by Ford, S. M.
After seeing Rosi into her house and explaining to Uncle Steve and Aunt Thiya what had happened, I headed home exhausted. Mom and Dad were in the living room, sipping wine. As soon as they saw my face, they knew something was wrong. Dad jumped to his feet. “Cal, what’s happened? You didn’t have an accident on Connie, did you?! Are you alright?” I explained what had just happened to Rosi and me. As soon as I finished, Mom and Dad both began to gather up their wine glasses. “Muffin, we’d better get upstairs and hunker down. I haven’t Shown yet since Mom transfused me. This could get ugly and a little bit messy, it sounds. Funny, I checked the Farmer’s Almanac and Apogee is supposed to be tomorrow, not today. I better take another look at that.” Mom chimed in as they started up the stairs. “Honey, if you hear any yelling from our room, don’t worry yourself. The first Showing is ... well, what am I telling you for? You just saw it for yourself. Anyhow, don’t worry. I’ll take good care of Dad. Let us know if you feel like it’s starting with you and I’ll run over to your room. I’m so sorry honey. But, it get’s easier, I promise.”
Things were getting real very quickly. It was already late August. The next Blood Moon was set to occur October 27 a few minutes after midnight. I decided to throw caution to the winds, and pay a visit to Aunt Maia and Uncle Will, Pellegrino’s parents. Hopefully I wouldn’t begin Showing while I was enroute. But maybe they could tell me something that would prove to be a clue to his whereabouts. I jumped on Connie and sped off towards the west side of Freedom where they lived. Twenty minutes later I parked Connie in front of the little stone house where Pellegrino had spent his childhood. Before I could even knock, Aunt Maia opened the door. She was a tiny, petite woman with short, blue-black hair. No matter the weather she always wore shorts, and her legs were tanned and toned. Her eyes were perfect almond shapes, slightly tipped up at the corners. She almost looked like she may have been half Japanese, but I wasn’t sure. This family was so big and so complicated and everyone looked so young that I was unsure who was whose parents and whose children belonged to whom. I knew she was Pellegrino’s mother because I had made a point of asking Mom. “Callidora! I’m so happy to see you sweetheart. What brings you to our side of town? Everything alright, or are you just dropping over for a little visit?” I gave her a hug and we went inside. “Well, truthfully Aunt Maia, I’ve been working on the curse. You know, this is my fifteenth year and all... Anyway, the word around the family is that your son Pellegrino is the only family member to leave and never return. Would you mind talking about him with me? I’m sorry, if it’s too hard to think about I totally understand. But if you could, it might help me figure this curse out.” Aunt Maia looked confused. “Well, honey, yes it is a tough thing to discuss. And I haven’t the foggiest idea what my Pellegrino could have to do with the curse. But then again, I never studied it, so I wouldn’t know. But ask away. I’ll tell you anything I can.” So Aunt Maia had never studied the curse? That must mean that Uncle Will was the Roccatagliata in the family, one of Great Sophia’s direct descendants. “Thanks Aunt Maia. So, I was wondering, would you have any idea where Pellegrino would be living now? Has he ever contacted you since he left? Do you know if he ever married or had children?” Aunt Maia motioned for me to sit down. “Well, my dear, that’s a lot of questions! No, I don’t have a clue where he is now. I haven’t seen him since he left when he was just fifteen.” She sniffled, plucked a tissue from a nearby box, and dabbed her eyes.”Sorry, I still get a bit emotional, you know. I did once get an envelope in the mail, years and years ago. It had no return address, and inside was a single sheet of paper with just a few brief sentences scribbled on it. I’m sure it was from Pellegrino, although I didn’t recognize the handwriting and he didn’t sign it. I still have it.” My heart did a flip flop in my chest. “Could I see it, please?” Aunt Maia walked to a small desk near the window. She returned with an envelope that had turned yellow with age. Inside was an equally aged and yellowed single sheet of paper. True to Aunt Maia’s words, just a few sentences were scribbled in now faded ink across the page. ‘Whiskey Lake northern point. Smell of night jasmine surrounds. Look up to see stars of the Summer Triangle with Vega, Deneb, Altair. What will soothe the soul lies beneath.’ I shook my head. “Wow, that’s a really cryptic note. What’d you think it meant?” Aunt Maia sat down and sniffled again. “I knew it had to be from Pellegrino. There was no return address, but on the envelope you’ll see that it was postmarked ‘Sweetwater, Wyoming’... I always just figured he had gone out as far into the wilderness as he could, trying to lose himself.” A flood of sniffles and tears followed, and it took Aunt Maia a minute to gather herself again. “Anyhow, I have always thought the note was his way of pointing me to a place that he found solace here in town. And maybe he thought that it would help me find some solace, too. I’ve been to the spot that the note mentions. It took me awhile, but I found it. I used to go and sit there quite often when I was especially missing him. It made me feel close to him again, which is what I think he wanted for me. I haven’t been there in quite some time, now that I think about it.” I asked Aunt Maia if she would show me where the spot was tomorrow and she agreed. As I was thanking her and getting ready to leave, Uncle Will came downstairs. “Hi Uncle Will! I’ve just been here talking Auntie’s ear off, but I’m on my way home now. Arrivaderci Zio!” Uncle Will was tall and lean, and he always had a cigar between his teeth. “Hey now sweetie, don’t go throwing all that Italian at me! You know I don’t speak a word of it! But how’s my favorite little Calli doing today?” I liked Uncle Will. He always reminded me of the old school movie star, Clint Eastwood, with his lean build and his cigar clenched between his teeth. “I’m well, Uncle Will... You don’t speak Italian? I thought all of Great Sophia’s kids and their kids speak Italian?” Uncle Will smiled that slow, easy smile of his. “Well, that’s probably true sweet thing, but I’m not one of Great Sophia’s kids or her kid’s kids... I guess I’m what you’d call an add-on to the family!” He chuckled, and I stopped on the front porch. “Whadyu mean, Uncle? An ‘add-on’?” Aunt Maia looped her arm through Uncle Will’s. “Oh, honey, it’s a bit complicated. You see, I married Gagliano Roccatagliata in 1895. He worked as a fisherman on the coast. He went to sea one day ... and I never saw him again. His ship never returned to port.” Aunt Maia stopped and began to sniffle again. “I’m sorry Auntie! Jeez, I’ve made you cry so much today! I’m sorry...” She squared her shoulders and patted my arm. “No, no ... it's okay honey. I haven’t talked about this in so many years... It’s just still a bit raw, though. But anyway, I was pregnant with Pellegrino, and with Gagliano gone I was lost and brokenhearted. But then I met Will one day when I was standing on the docks staring out at the ocean. We eventually married.” I was completely confused now! “So, I don’t wanna be rude, but were you and Gagliano related, like cousins or something? Your a vampire too, right? ‘Cause you don’t look more than 100 years old...Or did you transfuse with Gagliano? How is Uncle Will still alive if neither one of you are related to Great Sophia?!” Aunt Maia smiled. “Your a sharp one, aren’t you little Callidora? As it happens, before Gagliano was lost to me, he transfused me. We knew we were deeply in love and wanted to stay together forever. But that wasn’t to be... So when Will and I found each other, I transfused him, and here we are!” All this information that Aunt Maia had unloaded on me started to sink into my brain. I realized what she had said a moment ago. “Wait... Uncle Will isn’t Pellegrino’s birth dad? Gagliano was? What was the last name that Pellegrino was given?!” Aunt Maia and Uncle Will looked a bit concerned at my sudden intensity. “Umm, we gave him Will’s last name. Will was there through my pregnancy, and was the first face Pellegrino saw besides mine. Will raised him as though he had fathered him. It just seemed right... Pellegrino’s last name is Bartlett, like Will.” Jeez! It all made sense now! No wonder we couldn’t find Pellegrino! We’d been looking for Pellegrino Roccatagliata! What idiots we were! We’d spent months looking for someone who didn’t even exist! “Aunti
e Maia and Uncle Will, you guys rock! I mean, you're awesome! I gotta run right now, I’m late, but I’ll see you tomorrow Auntie? So you can show me the spot at the lake?” Aunt Maia looked a little puzzled at my sudden exit, but she smiled and agreed to meet me on the north shore of Whiskey Lake at 11 a.m. the next day. I flew home on Connie, raging with excitement. I couldn’t wait to tell Rosi and Donna about these breakthroughs! Now we knew Pellegrino had sent a cryptic message from Sweetwater, Wyoming, a real place that we could refocus the search. We also knew that we had been searching for a Roccatagliata when we should have been searching for a Bartlett! And, Aunt Maia was going to take us to the spot on the lake that Pellegrino’s mysterious note spoke of. Who knew what we might learn there! Things might finally be starting to fall into place on this puzzle!
Chapter 17
WHISKEY LAKE
Rosi was feeling better by the time I got to her house and filled her in. The Showing had passed and she had taken some medication to mute the pain in her mouth and hand. Her mouth was pretty swollen, though. When she spoke it sounded like Marlon Brando from the old movie ‘The Godfather’. Which was hilarious, and every time she talked I had to giggle. “Okay, cuz, if you're done laughing at me I’m going to bed. Man, I cannot wait for you to Show. I’m gonna crack on you so hard!” I hugged her, but not too hard. Since I had Vitalized today I really wasn’t sure how to control my strength, and I’d bruised her hand so badly that it was already a deep blackish purple.
When I got home Mom and Dad were nowhere to be found, but a pizza was sitting on the kitchen table with a note next to it that said ‘Eat me Calli’. I grabbed the box and headed upstairs. I couldn’t wait to flop on my bed and call Donna.
The next morning I heard Rosi and Tobie pull into the gravel driveway. I dashed downstairs, grabbed Connie and we were off to Whiskey Lake. It was just before 11 a.m. when we arrived, and Aunt Maia was already there. We parked the Mopeds, gave hugs all around, and started walking. Aunt Maia remembered exactly where the place Pellegrino had written of was located. After walking for about 15 minutes we arrived at the spot. To my surprise, it was a familiar place. On the north end of Whiskey Lake there was an outcropping of rocks. Rosi and I had spent many afternoons sitting here, eating lunch and just hanging out. Now, Aunt Maia hopped easily to the top of the rock pile where a large flat boulder made for the perfect vantage point of the lake. The trees grew thickly together in front of us, but parted in the center like curtains, so we could clearly see the sky. “This is the spot, girls. Heavens, I haven’t been here in a while, but it looks exactly the same. So peaceful up here.” She stared out at the lake for a moment. “When the stars come out you can see the Summer Triangle that Pellegrino wrote about.” Pointing to the sky she added “Just about there is where it’ll be. You can’t miss it. It’s really three stars... Vega, Deneb and Altair. If you imagine a line between them, they form a perfect triangle. Well, if you girls have all you need, I’m going to head home. This place makes me a bit sad...” We said our goodbyes, thanked her, and watched as Aunt Maia jogged away through the trees. Rosi and I sat down on the warm, flat rock and looked around. “Whadyou think Pellegrino meant by his note, Cal? I know Aunt Maia thinks he just wanted her to know where he spent a lot of time before he dipped out, but it’s gotta be something more, right?” I nodded. “Definitely, Cuz. I think we should come back here tonight and check out the Summer Triangle. Maybe then we’ll understand what he really meant. I mean, his note talks about ‘Whiskey Lake northern point. Smell of night jasmine surrounds. Look up to see stars of the Summer Triangle with Vega, Deneb, Altair. What will soothe the soul lies beneath.’ I see the night blooming jasmine, it’s everywhere through these rocks. But what does ‘What will soothe the soul lies beneath’ mean? I know he mentioned the Lake and the jasmine blooming, and the Summer Triangle so that his Mom could find the spot ... but that last line is a real puzzler.” Rosi nodded in agreement. “Let’s head out Cal, and come back tonight. Meanwhile we can get started on some internet searches for Pellegrino Bartlett and Sweetwater Wyoming.”
Later that evening, after the sun went down, Rosi and I met in front on my house. We pushed Connie and Tobie down the road until we reached the old family tree. “I think we’re far enough away from the house that Mom and Dad won’t hear our motors starting up. Let’s get going!” Rosi gave a thumbs up sign, and we headed back out to Whiskey Lake’s northern point. We pulled the Mopeds off the road and pushed them through the soft grass into a grove of trees. Between the tree cover and the darkness we were pretty sure no one would see them from the road. After the short 15 minute hike to Pellegrino’s spot we climbed to the top of the rock outcropping and surveyed the skies. “Lookit Cal! That’s gotta be the Summer Triangle there!” Rosi pointed to a group of three evenly spaced, bright white stars in the sky above and in front of our vantage point. We sat together on the rocks, listening to the gentle sounds of night. Crickets chirped their songs and night birds called out to each other in the darkness. The air was heavy and sweet with perfume of the night blooming jasmine that surrounded us. “Whiskey Lake northern point. Smell of night jasmine surrounds. Look up to see stars of the Summer Triangle with Vega, Deneb, Altair. What will soothe the soul lies beneath.” I repeated the words that Pellegrino had secretly sent his mother so many years ago. “Rosi, whadya think ‘lies beneath’ the Summer Triangle? I mean, from this spot the Triangle is above and sorta in front of us. Maybe we should take a walk and see where we end up when the Triangle is directly overhead?” Rosi nodded, we grabbed our flashlights and clambered down the rocks. The lake was normally peaceful and quiet, definitely one of our favorite places to be. But we had never been here after dark. Suddenly it felt a bit creepy. As we walked through the darkness I kept looking behind us. I had the uneasy feeling that someone else was here, but didn’t want to freak Rosi out too, so I kept my mouth shut but my eyes and ears wide open. At least I had Vitalized already, so if someone did attack us they were in for a surprise. After a few minutes, staring up at the sky as we walked, it appeared that the Triangle was now directly overhead. We stopped, and shone our flashlights around us, illuminating the area. We were standing in a little clearing encircled by a ring of trees. “Rosi, I think this is the spot! The Triangle is directly overhead, and this little clearing looks like it was put here on purpose...” Rosi spun around in a circle, surveying the trees. “You know Cal, look at the size of these trees. They are old for sure, but they are nowhere near as big or old as all the other trees around. I think you’re right. Maybe Pellegrino made this little circle? Maybe so his Mom could find it?” I agreed. It did seem odd that in the middle of a forest there was a perfectly circular clearing, surrounded by trees that looked as though they were much younger than all the rest in the area. We stood in the center of the clearing and thought for a minute. “Rosi, you might think I’m nuts, but I think Pellegrino wanted someone to literally look ‘beneath’... Like, maybe beneath the ground?!” Rosi’s face lit up. “That’s gotta be it! But this ground is hard as hell and we didn’t bring anything to dig with...” Ugh. So close, but so far away from an answer! “Rosi, we’re gonna hafta make another trip back here tomorrow. During the day, I mean. We already found this spot using the stars to locate it, now we just hafta come back when it’s light and get to diggin’!” Excited by the prospect of uncovering Pellegrino’s secret, we lingered around the spot for awhile. We couldn’t bear to leave without discovering the answers that we so desperately needed. The oleander bushes behind us crackled. I spun around, fear gripping my throat. “Who’s there?! I’m giving you one warning only ... you do not want to f*ck with me!” I gripped the flashlight hard and we peered into the darkness, backing up slowly. A hooded figure emerged from the bushes, their face cast in shadows. “Typical. You Vitalize and suddenly you’re a badass, ready to take on whatever shadowy figure threatens you? Hello cousin and sister. What brings you out here at this late hour? I’m terribly curious.” I instantly relaxed. Greg. He must’ve followed us!
“Jeez Greg! You almost made me pee my pants. What the heck are you doing following us like that?! Why didn’t you just tell us you were here?!” Greg pushed back his hood and grinned. “I did tell you I was here. Just now. And you threatened to ninja-kick me into the stratosphere. Hysterical, by the way, cousin. Wish I’d video’d it.” He shook his head, faking remorse. “Knew I should’ve brought the night vision cam. So what’r you two doing here? Sneaking off to meet some boys for a late night tete a tete? What happened? They stand you up?” The adrenaline that had been pumping hard through my veins made me feel a little reckless. “Greg, for somebody that hasn’t said more than 10 words since I met you, you sure are full of stuff to say right now... What’r you doing here?!” Greg grinned again and dropped his backpack to the ground. “I was in the attic doing some work when I looked out the window and saw this one...” He motioned to Rosi. “...pushing Tobie down the road. I followed her and then saw the two of you huffing and puffing down the road with your Mopeds. I saw you start them up when you got to the family tree. After that it was just a matter of simple deduction to figure out where you were going. You told me what Aunt Maia said, and that you’ve been snooping around here the last couple of days.” Rosi hadn’t spoken a word yet, but finally found her voice. “Greg, I love you like a brother, but you’re a little turd. How’d you get here so fast? It took us at least 15 minutes to ride here, plus another 15 minutes to hike to this spot. Did you sprout wings and fly?!” Greg grinned again, and shook his head. “Nope. I caught a ride from a police officer out on Freedom Boulevard. Told her I lost my dog at the lake earlier today and asked her to drop me here. Genius, right?!” I took a deep breath, finally feeling a bit more calm, and threw my backpack over my shoulder again. “Well, you wasted your time little cuz.” Rosi and I explained how we had found this spot, and our theory about a clue possibly being buried beneath the spot where we stood. “But, we didn’t know we’d hafta dig anything up, so we’ve gotta come back tomorrow with the right tools. Sorry you wasted a trip.” Without saying a word, Greg picked up his backpack, unzipped it, and pulled out a small camping shovel. He held it out to us. “What would you two do without me? Who’s gonna dig first?” I couldn’t believe my eyes. “How the heck did you know to bring a shovel?!” As he unfolded the little shovel, Greg explained. “It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that if you two are looking for something that ‘lies beneath’, a shovel might come in handy.” Chuckling, I grabbed the shovel. “I’ll go first. But since you’re here brainiac, can you figure out where the exact center of this clearing is?” Greg opened his backpack and took out a ball of string. “Of course cuz. Your wish is my command.” After a few minutes, Greg had laid the string out so that it encircled the entire clearing. Then he crossed straight lines from one side of the circle to the point directly across from the starting point. After a few minutes, the ground looked like a giant spirograph drawing. The center point was easily identifiable now. Rosi surveyed Greg’s work. “Wow. That’s pretty impressive, bro. Nice job.” I dug the shovel hard into the dry ground. Lucklily, I’d Vitalized, so the normally impossibly hard ground now broke away like wet sand. After digging for what seemed like an eternity, I felt the shovel connect with something very solid. “Hey! Guys, help me out here. I think I’ve hit something!” We all gathered around the hole. Rosi shone her flashlight into the recess, and we saw it. A small metal box glinted in the bright white beam of the flashlight. Too excited to even breathe, I reached down and lifted the box out of the grave where it had rested for so long. Rosi could barely contain her excitement. “Hurry up! Open it already!” The lid was rusted shut, but it crumbled apart when I applied a bit of force. Inside was a small wooden box with a red candle wax seal running around the lid. Once we broke the seal, the lid opened easily. Inside was a sheet of thick paper, covered top to bottom with intricate diagrams and seemingly endless notations. I was a bit disappointed. “I have no idea what this is. Rosi, Greg, how about you?” Rosi shook her head. “Nope. It may as well be Latin... Is it Latin?” Greg leaned in and looked closely. “No, it’s not Latin sis, but it’s pretty stinkin’ interesting...” His voice trailed off and he seemed lost in thought, studying the old paper. After a few minutes he raised his head. “Ladies, it seems our cousin Pellegrino was a bit of a nerd himself! I’ll hafta study this all more closely, but it looks like he has written plans for a gravity device of some sort. It’s actually really similar to something I’ve been working on for a few years. Look, here it says something about ‘Perigee simulation for stabilization of Showing attributes’ and then it looks like this diagram is an assembly of various strengths of magnets and then some other stuff that I’m not too sure about yet.” At the same time, Rosi and I both yelled “He was trying to stop Apogee?!” Greg nodded. “Looks like it... I won’t know exactly until I get back to the attic and sort this all out.” Rosi and I were already headed towards our hidden Mopeds. Greg lingered behind for a moment. “Uh ... who's gonna gimme a piggyback ride home?!” It was my turn to grin at Greg now. “I guess whoever you can catch before we take off cuz!” Without waiting for an answer, Rosi and I sprinted towards the trees where we had squirreled away Connie and Tobie.
