“Next,” she said.
I stepped up to the counter, eyeing the list of choices.
“Can I have an Americano made like a Mocha, and then I’d also like a coffee Add in hot cocoa please,” I said.
“Sure coming right up! Joe, did you hear that?” she asked.
“I’m on it!” he shouted.
“That will be a six-fifty.”
I handed her seven bucks, got my change and wala! Joe handed me my drinks.
“Thanks,” I said. I spun around, bumping into Mr. Jones.
“Getting a coffee before class I see. It’s a great way to stay alert!” He stepped closer to the barista and pulled his billfold out of his pocket.
“I love my Mocha’s in the morning,” I replied.
“Well, I believe you’ll enjoy our lecture today. It will give you more to contemplate.”
“Is it more about foxes, or are we going to discuss werewolf’s?”
“Nope, something much cooler, and I’ll want to talk to you after class.”
“You’re almost up to the counter so I should go.” I managed a weak smile. “Not only that my friends are waiting for me,” I added.
“Catch you in class.” He turned back towards the counter, and the barista began taking his order.
I noticed Molly had joined Owl and Jenson at the corner table. I hurried over to them trying not to spill our drinks. I handed Molly her hot coffee with cocoa and sat down beside Jenson.
“Mr. Jones was being mysterious concerning our next lecture. He requested to speak to me after class. I’m apprehensive with all the hints hidden in his current curriculum.”
“He’s pretty cool. Last year, our tribe had an exhibit at the museum. He included it in his class syllabus sharing stories of our tribal myths and legends. Jones isn’t a likely suspect. He could be a great allie. We just need to be careful seeing as we’re not sure who all the enemies are,” explained Owl.
“Yes, but they could be anybody at this point. It could be the wolves who are living across from Starla’s clan,” Molly replied.
“True, but we haven’t yet had any experience with them. Our primary goal is to find out what happened to the missing kids, why Du-Vance was killed, and now we are speculating he may have had a sibling. It’s a lot to take in. His father seemed OK when we saw him, but he’s just skating by,” stated Owl.
“Can we see that picture you had?” I asked.
Owl opened up his pack and pulled out a green photo album. He skimmed the pages, then stopped.
“Here it is,” he said, laying it out in the middle of the table. He pointed to a young woman with curly blondish brown hair, big soft brown eyes and a kind of slender build wearing a light-fitted floral dress.
“I can see why Rascal was enchanted by her,” stated Molly as she examined the photo.
“Have you told anyone else about this?” I asked.
“No, I figured I’d let you guys know first. Maybe I was wrong to assume no one was looking for Nuria. I thought she’d left on her own accord,” Owl said.
“A lot of this information and inquiry needs to be discussed with those involved, especially Nuria’s sister Eva. She’s missing a daughter. All of our speculations, could be tied in together, or maybe I’m reaching and they’re separate events,” I said.
“It would be great if we could head to the cabin, on our own. I’ve been to Outlook Point a few times. I’m sure if we drove around, we could find it,” Jenson suggested.
Before I could mention Nuria, being a fox-wolf merged, I heard a voice.
“How many cabins do you suppose are out there?”
“Sit down Lance,” ordered Owl.
He pulled out the chair the furthest from us and sat. I had no clue he went to college here unless he was just using the community computers.
“What are you doing here?”
“Stopping by to see how your investigation is going. No one is handing out information. I thought I’d drop some knowledge, on you. Shellena and I wanted to chat with you the other night at the bar,” he said.
I played with the napkin in front of me sipping on my Mocha. Molly stared at the table behind us. It must have been someone she knew, or maybe Maine?
“It wasn’t the right time for us to talk,” spoke Owl.
“Well, I know where the cabin is. I’ve been there. It didn’t come to mind until recently. I’d done some work for Nuria in the past, helping her fix her lawn mower among other things. She didn’t trust many people out there, even Du-Vance’s father had never been to the place,” said Lance.
“We should at least let Eva know we’re going out there. I mean, her sister knew where she lived, right?” I asked.
“Yeah, she hardly ever went there though. Nuria liked her privacy. I was quite surprised when she and Rascal got together, but who am I to judge. We all need companionship, at least most of us do,” Lance responded.
“Um... I... I have to go. I’ll meet you guys in class. Jenson, catch me up on all this later? There’s somebody I need to speak to,” Molly stuttered.
“Sure thing.”
“Bye,” we said.
Molly hadn’t seemed too focused since we’d sat down, so I wasn’t surprised when she left.
“She didn’t stay long,” said Lance.
“The girl has other things on her mind,” Owl smirked.
“What sort of, things?” asked Lance.
“Ah, leave it alone. Let’s get back to why we’re here,” said Jenson.
“I was going to offer to take you guys out to the cabin. If you want we can meet up with Ranger Mike, first that’s fine, but I need to know what day we’re all free,” Lance answered.
“Wednesday, after Molly gets out of church, or Saturday are my only free days right now.” I was shocked when I’d looked at my schedule at Denny’s. I rarely got Saturdays off.
“By the way, Jenson I want you to come over for dinner soon. First, I have to make sure my dad’s going to be there. Bring him up to date on the case so to speak,” I confirmed.
“Sounds good. Wednesday would be the best day to assemble with Ranger Mike, as well as the other clan members,” said Jenson.
“Great,” said Lance.
“Has my dad spoken with you about any of this?” I asked him.
“We’ve touched base a few times. Last time, he chewed me out about scaring the crap out of you,” he chuckled.
“Well, if you hadn’t I probably still wouldn’t know the truth.”
Lance got up from the table surveying the scene around us. “I’ve got to get to the computer lab to work on my resume. This current factory job isn’t cutting it. If I have to fill another applesauce, packet I’ll lose it. There’s this job hiring an auto repair place,” he said.
“Fixing cars, huh? Well, I am going to get my moped license soon I expect. Things have been pretty crazy recently. I must get my dad to take me.” I bunched up the napkin beside me.
“Well, make sure you do. I heard about Eva loaning it to you. A nice gesture, as it was Cal’s and all,” noted Lance.
“What time should we meet at the Ranger’s station?” asked Owl.
“Two is good. I have a few errands to run. Oh, and bring donuts. Mike loves em!” Lance exclaimed. He stood up, then waved as he strutted away from the table exiting the cafe.
Jenson and Owl packed up their things. I grabbed my backpack and empty Mocha cup.
“I guess Molly will meet us in class,” I said scanning the room for her.
“Let’s go, better not be late. You know how he is, locking the door so you can’t show up tardy,” verified Jenson.
“Yep,” I answered.
I’d have to tell them later what I’d discovered about Nuria.
“Why is the class half full? Where is everybody?” I asked Molly as I sat down next to her.
“Not sure I’ve been here a while,” she said. Then pointed to Mr. Jones, who was setting up the power point.
I fished out my notes from my pack. My sy
llabus said we had a test Friday. We never held the class on Fridays?
“Do you suppose he’ll put everything on the next exam? I mean we’ve gone over the Kitsune Fox, Unicorns, Vampires, and,” I stopped in thought.
“It says here we are going over the idea that cross breed, species exist,” said Owl who sat behind us.
“That’s right, and today we have a small class. Some students are going to be in hot water when they decide to show up next week. The test is Friday. I can’t be in class Thursday. If you need to take it that day due to work or prior engagements, see me after class. I’ll work something out if it’s acceptable say you work that day, for example. I can be a pretty awesome guy,” he said.
Jones turned away, continuing to set up his equipment. He shuffled through papers placing them on his desk beside an envelope. Owl’s name was scrawled, on it. What? Why would he have a note for Owl and want to talk to me after class? That doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. I turned my notebook to an empty page prepared for anything Jones might decide to drop on the examination.
“We have to study this week,” Molly whispered to me as Jones made his way to the computer. He turned it on to begin the power point.
“I’m not exactly sure how with all we have going on,” I muttered, sighing. I felt Jenson, who was seated behind me, place his hand on my shoulder. He gave me a little reassuring pat.
“Look, we’ll plan something after this cabin invasion. Lance will just have to understand,” Jenson whispered.
“And if he doesn’t?” I asked.
“Don’t fret now. We need to focus on this power point, plus you can always study after work tonight.”
Mr. Jones pulled down the screen used to display the power point, turned off the lights and the room fell silent...
The oration dragged on and on for a two-hour class. Carefully, I took notes as Mr. Jones presented an array of topics. So, much for just speaking about mixed breeds. He’s not only discussed the merger of a human-fox and a human-wolf, but of doppelgangers who brought forward the definition of spirit animals. Some tribes believed particular members had the ability to transform into an animal. If they were spiritually connected to one another. Shapeshifters could transform into anything assimilating themselves, for either good or evil purposes. It wasn’t a short lecture. I lay down my pen as Mr. Jones turned the lights back on.
“Why can’t we just study Greek gods?” Jenson blurted. People in our class chuckled around us.
“I prefer to teach on the fun side! I’m not boring or comparable to other professors on campus. We will get to the Greek gods. In this unit, our focal point is on mythical animals in film, stories, scripts, and a few I’ve speculated may have existed at one time here. Yes, right here in Springville.”
Owl’s eyes got big. I pushed my chair back near to where he sat.
“Hey, are you OK?” I asked, whispering.
“Pretty much, but you know there’s some truth to what he’s saying,” Owl replied.
“Yes, but it’s all speculation, he said so himself. I wouldn’t panic much unless he comes creeping into Hunters Park.”
Mr. Jones cleared his throat, taking his place back at the podium after organizing some notes on his desk.
“Now, you’ll need to know everything we’ve discussed in this unit for the test. Remember, it will be on Friday unless you make arrangements for Thursday! I expect you to be able to identify mythical creatures, where you might find them, how to defeat, or merely stun them. If they live in a mythical place or on earth, I want you to distinguish that too. At the end of the test, there will be a chance for you to gain extra credit. You’ll make up a story. Reflect on which mythical creature you most relate to or interests you. Write about that,” he concluded.
Everyone started to get their things together. You could hear whispering behind us. This didn’t seem like an ordinary group of students. Did I not pay attention to my class or was I falling into the trap of pushing everything together that might relate to the case?
“Starla, I’d like a word,” said Mr. Jones.
“OK.” I collected my book and lecture notes.
Jones stepped up to my desk setting down some note cards, a magazine, and a report of some kind.
“Extra homework, this is why you wanted to talk to me!” I was flabbergasted.
Mr. Jones acted like he didn’t know what to say. He stood there silent. Then shook his head, as if he was waking himself up from a micro-nap.
“What was I doing?” he asked.
“Giving me some materials, are they for extra credit?”
“Oh no, I want you to use the note cards to study for the test. The magazine is a special edition of spirit animals, and the report is from ages ago. It has to do with Cal Summers. The report given speculates what might have occurred. Crazy accusations I must say. For example, she joined a fox tribe the other stated kidnaped by bandits. The most bizarre rumor was she’d been seized for her safety.”
If this was true, why wouldn’t her mother know? Could the urban legends be accurate, mixed in with her disappearance? Du-Vance’s death genuinely got me thinking.
“So, are you expecting me to find out what happened? What do you know about this?” I demanded.
“Do some research, write a story based on what you believe may, or may not have happened, for the extra credit on the test. That’s all I’m asking for,” he stated.
“OK, but you’re, being pretty cryptic,” I replied rolling my eyes.
“Yeah, you’re being really weird. I hope that no one, put anything other than cream in your coffee,” speculated Jenson.
Mr. Jones just grinned and chuckled. I couldn’t determine if it was an evil chuckle or a friendly one.
“See you in class on Friday,” he said, slipping an envelope into Owl’s backpack.
Chapter 21
“I have no clue, how I’m going to put together this report for Mr. Jones and tackle all this crap for the case,” I told Jenson. All four of us were sitting in a sandwich shop eating our lunch.
“We have the meeting on Wednesday. You could privately talk to Eva about it.”
“She doesn’t know what transpired. You read the report. Cal wandered off, running after a dog that could, possibly, have been a wolf. We don’t know anything after that,” I said.
“My advice read that report Jones gave you scour it for any clues,” suggested Molly.
Owl, took a big gulp of his cherry cola then let out a huge burp!
“Sorry, about that. I agree, going over that report first before assuming there are no other leads is something we must do,” Owl added.
“We?” I demanded.
“Yes, we’re in this together. It’s rather complex,” he stated.
“How is it complex?” Molly inquired.
“Finding Nuria, that is step one, if they are all connected, then either she or the clues might tell us if the reason for her fleeing was to protect Rascal and his son. If so, then whoever was after Nuria, may have been after Du-Vance. They might have even killed him,” Jenson responded.
“What about the missing kids? Do you suppose Cal and Lang fit in with this case? Star a member of my clan told me, a group called the bandits didn’t like half-breeds or merged species. There was a massacre years ago at Rogue River. I’m pretty sure they’re involved in all this!” I said.
“We can add them to our suspects list, but we shouldn’t jump to conclusions,” advised Owl.
“We’d better take notes. That way we can present them at the meeting. It’ll make it a bit easier,” Jenson suggested. He pulled out his notebook and flipped it open.
“Take what we know to Mike,” recommended Owl.
I finished up the last bite of my turkey delight, smearing a bit of mustard on my sleeve. Ugh! I hated stains.
“Nuria is a blend of half wolf, half fox. I wanted to tell you when we were having coffee today. Then I was reminded again by the lecture in class. One of her parents had to be a wolf-human, and the other
a fox-human. If not, then how did it come to be?”
“Who told you that?” asked Owl.
“My mom, Tri,” I replied.
“When?” asked Molly.
“Saturday night, my dad came over to have dinner with us. We had an open family discussion about some things and the case.”
“The idea of merged species ties into Jones class again.” Jenson banged his hand on the table.
“It may simply be a coincidence, but I have been wondering about that as well,” I answered.
“Keep your mind open to the possibility that either Jones is feeding us information or trying to get us to solve something that could help the case. Why that is, I don’t know. He’s a nice man. Awfully strange, though,” observed Owl.
I got up and emptied our trays into the waste basket, then sat back down.
“What happened after you went back to Rascals?” Jenson asked Owl.
“What night was that?”
“When you took the girls out for drinks,” replied Jenson. We all got up to leave.
“Nothing really, I prodded him for more clues, but he didn’t seem to have any. It was a lost cause, pressing him for more facts.”
“OK, well, I should go. I want to get to the DMV,” I said.
“I ought to go home and face my folks,” said Molly, standing up from the booth.
I shielded my eyes against the glare of the sun hitting the freshly fallen snow. Fox tracks? Was someone watching us, keeping tabs?
“Weird,” I pronounced, pointing to the tracks as we left the building.
“Make note of that,” said Owl.
Jenson took my hand. The snow crunched under our feet as we trudge to his car.
“Molly, you want a ride home,” he asked.
“I’ll take her,” replied Owl.
“I’ll see you two, Wednesday. If anything happens, I’ll call you,” said Molly.
“OK, sounds good.”
Myth (Book 1) Page 14
