she was safe.
His squad car careened into the parking lot at the store, its sirens blasting and its tire throwing out a spray of gravel. He pulled in front of the store and stared in total disbelief. Everything was fine. The store looked no different than it had earlier in the day when he had passed it on the road. He got out of his vehicle and looked around. There was no smell of smoke, the sky above him was bright blue, and the strange cloud was now gone.
He started to walk toward the store when the door opened, and he saw Hazel, her eyes closed, leaning on two women in order to walk. Acting on sheer impulse, he ran forward and scooped her up in his arms. “What did you do to her?” he demanded.
“Listen to me,” the tall red-head said to him, her eyes filled with wrath. “You put my sister down and you put her down slowly, or you’ll be sorry.”
The tall, black-haired woman stepped forward and put her hand on the red-head. “You need to listen to my sister,” she said, and although her voice was calm, he could sense the steel underneath it. “You have
no idea what we are capable of.”
Hazel opened her eyes and looked up at Joseph. “What are you doing here?” she mumbled.
“You know him?” Rowan asked.
Hazel sighed softly and nodded. “Police Chief Norwalk meet my sisters, Rowan and Catalpa,” she said.
He looked down at her, his panic beginning to subside. “What happened?” he asked. “I saw the flames. I saw the fire.”
Agnes came out of the building, closing the door behind her and then turned. “Hazel you did an excellent job…” she began and then stopped when she saw Joseph. “Who are you and why are holding my daughter?”
Joseph shook his head. “I’m Chief Norwalk,” he said.
“Oh, the nice young man who took back Hazel’s ticket,” Agnes said, moving forward and smiling at him. “I do apologize for Fuzzy’s behavior. It’s not at all like him to attack someone.”
Confused at the turn of events, Joseph felt like he had stepped into an alternative universe. “Can someone please answer my questions?” he asked.
The fire truck sirens suddenly seemed much closer. Agnes turned in their direction. “It seems to me that it took those fire trucks quite a long time to get to our store,” she said to no one in particular. Then she looked at Joseph. “Wouldn’t you agree?”
He thought about it for a moment. He received the call when he was easily ten miles away from the store. The fire trucks were several miles closer and he had been there for several minutes. He nodded at her. “Yes, I would agree,” he said.
She smiled at him. “Well, perhaps you wouldn’t mind carrying Hazel inside,” she said. “While we greet the firefighters.”
“But…” he began.
“You might as well do what she’s says,” Hazel said, yawning softly. “She always gets her own way.”
“Is that so?” he asked, his voice gentle as her eyes drifted shut and snuggled against him.
“Um, hmmm,” she sighed sleepily.
“I guess I’d better listen then,” he whispered. He hefted her a little closer. “Where to?” he asked Agnes, as Rowan and Cat walked across the parking lot towards the road.
“Why don’t you take this back path,” Agnes suggested. “Then you are both out of the view of prying eyes.”
Joseph walked down the path and was around the back corner of the house when the fire trucks pulled up in front of the house. Fuzzy stood on the deck, his tail wagging, eagerly greeting both of them.
“You don’t seem too worried about her,” Joseph said to the wolf.
The wolf whined softly and then led Joseph into the house. Joseph stepped into the kitchen and immediately saw that it was left in a hurry. A pot on the stove had charred stir-fry cooking in it, the water was still running in the sink and an empty meat container was laying on the floor. He looked over at Fuzzy and then looked back at the meat container. “Taking advantage of the situation?” he asked.
The wolf had the courtesy to at least look a little ashamed.
“Okay, show me where to safely lay her down,” he said and then followed the dog to a comfortable couch in the middle of the great room. He laid her down, tucked a comforter around her and then went back into the kitchen, pushing the wok off the burner, turning off the water and then squatting down and disposing of the meat container in the garbage.
“You owe me,” he said to the wolf, who licked his cheek in gratitude.
“Fuzzy usually doesn’t take to strangers,” Rowan said, as she walked into the kitchen. “But strangers usually don’t help him hide his nefarious deeds.”
Fuzzy sat down and looked up at Rowan, his mouth open in a wide wolf smile. Joseph stood up, dwarfing Rowan, which was something that rarely happened to her.
“Are you going to tell me what’s going on?” he asked.
She shook her head. “Oh, no,” she replied with a smile. “You are going to have to get the story from the whole family. And that’s an experience not to be missed.”
Chapter Sixteen
Henry stormed through the front door. “I just passed a bunch of fire trucks on their way back to town. What the hell happened here?” he exclaimed immediately.
Joseph, sitting in a chair next to the couch, looked up at Henry. “That’s what I’m trying to discover too,” he said, unfolding his tall body from the chair. “But so far everyone is telling me that I have to wait until Henry gets back. I take it you’re Henry.”
Henry closed the door and walked over to Joseph. “I am,” he said guardedly. “And you are?”
“Chief Joseph Norwalk,” Joseph replied easily. “The new police chief in Whitewater.”
Henry stood his ground, assessing the man before him. “And have you been bought and paid for?”
“That’s an interesting question,” Joseph said, nodding slowly. “And generally, I would have taken offense if anyone else had asked me it. But after what I’ve seen today, I can understand your concern.”
Henry folded his arms over his chest. “Well, have you?” he asked pointedly.
Joseph smiled and shook his head. “No, the only pay I receive is my salary from the city,” he replied, meeting Henry’s eyes. “And the only side I take is the one that’s on the right side of the law.”
“Good,” Henry replied.
“But I’ve yet to determine which side of the law you’re on,” Joseph added pointedly.
“That’s fair enough,” Henry said. “Do you have an open mind?”
“How open?” Joseph asked.
This time Henry smiled. “Very open,” he said.
“I guess we’re all going to find out,” Agnes said, as she entered the room carrying a tray of teacups. “I thought we could use some tea to calm our nerves.”
“Why do our nerves have to be calmed?” Henry asked.
Rowan hurried into the room, followed by Cat. “I’ll explain in a moment,” Rowan said. “But can you first help me with Hazel?”
“Hazel?” Henry asked, then he turned and saw her on the couch. “What happened? Why is she…”
“She’s just exhausted,” Rowan interrupted, calming him. “And normally I would suggest we just let her sleep. But since she’s an integral part of this conversation, I thought if we both worked on her…”
“We could share the burden,” Henry finished. “That’s brilliant.”
“Burden?” Joseph asked, as he watched Rowan and Henry kneel on the floor next to the couch. “What are you talking about?”
“Shhh,” Agnes said. “They really need to concentrate.”
Rowan placed her hands on Hazel’s shoulders and Henry laid his hands over Rowan’s. They both closed their eyes and Rowan spoke first,
The cost of magic is high indeed,
It pulls the strength right out of thee,
Then Henry spoke,
In lieu we offer our energy,
As we ask, so mote it be.
Fascinated, Joseph watched as Rowan and Henry both seemed to experience physical signs of exhaustion; their breathing increased, sweat beaded on their foreheads and their bodies shook slightly. Then, when they lifted their hands and sat back on heels, Hazel sat up on the couch looking totally refreshed.
“I could have just slept it off,” she said to Henry and Rowan. “You didn’t need to put yourselves at risk.”
“We did it together,” Rowan said. “So, the risk was minimized.”
“Would someone mind telling me what is going on here?” Joseph asked.
Shocked to hear his voice, Hazel turned and looked across the room at him. “What are you doing here?” she asked.
“You might not remember, dear,” Agnes said. “But Joseph arrived just as Rowan and Cat were carrying you out of the store. He carried you inside.”
Hazel paused to remember and then a flush rose on her cheeks as she recalled snuggling against his chest. She took a deep breath and nodded. “Yes, now that you mention it, I seem to remember the chief arriving on the scene.” She met Joseph’s eyes. “Thank you for helping me.”
“Well, family, what do you think?” Agnes asked.
“He’s going to hear about it one way or the other,” Rowan said. “It would probably be better for him to hear the truth from us.”
“Cat?” Agnes asked.
Cat turned and studied Joseph until he felt that she was looking inside of him.
“Yes,” she said slowly. “Yes, he needs to know from us.”
“Henry?” Agnes asked.
Henry smiled at Agnes, aware of the honor she just placed on him, considering him to be part of their family. “Thank you,” he said. “I like the man. I think he’s direct and honest. And whether he likes it or not, he’s going to be part of this.”
Agnes nodded. “I agree,” she said. “Henry, why don’t you begin by telling Joseph about the history of the Willoughbys in Whitewater.”
Henry sat down, the couch at his back and looked at Joseph. “There were three sisters who traveled from New England, Salem to be precise, to escape what they feared would be a new resurgence of witch trials. They initially came to Whitewater, Wisconsin, which seemed to be a Midwestern Mecca for many coming from New England. They settled well, contributed to the community, and were well respected.”
“Very well respected,” Agnes added. “And everything would have been fine, if it hadn’t been for Morris Pratt.”
Henry nodded. “Morris Pratt was a gentleman who was interested in spiritualism, which was thriving in the United States during that same time period. He was looking for a place to build a school to teach spiritualism and do academic research. He built a large institute in Whitewater because the area was already active in a paranormal way.”
Joseph nodded. “I’ve heard that about this area,” he said. “So, what happened?”
“What I used to think was legend, and now understand as fact, is that the people at the institute were playing with fire. They were having seances and opening themselves up to any kind of entity that would answer. Because of their ignorance, they unleashed something—a demon, an ancient evil entity, or a spirit bent on mayhem.”
