They pulled out onto the highway, heading north. After a while they started seeing billboards advertising all sorts of local tourist attractions.
“Ooh look! Disneyland,” Layla said with a rush of excitement. “I’ve always wanted to go, but Michael said it was only for little kids… Have you ever been?”
“No,” said Caledonia, “But we passed by it before on the way to a racetrack.”
“How about you, Cal?” Layla asked.
“Nope,” he said.
After a few minutes, and another billboard, Layla piped up, “We should go! Let’s do it! Let’s go to Disneyland… Pleeease?”
Her high spirits must have been contagious, because Calvin surprised Caledonia by shrugging, “Sure. I don’t see why not.”
He found himself escorting the two giggling girls through the theme park, having a better time than he thought he would. It was like the county fair on a much larger scale, and people were so unbelievably accommodating he was surprised. Layla took hold of Cali’s arm, urging them to the front of the long lines. She boldly strolled into VIP sections where they were never denied access, smiling her Cheshire cat grin at anyone who posed an obstacle.
Calvin guessed what she was doing, but Caledonia could see exactly what was going on, surprised by how ruthlessly Layla wielded her power. She was efficient, focusing just the right amount of energy with targeted precision. Her years of practice had obviously fine-tuned her abilities, and now that she was not being reined in by any real or imagined limits, she was running amok.
The third time they were placed onto a ride ahead of all of the people waiting in line she looked up at Caledonia, tipping her new cowboy hat with a wink. The professor had truly created a monster. A charming, girlish monster, but a monster nevertheless.
The way Layla had made off with the hat was troublesome. Caledonia would never take anything from someone on a mere whim, without any real need. She’d been raised with scarcity, working hard for everything she could accumulate, and she had a healthy respect for other people’s possessions. She could imagine at least a dozen scenarios where the confiscated hat might have been a cherished gift, a hard-earned purchase, or even a necessity.
In contrast, Layla didn’t seem to put any thought at all into how her manipulations ultimately affected people, making Caledonia wonder if it looked the same way when she did it. When they stopped to eat at a restaurant, Layla worked over the wait-staff mercilessly, making them so eager to please it was almost comical.
Everyone Layla encountered got the same treatment, making Cali tired just watching it.
“Don’t you get headaches?” Caledonia asked.
Layla was surprised. “How did you know?”
She told Layla what Roxy had said about the headaches getting worse with age, and the older woman’s warnings about a curse replayed in Caledonia’s mind. She fell silent for a while, finishing her meal in quiet introspection while Layla quizzed Calvin about playing poker in Las Vegas. Given her ruthless streak, Caledonia imagined that Layla would do very well if she ever tried her hand at cards.
When Layla got up from the table, Calvin took Cali’s hand, slipping his fingers through hers. “Are you alright?” he asked.
“I’m fine,” she put her concerns aside to smile for him.
After lunch she excused herself while Calvin and Layla got up to go look over a map of the park. When she rounded a corner to return to them, what she saw stopped her dead in her tracks.
Layla was talking to Calvin, casting an intense shade of lavender over him as he looked down at her. It was the same kind of mind-numbing agreeability that she’d tried to use on Cali the first day they’d met.
Caledonia started shaking, filled with such white hot rage that when she flew between them Layla jumped back in fear. “What do you think you’re doing?” Cali growled in a low voice.
“I…I…” Already pale, Layla blanched even whiter.
Caledonia turned to look up at Calvin, still bathed in a powerful cloud of acquiescence, completely oblivious to the tension between the two girls.
“We’ll be right back.” she told him, gripping Layla by the upper arm and steering her a few feet away.
“Back off!” she hissed ferociously. “Calvin is off limits.”
“But… but…”
“If I ever catch you messing with him again you’re on your own. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” she nodded, surprised by Caledonia’s ferocity. She looked like she was about to burst into tears. “I was only going to get him to take us on the rollercoaster next,” she whimpered.
Caledonia softened, recognizing the intense fear in Layla’s eyes. Seeing her tamper with Calvin had brought out something territorial in Cali, something primal and protective that she hadn’t felt for some time. I guess you can’t take the wild out of the girl, she thought.
She took a deep breath, calming herself. “Yeah, well… Calvin and I have an understanding… I don’t use it on him.”
“Why not?” Layla asked, honestly curious.
“If I did, how could he ever trust me?”
“But he wouldn’t know,” she countered.
“I would know.” She started to walk away, turning back, “Don’t ever mess with him again, alright?”
Layla nodded solemnly, “I promise.”
She trailed behind Caledonia to join Calvin, who was still scrutinizing the map. He wasn’t aware that anything had transpired between the girls, and he smiled at the two of them, “After the jungle ride we should check out the haunted house.”
They boarded a boat headed for an artificial Africa, and Layla slid into the bench behind them. Calvin and Cali snuggled together, laughing and pointing out the animatronic animals to each other, as Layla watched their sweet colors mingle. She’d seen her brother and Max with plenty of women over the summer, but Cal and Cali’s affection for each other was different in every possible way.
She’d noticed how they interacted all day, and the way she saw Calvin look at Caledonia– really look at her– was amazing. He treasured her, watching over her with such sweetness and respect that it took Layla’s breath away. She wished that someone would look at her that way someday.
When they climbed off the boat she followed behind them as they strolled hand in hand down a path, rounding a corner to reveal the facade of an old fashioned mansion. Caledonia stopped in her tracks, overcome by a surge of familiarity.
Four tall white columns supported a structure sheltering a large porch. It looked eerily like the porch from Caledonia’s dreams, and the only thing missing was the old woman. She looked over at Layla to see her own shock mirrored on her cousin’s face. Their eyes met, blue and green, green and brown, and the discord between them was completely forgotten.
They both knew it without even having to say it.
“You saw her too…” Layla said, goose bumps rising on her arm.
“I think she was our grandmother,” Caledonia shared her awe. “In front of the house that burned…” she nodded towards the facsimile mansion, standing on the neatly manicured grounds of the amusement park. “The ruins are on our land… I can take you there.”
“I want to see it,” Layla whispered.
Caledonia looked down at her feet, “You’re gonna need some better shoes.”
Calvin turned back to see both the girls staring at the building in shock and grinned. “Are you two scared?”
~
They drove a long ways that night, putting plenty of miles between themselves and Los Angeles. It was late when the three of them checked into a motel a morning’s drive to their destination, getting Layla a separate room. The two Cals snuggled together in bed, happy to be alone again. Caledonia rested her head on Calvin’s chest, and he stroked her back while they discussed the events of the day.
She told him what she’d seen Layla doing, surprising him. “I think that’s how she got you to go in the first place.”
“But I didn’t even feel it,” he said in disbe
lief.
“That’s why it works so well,” she explained.
He was quiet for a few minutes, finally asking, “How do I know that you never use it on me?”
“You don’t… You’re just going to have to trust me,” she said, her fingers trailing across his muscled stomach. He chuckled a little, kissing the top of her head. She traced every ridge and valley, smiling when he shuddered at her touch.
“I don’t think–” his breath caught in his throat.
“That’s good,” she said, letting her hand wander lower, “Because there’s probably not enough blood left in your brain to think.”
He laughed, rolling over to pin her body beneath his, “You wanna take that back?”
“Why?” she asked, “What are you gonna do about–”
He silenced her with a kiss.
~
Layla lie awake in her hotel room, unable to sleep after her first full day of freedom. She thought about Michael, wondering if he’d ever change his mind about Max. She picked up her phone and dialed. His phone rang and rang, and when he finally answered, he sounded groggy, his tongue thick in his mouth.
“Layla?”
“Are you alright?”
He hesitated, “You were right about leaving… I want to come with you… I want to meet up with you guys.” There was real fear in his voice. “Where are you?”
“Did he do something to you?” she asked, suspicious. “I should call the police.”
“NO! No police! If anything happens to Max we’ll both go down with him… Our names are all over everything. You have to promise me not to involve the law.”
“He threatened you, didn’t he?”
“Just tell me where you are.”
“I don’t even know,” she said. “I’m at some motel. We’re on our way to go see the land.”
“Listen… I need you to leave your cell phone on. I’ve been trying to call you all day.”
“I can’t. I didn’t bring my charger, and my battery is getting low… Listen, I’ll call you when we get there, okay? Maybe you can take a bus up or something, and we can come get you.”
“Okay,” he sounded grim.
She hung up, finally settling down to sleep.
~
Max got up from his chair, reaching his hand out for the phone. Michael passed it over, shying away when the big man patted him on the cheek, “Good boy.” He turned to another man clicking away on a computer, “Did you get a position?”
“I can narrow it down to the 101 corridor, somewhere outside of Ukiah,” the man replied, “But the phone has to be turned on for the GPS to operate… And the tracker does shorten the battery life. Once it goes dead we’re out of luck.”
“Okay,” Max addressed Michael, “Let’s get going, we’re gonna be as close as we can get next time she calls.”
~
Chapter Seventeen
RUINED
~
They pulled into the sleepy little town, going straight to the county clerk’s office to take care of their business. Calvin parked the truck on the main street, and the three of them climbed out into the crisp autumn air.
“We’ll just be a minute,” Caledonia said.
“I’ll be waiting right here,” Calvin replied, nodding towards a sun-drenched bench just out front. He’d been careful to avoid looking at Layla all morning, uncomfortable around her all of a sudden.
She watched sideways through a veil of red curls, seeing the two of them part with an affectionate kiss and a squeeze. It hadn’t taken long for her to realize that Caledonia had told Calvin what she’d done, putting the punctuation on everything Cali had said about trust. Layla found it hard to understand how the couple could keep no secrets from one another, and yet still find each other endlessly interesting.
In Layla’s experience, affection was something that needed to be earned, a prize that could be withdrawn as easily as it was bestowed. She’d been brought up performing tricks like a circus animal, craving the praise and attention that went along with a job well done. Teddy favored her over her brother precisely because of what she could do, and her brother loved her because she protected him from Teddy.
The whole thing was confusing.
The two girls went inside the courthouse, prompting Millie to look up from her desk with a start. Her eyes narrowed, scrutinizing the pale speckled girl surrounded by a cloud of red hair. Caledonia explained that she was Alastrina’s daughter, and they were there to add her and her twin brother to the deed for the Mackenzie land.
“My goodness,” she said, meeting Layla’s eyes, “Now, you… You certainly do take after your granny.”
“Really?” Layla was enraptured. “You knew her?”
This time they barely needed to try in order to extract information from the old woman. Layla’s razor sharp focus combined with Millie’s busybody nature to make it impossible for her to stop talking. Millie actually seemed delighted to have her inhibitions removed, and she couldn’t have asked for a more avid audience for her stories.
“Well, none of us really knew her, because all of those Mackenzies kept to themselves up there in that mansion… Thought they were too good to come and mix with us townsfolk. Nobody really wanted to tangle with old lady Mackenzie anyway, because in her younger days she was a pistol! She had hair like yours– Red as the devil, and a temper as hot as you-know-where… They say she fired maids just to be mean, and could put a spell on you if looked into those witch’s eyes of hers.”
“Did you ever meet her?” asked Caledonia.
“I never actually met her, but we all saw her when she got down off her high horse and came into town for something. She didn’t like us townsfolk much–”
“Surprising,” said Caledonia, her sarcasm going completely over the gossiping woman’s head. She felt a sudden rush of sympathy for the grandmother she never knew; it must have been terrible to be the object of such vile rumors in a small town full of suspicious minds. She had no problem imagining how viciously her ancestors were persecuted.
“Everyone knew they were on the run from something when they settled up there in the backcountry. When they stopped coming to church services there were wild rumors… Devil worship, animal sacrifice and all sorts of goings on! Some Gypsies and circus folk came through town and they even invited those folks to camp right there on their land! Bunch of pickpockets and thieves if you’d ask me… Why, when that group moved on one of the pastor’s girls was in trouble! The whole town blamed the Mackenzies.”
“In trouble?” Layla asked.
“Pregnant,” Caledonia explained.
Millie nodded at Caledonia, her eyebrows raised and her voice lowered, “She had to go visit a relative for the summer, if you know what I mean.” She cleared her throat, “You know, your visit set me to thinking about all the crazy goings on at that place, so I did a little digging. You might be interested in the photo I found…”
She handed Caledonia a print, explaining how a local builder had documented some of his construction projects, including the very courthouse they stood in. Millie rattled on, elaborating on the history of the little town, but both of the girls stopped listening once they laid their unusual eyes on the fading picture of their grandmother’s house.
It was an imposing building, with a large wraparound porch sporting four massive fluted columns supporting a Greek style portico. The hills behind it looked familiar, as did the location of the massive brick chimney. It was the house from both of their dreams, and a chill passed through Cali when she recognized the spot where she’d spent so many warm summer afternoons.
She looked into Layla’s gold and green eyes. “Is it the same one?”
She nodded, her face grave. The picture confirmed that they had a connection that went deeper than mere genetics, and the psychic component flew in the face of everything that Professor Reed had taught her about the world. There was something going on that went far beyond mere coincidence, and they both knew it.
Caledonia wa
s honestly surprised. Her understanding of their synesthesia kept zig-zagging from scientifically explainable to out-and-out paranormal, and she couldn’t even begin to imagine what her parents would make of it. She remembered Jesse once telling her that everything people considered supernatural was simply phenomena that was beyond current science’s ability to understand.
Maybe he was right… But then again, he claimed to have seen Bigfoot.
“Take me there,” Layla urged her.
“If you girls ask me, I wouldn’t set one foot up there,” Millie chimed in, “Folks say that the land is haunted, and that the ghost of–”
Caledonia smiled sweetly at her. “Nobody asked you.”
Millie made a little clucking sound, handing over some paperwork and watching as Layla signed. “Your brother is going to need to come in and file a form too,” she told Layla.
Layla pulled out her phone and dialed, “I need to tell him about this.”
This time, he answered right away, “Hello? Hello?”
“Michael! I’m at the courthouse, and you’re not gonna believe–”
Just then, the door opened and in walked the young sheriff’s deputy. He nodded politely to Caledonia, “Cali…right?” His eyes flickered over to Layla and lingered.
She was stunned speechless. From the top of his close cropped head to the tips of his scuffed up cowboy boots, she’d never seen such a cute boy in her entire life. He stared at her, his shining black eyes full of curiosity.
“Uhm… I’ll call you right back,” she told Michael, pocketing her phone.
Cali nodded back at him, gesturing towards Layla. “Officer Ruiz, this is my cousin Layla.”
He smiled, flashing even white teeth and holding out his hand for a shake, “Call me Ramon. This town is sure looking up.”
She reached out her hand automatically, forgetting to breathe when he smiled again and a pair of dimples popped onto his smooth brown cheeks. Her own face flushed bright pink when he took her hand in his.
Mackenzie Legacy, The Page 13
