by Maria Lima
I sagged back into the couch cushions. “No, you're right. That was too easy. Damn."
Niko spoke up. “There's no way those kids could have placed some sort of spell, could they? After all, Tucker told me they were there the other night, before you all went there."
Both Tucker and I shook our heads. “No,” I said. “Humans can't do that kind of magick. They may ‘cast spells', but really, it's more like praying, or wishing real hard."
"But they may have woken something up,” pressed Niko. “Something or someone."
"That,” Tucker said, “is why we need to go back there. Niko, you with us?"
"I am."
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
"It's as I thought,” Niko said, staring at the cemetery entrance. “I can feel the barrier from here. I won't be able to get in."
Tucker nodded as he pulled out a camping lantern, a flashlight and a tire iron from the back of the Rover. “The overhang is straight back, over to the right a little. If you walk around that clump of oaks over there and climb up, you should get there fairly quickly."
"Got it,” Niko said, and disappeared into the darkness.
"I'm trying to decide whether or not I should go ahead and shift now and save myself the trouble,” Tucker joked as we walked through the graveyard.
I poked his side with the tire iron. We'd brought it to see if we could remove some of the debris accumulated in the deadfall. The space behind the statue to the limestone wall would be tight, even if we did clear it away, as the two guardian trees had grown quite large over the years. A crowbar and some more muscle would have been better, but I didn't have the former and the latter were all unable to get to the statue. I wasn't about to involve any humans at this point.
"Maybe make sure to keep aware this time,” I said. “If we're lucky, the reason you triggered it was like you said, the magick. Let's keep all our magick hands in our pockets and tackle this the mundane way."
"Aye, aye, captain."
* * * *
We stood together at the right side of the Angel, contemplating the tangle of debris, weeds and mesquite, the light from the lantern casting strange shadows. “That's going to hurt,” I said. “I should've brought gloves or something. At least there's no sign of the energy."
"You think the other side's any better?” Tucker asked. “I'll go check.” He grabbed the flashlight from me, sprinted around the statue and came right back. “Nope, even more of a mess. Let's go for it, then."
Tucker handed me the flashlight. “You hang on to the light, in case I shift. I'll stand back a little."
I held my breath and began to reach for the deadfall. The night seemed to grow quieter then, still—as if everything around us waited, too.
"I'm here.” I jumped back as Niko spoke. Looking up, I could see a flash of his hair over the edge. I pointed the light upwards. Niko peeked over the side. It looked like he was lying on the ground, his head craned over the edge.
"It's a little crumbly up here,” he said. “There's a tree root that's grown through the stone."
"Be careful,” Tucker said.
"Find anything?"
"Nothing yet, we haven't started."
"Good luck with that."
I nodded my thanks. I took another deep breath, and reached out again, my finger barely grazing a branch at the top of the heap. We waited a moment. Nothing. I stepped closer, tucked the flashlight under my arm and grabbed onto the branch. Still nothing.
Tucker stepped forward. “Let's get to it, then.” He grabbed onto the other side of the branch.
A flash. A hum. My entire body shook with power unleashed and power restrained. I froze, gripping the wood, feeling as if I'd taken hold of a live electrical wire. Light and heat assaulted my senses. Next to me, through a buzzing like a thousand bees, my brother screamed, the raw sound morphing to a wolf's howl.
I dropped to the ground, spent, one hand grabbing for the ruff on the wolf's neck as my muscles turned to jelly.
"What in all the unholy hells was that?” I demanded, trying to stand and not thump back down on my ass in the dirt, barely managing to keep my balance as my wobbly knees began to return to normal.
"Tucker! Keira!” Niko called down to us. I found the flashlight on the ground and pointed it upward.
"We're okay,” I said. “I think. Did you feel that?"
"Something,” Niko said. “Felt a little like electricity, but mild, like a static shock."
"It was more than that down here. Tucker's shifted again."
"I gathered that from the howl,” Niko said drily. “Is he all right?"
"Looks to be a little shaken,” I said after giving my brother the once-over. He crouched next to me, trembling a little. The remains of his jeans and tee hung from his fur. He hadn't had a chance to strip this time. Good thing I carried a spare set of clothing in the car for him. “Niko, can you see down behind the statue?"
Niko shook his head. “It's too dark and the overhang is too fragile for me to try to move any further forward. Can you shine the light over the deadfall?"
"Not without touching it, and I'm not sure I want to do that again."
Tucker's snout nuzzled my knee as he looked up at me, sad puppy eyes accompanying a low whine. I didn't have to understand wolf language to know what he meant. I don't like it any more than you do. I petted his head absently. “Something's back there, Niko,” I said.
"Keira, maybe you should both go back to the car. We'll go home and figure this out."
He had a point. But we were here and going back to the ranch wasn't going to accomplish anything.
Tucker nudged me again, wiggling his whole body, an antsy dance signifying his impatience. I didn't comprehend. Perhaps if I became a shapeshifter like he was, I'd be able to understand him when he was in wolf form, but for now I wasn't getting it.
"What?” My impatience showed in my tone of voice. The words came out a lot sharper than I'd intended. “Sorry, didn't mean to be so blunt,” I said. “I'm—"
My brother gave a low growl, more annoyance than warning. “All right, already,” I said, capitulating. “Show me what you want."
"Keira, what's going on?"
"I don't know, Niko. Tucker seems to have a notion about something. I don't speak wolf so I'm having a little trouble figuring it out. If he'd shift back and tell me—"
A low growl morphed into a whine. I stared at my brother. He crouched, belly to the ground, head raised as if reaching for something. Tucker's head ducked down, moving from side to side as a shudder ripped through his body. He raised his head and bowed it again, another ripple under his skin as his muscles strained against ... what?
"Tucker?” I ventured.
My brother yipped once and then stood from his prone position, remaining silent, his gaze catching my own.
"What the...” My voice trailed off as I realized. He couldn't shift back. Tucker's shaggy head dipped and rose again, straining and pushing as if against an invisible net. Another shudder and whine as he failed once more to change shape. I stepped closer, hand out to touch, to comfort. He nosed my palm once, in acknowledgment. Rising from his crouch, he shook himself, caught my gaze once more and turned back to the deadfall as if to attack it.
"Damn it, Tucker,” I said as I grabbed his fur and tried to pull him back. “This is not a good idea. If something there is keeping you from shifting back, we shouldn't go looking for it. And if you think I'm going to let you touch that damned barrier again, you're insane. Niko, I think you're right. We're leaving. Tucker can't shift back. Meet us at the car."
"On my way,” Niko said.
Tucker's head turned, jaws snapping in warning, not at all close enough to actually bite. I jumped back. “For fuck's sake, stop that!” I smacked him across the hindquarters. “Are you crazy? I'm trying to—"
Tucker barked loudly and shot me a glance that had to mean “Shut up and help” and lunged at the deadfall. I made a grab for him, but he slipped by me and, with the force of a full-grown wolf, s
crabbled at the debris, paws and jaw tearing at it.
Nothing happened. No energy attack, just the dust and dirt flying as Tucker began to demolish the barrier. “Niko,” I called loudly. “Come back!"
I turned my attention to the wolf. “Okay, fine. That's the way you want to play this, Tucker? I can humor you ... at least for now. But understand this, brother mine, any—and I mean any—sign that whatever is back there is more than we can handle, we stop and return tomorrow night with some reinforcement."
I stood still a moment, closing my eyes. The scrabbling sounds stopped and a cold nose nudged my hand. “Shush, wait,” I said. “I need to try something.” Tucker whined a little and pushed his head under my hand. “It's fine.” I reassured him. “I need..."
With a deep breath, I focused inward, concentrating. My normal mental shields still held, still the same. I couldn't feel any lessening. Concentrate, Keira, I thought. A brush of fur against my palm felt soft, gritty with dust. I imagined expanding my awareness outward a little, reinforcing my invisible walls. I saw them in my mind's eye, a latticework of solid light weaving stronger, closer together. Turning my attention outside myself, I felt around for any signs of Other, of the energy we'd experienced. Nothing. It was as if it had never existed. Yet, Tucker couldn't change back.
I opened my eyes and regarded my brother. He sat patiently next to me, gaze catching mine. “I don't know,” I said. “I tried to see if whatever it was affected me other than knocking me on my ass, but I seem to be fine. I couldn't sense anything either. I'm not very good at this, you know.” He rubbed his head against my thigh. “Sorry, Tucker, I tried. Something caused this, but as far as I can tell, whatever it was, it's gone."
I ruffled his fur. “You still want to check this out?” I motioned to the deadfall. Tucker nodded and trotted back over to it.
In a few minutes, he'd managed to clear away nearly half of the debris. His fur was matted and filthy, covered in dirt, dead leaves and small branches. Dust hung in the air, a result of his efforts. He grinned at me, or at least as much of a grin as a wolf could manage and went back to pulling at the deadfall. I joined him, wedging the tire iron into the tangle and using my strength with his.
"Are you two crazy?” Niko's voice floated down.
"Probably,” I said, digging at a particularly stubborn tangle of mesquite and torn-up rope. “Tucker's bound and determined to get back here and nothing happened when we touched it again, so hey, here we are."
"Damnation,” Niko muttered. “And I thought vampires were stubborn."
"I can hear you,” I laughed.
"Well, I wasn't trying to keep quiet,” Niko retorted. “Why don't I lie here for a bit. Seeing as how neither of you are exhibiting common sense."
I shrugged and went on prying at the tangle.
It took both of us the better part of an hour and the sacrifice of too much of my own skin, but we finally broke through. I set the tire iron down, uncapped one of the water bottles, took a swig, then wet my shirttail and used it to wipe my face a little. I was as filthy as my brother. I found a shallow depression in the angel's stone base and poured some water into it for Tucker to lap down. I upended the rest of the bottle over his head. He rewarded me by shaking off the water, much as any dog would after bathing.
"Bloody hell, Tucker,” I gasped. “What was that for?” He rubbed his body against my leg in apology. I opened a second bottle, refilled his temporary doggy bowl, then chugged down what was left. As he finished drinking, I picked up the tire iron. “Okay, brother mine, let's go. Niko, we're going in."
I shimmied through the hole we'd cleared, my brother at my back.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
The moment I stepped through to the other side of the deadfall, I knew why we'd come. Tucker had been right. Something was definitely “off.” A chill silence weighted the air, the dusty heat of the Texas night vanished as if we'd gone through the back of a wardrobe into the winter of Narnia. I shivered as my skin buzzed and tingled, my jaw tensed against the low-level energy permeating the place. The energy buzz felt more like something I was used to, more like someone set up a protection, less like an attack. I relaxed a little, and looked around.
There wasn't much to see, the same twisted mass of dead wood and rotting branches behind us, the back of La Angel to our left. Across this tiny clearing, not ten feet away, more deadfall, as if Nature herself had grown to protect? Keep out? Keep in? Something.
A hunk of limestone lay shattered on the ground, obviously sheared from the cliff face. I looked up to see where it had come from. Like Niko said, the gnarled root of a live oak dug down into the wall, reaching for the water that wasn't there, its growth splitting the stone. Directly under the trailing end of the root ... an opening. Nothing to write home about, not even as large as the shallow cave opening we'd seen earlier during the search. Except this one wasn't a shallow hollow. My brother Rhys had been right. This was definitely the entrance to a cave.
Instinctively, I grabbed for Tucker's ruff with my right hand, shifting the tire iron to my left and tucking the flashlight under my arm. Harder to see that way, but I felt better holding onto my brother.
A piece of cloth was caught on the shattered rock, faded denim from a work shirt, not jeans, too thin for that. I wasn't an expert, but I knew immediately that it hadn't been there long. The denim was faded, but still fresh, as if recently torn from its wearer's clothing.
"What do you think?” I asked. “Alex? The kids?” I shook my head as I watched the fabric flutter slightly as a gust of air hit it. “No, too faded, too worn for the kids. The twins wouldn't be wearing work shirts, nor would Brittany. Maybe Jimmy Stahl, but I doubt it. It's too hot. Didn't the notice say he'd been wearing a T-shirt?” I nodded to myself and to my brother who hadn't quit staring at the cloth. “No, not the kids."
I raised my voice. “Niko, we found the cave. There's a bit of cloth here, recent. It can't be more than a few months old."
"Alex Robles?” Niko asked.
"Maybe. If he came here, he might have been on the overhang, fallen down or something. He sure as hell didn't come through that deadfall. I think we need to go inside, see if he crawled in there."
"Be careful, Keira, Tucker. Remember I can't come help you if something happens."
"We'll take a quick look around, see if we see anything. We'll come straight back out.” By anything, I meant remains. If Alex Robles had fallen from the overhang, survived and crawled into the mouth of the cave, it was likely he died there. That deadfall hadn't been disturbed in years.
Tucker and I stepped closer to the entrance, the low almost silent growl from my brother raising the hackles on my own neck. A sudden movement of air brushed my face, a tendril of my own hair, long since half-unbraided, tickled my cheek. I started, and tightened the grip on my brother's fur as we stepped inside. The cave entrance wasn't much wider than both of us if we stood side by side, perhaps five feet or so across at its narrowest, expanding to perhaps six or so about shoulder level. There were no remains. If Alex Robles had been here, he'd gotten out ... or gone further in.
"Can you scent anything, Tucker? Could Alex have been here?"
My brother shook my hand free and crouched low to the rock-strewn dirt. As he sniffed around, I stood at the entrance, moving the flashlight around, examining the area. At first glance, the cave mouth wasn't any different from the thousands of other cave mouths throughout the Hill Country—not that I was any fan of caving, but one of my distant cousins used to photograph caves as a hobby. There were no signs of habitation—animal or human—just that lone scrap of cloth that had caught our eyes. The dirt floor was dirt, rocks and some debris, nothing indicating a human had been there.
The cave mouth itself wasn't very deep, perhaps eight or nine feet before the eight-foot ceiling sloped downward sharply and narrowed to a small dark passage, barely large enough for me to pass through. Not that I had any intention whatsoever of going any further or, for that matter, any closer. I'd joked abou
t it before, but I was definitely extremely claustrophobic, especially in caves. Once, as a girl, we'd gone to Natural Bridge Caverns over near New Braunfels. I did okay for most of it, since the caverns were quite large. At one point during the guided tour, they'd turned out the lights. I stopped screaming half an hour after they'd brought me back outside. The idea of crawling into a dank hole in the ground with merely a flashlight and a wolf for company wasn't going to cut it.
"What the...” The breeze shifted again, smelling of cold and rain. The odor of stone reached me and my knees gave way....
"Hijo de la...” His out-loud exclamation fades as he peers through the dark, trying to see down the narrow passage in front of him. His eyes itch, blurry with lack of sleep and the inevitable pre-crash jitters. He hopes the remnants of the high would last a little longer—at least until someone finds him. This wasn't how he'd planned to spend Sunday morning, especially after the night before. The party had been fun, but now, here he is, stuck in some cave on the ass end of someone's property; lost, cold and wet from the incessant rain. Going with that girl last night and letting the others go back to the ranch without him? Really, really brilliant. Thinking with his cojones instead of what was left of his brain, is what it was. Estupido.
He blinks a few times, wishing he'd had the presence of mind to keep a bottle of Visine in his backpack. Over the past couple of years, he'd gotten good at dosing himself without even having to look in a mirror. Practice makes perfect. And it really did get the red out—at least most of the time. His eyes are raw, so dry he could almost hear the lids scraping over the eyeballs.
Pendejo, he thinks. If he'd had enough sense to ignore that cute little guera, but he'd always been a sucker for busty blondes. Then she'd pulled out a small mirror and started to roll up a dollar bill. He'd had to stay after that.
The crank had been nasty—brownish chunks that could barely be cut up with a razor blade. His nose is still torn up, even after half a bottle of nasal saline. But it had been worth it. The rush was great and the girl was better.
